JP2010261348A - Idling stop control device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an idling stop control device capable of improving operability when restarting an engine in an idling stop state. <P>SOLUTION: This idling stop control device can stop idling by stopping driving of an engine on condition that a vehicle stops and a shift lever 9 exists in a neutral range position, and can restart the engine in the idling stop state by operating the shift lever 9 in the lateral direction in the neutral range position. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an idling stop control device that can stop idling by stopping driving of an engine on the condition that a vehicle is stopped and a shift lever is in a neutral range position.

  From the viewpoint of improving fuel efficiency and environmental problems, an idling stop control device that can stop idling by stopping driving of an engine on condition that a vehicle such as an automobile has been stopped has been proposed. More specifically, when the idling stop control device detects that the vehicle has stopped because the vehicle speed is 0 or close to 0, the engine is automatically stopped to stop idling. Compared with the case where idling is continuously performed while the engine is running, the fuel consumption can be improved and the exhaust gas can be reduced.

  However, in the conventional idling stop control device, for the purpose of improving safety, in addition to stopping the vehicle, the idling stop is performed on the condition that the shift lever is in the neutral range position (N position), and In order to restart the engine in the idling stop state, it has been proposed to operate an operation button separate from the shift lever. In addition, since this prior art does not relate to the literature known invention, there is no prior art document information to be described.

  However, in the above-described conventional idling stop control device, in order to restart the engine in the idling stop state, it is necessary to operate an operation button separate from the shift lever, so that the operability is deteriorated. there were. That is, in order to restart the engine from the idling stop state, it is necessary to first reach out to a separate operation button and then operate to reach the drive range position (D range) by grasping the shift lever. Because at least two operations are required, the operability is deteriorated.

  This invention is made in view of such a situation, and is providing the idling stop control apparatus which can improve the operativity at the time of restarting the engine of an idling stop state.

  The invention according to claim 1 is an idling stop control device capable of stopping the idling by stopping the driving of the engine on the condition that the vehicle is stopped and the speed change lever is in the neutral range position. The engine in the idling stop state can be restarted by operating in the left-right direction within the position of the neutral range.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the idling stop control device according to the first aspect, the shift lever is urged in either the left or right direction at the neutral range position, and in the other direction against the urging force. The engine in the idling stop state can be restarted by operating the engine.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the idling stop control device according to the first or second aspect, the engine is stopped to stop idling on the condition that the vehicle is stopped and the speed change lever is in the neutral range position. The eco mode that starts the engine in the eco mode and the normal mode that starts the engine in the normal mode that does not stop idling even if the vehicle stops are set, and the driver can arbitrarily set the eco mode and the normal mode. It is characterized by being selectable.

  According to the first aspect of the invention, since the engine in the idling stop state can be restarted by operating the shift lever in the left-right direction within the position of the neutral range, the operability when the engine in the idling stop state is restarted. Can be improved.

  According to the invention of claim 2, the shift lever is urged in the left or right direction at the neutral range position, and the engine in the idling stop state is operated by operating in the other direction against the urging force. Since the engine can be restarted, the speed change lever can be reliably held at the neutral range position even during the restart.

  According to the invention of claim 3, an eco mode for starting the engine in an eco mode for stopping the idling and stopping the driving of the engine on condition that the vehicle is stopped and the speed change lever is in the neutral range position; The normal mode that starts the engine in the normal mode that does not stop idling even when stopped is set, and the driver can select arbitrarily in the eco mode and the normal mode, so the driver's preference and driving situation The control according to can be performed.

The block diagram which shows the idling stop control apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the speed-change lever applied to the idling stop control apparatus Schematic diagram showing left and right operation of the shift lever applied to the idling stop control device The flowchart which shows the control contents of the idling stop control device

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.
The idling stop control device according to the present embodiment can stop idling by stopping the driving of the engine on condition that the vehicle (automobile) is stopped. As shown in FIG. 1, the detecting means 12 and the operation detecting means 14 is mainly provided with an idling stop control circuit 2 and an inclination angle sensor 3, and the idling stop control circuit 2 includes an eco mode starter button 4, a vehicle speed sensor 6, an engine rotation sensor 7, and the like. , A brake (specifically, a switch that is turned on when the foot brake is operated) 8, a transmission lever 9 (transmission operation device), an ECU (engine control unit) 10, a notification unit 11, a warning unit 13, Each is electrically connected.

