JP6507697B2 - Power generation controller - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a power generation control device for controlling a generator mounted on a vehicle.

  Conventionally, there is a power generation control device described in Patent Document 1 as a device for controlling a generator mounted on a vehicle. In the control device described in Patent Document 1, the first control device acquires the number of rotations of the engine and the accelerator opening degree, and determines whether the first control device performs regenerative power generation based on the traveling state of the vehicle. ing. On the other hand, the power generation control device receives a command as to whether or not to perform regenerative power generation from the first control device, and controls the generator based on the command.

JP, 2006-182274, A

  The power generation control device described in Patent Document 1 controls the rotating electrical machine based on a command from the first control device. Therefore, as long as the first control device does not have the function of determining whether or not to perform regenerative power generation, naturally, the power generation control device can not control the rotating electrical machine. Therefore, when the power generation control device described in Patent Document 1 is mounted on a vehicle, it is necessary to add a function of determining whether to perform regenerative power generation in the first control device.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and the main object thereof is that the first control device that controls the engine does not have a function to instruct the control of the power generation device. Even if it is, it is providing the electric power generation control apparatus which can control an electric power generation apparatus.

  The present invention acquires an engine, accelerator opening information indicating the amount of air supplied to the engine, and rotation number information indicating the rotation number of the rotating shaft of the engine, and the accelerator opening information and the rotation number information A power generation control device mounted on a vehicle including a main control device for controlling the engine based on the power generation device connected to the rotation shaft of the engine, the power generation control device controlling the power generation device, Acquisition means for acquiring the accelerator opening information and the rotation speed information from a control device; control means for controlling the power generation device based on the accelerator opening information and the rotation speed information acquired by the acquisition means; And the like.

  The second control unit receives engine rotational speed information and engine load information from the first control unit, controls the on-vehicle unit based on the information, and the power generation control unit also similarly rotates the engine from the first control unit. Speed information and engine load information are input, and power generation control of the power generation system is implemented based on the information. In this case, the power generation control device can perform power generation control based on transmission information common to the other second control devices. That is, in the power generation control device, based on general-purpose information such as engine rotation speed information and engine load information similar to the second control device, without receiving a direct command on the execution and stop of power generation from the first control device Power generation control.

  As a result, even if the first control device does not have the function of instructing the control of the power generation device, the power generation control device can control the power generation device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a figure which shows schematic structure of a vehicle control system provided with the electric power generation control apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process which a power generation control apparatus performs. It is a time chart at the time of performing control concerning an embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings. The power generation control device according to the present embodiment is mounted on a vehicle having an engine as a drive source. A schematic configuration of a vehicle control system provided with the power generation control device is shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 1, the engine 10 is, for example, a multi-cylinder gasoline engine, and includes an injector, an ignition device (igniter, etc.) and the like (not shown). An automatic transmission 12 is connected to a crankshaft 11 of the engine 10. The automatic transmission 12 is provided with a lockup clutch 13 and an automatic transmission 14, and changes the rotational force of the crankshaft 11 with a gear ratio set each time and transmits it to the output shaft 15.

  The lockup clutch 13 is configured by an electromagnetic clutch or a hydraulic clutch, and functions as a switching unit according to the control instruction, and switches between the engaged state and the non-engaged state. If the lockup clutch 13 is in the engaged state, power can be transmitted between the crankshaft 11 and the output shaft 15 via the lockup clutch 13, and if the lockup clutch 13 is in the non-engaged state, Transmission of power between the crankshaft 11 and the output shaft 15 via the lockup clutch 13 is not performed. The automatic transmission 14 is a multi-stage automatic transmission mechanism, and is constituted by a planetary gear, a clutch mechanism for connecting and disconnecting the rotation shaft of the planetary gear, and the like, and switches the gear according to a control instruction.

  An axle 17 is connected to the output shaft 15 via a differential gear 16, and wheels 18 are connected to the axle 17. The wheels 18 are provided with brakes 19 for applying a braking force to the wheels 18 by being driven by a hydraulic circuit or the like (not shown).

  In addition, an alternating current generator 22 which is a power generation device is connected to the crankshaft 11 via a rotation transmission mechanism 21 configured of a plurality of pulleys, belts, and the like. Since this alternating current generator 22 is a known generator provided with a plurality of elements, its specific configuration will be omitted. When the crankshaft 11 rotates, its rotational power is transmitted to the AC generator 22 via the rotation transmission mechanism 21. At this time, if control for generating power is performed on the elements included in the AC generator 22, an AC voltage is induced in the AC generator 22. The AC voltage is converted to a DC voltage by the AC generator 22 and supplied to the battery 23.

