JP2002038946A - Early warming device for prime mover - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an early warming device for a prime mover using driving system fluid such as fluid for a transmission. SOLUTION: In a driving device 10 for a vehicle provided with an automatic transmission 18, a coolant pipe 34 is provided with a heat exchanger 44 for heat exchanging between coolant and fluid for the transmission (ATF), coolant is heated by the ATF heated to a high temperature by a warming promoting operation of a second heat storage tank 46 or the automatic transmission 18 and warming of an internal combustion engine 12 is promoted.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus for early warming-up of a prime mover using a fluid for a transmission used in a transmission of a drive unit for a vehicle, and more particularly to a warm-up of a prime mover according to a state of a vehicle. Device for

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A motor, such as an engine, which is a power source, is always mounted on a vehicle, and a cooling fluid is used in the motor to maintain its operating temperature in an appropriate range. When the prime mover is started, the temperature of the prime mover is low and the operating efficiency is low. Therefore, it is necessary to warm up the prime mover by raising the coolant temperature early after the start.

For this reason, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-18547
No. 0 discloses an apparatus in which a heat storage device made of a latent heat material is provided in an engine coolant passage, and the engine coolant is heated by heat stored in the heat storage device when the engine is started.

[0004]

However, in the above-described conventional coolant heating device, there is a problem that the warm-up of the prime mover becomes insufficient when the heat storage device does not store sufficient heat.

On the other hand, many vehicle drive devices include a transmission that converts the rotation speed of the prime mover into an appropriate rotation speed and makes the rotation speed suitable for driving the vehicle. The transmission includes a power transmission mechanism such as a gear, and a fluid for performing lubrication enters the transmission. Also, as one of the transmissions, an automatic transmission in which a torque converter and a gear transmission are combined is known. In this automatic transmission, a working fluid for transmitting power in the torque converter, a working fluid for controlling the operation of a clutch or a brake for selecting a shift speed in a gear transmission, and the fluid for lubrication are shared. ing.

Accordingly, when the temperature of the transmission fluid is high as described above, it is conceivable to use the transmission fluid to heat the cooling fluid of the prime mover to warm up.

However, it has not been proposed to warm up a prime mover using a transmission fluid.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an early warm-up device for a prime mover using a drive system fluid such as a transmission fluid.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relates to an early warm-up device for a motor using a transmission fluid used in a transmission of a vehicle drive device,
A heat exchanger for exchanging heat between the transmission fluid and the cooling fluid of the prime mover is provided so that when the prime mover needs to be warmed up by the transmission fluid, the temperature of the transmission fluid rises quickly. The transmission is characterized by a warm-up promotion operation.

[0010] In the above-mentioned early warming-up device for a prime mover, the warm-up promoting operation of the transmission is performed when the temperature of the transmission fluid is lower than a predetermined temperature.

An early warming-up device for a prime mover using a drive system fluid such as a transmission fluid used in a transmission of a vehicle drive system, wherein heat exchange between the drive system fluid and a coolant of the prime mover is performed. And a heat storage means for raising the temperature of the drive system fluid, and when the motor needs to be warmed up by the drive system fluid, the temperature of the drive system fluid is increased by the heat of the heat storage means. And heats the cooling fluid of the prime mover.

Further, in the above-mentioned early warming-up device for a motor, the drive system fluid is a transmission fluid or a differential gear or transfer oil.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a vehicle drive device 10 according to the present embodiment. The vehicle drive device 10 includes a liquid-cooled internal combustion engine 12 and a rotating electric machine 1 as prime movers.
And 4. The power shaft of the internal combustion engine 12 and the rotating electric machine 14 can be connected and disconnected by a clutch 16. The rotating electric machine 14 is supplied with electric power from a battery (not shown) such as when the output required by the driver is low, that is, when the operation amount of the accelerator is small, or when the internal combustion engine is running at low speed with low efficiency, and functions as an electric motor. And drive the vehicle. Further, the rotating electric machine 14 is driven by the inertia of the vehicle or the internal combustion engine 12 when the vehicle is braked or when the charged amount of the battery is reduced, functions as a generator, and charges the battery. The clutch 16 is disengaged when the vehicle is driven only by the rotating electric machine 14, for example, and the internal combustion engine 1
2. Suppress the occurrence of pump loss and friction loss.

