JP2018044516A - Control method of engine, and control device of engine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To control rotation of an engine without giving feeling of discomfort to an occupant, even when engagement of a clutch is released during running in a maximum shift stage.SOLUTION: A control method of an engine to which a manual transmission is connected, includes an engagement state detection process for detecting an engagement state of a clutch, a shift stage specifying process for specifying a shift stage of the manual transmission on the basis of an engine rotating speed and a transmission rotating speed of the manual transmission, a first rotation control process for applying a rotating speed higher than an idling rotating speed as a target rotating speed, and controlling rotation of the engine during a control time CT, when the engagement of the clutch is released, and the specified shift stage is not a maximum shift stage, and a second rotation control process for applying the rotating speed higher than the idling rotating speed as the target rotating speed, and controlling the rotation of the engine during a control time CT6 determined to a time length of the control time CT or less, when the engagement of the clutch is released, and the specified shift stage is the maximum shift stage.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

  The present invention relates to an engine control method and an engine control device for controlling, for example, engine rotation in an automobile in accordance with a gear position of a manual transmission.

  In a vehicle such as an automobile, a manual transmission that can be switched to an arbitrary gear stage by an occupant's operation is connected to the engine via a clutch as a mechanism for increasing / decreasing the driving force and rotation of the engine. .

  In such a vehicle, if the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation and then the gear position is switched, the engine output shaft rotational speed and the manual transmission input shaft rotational speed do not match. For this reason, when the clutch is engaged again by the operation of the occupant, a shift shock due to the rotation difference occurs, which may cause discomfort to the occupant.

Therefore, various techniques have been proposed for suppressing a shift shock due to a rotational difference when the shift stage of the manual transmission is switched by an occupant's operation.
For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an engine that controls the rotation of an engine at a target rotational speed that is determined based on the gear ratio of the identified shift speed, while specifying the shift speed when the clutch is disengaged. A control device is described.

  More specifically, in the engine control device disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the clutch is disengaged, the shift when the clutch is disengaged is determined based on the vehicle speed of the vehicle and the output shaft rotational speed of the engine. The stage is specified.

  Then, the control device disclosed in Patent Document 1 sets the engine speed for a predetermined time by using a value obtained by multiplying the gear ratio of the gear stage that is one step higher than the specified gear stage and the output shaft rotational speed of the manual transmission as a target rotational speed. Is controlling the rotation. As a result, Patent Document 1 can reduce the rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission that occurs during upshifting, and suppresses a shift shock due to the rotational difference.

  Such an engine control method is called shift assist control, and does not require adjustment of engine rotation by an occupant's operation, and can improve comfort by suppressing a shift shock.

JP-A-2006-35211

  By the way, for example, when the flow of the vehicle train is deteriorated during traveling at the maximum gear position, the occupant may adjust the inter-vehicle distance by inertial traveling while watching the situation in front with the clutch pedal depressed.

  At this time, since the state in which the clutch is disengaged is maintained by the occupant at the maximum gear position, the engine control method as described in Patent Document 1 does not determine that the shift is up, and the engine speed is determined by the idling speed. The rotation will be controlled.

  For this reason, the rotational difference between the output shaft speed of the engine and the input shaft speed of the manual transmission is greater than when the clutch is disengaged at a speed other than the maximum speed. When the occupant reengages the clutch in the staged state, a large shock may occur due to the rotational difference between the engine output shaft rotational speed and the manual transmission input shaft rotational speed. Therefore, even when the clutch is disengaged while traveling at the maximum gear position, it is desirable to set the engine speed higher than the idling engine speed as the target engine speed and control the engine rotation. .

However, if the rotation of the engine is controlled at a higher rotational speed than the idling rotational speed, the passenger may be further uncomfortable if the time for controlling the rotational speed of the engine is not appropriate.
For example, when traveling at a high vehicle speed range such as on an expressway, the maximum gear position is often selected by the occupant, but the engine output shaft speed is relatively high at a high vehicle speed range even at the maximum gear position. Get higher.

