JP2005143270A - Hybrid car - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a low-cost device capable of starting an internal combustion engine smoothly without providing a particular starting device for low-temperature environment even under low-temperature environment below a prescribed level (for example, 12°C below zero or lower), with regard to a structure in which the auxiliary traveling electric motor of a hybrid car is used as the starting motor of the engine. <P>SOLUTION: Device temperature is measured at the time of the start control of the engine. If the measured temperature is under the low temperature environment below a prescribed temperature, a current that exceeds maximum rating set to an inverter and the electric motor is supplied temporarily to perform the start control of driving the rotation of the engine forcibly. Even if the current exceeds the maximum rating temporarily, it is possible to control in such a way as to perform the start control before the device temperature rises, because the low-temperature state of the device is checked initially. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention is used in a hybrid vehicle that uses both power from an internal combustion engine and power from an electric motor as driving power. The present invention relates to an improvement of a hybrid vehicle that uses a motor for generating power for traveling as a starting motor temporarily when starting an internal combustion engine. In particular, the present invention relates to an improvement in technology for starting an internal combustion engine of a hybrid vehicle when the apparatus temperature is extremely low.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in order to start an internal combustion engine, a type in which a starter motor is provided in the internal combustion engine and the starter motor is used only at the time of start-up is widely used. On the other hand, in a hybrid vehicle, an apparatus of a type in which an output shaft of an electric motor is mechanically connected to an output shaft of an internal combustion engine is used. In such a vehicle, the rotation output of the electric motor is controlled so as to assist the rotation output of the internal combustion engine when the vehicle starts, climbs, or otherwise requires a large driving force. In this type of hybrid vehicle, it is possible to supply rotational power at the time of starting to the internal combustion engine by using this auxiliary drive motor without separately providing a starter motor to start the internal combustion engine.

  For this reason, a technique for setting a start mode as an operation mode in a hybrid control circuit (HV-ECU) has become widespread. That is, the hybrid control circuit is a program control circuit that controls the electric motor for auxiliary driving, and switches and controls a plurality of modes of the hybrid device. When starting the internal combustion engine of the vehicle for the first time, the start mode is set by the driver operating the key switch to the start position, and the current is taken out from the large-capacity battery storing the energy for auxiliary travel, and the inverter The electric energy is supplied to the electric motor via. The rotational speed of the electric motor at this time is controlled to an optimal rotational speed for starting the internal combustion engine.

  Regarding hybrid vehicles, the following patent documents are known in relation to a technique for starting an internal combustion engine using an auxiliary traveling motor.

JP 2003-230286 A JP 2003-138958 A JP 2002-048036 A JP 2001-314090 A JP 2000-060196 A

  If the vehicle is in a low-temperature environment at the time of start-up, the rotational torque necessary for rotationally driving the internal-combustion engine for start-up becomes large, for example, the viscosity of the lubricating oil of the internal-combustion engine becomes high. The inventor of the present application conducted various tests on the starting characteristics of the hybrid vehicle in a low temperature environment. As a result, when the vehicle is left for a long time in a very low temperature environment, for example, in an environment where the temperature is below 10 to 30 ° C. or below, the normal start system does not start the internal combustion engine smoothly. It was observed that there was a case. The temperature exemplified above is an environment that can occur in the severe winter season in the inland area of Hokkaido when limited to the region in Japan.

  For vehicles used in low-temperature environments, it is conceivable to design special-purpose vehicles such as installing large-capacity inverters. However, such special-specification vehicles increase the part price and the number of units manufactured is limited. Will be a reasonably expensive vehicle.

  The present invention has been made against such a background, and an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for smoothly starting an internal combustion engine of a hybrid vehicle in a low temperature environment. An object of the present invention is to improve the starting performance of an internal combustion engine in a low temperature environment by using a motor for auxiliary power provided in a hybrid vehicle as a starting motor. An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus capable of smoothly starting an internal combustion engine in a low temperature environment without providing a special low temperature specification. An object of the present invention is to provide a hybrid vehicle that can be cold-started at low cost. An object of the present invention is to provide a device that can automatically perform a low-temperature start control without particularly being aware that the driver is at a low temperature.