  The battery 23 is, for example, a lead battery with a terminal voltage of 12 V, and supplies electric power to electronic devices and the like provided in the vehicle by the stored electric power, and supplies electric power to a starter motor (not shown) when starting the vehicle. To

  The injector and the igniter of the engine 10 are controlled by an engine ECU 30 which is a first control device. As is well known, the engine ECU 30 is mainly configured of a microcomputer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM and the like, and controls the engine 10 by executing various control programs stored in the ROM.

  Specifically, engine ECU 30 acquires accelerator operation information from accelerator position sensor 41, and acquires a pulse signal from crank angle sensor 42. The accelerator operation information is information indicating an operation amount of the accelerator by the driver of the vehicle, and the engine ECU 30 obtains accelerator opening degree information by performing arithmetic processing on the accelerator operation information. Since the accelerator opening degree information is information that represents the load of the engine 10, it can also be referred to as engine load information. On the other hand, engine ECU 30 performs arithmetic processing on the pulse signal acquired from crank angle sensor 42 to obtain rotation number information representing the rotation number per unit time of crankshaft 11 and rotation angle information representing the rotation angle. . The rotational speed information also represents the rotational speed of the crankshaft 11 of the engine 10, and can also be referred to as engine rotational speed information.

  The engine ECU 30 calculates the opening degree of the throttle valve provided in the intake path of the engine 10 and the amount of fuel supplied from the injector based on the obtained accelerator opening degree information. Further, based on the rotation speed information and the rotation angle information, the fuel supply timing from the injector and the ignition timing by the igniter are calculated. Further, the engine 10 is controlled based on the accelerator opening degree information and with the calculated supply timing and ignition timing.

  In addition, the engine ECU 30 is communicably connected to the lower ECU, which is the second control device, via the first communication line 51 and / or the second communication line 52 that function as communication means. The lower ECUs include a brake ECU 31 that controls the brake 19 and a transmission ECU 32 that controls the automatic transmission 12. The accelerator opening degree information is transmitted to the subordinate ECUs via the first communication line 51, and the rotation speed information is transmitted via the second communication line 52.

  The brake ECU 31 estimates the decelerating torque by the engine brake with respect to the rotation of the axle 17 based on the acquired accelerator opening degree information. Then, when it is determined that the lock of the wheel 18 occurs due to the decelerating torque by the engine brake and the decelerating torque according to the brake operation when the driver performs the brake operation, the decelerating torque by the brake 19 is weakened. Take control.

  The transmission ECU 32 switches the gear position so as to obtain an optimal speed reduction ratio, based on the acquired accelerator opening degree information and rotation speed information. The transmission ECU 32 also receives vehicle speed information indicating the speed (vehicle speed V) of the vehicle from the vehicle speed sensor 43 via the third communication line 53. The vehicle speed information may be input through the engine ECU 30, or may be input through another higher-level ECU other than the engine ECU 30.

  The transmission ECU 32 determines whether the lockup clutch 13 is engaged or not engaged based on the acquired vehicle speed information and the accelerator opening degree information. If the accelerator opening degree information indicates that the accelerator is fully closed and the vehicle speed V is lower than the vehicle speed threshold Vth, it can be said that the vehicle is traveling with inertia and is about to stop. If the lockup clutch 13 is engaged in this state, the engine 10 may be stopped due to the rotation of the axle 17 being stopped. Therefore, the lockup clutch 13 is brought into the non-engaged state so that the decelerating force of the axle 17 is not transmitted to the rotation shaft of the engine 10.

  In addition, although brake ECU31 and transmission ECU32 were mentioned as low-order ECU, low-order ECU is not restricted to these, Control devices, such as other ECU which controls various apparatus provided in vehicles, may be provided . Further, the brake ECU 31 and the transmission ECU 32 are not limited to the rotational speed information and / or the accelerator opening information, and other information may be input, and the control performed by the brake ECU 31 and the transmission ECU 32 is limited to those described above. Other control may be performed.

  In addition, in the present embodiment, the accelerator opening degree information and the rotation speed information transmitted from the engine ECU 30 are transmitted to the power generation control device 33 via the first communication line 51 and the second communication line 52 in addition to the subordinate ECUs. Is also input. Then, the power generation control device 33 determines whether to generate power by the AC generator 22 based on the input accelerator opening information and rotation speed information, and when it is determined to generate power, the AC generator 22 is controlled to generate power, and the battery 23 is charged.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a series of processing performed by the power generation control device 33. The process according to this flowchart is repeatedly performed at predetermined control cycles.