The output of the internal combustion engine 12 or the rotating electric machine 14 is sent to an automatic transmission 18. The automatic transmission 18 includes a fluid transmission mechanism, a transmission mechanism, and a control mechanism. In the present embodiment, the fluid transmission mechanism is the torque converter 20,
Preferably, it has a direct connection function. The transmission mechanism is a gear transmission unit 22 including a plurality of planetary gear mechanisms, and the gear transmission unit 22 also includes a clutch and a brake that restrict movement of each element of each planetary gear mechanism. These clutches and brakes are controlled by selectively supplying working fluid from a fluid pressure control unit 24 as a control mechanism. The output of the gear transmission unit 22 is transmitted by the propulsion shaft 26 toward the drive wheels. The aforementioned torque converter 2
The direct coupling function of 0 is achieved by providing a direct coupling clutch that mechanically couples the input and output of the torque converter without using a fluid.

The early warming-up device for a prime mover according to the present invention is applicable not only to an automatic transmission but also to an automatic switching type transmission.

An auxiliary rotating electric machine 30 is further connected to a power shaft of the internal combustion engine 12 via a transmission mechanism 28. The transmission mechanism 28 can be an endless flexible member such as a belt or a chain, or a gear train. Auxiliary machine 30
Functions as a generator when the internal combustion engine 12 is operating, charges an auxiliary battery (not shown) that supplies electric power to the internal components of the internal combustion engine and electric components of the vehicle, and directly supplies electric power to the electric components and the like. Supply. In addition, the auxiliary rotating electric machine 30 includes the internal combustion engine 1.
At the time of the start of 2, the electric power is received from the auxiliary battery and functions as an electric motor.

The coolant of the internal combustion engine 12 flows in a cooling circuit formed by the internal combustion engine 12, the first heat storage tank 42, the heat exchanger 44, the radiator 32, and the coolant pipe 34 connecting these. Heat generated in the internal combustion engine 12 during normal operation is carried to the radiator 32 by the coolant, and is radiated from the heat to the radiator 32. During normal operation, the temperature of the coolant is controlled at approximately 80 ° C., and this heat is stored in the first heat storage tank 42 and used for warming up the internal combustion engine 12 as described later.

In the automatic transmission 18, the lubricating fluid for the entire automatic transmission 18, the working fluid for mediating the power transmission of the torque converter 20, and the working fluid for operating the clutch and brake in the gear transmission section 22 are common. Fluids are used. Hereinafter, this transmission fluid is referred to as ATF (Au
tomatic Transmission Fluid). The ATF is supplied to each unit of the automatic transmission 18 via the fluid pressure control unit 24 by a hydraulic pump 36 built in the gear transmission unit 22. In addition, a part of the ATF is
The heat is transferred to the heat exchanger 44 via the heat storage tank 46, where heat exchange is performed with the coolant, and the automatic transmission 1
8 comes back into the oil pan. This circuit is hereinafter referred to as a fluid main circuit.

During normal operation, the ATF is at a high temperature, and this heat can be stored in the second heat storage tank 46 and used for warming up the internal combustion engine 12 as described later. The high-temperature ATF exchanges heat with the coolant in the heat exchanger 44 and is cooled to a predetermined temperature. Note that AT
When the temperature of F is low and heat cannot be stored in the second heat storage tank 46, the flow path of the ATF is switched to the second heat storage tank bypass circuit 48 by the switching valves 68 and 70,
The heat storage tank 46 can be bypassed. This can prevent the temperature in the second heat storage tank 46 from decreasing. Further, when the temperature of the ATF is low and it is necessary to raise the ATF temperature early, the switching valve 72,
The ATF flow path can be switched to a heat exchanger bypass circuit 76 by 74 to bypass the heat exchanger 44 to promote the temperature rise of the ATF. The temperature of the ATF is low,
When the coolant temperature is high, A
The TF can also be heated.

The hydraulic pump 36 is connected to the torque converter 20
, The internal combustion engine 12 or the rotating electric machine 14
It is driven by. Therefore, the vehicle drive device 1
0 is stopped, or when the vehicle is running only with the rotating electric machine 14 and the vehicle is at a very low speed or stopped,
In some cases, the discharge amount of the hydraulic pump 36 cannot be sufficiently secured. For such a case, the vehicle drive device 10 includes an electric auxiliary pump 40. The operation of the auxiliary pump 40 is controlled by a control unit described later according to the running state of the vehicle.

In the above configuration, the internal combustion engine 12
When warm-up is required immediately after starting the heat exchanger 44,
From the first heat storage tank 42 and the heat exchanger 4 by the radiator bypass circuit 50.
The coolant is circulated between the internal combustion engine 4 and the internal combustion engine 12. Thus, the coolant can be heated by the heat stored in the first heat storage tank 42, and the internal combustion engine 12 can be warmed up. In this case, the reason why the coolant is not passed through the radiator 32 is to prevent the temperature of the coolant from being lowered by the radiator 32 and to efficiently warm up the coolant.