  The idling stop control circuit 2 is a main component of the idling stop control device 1, and the vehicle stops based on detection of the pressing operation of the eco mode starter button 4 and detection by the vehicle speed sensor 6 and the engine rotation sensor 7. Detection of braking, detection of brake operation based on detection of the brake 8, and which range the shift lever 9 is in (specifically, whether it is in the N range position or the P range position) It is comprised so that detection etc. can be performed.

  Further, when the idling stop control circuit 2 detects that the vehicle is stopped and the shift lever 9 is in the neutral range position, the idling stop control circuit 2 determines whether or not to stop idling, and sends a signal based on the determination result to the ECU 10. It is configured to be able to transmit. The ECU 10 is for controlling an engine mounted on the vehicle. When a signal to stop idling is input, the ECU 10 stops driving to stop idling, and a signal not to stop idling is input ( If there is no signal to stop idling), the engine can be continuously driven and controlled so as not to stop idling.

  In this embodiment, only when the vehicle is stopped and the speed change lever 9 is in the N range position, the engine is stopped and idling can be stopped. The speed change lever 9 is set to the neutral range. In this position, the engine in the idling stop state can be restarted by operating in the left-right direction. That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the speed change lever 9 can be operated by the dimension t in the left-right direction at the neutral range position, and the operation detecting means 14 can detect the operation. is there.

  More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the speed change lever 9 has a lever portion 9 a that is inserted into a key-like groove H formed in the decorative panel, and the speed change lever 9. Is in a neutral position (P range position, R range position, N range position, D range position or L range position) can be detected by a sensor (not shown). In the case of the range position (N range position), the electrical signal is transmitted to the idling stop control circuit 2.

  Here, in the present embodiment, in a normal state before the operation of the speed change lever 9, a biasing means (not shown) such as a spring is applied so that the lever portion 9a contacts the right opening edge at the N range position of the groove H. When the speed change lever 9 is swung to the left in the figure by the dimension t against the biasing force, the operation is detected by a sensor (not shown), and the idling stop control circuit 2 An electric signal can be transmitted to the operation detecting means 14. Thus, when the operation detecting means 14 detects an operation of the shift lever 9 in the left-right direction, an electric signal can be transmitted to the ECU 10 to restart the engine in the idling stop state.

  In this embodiment, the shift lever 9 is urged to the right in the neutral range position, and can be restarted by operating the left side to resist the urging force. The shift lever 9 is urged in either the left or right direction at the neutral range position, and is operated in the other direction against the urging force to restart the engine in the idling stop state. It is sufficient if it is configured so that

  The inclination angle sensor 3 is a sensor for detecting the inclination angle of the vehicle, and is configured to detect a change in the inclination angle of the vehicle in accordance with the road surface gradient. The tilt angle sensor 3 may be of any form, such as a physical sensor that uses the swing angle of the weight according to the tilt angle, or an electrical sensor that uses a change in capacitance. In the present embodiment, an acceleration sensor is used for detecting that an impact or the like has been applied to the vehicle and preventing theft. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, since the tilt angle sensor 3 is composed of an acceleration sensor mounted on the vehicle, the acceleration sensor used for other purposes such as theft prevention is used as the tilt angle sensor of the idling stop control device 1. Can do.

  In the present embodiment, when the inclination angle sensor 3 detects that the inclination angle of the vehicle when the vehicle stops is equal to or greater than a predetermined angle, the engine is continuously driven so as not to stop idling. Is done. That is, the idling stop control circuit 2 stops the engine to stop idling when the tilt angle sensor 3 detects that the tilt angle of the vehicle when the vehicle stops is less than a predetermined angle. The ECU 10 is instructed to stop idling when the inclination angle sensor 3 detects that the inclination angle of the vehicle when the vehicle stops is equal to or greater than a predetermined angle. The ECU 10 is instructed not to do so.

  The informing means 11 is for informing the driver that the idling is not stopped when the inclining angle sensor 3 detects that the inclining angle of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined angle and does not stop idling. For example, any type of alarm may be used, such as an alarm by a buzzer or sound, an alarm by displaying on an LED or an image, and the like. Accordingly, the driver can recognize that the inclination angle of the vehicle is greater than or equal to a predetermined angle by the inclination angle sensor and not stop idling.