  First, based on the accelerator opening degree information acquired from the engine ECU 30, it is determined whether the accelerator is fully closed and the engine 10 is in the fuel non-operating state (S51). This indicates that the driver of the vehicle has not performed an accelerator operation, and the vehicle is in a coasting condition or the vehicle is in a stopped condition. In the determination of S51, if the accelerator opening degree information is represented by a numerical value, the value does not have to be completely zero, and a value that allows the accelerator to be fully closed may be used.

  If it is determined that the accelerator is fully closed (S51: YES), then whether or not the rotation speed Ne of the crankshaft 11 is larger than the rotation speed threshold Nth based on the rotation speed information acquired from the engine ECU 30 It determines (S52). At this time, if the rotational speed Ne is larger than the rotational speed threshold Nth (S52: YES), the crankshaft 11 and the output shaft 15 are connected via the lockup clutch 13, and the output shaft to the crankshaft 11 is Fifteen rotations are being transmitted. Therefore, it is determined that regenerative power generation is possible, and regenerative power generation is performed by controlling the AC generator 22 (S53), and the battery 23 is charged.

  On the other hand, when the rotational speed Ne is equal to or lower than the rotational speed threshold Nth (S52: NO), the crankshaft 11 and the output shaft 15 are not connected by the lockup clutch 13, and the crankshaft 11 becomes idle for the engine 10. It means that it is rotating at the rotation speed Ne based on. In this case, if regenerative power generation is performed, the rotational speed Ne may be further reduced, which may cause the engine 10 to stop. Therefore, regenerative power generation is not performed (S54), and a series of processing is ended.

  In addition, when it is determined that the accelerator is not fully closed (S51: NO), it means that the driver has depressed the accelerator. At this time, if regenerative power generation is performed, a necessary torque may not be obtained in the crankshaft 11, so even in this case, regenerative power generation is not performed (S54), and a series of processing is ended. If the capacity of the battery 23 is reduced, the alternating current generator 22 may be driven at the time of constant speed traveling of the vehicle or the like to charge the battery 23.

  The power generation control device 33 functions as a determination unit in S51 and S52, and functions as a power generation control unit that performs control based on the determination result of the determination unit in S53 and S54.

  Then, the time chart at the time of performing control concerning this embodiment is shown in FIG. FIG. 3 shows an example in which the vehicle decelerates in a state where the driver does not perform the brake operation.

  First, until the time t1, the accelerator opening degree is constant, and accordingly, the rotation speed Ne is also constant, so the vehicle speed V is a constant value. At time t1, when the driver's accelerator operation is not performed, the engine 10 is in the combustion stop state, and the rotational speed Ne starts to decrease. At this time, the crankshaft 11 and the output shaft 15 are connected via the lockup clutch 13, and the rotational speed Ne is based on the rotation of the wheel 18. Therefore, the power generation control device 33 determines that regenerative power generation is to be performed, and transmits a control signal to the AC generator 22. Then, the alternating current generator 22 performs regenerative power generation.

  At subsequent time t2, if the vehicle speed V is lower than the vehicle speed threshold Vth, the transmission ECU 32 brings the lockup clutch 13 into the non-engaged state, and the rotational speed Ne falls below the rotational speed threshold Nth. Therefore, the power generation control device 33 determines that the regenerative power generation is not performed, and the alternating current generator 22 does not perform the regenerative power generation. At this time, since the crankshaft 11 and the output shaft 15 are not connected, the amount of decrease of the vehicle speed V after time t2 is mainly due to the frictional force. Therefore, the reduction amount of the vehicle speed V after time t2 is smaller than the reduction amount from time t1 to time t2.

  By the way, the power generation control device 33 does not perform regenerative power generation on the condition that the lockup clutch 13 is in the non-engaged state, whereby the rotation speed Ne falls below the rotation speed threshold Nth. Therefore, after the lockup clutch 13 is brought into the non-engaged state at time t2, it is determined that the power generation control device 33 does not perform regenerative power generation, and a time lag occurs until the regenerative power generation in the AC generator 22 ends. Therefore, after the rotational speed Ne temporarily falls below the idling rotational speed, the power generation in the AC generator 22 is finished at time t3, and the rotational speed Ne becomes an idling rotational speed smaller than the rotation speed threshold Nth.

  Although FIG. 3 shows an example until the vehicle decelerates and stops, the accelerator operation is performed by the driver when the vehicle is in the decelerating state as shown in the flowchart of FIG. In the non-decelerating state, regenerative power generation is stopped.

  With the above configuration, the power generation control device 33 according to the present embodiment has the following effects.