On the other hand, if sufficient heat is not stored in the first heat storage tank 42, the second heat storage tank 46
The ATF is supplied to the heat exchanger 44 via the. Thereby, the heat stored in the second heat storage tank 46 is transferred to the heat exchanger 44.
In this case, the internal combustion engine 12 can be warmed up by moving to the coolant. Also in this case, the radiator 32 is bypassed.

Further, even if the second heat storage tank 46 is not used, the temperature of the ATF can be raised by setting the operation characteristic of the automatic transmission 18 to the warm-up promotion operation. The warm-up promoting operation refers to changing the operating characteristics of the automatic transmission 18 to lock-up or lock-up slip, change the lock-up or lock-up slip region, prohibit neutral control, or increase the lubrication pressure. Alternatively, this is an operation mode in which the pressure of the torque converter is set to be increased and the temperature of the ATF is increased early. The warm-up promotion operation forcibly generates a slip in the torque converter and raises the temperature of the ATF. When the temperature of the ATF is lower than a predetermined temperature required to warm up the internal combustion engine 12, Done. The setting of the warm-up promotion operation is performed by a control unit described later.

The temperature of the ATF is raised by such a warming-up promotion operation, and the heat exchanger 44 exchanges heat with the coolant to heat the coolant. Thus, even when the temperature of the ATF is low, the internal combustion engine 12 can be quickly warmed up.

When the temperature of the ATF is high, the ATF can be introduced into the heater core 82 branched from the hydraulic piping 38 by the switching valves 78 and 80 to heat the room by the heat of the ATF.

FIG. 2 is a structural view of the second heat storage tank 46. In FIG. 2, the second heat storage tank 46 is covered with a heat insulating material 84, in which a heat storage material 86 made of a latent heat material or a heat capacity material is accommodated. A heat exchange pipe 88 is formed in the heat storage material 86.
The ATF flows through the heat exchange pipe 88 from the hydraulic pipe 38 via the inlet 90, and after exchanging heat with the heat storage material 86, the outlet 9
From 2 goes out to the hydraulic line 38. As the heat storage material 86, for example, a hydrocarbon, an inclusion compound, an inorganic salt hydrate, an inorganic salt eutectic, or the like is used.

To store heat in the second heat storage tank 46, the ATF is passed through the second heat storage tank 46 when the temperature of the ATF is high during normal operation or the like, and heat is stored in the heat storage material 86. Thereafter, when the coolant of the internal combustion engine 12 needs to be heated, for example, when the vehicle is first started next time, the ATF is passed through the second heat storage tank 46 and the temperature of the ATF is stored by the heat stored in the heat storage material 86. To rise. Thereby, the heat exchanger 44
The ATF can heat the cooling liquid. As described above, while the heat is stored in the heat storage material 86, that is, while the internal combustion engine 12 is stopped and the vehicle is stopped for a long time, the entrance 90 and the exit 92 of the second heat storage tank 46 are provided.
Is preferably closed. This is because the heat stored in the heat storage material 86 does not easily escape.

Returning to FIG. 1, the running state of the vehicle, including the operating state of the vehicle drive unit 10, is detected by the output signals of various sensors provided in each part of the vehicle and the calculation of the control unit 52. The traveling speed of the vehicle is calculated by the control unit 52 based on an output signal of a vehicle speed sensor 54 provided on the propulsion shaft 26, wheels, and the like. The temperature of the ATF representing the temperature inside the automatic transmission 18 is calculated by the control unit 52 based on the output signal of the transmission temperature sensor 56 provided in the fluid pressure control unit 24. Further, the temperature of the coolant in the first heat storage tank 42 and the temperature of the ATF in the second heat storage tank 46 are controlled based on the output signals of the first heat storage tank temperature sensor 58 and the second heat storage tank temperature sensor 59 provided therein. Calculated by the unit 52.

An output signal from a shift position sensor 60 for detecting a control range and a control mode of the automatic transmission 18 selected by a shift lever or the like is also input to the control unit 52. The control range of the automatic transmission 18 includes, for example, a D position where an appropriate gear is automatically selected from each forward gear, a 2 position where an appropriate gear is selected from limited gears, and an L position. is there. Further, an N position where the gear transmission unit 22 is in a neutral state where power is not transmitted, an R position where reverse is selected, and a gear transmission unit 22
There is a P position to mechanically lock the output side of the vehicle and keep the vehicle from moving. Further, the present device is provided with a manual shift mode in which a driver can select a shift speed. In this mode, for example, when the driver operates a shift-up switch and a shift-down switch provided on the steering wheel, the shift speed is shifted to a higher side and a lower side, respectively.
The shift operation is performed by changing the steps.