  The first feature of the present invention is that low temperature detection means for detecting that the apparatus temperature has become abnormally low temperature is provided, and the start control of the internal combustion engine is switched to a low temperature mode in a state where the low temperature detection means has a detection output. And When starting the internal combustion engine in the low-temperature mode, it is necessary to control the current supplied from the inverter to the motor for a short time to a value exceeding the rated value, and to generate a torque sufficient to start the internal combustion engine. Two features.

  [Patent Document 3] (Applicant, Suzuki) describes that when an internal combustion engine of a hybrid vehicle is started, the motor is temporarily supplied with a current exceeding its rated performance, but the device is at a constant low temperature. There is no description to detect this and make it a condition. That is, there is no description about the first feature.

  In a low temperature environment, the electric motor is also at a low temperature. Therefore, even if a current exceeding the rated value is supplied for a short time, there is no inconvenience immediately. This was confirmed by various test results. For inverters, a current exceeding the rated value flows through the semiconductor switch element. However, even when the semiconductor switch element is at a low temperature, the current exceeding the rated value flows for a short time. It was confirmed that no irreparable damage occurred. That is, by appropriately controlling the magnitude of the current exceeding the rated value and the short time during which the current is applied, the internal combustion can be effectively performed without damaging the apparatus by executing the above control in a low temperature environment. It turns out that the engine can be started.

  As for the battery for starting the internal combustion engine, the effective capacity of the battery is small in a low temperature environment, but the battery for supplying auxiliary power for the hybrid vehicle has a large overall energy capacity. It has also been found that even when the battery capacity is effectively reduced due to the influence of the low temperature, the electric energy necessary for starting can still be sufficiently extracted.

  As described above, when supplying a large current exceeding the rated value in a low-temperature environment, which of the battery, inverter, and motor is affected first is a constant set by the device design. Depending on the conditions. In other words, normal operating conditions at normal temperature and economic design should be given priority in the device design, and the priority regarding the design conditions for the start of low temperature that rarely occurs is low. The engine can be started by performing an optimum design under operating conditions at room temperature, performing an internal combustion engine start test in a low temperature environment for the device, and implementing the present invention in a constant low temperature environment. It is enough to confirm.

  And, for the large current waveform exceeding the rated value used in the low temperature environment and its maximum application time, the most affected device among the above three devices (battery, inverter, electric motor), that is, the weakest device In order to prevent irreparable damage, the current waveform and its application time may be appropriately limited and controlled. For example, if it is found that, among the above three devices, the inverter is first damaged by applying a temporary high current, the inverter is damaged in the control circuit that controls the start of the internal combustion engine. It is possible to take safety measures such as limiting the current waveform within a range that is not affected, or limiting the application time of a large current. As a result, when there is another cause that the internal combustion engine does not start, for example, when there is a failure in the fuel supply passage of the internal combustion engine, control for supplying a large current for an unnecessarily long time is executed, and the device is damaged. It is possible to avoid expanding the situation.

  That is, the present invention relates to an internal combustion engine, an internal combustion engine control circuit that controls a flow rate of fuel supplied to the internal combustion engine, an electric motor that generates auxiliary driving power for a vehicle with the rotation shaft connected to the rotation shaft of the internal combustion engine, A battery, an inverter that electrically couples the battery and the motor, and an inverter control circuit that controls the inverter, and the inverter control circuit uses the motor as a starting motor when the internal combustion engine is started. In a hybrid vehicle having a start control means for controlling, a low temperature detection means for detecting that the apparatus temperature is an abnormally low temperature below a set limit is provided, and the start control means sends a detection output to the low temperature detection means. The current waveform supplied from the inverter to the motor is changed to a large current waveform exceeding the rated value of the motor. Characterized in that it comprises a.

  It can be configured to include a means for controlling a large current waveform exceeding the rated value or its maximum application time. The low temperature detection means preferably includes a means for using a detection output of a temperature detection device provided in the battery.

