JP2002243553A - Thermometer for use in vehicle engine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To display an ever-changing engine temperature, and display an alarm when the temperature exceeds a set temperature, only by installing afterwards on an existing two wheeler or a four-wheel car. SOLUTION: This thermometer has a temperature/resistance element 11 for detecting the engine temperature as the change of a resistance value, a resistance value/frequency converter 12 mounted afterwards on the temperature/ resistance element 11 and connected thereto, for converting the change of the resistance value into the change of a frequency, a computer 13 for operating the engine temperature based on the output frequency from the resistance value/ frequency converter 12, and displaying the result on a display 14, and a warning temperature setting part 15 for setting the warning temperature of the engine. When the engine temperature exceeds the warning set temperature set by the warning temperature setting part 15, the computer 13 allows a warning display 16 to execute warning display.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thermometer for a vehicle engine which is attached to a motorcycle or a four-wheeled vehicle and measures the temperature of the engine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A motorcycle or a four-wheeled vehicle for racing (including a cart) is not equipped with a thermometer that measures the temperature of an engine that changes momentarily during traveling and digitally displays the measurement result. Here, measurement of the temperature of the engine means not only directly measuring the temperature of the engine body including the cylinder using a sensor, but also measuring the temperature of the cooling water flowing through a water pipe connecting the radiator or the water jacket of the cylinder to the radiator. Or measuring the temperature of the lubricating oil flowing in the oil pan below the engine body or in the oil circulation path. On the other hand, controlling the temperature of the engine during the race is extremely important for operating the engine efficiently and stably obtaining a predetermined vehicle speed. Overheating of the engine and accompanying burning of the pistons and valves due to this temperature management are important. Accidents such as sticking can be avoided.

[0003]

However, such conventional motorcycles and four-wheeled vehicles are not provided with a thermometer for digitally displaying the temperature of an ever-changing engine as described above. There is a problem in that, for example, the vehicle relies solely on one's intuition to perform acceleration or shift change, and therefore performs the driving operation without sufficiently bringing out the performance of the engine. In addition, there is a problem that the engine, the gearbox or the clutch is seriously damaged by a shift change at an overspeed of the engine, that is, in an overheated state.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problem, and it is possible to display an ever-changing engine temperature by retrofitting it on an existing two-wheeled vehicle or four-wheeled vehicle. It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermometer for a vehicle engine that can display an alarm when it exceeds the limit.

[0005]

To achieve the above object,
A thermometer for a vehicle engine according to the present invention is mounted on a part of an engine mounted on a vehicle, and detects a temperature of the engine as a change in a resistance value. A resistance / frequency converter which is retrofitted to a resistance element and converts the detected change in the resistance value into a frequency change, and calculates the temperature of the engine based on the output frequency of the resistance / frequency converter And a warning temperature setting unit for selecting and setting a warning temperature of the engine from a plurality of predetermined values, wherein the temperature of the engine is set to the warning temperature setting unit. The computer causes the warning display to display a warning when a warning set temperature is exceeded.
This allows the driver to recognize the ever-changing temperature of the engine and whether or not the temperature of the engine has reached the set alarm level, so that the vehicle can be driven in the optimal driving mode.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a thermometer for a vehicle engine, wherein the computer measures the temperature of the engine obtained through the resistance / frequency converter.
It has a function of converting one of the Celsius temperature and the Fahrenheit temperature to the other. Thereby, it is possible to correspond to temperature indications of different countries in Celsius and Fahrenheit.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a thermometer for a vehicle engine having the warning temperature setting section, wherein the warning temperature can be set at either the Celsius temperature or the Fahrenheit temperature. It was done. Thus, an alarm can be generated based on both the Celsius and Fahrenheit warning temperatures.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a thermometer for a vehicle engine according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 11 denotes a thermometer mounted on a part of an engine mounted on a vehicle and detects the temperature of the engine as a change in resistance value. A resistance / frequency converter 12 converts a change in resistance value detected by the temperature / resistance element 11 into a change in frequency suitable for data processing by a computer described later. Reference numeral 13 denotes the resistance value / frequency converter 12
Is a computer that calculates the temperature of the engine based on the output frequency and displays it on a display 14, which has the resistance / frequency converter 12 inside.
Reference numeral 15 denotes a warning temperature setting unit for setting a warning temperature of the engine, which is selected from a plurality of predetermined values and is arbitrarily set by jumper wiring or key operation. Reference numeral 16 denotes a warning indicator (e.g., a light-emitting diode) that causes the computer 13 to display a warning when the temperature of the engine exceeds the warning set temperature set by the warning temperature setting unit 15.