  Therefore, when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum gear position, if the engine speed is maintained at a higher speed than the idling speed for a long time, the high engine output shaft speed The sound generated by the numbers becomes unpleasant noise for the passenger. In particular, an occupant who has performed the clutch disengagement operation tends to feel more unpleasant noise from the engine sound maintained at a high rotational speed.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to control engine rotation without causing discomfort to the occupant even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum gear position. To do.

  The invention described in the present application that solves the above-described problem is that, when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum speed, the speed higher than the idling speed is set as the target speed and the speed other than the maximum speed is set. The engine speed is controlled for a time length equal to or shorter than the engine control time when the clutch is disengaged during traveling.

  With this control, the time during which the engine rotates at the target rotational speed when the clutch is disengaged while traveling at the maximum gear position is released, and the clutch is disengaged while traveling at a gear position other than the maximum gear position. The target rotation speed is the same as or less than the engine rotation time. At this time, since the behavior of the engine approaches the behavior of the engine when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at a speed other than the maximum speed, the invention described in this application provides a natural driving feeling to the occupant. can do.

  More specifically, an engine control method in which a manual transmission that can be switched to an arbitrary gear stage by an occupant's operation to solve the above-described problem is connected via a clutch detects the engagement state of the clutch. An engagement state detection step, a shift stage identification step for identifying a shift stage of the manual transmission based on the output shaft rotation speed of the engine and the output shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission, and the engagement state detection In the process, when it is detected that the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation, and the shift speed specified by the shift speed specifying process is not the maximum speed, the target speed is higher than the idling speed. As a number, in the first rotation control step for controlling the rotation of the engine for a first predetermined time and the engagement state detection step, the clutch is engaged by an occupant's operation. And when the shift stage specified by the shift stage specifying step is the maximum shift stage, a speed that is higher than the idling speed is set as a target speed and is equal to or less than the first predetermined time. And a second rotation control step for controlling the rotation of the engine for a second predetermined time set to the length.

According to the present invention, even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the highest gear position, the rotation of the engine can be controlled without causing discomfort to the occupant.
Specifically, by setting the second predetermined time to a time length equal to or shorter than the first predetermined time, the engine control method sets the time for the engine to rotate at the target rotational speed in the second rotation control step. It can be set to be equal to or less than the time for which the engine rotates at the target rotation speed in the rotation control process.

  As a result, the engine control method is such that the behavior of the engine when the clutch is disengaged while traveling at the maximum gear position is released, and the clutch is disengaged while traveling at a gear position other than the maximum gear position. It is possible to suppress the occupant from recognizing that the behavior is strange compared to the behavior of the engine at the time and the behavior is noisy. For this reason, the engine control method can suppress the sound accompanying the rotation of the engine from becoming unpleasant noise for the occupant and provide the occupant with a natural driving feeling.

  Therefore, the engine control method can control the rotation of the engine without causing discomfort to the occupant even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum gear position.

As a first aspect of the present invention, the first predetermined time is set to be shorter as the gear ratio of the identified shift speed is smaller.
According to the present invention, in the first rotation control step, the engine control method can suppress the shift shock accompanying the upshift and can further suppress the discomfort given to the occupant.

  Specifically, in general, the step ratio between adjacent gears is closer to “1.0” between high gears than between low gears. For this reason, the difference in the engine output shaft rotational speed between adjacent gears is smaller between adjacent high gears than between adjacent low gears. That is, the time required to change the engine output shaft rotational speed to the target rotational speed is longer for lower gears and shorter for higher gears.

  Therefore, by setting the first predetermined time shorter as the gear ratio of the specified gear stage is smaller, the engine control method appropriately sets the time required to change the engine output shaft speed to the target speed. Can be secured. Thereby, the engine control method can reliably suppress the rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission in the case of upshifting.

  In addition, since the second predetermined time is set to a time length equal to or shorter than the first predetermined time, the engine control method shortens the engine control time in a stepwise manner from the low gear to the maximum gear. be able to.

  As a result, the engine control method is such that the behavior of the engine when the clutch is disengaged while traveling at the maximum gear position is released, and the clutch is disengaged while traveling at a gear position other than the maximum gear position. Compared with the behavior of the engine at the time, it can be further suppressed that the behavior becomes strange.