  According to the present invention, an apparatus capable of smoothly starting an internal combustion engine in a low temperature environment by adding software without providing a special low temperature specification is obtained.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. First, the overall configuration of the apparatus will be described. A rotating shaft of the motor generator 2 is fixedly connected to the output shaft of the internal combustion engine 1. The motor generator 2 is a single rotating machine, and acts as both a motor and a generator according to its operation mode. The “motor” described above is realized as one operation mode of the motor generator 2. That is, when the three-phase alternating current is supplied to the field winding of the motor generator 2 and the rotation speed of the rotating magnetic field formed by the field winding is larger than the rotation speed of the mechanical rotor, this device is used. Acts as an electric motor. At this time, the electric energy is supplied from the battery 8 through the inverter 6 after being converted into an alternating current. When the rotational speed of the rotating magnetic field formed by the three-phase alternating current supplied to the field winding of the motor generator 2 is smaller than the mechanical rotational speed of the rotor, this device acts as a generator. At this time, an alternating current is generated from this device, which is converted into a direct current by the inverter 6 and charged to the battery 8. The rotational speed of the rotating magnetic field, that is, the frequency and phase of the three-phase alternating current is controlled by the hybrid control circuit 7. The hybrid control circuit 7 is composed of a program control circuit.

  The input shaft of the clutch 3 is connected to the rotating shaft of the motor generator 2. The clutch 3 is controlled in its connected state including a half-clutch state by a clutch actuator not shown. The input shaft of the transmission 4 is connected to the output shaft of the clutch 3. The transmission 4 is controlled to be switched by a shift control device (not shown). The transmission 4 is a well-known device capable of setting the neutral, forward five-speed, and reverse one-speed gear positions. The output shaft of the transmission 4 is connected to the propeller shaft 5 of this vehicle. The clutch / actuator and the shift control device are controlled in accordance with the operation of an accelerator pedal and a shift lever provided in the driver's seat. Since this control is a well-known technique, a detailed description is omitted here.

  The field winding of the motor generator 2 is configured to form a rotating magnetic field by the three-phase alternating current supplied as described above. This three-phase AC terminal is electrically connected to the AC side terminal of the inverter 6. The phase rotation angle of the inverter 6 is controlled by a hybrid control circuit (ECU) 7 constituted by a program control circuit. A battery 8 is connected to the DC side terminal of the inverter 6. Further, since the drawing becomes complicated, the illustration is omitted, but the hybrid control circuit 7 receives as input information the rotation information of the internal combustion engine (that is, the motor generator), the operation information of the clutch, the position information of the transmission, the vehicle speed information, the accelerator.・ Pedal operation information, brake operation information, battery status information, etc. are input as electrical signals. The hybrid control circuit 7 is connected to other program control circuits provided in the vehicle, for example, an internal combustion engine control circuit, a clutch control circuit, a transmission control circuit, an exhaust brake control circuit, and others via a communication bus, and control information Is configured to be shared.

  Here, the configuration related to the start control of the present invention will be described. More specifically, the battery state information is information on the terminal voltage of the battery 8, information on current passing through the inverter 6 in both directions, and temperature information of the battery. Of these, the terminal information of the battery 8 and the current information are detected inside the inverter 6 and taken into the hybrid control circuit 7. The battery temperature information is measured by a temperature sensor 9 provided in the battery 8 and taken into the hybrid control circuit 7.

  The hybrid control circuit 7 receives operation information of the key switch 10 provided in the driver's seat. The key switch 10 has the same structure as a well-known engine key switch of a normal automobile, and is in the off position when the vehicle is stopped, and the driver inserts the key and rotates the key. Thus, the setting operation can be performed for the accessory, on, and start positions, respectively. When starting the internal combustion engine, the driver rotates the key to the start position, listens to the startup sound of the internal combustion engine and releases the key, so that the key switch 10 is automatically returned to the on position and held.

