Method of operation of air cleaner used in motor vehicle

• US 5,107,218 A
• Filed: 05/30/1990
• Issued: 04/21/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Takashima, Yoshinori, Hayashi, Nobuhiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Wieder, Kenneth A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Regan, Maura K.
• Application Number:
  US07/530,702
• Time in Patent Office: 692 Days
• Field of Search: 324/503, 324/545, 324/158 MG, 340/648, 307/10.1, 307/10.7
• US Class Current: 324/545
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0031 using battery or load disconnect circuits H02J9/002 takes precedence

Abstract

Method of operation of an air cleaner used in a motor vehicle, comprises the steps of: intermittently turning off a blower motor of the air cleaner at a given interval; detecting ripple components included in an output voltage developed by a dynamo driven by an engine of the motor vehicle by detecting the output voltage between dc power supply lines connected from the dynamo to the air cleaner; and maintaining turn off condition of the blower motor when the ripple component is lower than a given level during intermittently turning off the blower motor. When the engine is stopped, during the on interval of the blower motor, stoppage of the engine cannot be detected by watching the ripple components included in power supply lines. However, during the following intermittent turning off interval, stop of the engine can be detected because the ripple component due to operation of the blower motor is not developed. Therefore, the blower does not continue to run after the stopping of the engine, so that power stored in the battery is saved.

Claims

1. Method of operation of an air cleaner including a blower motor used in a motor vehicle having a dynamo driven by an engine of said motor vehicle for producing a supply voltage including a first ripple component and dc power supply lines connected from said dynamo to said air cleaner blower motor, comprising the steps of:

(a) removing a second ripple component developed by said blower motor from said first and second ripple components between said dc power supply lines by intermittently turning off a blower motor of said air cleaner at a given interval;

(b) detecting said first and second ripple components by detecting said supply voltage between said dc power supply lines; and

(c) maintaining turn off condition of said blower motor when said first and second ripple components are lower than a given level during intermittent turn off of said blower motor.

2. Method of operation of an air cleaner used in a motor vehicle, comprising the steps of:

(a) intermittently reducing rotating speed of a blower motor of said air cleaner at a given interval;

(b) detecting ripple components included in an output voltage developed by a dynamo driven by an engine of said motor vehicle by detecting said output voltage between dc power supply lines connected from said dynamo to said air cleaner; and

(c) turning off said blower motor when said ripple component is lower than a given level during intermittently reducing rotating speed of said blower.

3. In a motor vehicle including an engine, a dynamo driven by said engine to produce a dc power supply voltage applied to dc supply lines having a first ripple component and an air cleaner having a blower motor powered by said dc supply lines, said blower motor when operating producing a second ripple component in said dc supply lines, a method of operating said air cleaner comprising the steps of:

(a) intermittently disconnecting said blower motor from said supply lines to remove said second ripple component during disconnection of the blower motor;

(b) detecting the voltage on said supply lines during disconnection of said blower motor; and

(c) maintaining disconnection of said blower motor from said supply lines in response to detection of a ripple component on the supply lines attaining a value less than a predetermined value.

4. In a motor vehicle including an engine, a dynamo driven by said engine to produce a dc power supply voltage applied to dc supply lines having a first ripple component and an air cleaner having a blower motor powered by said dc supply lines, said blower motor when operating producing a second ripple component in said dc supply lines, a method of operating said air cleaner comprising the steps of:

(a) intermittently reducing the speed of said blower motor;

(b) detecting the voltage on said supply lines during periods of reduced blower motor speed; and

(c) disconnecting said blower motor from said supply lines in response to detection of a ripple component on the supply lines attaining a value less than a predetermined value.