  Therefore, in the first rotation control step, the engine control method can suppress the shift shock accompanying the shift up and reduce the shift shock caused by the shift, by setting the first predetermined time shorter as the gear ratio of the specified shift stage is smaller. The unpleasant feeling given can be further suppressed.

  As a second aspect of the present invention, the target rotational speed in the second rotational control step is lower than a rotational speed obtained by multiplying the speed ratio of the highest gear stage by the output shaft rotational speed of the manual transmission, and The rotation speed is set higher than the idling rotation speed.

  According to the present invention, the engine control method can suppress a shock due to a rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission when the clutch is disengaged and engaged during traveling at the maximum gear position. The unpleasant feeling given can be reliably suppressed.

  Specifically, in the second rotation control step, the engine control method is based on the rotation speed obtained by multiplying the gear ratio of the maximum gear stage by the output shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission, that is, the input shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission. The engine speed can be controlled at a target speed that is low and higher than the idling speed.

  As a result, the engine control method can reduce the rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission as compared with the case where the target rotational speed is the idling rotational speed. For this reason, the engine control method can suppress the occurrence of shock due to the rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission when the clutch is engaged again by the operation of the occupant.

  Furthermore, when the clutch is disengaged at the maximum gear, the engine output shaft speed can be reduced appropriately for the second predetermined time. When the clutch is disengaged, the engine behavior is strange compared to the engine behavior when the clutch is disengaged while driving at a speed other than the maximum speed. It can be further suppressed that the occupant recognizes that the behavior is large. Thus, the engine control method can provide a more natural driving feeling to the occupant.

  Therefore, the engine control method can suppress a shock due to a difference in rotation between the engine and the manual transmission when the clutch is disengaged and engaged during traveling at the maximum gear position, and thus is not applied to the occupant. Pleasure can be reliably suppressed.

  As a third aspect of the present invention, a virtual gear ratio smaller than the gear ratio of the highest gear is set as a virtual gear ratio, and the target rotational speed in the second rotation control step is set to the virtual gear ratio in the manual gear ratio. The rotation speed is set by multiplying the output shaft rotation speed of the transmission.

  According to the present invention, the engine control method can more reliably suppress discomfort given to the occupant when the clutch is disengaged and engaged while traveling at the maximum gear.

  Specifically, the value of the gear ratio in a manual transmission is generally smaller at a high gear than at a low gear. For this reason, the difference in engine output shaft rotational speed between adjacent gears is smaller between adjacent high gears than between adjacent low gears if the vehicle speed is the same.

  Therefore, the engine control method is the highest by setting the rotation speed obtained by multiplying the virtual transmission gear ratio smaller than the transmission gear ratio of the highest gear stage by the output shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission as the target rotation speed in the second rotation control step. The difference between the engine output shaft speed at the shift speed and the target speed is greater than the difference between the engine output shaft speed at the speed lower than the maximum speed and the engine output speed at the maximum speed. Can be small.

  In other words, the engine control method can reduce the engine rotation difference under the same vehicle speed condition as the gear ratio including the virtual gear ratio decreases. As a result, the engine control method is such that the engine behavior when the clutch is disengaged at the maximum gear is the engine when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at a gear other than the maximum gear. It can suppress that it becomes a strange behavior compared with the behavior of.

  Therefore, the engine control method can more reliably suppress discomfort given to the occupant when the clutch is disengaged and engaged during traveling at the maximum gear.

As a fourth aspect of the present invention, the step ratio between the gear ratio of the highest gear and the virtual gear ratio is substantially equal to the step ratio of the highest gear and the lower gear. It has been made.
The above step ratio is the value obtained by dividing the gear ratio on the low gear stage side by the gear ratio on the high gear stage side or the gear ratio on the high gear stage side divided by the gear ratio on the low gear stage between adjacent gear stages. Value.
According to the present invention, the engine control method can more reliably suppress discomfort given to the occupant.