Further, the computer 13 has a function of converting the temperature of the engine obtained via the resistance value / frequency converter 12 from one of the Celsius temperature and the Fahrenheit temperature to the other. Further, the warning temperature setting unit 15
Is configured so that a warning temperature can be set in either of the Celsius temperature and the Fahrenheit temperature. This is, for example, composed of three keys. By operating these keys, there is no temperature warning setting in Celsius, and a temperature warning 90 degrees Celsius.
There are four setting modes: temperature, 100 degrees Celsius, and 120 degrees Celsius. There are no temperature warning settings for Fahrenheit, and four warning modes: temperature warning 190 degrees Fahrenheit, 212 degrees Fahrenheit, and 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Making it possible.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a thermometer of a vehicle engine in which a computer 13, a display 14, a warning temperature setting unit 15 and a warning display 16 are accommodated in a case 17. In the figure, reference numeral 18 denotes a connector lead-connected to the computer 13, which can be retrofitted to a connection terminal (not shown) of the temperature / resistance element 11 mounted on a part of the engine. 19 and 20
Reference numeral denotes a power supply terminal connected to an electrode of a battery for supplying power to each of the mountings in the case 17 mounted on the vehicle.

Next, the general operation of the vehicle engine centered on the computer 13 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. When a power switch (not shown) is turned on, first, various counters, registers, and the like are initialized (step S1), and then the main program is started (step S2). In addition, the reset of the watchdog timer is repeatedly performed in order to detect the abnormality of the hardware of the computer 13 (Step S).
3). Subsequently, an engine temperature measurement process according to the present invention is executed (step S4), and the measurement result and the like are displayed on a display (step S5). Then, it is checked whether or not the temperature is still being measured (step S6). If the temperature is being measured, the step of the temperature measurement processing is executed again following the reset of the watchdog timer. On the other hand, when the temperature measurement process is completed, a timer interrupt is accepted in response to the interrupt request (step S7), a halt command is issued at the end of the program (step S8), the low power consumption mode is entered, and the interruption is accepted. Is prohibited (step S9), the processing after resetting the watchdog timer is executed again.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the temperature measurement process of FIG. First, when the temperature measurement by the temperature / resistance element 11 is started, it is checked whether or not the temperature measurement flag is on (step S11). If not, it is determined whether or not 2.5 seconds have elapsed. Is checked (step S12), and a flag is set when 2.5 seconds have elapsed (step S13). This 2.5 seconds is a temperature measurement interval. Thus, the temperature measurement is started, and the temperature measurement flag is set (step S14).
3 is set (step S15). Subsequently, the interrupt factor flag of the resistance / frequency converter 12 is reset to return to the state before the interruption (step S16), and the operation of the resistance / frequency converter is started (step S17). Next, the warning temperature setting unit 15
Then, a warning temperature set value is set to the input port (step S18), and the presence or absence of a warning signal at Celsius temperature is determined (step S19). If there is, a warning signal at Fahrenheit temperature is subsequently determined. (Step S2
0), if so, a warning process is executed (step S21).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S11 that the temperature measurement flag is on, it is determined whether 0.45 seconds have elapsed (step S22), and it is determined that 0.45 seconds have elapsed. In this case, the flag during the time-out and temperature measurement is turned off (step S23), and the resistance /
The operation of the frequency converter 12 is stopped (Step S2)
4). Subsequently, the warning temperature data on the table as shown in FIG. 1 is set by the counter of the computer 13 (step S25), and it is determined whether the measured temperature is higher or lower than the warning set temperature (step ST26, step S27). If the temperature is high or low, the temperature data is set (step S29).
The processing after 18 is executed. On the other hand, if the temperature is neither high nor low, temperature conversion by HEX (hexadecimal) is performed (step S28), and the processing from step S18 is executed.