An outside air temperature sensor 62 for measuring the temperature of the environment where the vehicle is placed, that is, the so-called outside air temperature, is provided at a predetermined portion of the vehicle. The control unit 52 calculates the outside air temperature based on the output signal of the outside air temperature sensor 62.

The temperature in the automatic transmission 18 at the time when a predetermined time has elapsed after the driving of the vehicle drive device 10 has been stopped is stored in the storage section 64. This stored temperature is used for estimating the temperature at the next start. Further, a signal from an ignition switch 66 for controlling start and stop of the vehicle drive device 10 is input to the control unit 52.

As described above, based on the information received by the control unit 52, the control unit 52 sets the operating characteristics of the automatic transmission 18, and sets the switching valves 68, 70, 72, 74,
The opening and closing of 78 and 80, the coolant of the internal combustion engine 12
The flow path from the flow path 4 to the radiator 32 or directly to the internal combustion engine 12 is controlled, and the operation of the early warming-up device for a prime mover of the present invention is performed. The hydraulic piping 3 shown in FIG.
8, first heat storage tank 42, heat exchanger 44, second heat storage tank 46, switching valves 68, 70, 72, 74, 78, 8
0, control unit 52 and various sensors 54, 56, 58, 6
The early warming-up device of the prime mover according to the present invention is constituted by 0, 62, 66, the storage unit 64 and the like.

FIG. 3 shows the coolant temperature of the internal combustion engine 12 and A
An example in which each circulation path is switched based on the TF temperature is shown. This switching is performed by the control unit 5 described above.
2 is controlled. FIG. 3 is an example, and the operation of the early warming-up device for a prime mover according to the present invention is not limited to this. For example, based on the coolant temperature and the ATF temperature, not only the circulation path but also the circulation flow rate may be controlled.

In FIG. 3, when the coolant temperature is lower than a predetermined value, the coolant is bypassed by the radiator 32, circulated between the first heat storage tank 42, the heat exchanger 44 and the internal combustion engine 12, and Twelve warm-ups are promoted. In this case, when the ATF temperature is lower than the predetermined value, the ATF is bypassed by the heat exchanger 44. This is because the ATF does not need to be cooled, and the cooling liquid cannot be heated by the ATF. On the other hand, when the ATF temperature is higher than a predetermined value,
The ATF is passed to the heat exchanger 44. This is because the cooling fluid can be heated by the ATF, and the warm-up of the internal combustion engine 12 can be promoted.

Next, when the coolant temperature is higher than a predetermined value, the coolant is passed to the radiator 32. In this case, it is not necessary to warm up the internal combustion engine 12, and it is necessary to lower the temperature of the coolant. In this case, when the ATF temperature is lower than the predetermined value, the ATF is also passed through the heat exchanger 44. This is because the ATF is heated by the cooling liquid. Also, when the ATF temperature is higher than a predetermined value, the ATF flows to the heat exchanger 44. This is for cooling the ATF with the cooling liquid.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of the operation of the prime mover early warming-up apparatus according to the present invention shown in FIG. In FIG. 4, first, it is determined whether or not warm-up of the prime mover is necessary. This determination is made by the control unit 52 based on the temperature of the coolant or the like (S1). In this case, the prime mover
In addition to the internal combustion engine 12 shown in FIG. 1, a device cooled by a cooling liquid such as a rotating electric machine is conceivable.

If it is not necessary to warm up the prime mover during normal operation of the vehicle or the like, the operation characteristics of the automatic transmission 18 are set to normal (normal operation) (S2). Further, the cooling liquid is caused to flow to the radiator 32 (S3). In this case, it is preferable that the high-temperature coolant in the first heat storage tank 42 is not discharged (drained) to the coolant pipe 34 (S4). This is because a high-temperature coolant is not required because the prime mover is not warmed up.

The cooling liquid is passed through the heat exchanger 44,
Used for cooling the TF (S5). This is a normal operation state.