  Specifically, the step ratio between the gear ratio of the highest gear and the virtual gear ratio is set to be closer to “1.0” than the step ratio of the gear that is one step lower than the highest gear and the highest gear. In this case, the target rotational speed in the second rotational control step is a rotational speed close to the output shaft rotational speed of the engine when the clutch is disengaged. For this reason, there exists a problem that the effect by a 2nd rotation control process is hard to be transmitted to a passenger | crew.

  In contrast, the step ratio between the maximum gear and the virtual gear ratio is substantially equal to the step ratio between the gear that is one step lower than the maximum gear and the maximum gear, so that the engine control method A rotational speed that is surely lower than the engine output shaft rotational speed when the engagement is released can be set as the target rotational speed of the second rotational control step.

  As a result, the engine control method can reliably ensure the rotation difference between the engine output shaft rotation speed when the clutch is disengaged and the target rotation speed in the second rotation control step, and is thus given to the occupant. A sense of incongruity and noise can be reliably suppressed.

  Therefore, the engine control method has a step ratio between the maximum gear and the virtual gear ratio that is approximately equal to the step ratio between the gear that is one step lower than the maximum gear and the maximum gear, and thus is not given to passengers. Pleasure can be more reliably suppressed.

  In addition, an engine control device in which a manual transmission that can be switched to an arbitrary gear stage by an occupant's operation is connected via a clutch is used to solve the above-described problem. Detection means, shift speed specifying means for specifying the shift speed of the manual transmission based on the output shaft speed of the engine and the output shaft speed of the manual transmission, engagement of the clutch by the operation of the occupant When the engagement state detecting means detects that the engagement is released and the gear position specified by the gear position specifying means is not the maximum gear speed, the engine speed is set to a target engine speed that is higher than the idling engine speed. A first rotation control means for controlling the rotation of the engine for a predetermined time; and the engagement state detection means for detecting that the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation; When the shift stage specified by the shift stage specifying means is the maximum shift stage, a second predetermined speed set to a time length equal to or shorter than the first predetermined time is set to a target engine speed that is higher than the idling engine speed. Second rotation control means for controlling the rotation of the engine for a period of time.

  According to the present invention, even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the highest gear position, the rotation of the engine can be controlled without causing discomfort to the occupant.

  According to the present invention, even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum gear position, the rotation of the engine can be controlled without causing discomfort to the occupant.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the power train in a vehicle. The block diagram which shows the structure of an engine control apparatus. The flowchart which shows the operation | movement in an engine control apparatus. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of a rotation speed control process. Explanatory drawing explaining the relationship between a vehicle speed and an engine speed for every gear stage. Explanatory drawing explaining an acceleration characteristic map. Explanatory drawing explaining a control time map. The time chart which shows the operation state of each part in the vehicle in driving | running | working.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
1 shows a configuration diagram of the power train 1 in the vehicle, and FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of the engine control device 10.

  In FIG. 1, arrows Fr and Rr indicate the vehicle front-rear direction, arrow Fr indicates the vehicle front, and arrow Rr indicates the vehicle rear. Furthermore, arrows Rh and Lh indicate the vehicle width direction, arrow Rh indicates the vehicle right direction, and arrow Lh indicates the vehicle left direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle powertrain 1 according to the present embodiment includes an engine 2 disposed at the front of the vehicle, a manual transmission 3 connected to the engine 2, and a manual transmission of the driving force of the engine 2. A clutch 4 for transmission to the machine 3, a propeller shaft 5 connected to the manual transmission 3, a final speed reducer 6 connected to the rear part of the propeller shaft 5, a final speed reducer 6, and left and right rear wheels 7 are connected. And a pair of left and right drive shafts 8.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the engine 2 includes, for example, an engine main body 21 having four pistons (not shown), an intake device 22 that introduces outside air into the engine main body 21 as fresh air, and exhaust gas generated in the engine main body 21. It is comprised by the exhaust apparatus 23 etc. which discharge | emit it outside.

