JP2001112121A - Navigation system for electric vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize travel control, where a travel control means fetches in map information of a navigation system, the situation of a vehicle like a range where the vehicle can reach is displayed as easily understandable map information for a driver, functions for travel control by an ordinary traveling mode or an economy traveling mode are added to the travel control means, a driver's intention is allowed to be a minimum, and sure driving to a destination is enabled. SOLUTION: In an electric motor vehicle having travel control means, a navigation system which detects a present position of a vehicle and displays the detected present position on a map by using a monitor is installed. In order to take in the map information of the navigation system, the navigation system is connected with a travel control means, and a function for controlling the state of vehicle traveling by an ordinary traveling mode or an economy traveling mode is added to the travel control means.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a navigation system for an electric vehicle, and more particularly, to map information of the navigation system into travel control means of the electric vehicle.
TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a navigation system for an electric vehicle that displays a vehicle condition such as a reachable range of a vehicle to a driver as easy-to-understand map information.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is a so-called electric vehicle in which a motor is mounted as a power source of a propulsion device. This electric vehicle is provided with traveling control means for controlling the operating state of the motor, and the driving state of the motor is controlled by the traveling control means during operation of the vehicle, so that the required performance (fuel consumption, exhaust harmful component value, power performance, etc.) Is achieved at a high level.

A navigation system for an electric vehicle is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-119839. The navigation system for an electric vehicle disclosed in this publication includes a vehicle position detecting means for detecting a current position of the vehicle, a road in which road data such as a shape of a road on which the vehicle runs and a position of a charging station are stored in advance. Data storage means, control means for reading road data from the road data storage means based on the vehicle position information output from the vehicle position detection means, and display means for externally displaying the road data output from the control means. The control means detects a remaining capacity of the main battery for the electric vehicle of the own vehicle and calculates a possible travel distance of the own vehicle based on the remaining capacity information, and a travelable distance calculation unit. A driving range display control unit that combines the driving range based on the remaining capacity with the road data based on the obtained driving range information and outputs the road data to the display unit. It is to reduce the burden of the decision on charging for the driver.

[0004]

Incidentally, a conventional electric vehicle is equipped with a main power supply for the electric vehicle, and the electric vehicle runs on the electric power stored in the main power supply for the electric vehicle.

[0005] If the remaining power of the main power supply runs short while the electric vehicle is running, the main power supply needs to be charged. Therefore, it is necessary to accurately grasp the distance to the destination and the remaining power of the main power supply, so that the vehicle cannot travel.

It is also necessary to select an appropriate route to the destination, an efficient vehicle speed, an accelerator pedal depression amount, etc., based on information on the distance to the destination and the remaining power of the main power supply. There is a disadvantage that it is practically disadvantageous.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to eliminate the above-mentioned disadvantages, the present invention provides an electric vehicle having a motor as a vehicle propulsion device and running control means for controlling the driving of the motor by a driver's driving operation. In a car, a navigation system for detecting a current position of the vehicle and displaying the detected current position on a map by a monitor is provided, and a navigation system is provided in connection with the travel control means to capture map information of the navigation system. The traveling control means is further provided with a function of controlling the traveling state of the vehicle as one of a normal traveling mode and an economy traveling mode.

[0008]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
When the vehicle is ready to travel, the map information of the navigation system is taken into the travel control means, and displayed to the driver as easy-to-understand map information such as the reachable range of the vehicle. A function to control the driving state of the vehicle as one of the normal driving mode and the economy driving mode has been added to the driving control so that the driver's will can be attained to the destination with minimum tolerance. We are implementing.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 to 8 show an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 2 denotes a vehicle which is an electric vehicle;
Is running control means.

The vehicle 2 includes a motor (not shown) as a vehicle propulsion device, and a traveling control means 4 for controlling the driving of the motor by a driving operation of a driver 6.

A navigation system 10 for detecting the current position of the vehicle 2 and displaying the detected current position on a map by means of a monitor 8 is provided. The driving control means 4 is provided so as to be connected to the control means 4, and the driving control means 4 is additionally provided with a function of controlling the driving state of the vehicle 2 as one of a normal driving mode and an economy driving mode. .

More specifically, the navigation system 10 basically has a function of detecting the current position using GPS, self-contained navigation, or both, and displaying the detected current position on a map. Things.

The navigation system 10
Is connected to the travel control means 4 so that the travel control means 4 takes in the map information of the navigation system 10.

At this time, the traveling control means 4 includes a vehicle traveling condition calculation unit 12 for taking in map information from the navigation system 10 and a power unit control unit 14 receiving a control content instruction signal from the vehicle traveling condition calculation unit 12. Have.

The vehicle running condition calculation unit 12 receives a driving operation signal and a destination instruction signal from the driver 6 and
The calculation result is output to the navigation system 10.