If it is determined in step S22 that 0.45 seconds have not elapsed, it is checked whether or not the temperature measurement has been completed (step S30). After turning off (step S3
1) Check whether the time base count is over (step S32). If not, check whether the measurement count is over (step S33). Executes the processing from step S25. If the time base count and the measurement count are over, over data sets are respectively performed (step S34, step S35), and the processing from step S25 is performed. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S30 that the temperature measurement has not been completed, the process proceeds to step S18.
Perform the following processing.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the display processing of FIG. 3 by the computer 13.
Here, first, the display of the temperature measurement data is set (step S41), and the display of the high (Hi) and low (Lo) of the measured temperature is set (step S42). This display is processing when the temperature is out of the set temperature measurement range. Next, it is checked whether or not there is a display of high or low temperature (step S4).
3) If there is no display temperature, the display temperature is output to a display buffer (not shown) (step S44), and four digits are displayed in 7 segments (step S45). When there is a display of high or low temperature, "Hi" or "Lo" is directly displayed in seven segments. Next, it is checked whether or not the high / low temperature flag is set. If the flag is set, the display of Celsius and Fahrenheit by Celsius and Fahrenheit is turned off (step S4).
7) Turn off the-(minus) mark (step S
48).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S46 that the high and low flags are not on, it is checked whether or not the current temperature display mode is the Fahrenheit mode (step S49). The display is performed (step S50). If the mode is not the Fahrenheit mode, the temperature is displayed in Celsius (step S51), and the-mark is turned on and off (step S52).

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a warning process by the computer 13. First, it is checked whether or not a high flag has been set by outputting a warning signal (step S61). If the high flag has been set, a warning signal is output to an output port (step S62).
On the other hand, if the high flag has not been set, it is checked whether or not the low flag has been set (step S63). If the low flag has been set, no warning signal is output to the output port (step S64).

If the low flag is not set, the warning temperature set value is compared with the measured temperature (step S6).
5) It is checked whether the measured temperature is lower than the warning temperature set value (step S66). If smaller,
A warning signal is not output (step S64), and if not, a warning signal is output (step S64).
62).

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to set the warning set temperature to an arbitrary value which is different every 1 degree Celsius, for example, so that the set warning temperature can be detected by the temperature / resistance element. When it exceeds, a warning is displayed on the warning display, so that the driver can be prompted to perform a driving operation in a direction to lower the engine temperature. As a result, overheating of the engine can be prevented. In this case, the temperature measurement can be performed in both Celsius and Fahrenheit units, and the setting of the warning set temperature can be arbitrarily set in either Celsius or Fahrenheit units. Can recognize the engine temperature for preventing the overheating and appropriately perform the driving operation based on the temperature.

[0020]

As described above, according to the present invention, the temperature of the engine mounted on the vehicle is detected by the temperature / resistance element as a change in the resistance value, and the change in the resistance value detected by the temperature / resistance element is detected. The resistance / frequency converter converts the frequency into a change in frequency, and the computer calculates the temperature of the engine based on the output frequency of the resistance / frequency converter,
The warning temperature of the engine is set by a warning temperature setting unit, and when the temperature of the engine exceeds the warning temperature, a warning display is displayed on the warning display. The vehicle can be driven while checking the temperature of the vehicle, and when the temperature of the engine reaches the warning set value, the driver can be prompted to change the driving operation by automatically issuing a warning. Therefore, the vehicle can be driven at an optimum speed and with high efficiency without imposing a load on the engine. In addition, the thermometer of this vehicle engine can be retrofitted to any type of vehicle regardless of the type of engine (number of cycles, number of cylinders), number of revolutions, etc. There is a practical advantage that it can be used.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a thermometer for a vehicle engine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a thermometer of the vehicle engine shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a flow of operation of the entire thermometer of the vehicle engine according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing in detail a procedure of a temperature measurement process in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing details of a procedure of a display process in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing in detail a procedure of a warning process according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 11 temperature / resistance element 12 resistance value / frequency converter 13 computer 14 display 15 warning temperature setting section 16 warning display

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] March 14, 2001 (2001.3.1.1)
4)

[Procedure amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Drawing

[Correction target item name] Fig. 6

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

FIG. 6

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A temperature / resistance element mounted on a part of an engine mounted on a vehicle and detecting the temperature of the engine as a change in resistance value, and a temperature / resistance element attached to the temperature / resistance element and detected. A resistance / frequency converter that converts the change in the resistance value into a change in frequency, a computer that calculates the temperature of the engine based on an output frequency of the resistance / frequency converter, and displays the temperature on a display; A warning temperature setting unit that sets the warning temperature of the engine by selecting from a plurality of predetermined values, and when the temperature of the engine exceeds the warning set temperature set by the warning temperature setting unit, A thermometer for a vehicle engine, wherein the computer causes a warning display to display a warning. 2. The computer according to claim 1, wherein the computer has a function of converting an engine temperature obtained through the resistance value / frequency converter from one of Celsius and Fahrenheit to the other. A thermometer for the vehicle engine as described. 3. The thermometer for a vehicle engine according to claim 1, wherein the warning temperature setting section is capable of setting a warning temperature in one of a Celsius temperature and a Fahrenheit temperature.