JP2005348576A - Battery management device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a battery management device in which the power supply level of a power generating means can be regulated even if an idling period is short during an engine start. <P>SOLUTION: In the battery management device, a car navigation unit 3 operates a prediction traveling distance from a current position to a goal, and the charging of a battery 5 is started at a moment when the prediction traveling distance becomes shorter than a predetermined reference distance so that the residual capacity of the battery 5 is secured as much as possible. The power supply level of an alternator 2 is regulated during charging operation by varying the timing of a shift change through the automatic speed change operation of a transmission controller 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a battery management device and a management method for managing the state of a battery mounted on a vehicle.

  As one of battery state management, adjustment of the power supply level of an alternator (power generation means) is performed. In this regard, in the conventional battery management apparatus, the power supply level of the alternator is adjusted by adjusting the engine idling level.

  However, in the configuration in which the power supply level of the alternator is adjusted by adjusting the idling level, the power supply level of the alternator can be adjusted only during the pause period (idling period) such as waiting for a signal, and the power supply level during running Cannot be adjusted. For this reason, when the idling period is short, the power supply level of the alternator cannot be sufficiently adjusted.

  Therefore, the present invention is to provide a battery management device and a management method capable of adjusting the power supply level of the power generation means even when the idling period during engine startup is short.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a battery management device for managing a state of a battery mounted on a vehicle, wherein the power generation is performed based on engine power and power is supplied to the battery. And control means for controlling the supply level of the power supply of the power generation means by changing the timing of the shift change by the automatic shift operation performed by the transmission controller.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the battery management device according to the first aspect of the invention, the control means suppresses the upshift due to the automatic speed change operation or promotes the downshift, whereby the power of the power generation means is increased. Increase the supply level of the supply.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the battery management apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, the battery management device further comprises voltage detection means for detecting an output voltage of the battery, and the control means is configured to detect the voltage detected by the voltage detection means. When the output voltage is below a predetermined reference level, the supply level of the power supply by the power generation means is increased.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a battery management method for managing a state of a battery mounted on a vehicle, which is based on engine power by changing a shift change timing by an automatic shift operation performed by a transmission controller. The power supply level of the power generation means for generating power is controlled.

  According to the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, when the timing of the shift change by the automatic shift operation is changed, as a result, the running engine speed is changed, so that the power supply level of the power generation means can be adjusted. Therefore, it is possible to adjust the power generation level of the power generation means that is running. As a result, the power supply level of the power generation means can be adjusted even when the idling period during engine startup is short.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, when the output voltage of the battery is below a predetermined level due to exhaustion of the remaining charge, the power supply level by the power generation means is increased. Even when the battery voltage is lowered, the remaining charge of the battery can be recovered in a short time.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a battery management apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this battery management device, as shown in FIG. 1, in an automobile, the supply level of the power supply of the alternator (power generation means) 2 is controlled by changing the timing of the shift change by the automatic shift operation performed by the transmission controller 1. It is like that. In this battery management device, the car navigation device (travel prediction distance estimation means) 3 for estimating the travel prediction distance calculates the travel prediction distance from the current position to the destination, and the travel prediction distance is predetermined. When the battery 5 is less than the reference distance, charging of the battery 5 is started, and the remaining charge of the battery 5 is ensured as much as possible during traveling, and the power supply level of the alternator 2 at the time of charging is set. The adjustment is made by changing the timing of the shift change by the automatic transmission operation.

  Specifically, this battery management device manages the state of the battery 5 mounted on the vehicle, and is an ignition switch (hereinafter referred to as “IG switch”) as engine state detection means for detecting start and stop of the engine. 7), a voltage sensor (battery state detecting means) 9 for detecting the output voltage of the battery 5 as the state of the battery 5, an alternator 2 for adjusting and controlling the charging voltage of the battery 5, and an engine control unit for controlling the engine 11 and a central control unit 13 that controls the engine control unit 11 and the transmission controller 1 based on information from the car navigation device 3 or the like. Among these, the engine control unit 11 and the central control unit 13 correspond to control means according to the present invention.

  The car navigation device 1 is installed on a part of an instrument panel of an automobile, for example, and as shown in FIG. 1, an input device 21 for inputting a destination related to traveling of the automobile by an input operation by an operator, and this input The destination storage unit 23 that stores the destination of the vehicle input by the operation of the device 21, the current position detection unit 25 that detects the current position of the vehicle, and the destination from the current position detected by the current position detection unit 25 A recommended route search unit 27 that searches for a recommended route to the destination stored in the storage unit 23, and a travel that calculates a travel predicted distance by calculating a route distance of the recommended route searched by the recommended route search unit 27 And a predicted distance calculation unit 29.

  The input device 21 uses existing operation input parts such as a push button, a cross key, or a joystick, and maps information stored in advance on an optical disc (CD-ROM) device or the like to a predetermined display device such as a liquid crystal display panel ( The destination in the map information can be input by the operator's manual operation while being displayed on the display.

  The destination storage unit 23 uses a rewritable nonvolatile storage device such as a flash ROM, and stores the destination input by the input device 21.