The navigation system 10 outputs a display instruction signal to the monitor 8 to cause the monitor 8 to display predetermined images and character information, thereby displaying information to the driver 6, that is, notifying the driver 6.

Further, the traveling control means 4 has a normal traveling mode in which the driver 6 can travel according to his / her intention, and the arrival at the destination is given the highest priority in comparison with the normal traveling mode. Regardless of the will, an economy running mode for regulating the upper limit of the running performance is set in advance, and the running control means 4 adds a function of running control as one of the normal running mode and the economy running mode. I have.

Further, the travel control means 4 determines whether or not the vehicle 2 can reach the input destination by using the map information from the navigation system 10 and the remaining power of the main power source for the electric vehicle (not shown). Is performed, and when it is difficult to reach the destination, the vehicle 2 is controlled to switch the traveling state from the normal traveling mode to the economy traveling mode.

The traveling control means 4 arrives at the destination when it is determined that it is difficult to reach the destination even when the traveling state of the vehicle 2 is switched from the normal traveling mode to the economy traveling mode. It also has a function of controlling to notify the charging time of the main power supply for the electric vehicle necessary for the above.

Next, the operation will be described with reference to the control flowchart of FIG.

The control program starts (100)
Then, when the driver 6 is in a state (102) in which the vehicle 2 can travel, the travel control means 4 checks the remaining power of a main power supply (not shown) (104).

Then, as shown in FIG. 5, a rough range in which the vehicle can travel from the remaining power of the main power source, that is, a reachable range is as shown in FIG.
It is displayed on the monitor 8 (106).

When the driver 6 selects a destination from the travelable range displayed on the monitor 8 (108), the travel control means 4 uses the map information from the navigation system 10 to route to the destination. Is searched (110).

After the route search process (110), a reachability determination (112) is performed. That is, it is determined whether or not the destination can be reached with the remaining power of the main power source based on the distance and gradient information of the searched route, and when the reachability determination (112) is OK, the vehicle travels in the normal travel mode. (114) is started.

At this time, reachability determination (112)
Is NG, that is, when it is determined that it is impossible to reach the destination selected by the driver 6, as shown in FIG. 2, the charging time of the main power supply required to reach the destination (120), the charging time is displayed on the monitor 8 (122) and the driver 6 is notified and charged (1) as shown in FIG.
After executing 24), the process returns to the process (108) in which the driver 6 selects a destination from the travelable range displayed on the monitor 8 described above.

The vehicle travels in the normal travel mode (step 114).
Is started, the second reachability determination (116)
I do. This second reachability determination (116) is performed in order to respond to an unexpected change in the driving situation such as the driver 6 depressing the accelerator pedal too much, an incorrect route selection, or traffic congestion on the road after the start of driving in the normal driving mode. Is provided.

Then, the second arrival determination (116)
FIG. 7 shows NG, that is, when it is difficult to reach the destination in the normal driving mode, as shown in FIG. 3, the operation state is switched from the normal driving mode to the economy driving mode, as shown in FIG. Is displayed on the monitor 8 as shown (13
0) to automatically switch the driving state from the normal driving mode to the economy driving mode (132), and return to the driving (114) described above. In the economy driving mode, in order to suppress power consumption, the amount of current supplied to the motor is reduced according to the accelerator opening, the speed of the vehicle 2 is limited, and the regenerative braking is made stronger than usual. ,
By collecting more regenerative energy, the driver 6
To the destination.

If the second arrival determination (116) is OK, the vehicle travels in the normal traveling mode and reaches the destination (118).

As a result, the map information of the navigation system 10 can be taken into the travel control means 4, and the vehicle status such as the reachable range of the vehicle 2 can be displayed to the driver 6 as easy-to-understand map information. This is practically advantageous.

Further, the traveling control means 4 is provided with a function of controlling the traveling state of the vehicle 2 as one of the normal traveling mode and the economy traveling mode. It is possible to implement travel control that can reliably reach the destination while allowing the will at a minimum, thereby improving usability.

Further, the travel control means 4 determines whether or not the vehicle 2 can reach the input destination based on the map information from the navigation system 10 and the remaining power of the electric power supply for the electric vehicle (not shown). Make a decision,
When it is difficult to reach the destination, it has a function of controlling the traveling state of the vehicle 2 to switch the traveling state from the normal traveling mode to the economy traveling mode. Can be known in advance by the driver 6, and even if an unexpected change occurs in the driving situation, the driver 6 can be reliably reached to the destination, which is practically advantageous.