FIG. 2 shows a main part of a control flowchart according to the embodiment of the present invention. That is, in the device of the present invention, when the key switch 10 is operated to the start position, the hybrid control circuit 7 takes in the temperature information of the battery 8 and the battery temperature (θ) is set as the low temperature value (θ _0). ) To determine whether it is lower. For example, the set temperature (θ ₀ ) is set between 10 and 30 ° C. below zero. More specifically, it is 12 ° C. under zero.

When the battery temperature is in a very low temperature state below this set temperature (θ ₀ ), in order to start the internal combustion engine 1, a three-phase AC current waveform supplied to the field winding of the motor generator 2 is specially Set to low temperature mode. In this low temperature mode, the current of the motor generator 2 and the inverter 6 is set to a value exceeding the maximum rated current. For example, the current waveform is set to supply a preset average current of about 120 to 150% of the average maximum rated current. By supplying a current exceeding the rated current value to the motor generator 2 in this way, the motor generator 2 temporarily generates a large output torque, forcing the internal combustion engine 1 whose rotational load is increasing due to low temperature. Can be rotationally driven.

  If the apparatus temperature is about 10 to 30 ° C. below zero as exemplified above, the internal combustion engine 1 is started by the rotational drive of the motor generator 2 with a preset large current waveform for t seconds. At this time, forced rotation driving is performed with a large current waveform exceeding the rated value of the device. However, since the semiconductor device of the inverter 6 and the field winding of the motor generator 2 are also in a low temperature state, this large current waveform is As a result, the device will not immediately generate heat and damage the device.

  When such control is performed, if the internal combustion engine does not start for a preset time limit t seconds for some reason, an alarm is generated to stop the start control. This protects the device from being damaged by drive control exceeding the rated value. In some cases, the cause is assumed to be a cause other than the electric system, for example, when there is an abnormality in the fuel supply system, or when it is in an unexpected low temperature environment (eg, below 40 ° C. below zero). For example, the time limit t seconds may be set to 5 to 10 seconds.

  Note that * A shown in FIG. 2 is a case where the internal combustion engine does not start even when the normal start control is executed even though the temperature condition is sufficiently high. At this time, the driver is urged to check by generating a driver's seat warning or the like. Since this is not directly related to the configuration and operation of the present invention, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

  With the configuration and operation as described above, it is possible to execute the internal combustion engine start control of the hybrid vehicle in a low temperature environment without adding a special additional device or additional component. With this configuration, it is expected that vehicles operating in Japan can be covered by a unified specification without setting a special cold district specification.

  In the above embodiment, the description has been given of the hybrid vehicle equipped with only one electric rotating machine as a motor generator. However, the present invention can be widely applied to hybrid vehicles having other configurations. That is, the present invention is similarly applied to a hybrid vehicle of a type in which an electric motor and a generator are provided as separate rotating machines, and the internal combustion engine is started by an electric motor that generates auxiliary power. Therefore, the same effect can be expected.

The block block diagram of this invention Example apparatus. The principal part control flowchart of this invention Example apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Internal combustion engine 2 Motor generator 3 Clutch 4 Transmission 5 Propeller shaft 6 Inverter 7 Hybrid control circuit 8 Battery 9 Temperature sensor 10 Key switch

Claims (3)

An internal combustion engine, an internal combustion engine control circuit that controls a flow rate of fuel supplied to the internal combustion engine, an electric motor that generates an auxiliary power for driving the vehicle by connecting the rotary shaft to the rotary shaft of the internal combustion engine, a battery, An inverter electrically connecting the battery and the electric motor, and an inverter control circuit for controlling the inverter, and the inverter control circuit controls the electric motor as a starting electric motor when starting the internal combustion engine. In a hybrid vehicle equipped with
Provide low temperature detection means to detect that the device temperature is abnormally low below the set limit,
The starting control means includes means for changing and controlling the current waveform supplied from the inverter to the electric motor to a large current waveform exceeding the rated value of the electric motor when a detection output is sent to the low temperature detecting means. A featured hybrid car.   The hybrid vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising means for controlling a large current waveform exceeding the rated value and a maximum application time thereof.   The hybrid vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the low temperature detection means includes means for using a detection output of a temperature detection device provided in the battery.

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