  The engine body 21 is a vertically mounted engine having a crankshaft 21a extending in the vehicle front-rear direction, and is configured to receive a supply of fuel and output a driving force. Further, the engine main body 21 is filled with a combustion chamber (not shown) filled with a mixture of fuel and outside air, an intake port (not shown) communicating with the combustion chamber and the intake device 22, a combustion chamber, and exhaust. An exhaust port (not shown) that communicates with the device 23 is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the intake device 22 includes an internal hollow intake pipe 22a through which external air can flow, and an intake manifold 22b that supplies external air introduced through the intake pipe 22a to an intake port of the engine body 21. It is configured.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the exhaust device 23 includes an exhaust manifold 23 a connected to the engine main body 21 and an internal hollow exhaust pipe 23 b through which exhaust gas discharged from the engine main body 21 can flow down.

  The manual transmission 3 is a transmission having a plurality of shift stages that can be selectively switched by the operation of the occupant. In the present embodiment, the six forward stages from the first speed to the sixth speed, the one reverse stage, It shall have.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the manual transmission 3 is arranged between an input shaft 3a to which the clutch 4 is connected, an output shaft (not shown) to which the propeller shaft 5 is connected, and the input shaft 3a and the output shaft. A plurality of gear pairs (not shown) provided, and a switching mechanism (not shown) for switching the gear pairs by an occupant's operation.

  Further, as shown in Table 1, the gear stage of the manual transmission 3 is configured such that the gear ratio decreases gradually from the first speed to the sixth speed, which is the highest gear stage.

Here, of the adjacent shift speeds, assuming that the shift speed close to the first speed is the low shift speed and the shift speed close to the sixth speed is the high shift speed, the step ratio (the ratio of the change in the gear ratio of the adjacent shift speeds) As shown in Table 1, the gear ratio of the low gear stage / the gear ratio of the high gear stage is closer to “1.0” as the gear ratio of the adjacent gear stage is smaller.
The virtual 7th speed in Table 1 and the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed will be described in detail later.

  The clutch 4 is connected to a clutch pedal disposed in the vehicle interior of the vehicle. The clutch 4 is engaged with an engagement state in which the driving force of the engine 2 can be transmitted to the manual transmission 3 by the operation of the clutch pedal by an occupant. It is configured to be able to shift to the disengaged state in which the state is released.

  More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the clutch 4 is connected to the engine side clutch plate 4 a connected to the crankshaft 21 a of the engine 2 so as to be integrally rotatable, and to the input shaft 3 a of the manual transmission 3 so as to be integrally rotatable. The transmission-side clutch plate 4b.

The clutch 4 is in an engaged state in which the driving force of the engine 2 can be transmitted to the manual transmission 3 when the transmission side clutch plate 4b is pressed against the engine side clutch plate 4a.
The engine side clutch plate 4a includes, for example, a flywheel connected to the crankshaft 21a and a clutch cover fastened and fixed to the rear surface of the flyhole.
On the other hand, the transmission-side clutch plate 4b has, for example, a disc shape in which a high friction material is disposed, and is disposed so as to be sandwiched between the flywheel and the clutch cover.

  The final reduction gear 6 is composed of, for example, a hypoid gear pair having a predetermined reduction ratio, a differential gear, and the like, and drives the driving force of the engine 2 via the manual transmission 3 and the propeller shaft 5. It is configured to be able to transmit to the left and right rear wheels 7 via the shaft 8.

Next, the engine control apparatus 10 that controls the operation of the engine 2 in the power train 1 will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the engine control device 10 includes a crank angle sensor 11, an accelerator opening sensor 12, a clutch switch 13, a wheel speed sensor 14, a fuel injector 15, a throttle valve 16, The spark plug 17, the variable valve mechanism 18, and an electronic control unit 19 (Electronic Control Unit, hereinafter referred to as “ECU 19”) for controlling these operations.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the crank angle sensor 11 is a sensor fixed to the engine body 21, and has a function of detecting the rotation of the crankshaft 21a and the detected rotation of the crankshaft 21a to the ECU 19 as a crank angle signal. It has a function to output.