  Further, in the idling stop control circuit 2 in the present embodiment, when the engine driving is stopped and idling is stopped, there is formed a detecting means 12 for detecting that the accelerator is not operated and the vehicle moves at a predetermined speed. In addition, a warning unit 13 electrically connected to the detection unit 12 is provided. This warning means 13 is detected by the detection means 12 (when the engine is stopped and idling is stopped, it is detected that there is no accelerator operation and the vehicle moves at a predetermined speed). It is for informing the driver and giving a warning. As a result, even when the vehicle stops at a small slope and the vehicle tilt angle is less than the predetermined angle, the driver can reliably grasp the inadvertent advance or reverse of the vehicle that is not intended by the driver. Can be prevented.

  Further, in this embodiment, in addition to the eco mode starter button 4, a normal mode starter button 5 is provided. The eco mode starter button 4 starts the engine in an eco mode in which the engine is stopped and idling is stopped on the condition that the vehicle is stopped and the speed change lever 9 is in the neutral range position. No. 5 starts the engine in the normal mode in which the idling stop is not performed even when the vehicle stops (that is, even when the vehicle stops and the shift lever 9 is in the neutral range position). is there. As a result, the driver can arbitrarily select between the eco mode and the normal mode, and control according to the driver's preference and driving conditions can be performed.

  That is, if the engine is started by pressing the eco-mode starter button 4, then idling stop control (as described above, the inclination angle of the vehicle when the vehicle stops is equal to or greater than a predetermined angle) When it is detected by the sensor 3, the engine is continuously driven to stop idling, and the engine is started by pressing the normal mode starter button 5. Thereafter, idling stop control is performed. It is designed not to let you.

  The eco-mode starter button 4 and the normal mode starter button 5 are preferably arranged at separate positions so that erroneous operations can be suppressed by making colors and shapes different from each other. In the present embodiment, the eco mode starter button 4 and the normal mode starter button 5 are provided. For example, a cylinder that can rotate the ignition key between the first on position and the second on position is provided. And when the predetermined operation button is pressed when the ignition key is in the first on position, the eco mode is set, and when the ignition key is in the second on position, the predetermined operation button is pressed or If the ignition key is further rotated to the start position, the normal mode may be set.

Next, the control content of the idling stop control device according to the present embodiment will be described based on the flowchart of FIG.
First, it is determined whether or not the eco mode starter button 4 has been pressed. If the eco mode starter button 4 has been pressed, it is determined that the eco mode has been selected, and the control of S2 to S11 is performed. If the eco-mode start button 4 is not pressed, the process proceeds to S12, where it is determined whether or not the normal mode starter button 5 is pressed. If it is pressed, it is determined that the normal mode has been selected, and the control in S13 to S16 is performed. Is made.

  When the engine is started in S2, normal running is enabled, the vehicle stops based on a signal from the vehicle speed sensor 6, and the shift lever 9 is in the neutral range (N range) position. It is determined whether or not (S3). When it is determined that the vehicle stops and the shift lever 9 is in the N range position, the inclination angle sensor 3 detects that the vehicle is inclined at a predetermined angle (for example, about 4 ° to 5 °) or more. If it is determined that the angle is less than the predetermined angle, the engine is continuously driven to stop idling (S8). On the other hand, if it is determined that the angle is equal to or greater than the predetermined angle, The process proceeds to S5, where the engine is stopped and idling is stopped.

  Thereafter, whether or not the shift lever 9 has been operated in the left-right direction within the neutral range position (in this embodiment, leftward operation with respect to the shift lever 9) (whether or not a restart operation has been performed). Is determined based on whether or not the operation detection means 14 has detected (S6). If there is a restart operation (that is, if the operation detection means 14 has detected), the process proceeds to S7 and the engine is restarted. The restart operation may be, for example, the presence or absence of a foot brake operation in addition to the above conditions.