Further, the traveling control means 4 is provided for the vehicle 2
If it is determined that reaching the destination is difficult even when the driving state of the vehicle is switched from the normal driving mode to the economy driving mode, the charging time of the main power supply for the electric vehicle required to reach the destination is notified. The driver 6 also has a function of controlling the vehicle 6 so that the driver 6 can know the arrival time to the destination including the charging time in advance, and can quickly and reliably determine future actions. Become.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various applications and modifications are possible.

For example, if the charging station position has already been input as input information, and it is difficult to reach the destination even if the driving state of the vehicle is switched from the normal driving mode to the economy driving mode, It is also possible to adopt a special configuration in which a function of displaying a special route via the charging station is added to the control means.

In this case, it is possible to secure a time for the driver to process necessary information at or near the charging station on the special route, which is practically advantageous.

In addition, if the electric vehicle has a structure that allows charging when the vehicle is traveling down a hill, it is not the shortest distance that can be used when setting a route. It is also possible to add a function of setting a route with an increased number of states to the control means.

Then, when the electric vehicle is traveling, the vehicle can proceed while charging while traveling down a hill,
Even if the mileage is long, the possibility of reaching the destination increases, which is practically advantageous.

Further, it is also possible to add to the control means a special configuration for displaying the distance over which the electric vehicle can travel using the remaining power of the main power supply for the electric vehicle.

Then, the distance that the electric vehicle can travel is displayed as “○ Km” by the remaining power of the main power source for the electric vehicle, the distance that the electric vehicle can travel is notified to the driver, and the driver is notified of the distance information. Can be reliably grasped and used as a factor for determining future actions, and the usability of the navigation system of the electric vehicle can be improved.

Further, it is also possible to adopt a special configuration in which a function of measuring the weight of the loaded luggage and the weight of the occupants in the electric vehicle and adding the function of reflecting the weight information to the control of the electric vehicle is added to the control means. .

That is, the weight of the loaded luggage and the weight of the occupant in the electric vehicle are measured, and the weight information is input to the control means to be used for conversion of the traveling distance of the electric vehicle.

Then, it is possible to accurately display the travelable distance of the electric vehicle in accordance with the increase or decrease of the loaded luggage or the number of occupants in the electric vehicle, thereby improving the reliability of the control and improving the practical use. It is more advantageous.

[0044]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, an electric vehicle including a motor as a vehicle propulsion device and having travel control means for controlling the driving of the motor by a driver's driving operation is provided. A navigation system for detecting a current position and displaying the detected current position on a map by a monitor is provided, and a navigation system is connected to the traveling control means for capturing map information of the navigation system, and the traveling control means includes a vehicle. The traveling state of the vehicle is provided with the function of controlling traveling as either one of the normal traveling mode and the economy traveling mode, so that the map information of the navigation system can be taken into the traveling control means, and Easy-to-understand map information of vehicle conditions such as reachable area It can be displayed on the rolling person, which is advantageous in practical use. In addition, by providing the travel control means with a function of controlling the travel of the vehicle as one of the normal travel mode and the economy travel mode, the intention of the driver can be minimized. At the same time, it is possible to perform travel control that can reliably reach the destination, thereby improving usability.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a control flowchart of an electric vehicle navigation system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a first additional flowchart of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a second additional flowchart of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of a navigation system of the electric vehicle.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a display example of a reachable range.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a route display example of reachability determination.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a display example when switching to the economy traveling mode.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a display example of a charging time.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 vehicle 4 travel control means 6 driver 8 monitor 10 navigation system 12 vehicle travel situation calculation unit 14 power unit control unit

Continued on front page F term (reference) 2F029 AA02 AB07 AC02 AC09 AC12 AC13 AC14 AC19 5H115 PC06 PG04 PI13 PI29 PO07 PU01 QE10 QE20 QI04 SE03 SF01 TD15 TI02 TO10 TO21 TZ07 UB05 UB08 UI13 5H180 AA03 CC12 DD04 FF01 FF05 FF05

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An electric vehicle having a motor as a vehicle propulsion device and having a traveling control means for controlling the driving of the motor by a driver's driving operation, detects a current position of the vehicle and monitors the detected current position by a monitor. A navigation system for displaying on a map is provided, and a navigation system is provided in connection with the traveling control means for taking in map information of the navigation system. The traveling control means includes a traveling state of the vehicle and an economy mode. A navigation system for an electric vehicle, further comprising a function of controlling travel as one of the travel modes. 2. The travel control means determines whether or not the vehicle can reach the input destination based on the map information from the navigation system and the remaining power of the main power source for the electric vehicle. The navigation system for an electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein when it is difficult to reach the destination, control is performed to switch the traveling state of the vehicle from the normal traveling mode to the economy traveling mode. 3. The electric vehicle required to reach the destination when it is difficult to reach the destination even when the driving state of the vehicle is switched from the normal driving mode to the economy driving mode. The navigation system for an electric vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the navigation system controls to notify a charging time of the main power supply.