  The accelerator opening sensor 12 is a sensor provided integrally with an accelerator pedal (not shown), and has a function of detecting the opening degree of the accelerator pedal operated by a passenger, and the opening of the detected accelerator pedal. And a function of outputting the degree to the ECU 19 as an accelerator signal.

  Further, the clutch switch 13 is a so-called push button switch, and a function of detecting depression of the clutch pedal by the occupant and a clutch signal indicating that the switch is ON when the depression of the clutch pedal is detected are sent to the ECU 19. Output function.

  The clutch switch 13 is fixed to a pedal bracket (not shown) that supports a clutch pedal (not shown), and is disposed at a position where the clutch pedal comes into contact when the clutch pedal is depressed by about 20%. It is installed.

  In addition to the clutch switch 13, a clutch start switch (not shown) required for starting the engine 2 is provided on the pedal bracket. The clutch start switch is disposed at a position where the clutch pedal comes into an ON state when the clutch pedal comes into contact when the clutch pedal is depressed about 75%.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the wheel speed sensor 14 is a sensor fixed to a knuckle (not shown) that supports the rear wheel 7, and rotates the drive shaft 8, in other words, the rotation of the rear wheel 7. It has a function to detect and a function to output the detected rotation of the rear wheel 7 to the ECU 19 as a wheel speed signal.

The fuel injector 15 is fixed to the engine body 21 such that the tip is exposed in the combustion chamber, and has a function of injecting fuel into the combustion chamber at a predetermined timing.
Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the throttle valve 16 is an openable and closable valve disposed inside the intake pipe 22a of the intake device 22, and has a function of adjusting the amount of outside air supplied to the engine body 21. have.

The spark plug 17 is fixed to the engine main body 21 so that the tip is exposed in the combustion chamber, and sparks are scattered at a predetermined timing, and the outside air supplied to the combustion chamber and the fuel injected into the combustion chamber It has a function of igniting the air-fuel mixture.
The variable valve mechanism 18 is disposed in the engine body 21 and has a function of varying the opening / closing timing and lift amount of an intake valve (not shown) that opens and closes an intake port and an exhaust valve (not shown) that opens and closes an exhaust port. have.

  In addition, the ECU 19 includes a CPU and a memory with a hardware configuration and a software configuration such as a program and data. The ECU 19 stores various information relating to the rotation control of the engine 2 such as a gear ratio for each gear stage of the manual transmission 3, a speed reduction ratio of the final reduction gear 6, an acceleration characteristic map described later, and a control time map. Yes.

  Further, the ECU 19 acquires the signals output from the crank angle sensor 11, the accelerator opening sensor 12, the clutch switch 13, and the wheel speed sensor 14, and based on the acquired signals, the engine speed and the accelerator opening. And a function for controlling the operation of the fuel injector 15, throttle valve 16, spark plug 17, and variable valve mechanism 18.

Next, a method for controlling the engine 2 using the above-described engine control apparatus 10 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
3 shows a flowchart of the operation in the engine control device 10, FIG. 4 shows a flowchart of the rotational speed control process, and FIG. 5 shows an explanatory diagram for explaining the relationship between the vehicle speed and the engine rotational speed for each gear position. 6 shows an explanatory diagram for explaining the acceleration characteristic map, FIG. 7 shows an explanatory diagram for explaining the control time map, and FIG. 8 shows a time chart of each part in the running vehicle.

  First, when the engine 2 is started by an occupant's operation, the ECU 19 starts acquisition signal processing (step S101) and starts processing various acquired signals as shown in FIG. For example, the ECU 19 starts calculating the rotation speed of the crankshaft 21a, that is, the engine rotation speed, based on the crank angle signal acquired from the crank angle sensor 11.

  Further, the ECU 19 starts calculating the accelerator opening based on the accelerator signal acquired from the accelerator opening sensor 12. In addition, the ECU 19, based on the wheel speed signal acquired from the wheel speed sensor 14, the rear wheel rotational speed that is the rotational speed of the rear wheel 7, the transmission rotational speed that is the rotational speed of the output shaft in the manual transmission 3, And the calculation of the vehicle speed is started.