  The current position detection unit 25 traces a map by autonomous navigation control based on a vehicle speed pulse from a vehicle speed sensor (not shown) and a direction by geomagnetism from a geomagnetic sensor, and receives a GPS signal transmitted from a GPS satellite through an antenna. When the vehicle position on the map is confirmed using the information contained in the signal and the map information stored in advance on the optical disk device, etc., and a position shift occurs in the trace in autonomous navigation control The current position of the vehicle is detected while performing position correction (map matching).

  The recommended route search unit 27 obtains a road network existing from the current position detected by the current position detection unit 25 to the destination stored in the destination storage unit 23 from map information stored in advance in an optical disk device or the like. The recommended route is searched under conditions such as extraction, shortest time standard, shortest distance standard, or minimum fee standard. Here, in the map information stored in the optical disc apparatus, for example, a road between a node (node) having a unique number and a node with a road width of 3.0 m (one lane) or more is taken into consideration. Each road is identified by a combination of sections (links), and the recommended route search unit 27 searches for a recommended route using data on the road in the optical disc apparatus.

  The predicted travel distance calculation unit 29 calculates the predicted travel distance of the vehicle by calculating the total distance of the links between the nodes in the recommended route searched by the recommended route search unit 27.

  The voltage sensor 9 detects the output voltage of the battery 5 and gives it to the engine control unit 11.

  The alternator 2 includes a generator 31, a regulator 33, and a control unit 35. The generator 31 includes a stator coil 31a and a rotor coil 31b. The regulator 33 rectifies the generated current generated by the generator 31 and adjusts and outputs the voltage level. The output current is supplied to the battery 5 and charged, and also supplied to various loads. The control unit 35 controls the alternator 2 based on the control signal given from the engine control unit 11.

  After the IG switch 7 is turned on, the central control unit 13 compares and determines whether or not the predicted travel distance given from the car navigation device 1 is less than a predetermined reference distance such as 1 km, for example. When the distance becomes less than the reference distance, the alternator 2 is controlled to start charging the battery 5, and a command is given to the engine control unit 11 so as to secure the capacity of the battery 5 as much as possible during traveling. .

  The engine control unit 11 also controls the state of the battery 5 while controlling an engine (not shown). That is, the engine control unit 11 controls the alternator 2 to generate electric power when the engine is started, and charges the battery 5 or the like. The charging timing of the battery 5 includes charging operation performed when starting the engine in order to compensate for the remaining charge of the battery 5 that has decreased due to wear during parking, as well as charging when the remaining charge of the battery 5 decreases during traveling. In particular, the invention according to the embodiment charges the battery 5 when the central control unit 13 determines that the predicted travel distance given from the car navigation device 1 is less than a predetermined reference distance. The capacity of the battery 5 is secured as much as possible during traveling.

  More specifically, the engine control unit 11 changes the power supply level of the alternator 2 during the charging operation in two stages (normal charge level / rapid charge level). That is, as described later, when the central control unit 13 determines that the predicted travel distance given from the car navigation device 1 is less than a predetermined reference distance, the battery 5 detected via the voltage sensor 9 is detected. The power supply level is determined to be the normal charge level or the quick charge level in accordance with the output voltage, and charging is performed.

  Here, the adjustment of the power supply level of the alternator 2 is performed by changing the timing of the shift change by the automatic shift operation of the transmission controller 1. For example, delaying (suppressing) the shift-up timing by the automatic shift operation results in an increase in the engine speed as compared with normal shift control, and the power generation amount of the alternator 2 increases. Further, even when the timing of downshifting by the automatic shift operation is advanced (promoted), the engine speed increases as compared with the normal shift control, and the power generation amount of the alternator 2 increases.

  The charging operation of the battery 5 started as described above is terminated when the output voltage of the battery 5 detected by the voltage sensor 7 reaches a predetermined value (for example, 14 V) (fully charged state).

  Solid lines G1 and G2 in FIG. 2 are graphs showing changes in the output voltage of the battery 5 to which the battery management device according to the present embodiment is applied. In FIG. 2, a dotted line G <b> 3 indicates a comparative example in which the central control unit 13 does not perform control based on the predicted travel distance. Further, time T1 in FIG. 2 corresponds to the time when the central control unit 13 determines that the predicted travel distance is less than the reference distance, and the time T2 is charged by the charging operation according to the present embodiment. The time T3 corresponds to the time when the IG switch 7 is turned off (engine stopped), and the time T4 corresponds to the time when the automobile is left for a predetermined period. It is a coincidence that the battery 7 is fully charged by the charging operation corresponding to the solid lines G1 and G2 at time T2, and generally the charging end time is different.

  When the central control unit 13 determines that the predicted travel distance given from the car navigation device 1 is less than the reference distance at the time T1 during traveling, the central control unit 13 sends the battery 5 to the engine control unit 11. Command to start the charging operation. Then, the engine control unit 11 detects the output voltage of the battery 5 via the voltage sensor 9, and when the output voltage exceeds a predetermined reference level, the power supply level of the alternator 4 is set to the normal charge level. The battery 7 is set and charged (normally charged) (corresponding to the solid line G1 in FIG. 2). On the other hand, when the output voltage is below a predetermined reference level, the power of the alternator 4 is The supply level is set to the quick charge level, and the battery 7 is charged (rapid charge) (corresponding to the solid line G2 in FIG. 2). As described above, the adjustment of the power supply level is performed by adjusting the timing of upshifting by the automatic shift operation of the transmission controller 1 in two stages.