  After S7 or S8, it is determined whether or not the vehicle is stopped (S9). If it is determined that the vehicle is stopped, whether or not the shift lever of the shift operating device 9 is set to the P range in S10. Judging. If it is determined that the shift lever is in the P range, the process proceeds to S11 and the engine is stopped. This completes the control contents in the eco mode. For example, when it is detected that the door lock operation is performed by the portable remote controller or the request switch after the engine is stopped, the eco lamp formed on the eco mode starter button 4 blinks, and then The eco lamp may be configured to be extinguished.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S12 that the normal mode starter button 5 has been pressed, the engine is started in S13, and then it is determined whether the vehicle has stopped based on a signal from the vehicle speed sensor 6. (S14). If it is determined that the vehicle is stopped, it is determined in S15 whether or not the shift lever of the shift operation device 9 is in the P range. If it is determined that the shift lever is in the P range, the process proceeds to S16. The engine is stopped. Thus, the control content in the normal mode is completed.

  However, in the case of idling stop at night driving, the headlamp is turned off and only the small light is turned on, and the headlamp can be turned on automatically at the same time when the engine is started by restarting operation. May be. Further, when idling stop is performed while the air conditioner is operating, it is preferable to control so that only the air is blown. Thereby, battery consumption when idling is stopped can be suppressed.

  According to the above embodiment, since the engine in the idling stop state can be restarted by operating the shift lever 9 in the left-right direction within the neutral range position, it is necessary to operate a separate operating means or the like when the engine is restarted. Compared with a certain thing, only operation of the speed change lever 9 is enough, and the operativity at the time of restarting the engine in an idling stop state can be improved. Thus, the engine in the idling stop state can be immediately restarted by operating the shift lever 9 in the left-right direction.

  The shift lever 9 is urged in either the left or right direction (right direction in the present embodiment) at the neutral range position, and in the other direction (left direction in the present embodiment) against the urging force. ), The engine in the idling stop state can be restarted, so that the shift lever 9 can be reliably held at the neutral range position even during the restart.

  Furthermore, an eco mode in which the engine is started in an eco mode in which the driving of the engine is stopped and idling is stopped on condition that the vehicle is stopped and the shift lever 9 is in the neutral range position, and idling is stopped even if the vehicle is stopped. The normal mode that starts the engine in the normal mode that does not perform is set, and the driver can be arbitrarily selected in the eco mode and the normal mode, so control according to the driver's preference and driving situation is performed Can be made.

  Furthermore, when the vehicle is stopped and the inclination angle sensor 3 detects that the inclination angle of the vehicle when the shift lever 9 is in the neutral range position is equal to or greater than a predetermined angle, the eco mode is selected. Even if it is, the engine is continuously driven and idling is not stopped, so that even if the vehicle stops in a place with a large gradient, it is possible to reliably prevent inadvertent forward or backward movement of the vehicle unintended by the driver. can do.

  Although the present embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the tilt angle sensor 3 may not be provided, and the idling stop may not be limited based on the vehicle tilt angle. . Further, in the present embodiment, the eco mode and the normal mode can be arbitrarily switched, but only the eco mode is selected, and the normal mode is not selected (that is, one starter button is provided). You may apply to. Further, instead of the starter button, the present invention may be applied to a device that performs a starting operation with a conventionally-used ignition key. Furthermore, the notification means 11, the detection means 12, and the warning means 13 may not be provided.

  As long as the idling stop control device can restart the engine in the idling stop state by operating the shift lever in the left-right direction within the position of the neutral range, it can also be applied to devices to which other functions are added. .

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Idling stop control apparatus 2 Idling stop control circuit 3 Inclination angle sensor 4 Eco mode starter button 5 Normal mode starter button 6 Vehicle speed sensor 7 Engine rotation sensor 8 Brake 9 Shift lever 10 ECU
11 Notification means 12 Detection means 13 Warning means 14 Operation detection means

Claims (3)

An idling stop control device capable of stopping the idling by stopping the driving of the engine on the condition that the vehicle is stopped and the shift lever is in the neutral range position,
An idling stop control device, wherein the engine in an idling stop state can be restarted by operating the shift lever in the left-right direction within the position of the neutral range.   The shift lever is urged in either the left or right direction at the neutral range position, and can operate the engine in an idling stop state by operating in another direction against the urging force. The idling stop control device according to claim 1. An eco mode for starting the engine in an eco mode for stopping the idling and stopping the driving of the engine on condition that the vehicle is stopped and the shift lever is in the neutral range position;
A normal mode in which the engine is started in a normal mode that does not stop idling even if the vehicle stops;
The idling stop control device according to claim 1, wherein the driver can arbitrarily select between the eco mode and the normal mode.

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