Next, when it is necessary to warm up the prime mover at the start of operation of the vehicle or the like (S1), the control unit 52 determines whether the temperature of the first heat storage tank 42 is equal to or higher than a predetermined value Tc1 (step S1). S
6). When the temperature of the first heat storage tank 42 is equal to or higher than Tc1, the setting of the operating characteristics of the automatic transmission 18 is set to normal (S7), and the coolant is bypassed through the radiator 32 (S8). In this case, the coolant whose temperature has been raised by the first heat storage tank 42 is discharged to the coolant pipe 34, and the motor is warmed up (S9).

Also in this case, the coolant is passed through the heat exchanger 44 and used for cooling the ATF (S10).

In S6, if it is determined that the temperature of the first heat storage tank 42 is lower than Tc1, it is determined whether the temperature of the second heat storage tank 46 is equal to or higher than a predetermined value Tc2.
2 judges (S11). If the temperature of the second heat storage tank 46 is lower than the predetermined value Tc2, the setting of the operation characteristics of the automatic transmission 18 is set to the warm-up promoting operation described above (S12).
As a result, the temperature of the ATF increases.

At this time, the coolant bypasses the radiator 32 (S13). Further, since the temperature of the first heat storage tank 42 is low, it is preferable that the low-temperature coolant in the first heat storage tank 42 is not discharged (drained) to the coolant pipe 34 (S14).

In this state, the coolant and the ATF are passed through the heat exchanger 44, and the coolant is heated by the ATF (S15). Thereby, warming up of the prime mover is promoted.

In the above S11, the second heat storage tank 46
Is determined to be equal to or higher than Tc2, the operation characteristics of the automatic transmission 18 are set to normal (S16), and the coolant is bypassed through the radiator 32 (S17). In this case, the ATF heated to a high temperature by the second heat storage tank 46 is discharged to the hydraulic piping 38 (S18). This hot AT
F is passed through the heat exchanger 44 and exchanges heat with the coolant to heat the coolant. Thereby, warming up of the prime mover is promoted (S19).

As described above, a series of operations of the early warming-up device for a prime mover according to the present invention is performed.

In the embodiment described above,
Although the example in which the coolant is heated by the ATF (transmission fluid) to promote the warm-up of the prime mover has been described, it is also preferable to use a differential gear or a transfer oil in addition to the ATF. .

[0048]

As described above, according to the present invention,
An early warm-up device for a prime mover using a drive system fluid such as a transmission fluid can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a vehicle drive device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of a second heat storage tank shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example in which each circulation path is switched according to a coolant and an ATF temperature.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the early warming-up device for a prime mover according to the present invention shown in FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 10 vehicle drive device, 12 internal combustion engine, 14 rotating electric machine, 18 automatic transmission, 20 torque converter, 22
Gear transmission section, 24 fluid pressure control section, 32 radiator, 34 coolant pipe, 36 hydraulic pump, 38 hydraulic pipe, 40 auxiliary pump, 42 first heat storage tank, 44
Heat exchanger, 46 second heat storage tank, 48 second heat storage tank bypass circuit, 50 radiator bypass circuit, 5
2 control unit, 54 vehicle speed sensor, 56 transmission temperature sensor, 58 first heat storage tank temperature sensor, 59 second heat storage tank temperature sensor, 60 shift position sensor, 62 outside air temperature sensor, 64 storage unit, 68, 70, 72, 74,
78, 80 switching valve, 76 heat exchanger bypass circuit, 82 heater core, 84 heat insulator, 86 heat storage material,
88 heat exchange pipe, 90 inlet, 92 outlet.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An early warming-up device for a motor using a transmission fluid used in a transmission of a vehicle drive device, for performing heat exchange between the transmission fluid and a coolant of the motor. When the prime mover needs to be warmed up by the transmission fluid,
An early warm-up device for a prime mover, wherein a speed-up operation of the transmission is performed so that the temperature of the transmission fluid rises early. 2. The prime mover early warm-up device according to claim 1, wherein the warm-up promotion operation of the transmission is performed when the temperature of the transmission fluid is lower than a predetermined temperature. Early warm-up device. 3. An early warm-up device for a prime mover using a drive system fluid such as a transmission fluid used in a transmission of a vehicle drive device, wherein heat of the drive system fluid and a coolant of the prime mover are generated. A heat exchanger for performing exchange, a heat storage unit for increasing the temperature of the drive system fluid,
Wherein when the prime mover needs to be warmed up by the drive system fluid, the temperature of the drive system fluid is raised by the heat of the heat storage means to heat the coolant of the prime mover, Warm-up device. 4. The early warming-up device for a motor according to claim 3, wherein the drive system fluid is a transmission fluid or a differential gear or transfer oil.