  Here, the reference level set for the output voltage serving as the reference for determining the charge level is the increase in the remaining charge of the battery 5 per unit time obtained by normal charging, and from time T1 to time T2. It is determined by the relationship with the expected travel time. That is, when the remaining charge (output voltage) of the battery 7 has dropped to a level at which the battery 5 cannot be fully charged by time T2 even if normal charging is started at time T1. In this case, quick charging is performed.

  When the engine control unit 11 detects that the output voltage of the battery 5 has reached a predetermined value (for example, 14 V) (full charge) at time T2 based on the detection result of the output voltage from the voltage sensor 7, Stop charging operation temporarily. However, when the output voltage of the battery 5 starts to decrease due to the temporary stop of the charging operation, the battery 5 is charged again because the predicted travel distance is already less than the reference distance. Thus, from time T2 when the battery 5 is fully charged to time T3 when the engine is stopped, the charging operation of the battery 5 and the stopping of the charging operation due to full charging are alternately repeated. As a result, before the engine is stopped at time T3, the battery 5 is quickly set to almost full charge, and this state is maintained until the time of engine stop at time T3.

  When the engine is stopped at time T3, charging of the battery 5 is stopped, and then the battery 5 is discharged by dark current or the like flowing in the automobile. For this reason, after time T3, the output voltage of the battery 5 gradually decreases.

  Here, considering a comparative example (dotted line G3 in FIG. 2) in which the central control unit 13 does not perform control based on the determination of the predicted travel distance, in this case, the battery 5 is not charged even at time T1. Therefore, the output voltage of the battery 5 is likely to be maintained at the same voltage level (for example, 12 V) until time T3 when the engine is stopped. Therefore, when the engine is stopped at time T3 and charging to the battery 5 is stopped, the output voltage of the battery 5 starts to drop from the 12V state, and at time T4, the output voltage of the battery 5 is reduced to about 8V. Will fall to. Since 8V is the minimum voltage required to start the engine next time, if the vehicle is left without starting the engine after time T4, the output voltage of the battery 5 further decreases. Therefore, the next time the engine is started, the engine cannot be started due to insufficient voltage.

  On the other hand, in this embodiment, the predicted travel distance from the current location to the destination is detected by the car navigation device 1, and the output voltage of the battery 5 is detected at time T1 when the predicted travel distance becomes less than a predetermined reference distance. Since the power is generated by the alternator 2 at the power supply level corresponding to the normal power supply, the battery 5 is normally charged or rapidly charged, so that the battery 5 is surely filled before the engine is stopped (time T3). Even when the output voltage of the battery 5 can be in a charged state and then gradually decreases due to dark current or the like, the output voltage of the battery 5 decreases below the voltage necessary for starting the engine at least at time T4 Can be prevented.

  In addition, since the power supply level of the alternator 2 is adjusted stepwise by changing the timing of the shift change by the automatic transmission operation, the power generation supply level of the alternator 2 during travel can be adjusted. . As a result, even when the idling period during engine startup is short (for example, when there is no idling period from time T1 to time T3), the power supply level of the alternator 2 is adjusted to ensure that the battery 5 is charged. It can be carried out.

  Further, at the time T1 when the predicted travel distance becomes less than the predetermined reference distance, when the output voltage of the battery 7 is equal to or lower than the predetermined reference level, the battery 5 is rapidly charged. Even when the degree of decrease in the remaining charge is large, the battery 5 can be fully charged by time T3 when the engine is stopped.

It is a block diagram of the battery management apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows transition of the output voltage of the battery to which the battery management apparatus of FIG. 1 was applied.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Transmission controller 2 Alternator 3 Car navigation apparatus 5 Battery 7 IG switch 9 Voltage sensor 11 Engine control part 13 Central control part

Claims (4)

A battery management device for managing a state of a battery mounted on a vehicle,
Power generation means for generating power based on engine power and supplying power to the battery;
Control means for controlling the supply level of the power supply of the power generation means by changing the timing of the shift change by the automatic shift operation performed by the transmission controller;
A battery management device comprising: The battery management device according to claim 1,
The control means includes
A battery management device characterized in that the supply level of the power supply of the power generation means is increased by suppressing shift-up by the automatic shift operation or promoting shift-down. The battery management device according to claim 2,
Voltage detection means for detecting the output voltage of the battery,
The control means includes
The battery management apparatus characterized by increasing the supply level of the power supply by the power generation means when the output voltage detected by the voltage detection means is below a predetermined reference level. A battery management method for managing a state of a battery mounted on a vehicle,
A battery management method comprising: controlling a supply level of power supply of a power generation unit that generates power based on engine power by changing a timing of shift change by an automatic shift operation performed by a transmission controller.

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