  The power generation control device 33 determines whether or not to perform regenerative power generation by acquiring the accelerator opening degree information and the rotation speed information from the engine ECU 30 which is the upper ECU. The accelerator opening degree information and the rotation number information are also used in other subordinate ECUs such as the brake ECU 31 and the transmission ECU 32. Therefore, even if the engine ECU 30 does not include means for determining whether or not to perform regenerative power generation, the power generation control device 33 can control regenerative power generation.

  The determination as to whether or not to perform regenerative power generation is on the condition that the accelerator is fully closed and the rotation speed Ne of the crankshaft 11 is larger than the rotation speed threshold Nth. Therefore, when a large torque is required by the engine 10, such as when the vehicle is accelerated by the driver's intention, it is possible to suppress the power generation by the AC generator 22. On the other hand, in a state where the crankshaft 11 and the output shaft 15 are not connected and the crankshaft 11 is rotating at the idling rotation speed, stopping of the engine 10 is suppressed by not performing power generation by the AC generator 22. can do.

<Modification>
In the above embodiment, it is determined whether regenerative power generation is performed using accelerator opening information and rotational speed information, but it is determined using the vehicle speed V etc. whether regenerative power generation is to be performed. May be

  In the embodiment described above, the rotation speed information is adopted as the engine rotation speed information, but information other than the rotation speed may be adopted which represents the rotation speed of the crankshaft 11 of the engine 10. Further, although the accelerator opening degree information is adopted as the engine load information, information indicating the opening degree of the throttle valve provided in the intake passage of the engine 10 may be adopted as the engine load information.

  In the above embodiment, the automatic transmission 12 is provided with the lockup clutch 13 as a clutch device, but the lockup clutch 13 is not provided, and the power transmission means such as a fluid clutch which is another clutch device 11 and the automatic transmission 14 may be connected.

  In the above embodiment, the driver drives the vehicle. However, at least a part of the driving operation of the vehicle may be automatically performed by the control device.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Engine, 12 ... Automatic transmission, 19 ... Brake, 22 ... Alternator, 30 ... Engine ECU, 31 ... Brake ECU, 32 ... Transmission ECU, 33 ... Power generation control apparatus.

Claims (3)

A first control unit (30) for controlling the engine (10) and a second control for controlling the on- vehicle device (12, 19) different from the engine based on the engine rotational speed information and the engine load information unit (31, 32), and a communication means for enabling communication of these control devices (51, 52), the engine rotational speed information and the engine load information of the first control device via said communication means In a vehicle control system for transmitting the second control device to the second control device, separately from each of the control devices,
A power generation control device (33) for performing control of a power generation device (22) that generates power by rotation of the engine,
The communication means is connected, and the engine rotational speed information and the engine load information common to those input to the second control device are input from the first control device via the communication means,
A determination unit that determines that the engine is in the combustion stop state and the power generation device is capable of regenerative power generation based on the engine rotation speed information and the engine load information;
A power generation control unit configured to control power generation of the power generation device based on the determination result by the determination unit. An engine control device (30) for controlling a vehicle engine (10), a transmission control device (31 ) for controlling an automatic transmission (12) of the vehicle based on engine rotational speed information, and an engine load A brake control unit ( 32 ) for controlling the brake (19) of the vehicle based on information; first communication means (51 ) for enabling communication between the engine control unit and the transmission control unit; and the engine a second communication means for enabling communication control device and the said brake control apparatus (52), wherein the engine control device, the transmission control device the engine rotational speed information via the first communication means Vehicle control system for transmitting the engine load information to the brake control device via the second communication means; System separately from each of the control devices,
A power generation control device (33) for performing control of a power generation device (22) that generates power by rotation of the engine,
The first communication means and said second communication means is connected, said engine control device via the first communication means, the transmission control device which is input to the common of the engine rotational speed information input And the engine load information common to that input to the brake control device is input from the engine control device via the second communication unit ,
A determination unit that determines that the engine is in the combustion stop state and the power generation device is capable of regenerative power generation based on the engine rotation speed information and the engine load information;
A power generation control unit configured to control power generation of the power generation device based on the determination result by the determination unit. A clutch device (13) for switching engagement and non-engagement between the rotation shaft of the engine and the axle as the on-vehicle device or the on- vehicle device controlled by the transmission control device, and the second control device or the transmission control device Is applied to a vehicle control system that controls switching of the clutch device based on the vehicle speed,
When the power generation control means indicates that the engine load information indicates that the vehicle has changed from a decelerating state to a non-decelerating state, or that the engine rotational speed information indicates that the clutch device has changed from an engaged state to an unengaged state to indicate that the power generation control device according to claim 1 or 2 stops power generation of the power generator.

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