System and method for detecting alternator condition
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method of detecting alternator condition on a commercial vehicle comprising the steps of:
- sampling powerline voltage from the commercial vehicle battery in predetermined intervals;
calculating an average voltage, a maximum voltage, a minimum voltage, and a differential voltage;
detecting the engine speed; and
changing engine speed to a second engine speed;
calculating an average voltage, a maximum voltage, a minimum voltage and a differential voltage at said second engine speed;
calculating a ratio of the differential voltage at the higher of said first and second engine speeds to the lower of said first and second engine speeds; and
comparing said ratio to a predetermined standard to determine the alternator condition.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method for detecting alternator condition is provided. Information is taken from the vehicle powerline and the communication links, and processed by the vehicle ECU, such as the vehicle antilocking brake system ECU, to obtain data. The battery voltage ripple amplitude is then calculated and compared at different engine speeds. If the difference in the ripple amplitude at the different engine speeds is greater than a predetermined threshold value, a signal is sent indicating that the alternator has failed.
32 Citations
11 Claims
-
1. A method of detecting alternator condition on a commercial vehicle comprising the steps of:
-
sampling powerline voltage from the commercial vehicle battery in predetermined intervals;
calculating an average voltage, a maximum voltage, a minimum voltage, and a differential voltage;
detecting the engine speed; and
changing engine speed to a second engine speed;
calculating an average voltage, a maximum voltage, a minimum voltage and a differential voltage at said second engine speed;
calculating a ratio of the differential voltage at the higher of said first and second engine speeds to the lower of said first and second engine speeds; and
comparing said ratio to a predetermined standard to determine the alternator condition. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
-
Specification