Thereafter, the ECU 19 determines whether or not the clutch signal output from the clutch switch 13 has been acquired (step S102). If the clutch signal is not acquired from the clutch switch 13 (step S102: No), the ECU 19 determines whether or not the control flag F indicating the rotation control state of the engine 2 is “1” (step S103).
Incidentally, “1” of the control flag F indicates a state in which the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled with the idling rotation speed as the target rotation speed.

If the control flag F is “1” (step S103: Yes), the ECU 19 changes the control flag F to “0” (step S104), and the process proceeds to step S105.
Note that “0” of the control flag F indicates a state in which the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled based on the accelerator opening, the gear position, and the like, for example, during normal travel.

  On the other hand, if the control flag F is not “1” (step S103: No), the ECU 19 advances the process to step S105 and starts a gear position specifying process for specifying the current gear position (step S105).

Specifically, the ECU 19 specifies the current gear position based on the relationship between the vehicle speed and the engine speed.
Here, the relationship between the vehicle speed and the engine speed can be represented by a graph in which the horizontal axis indicates the vehicle speed V and the vertical axis indicates the engine speed N, as shown in FIG.

  In the graph showing the relationship between the vehicle speed V and the engine speed N, the engine speed N with respect to the vehicle speed V is, as shown in FIG. 5, when the slip of the clutch 4 and the transmission efficiency of the power train 1 are ignored, as shown in FIG. Each can be represented by a proportional relationship with different slopes.

  More specifically, the relationship between the vehicle speed V and the engine speed N is such that the first speed has the largest inclination, the second speed, the third speed, the fourth speed, the fifth speed, and the highest speed in the order of the sixth speed. It can be expressed by a straight line of a linear function that becomes smaller. Since the vehicle speed V of the vehicle is determined by V = D × 2πr, where D is the rear wheel rotational speed of the rear wheel 7 and r is the radius of the rear wheel 7, the relationship between the vehicle speed V and the engine rotational speed N is The relationship between the rear wheel speed D and the engine speed N can be substituted.

  Accordingly, the ECU 19 calculates the engine speed based on the crank angle signal acquired from the crank angle sensor 11 and calculates the rear wheel speed based on the wheel speed signal acquired from the wheel speed sensor 14.

Then, the ECU 19 starts from N = k × D based on the graph of FIG. 5 showing the relationship between the vehicle speed V and the engine speed N, in other words, the graph showing the relationship between the rear wheel speed D and the engine speed N. A gear stage having an inclination approximate to the calculated constant k is specified as the current gear stage. The ECU 19 temporarily stores the specified current shift speed in the memory.
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 3, the ECU 19 starts a target acceleration setting process (step S106), and sets the target acceleration of the vehicle based on the acceleration characteristic map stored in advance.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, the acceleration characteristic map is map data that can be plotted with a graph in which the horizontal axis indicates the accelerator opening and the vertical axis indicates the target acceleration. The target acceleration differs depending on the accelerator opening range. In the acceleration characteristic map, different data for each gear position and vehicle speed is stored in advance in the ECU 19.

  Then, the ECU 19 reads an acceleration characteristic map corresponding to the specified shift speed and the current vehicle speed, and calculates the accelerator opening based on the accelerator signal acquired from the accelerator opening sensor 12. Thereafter, the ECU 19 acquires the target acceleration for the accelerator opening from the acceleration characteristic map and sets it as the target acceleration of the vehicle.

  When the target acceleration is set, the ECU 19 starts a target torque calculation process (step S107), and calculates the target engine torque necessary for realizing the target acceleration based on the specified gear position and the current vehicle speed. To do. At this time, the ECU 19 calculates a target engine torque within a range of engine torque that can be output by the engine 2.

When the target engine torque is calculated, the ECU 19 starts a target filling amount calculation process (step S108), and calculates the mass of air that is filled in the combustion chamber necessary for outputting the target engine torque, that is, the filling amount. .
Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts a target control amount calculation process (step S109), and calculates target control amounts for the throttle valve 16, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the fuel injector 15.

  Specifically, the ECU 19 calculates the opening degree of the throttle valve 16 and the opening / closing timing of the intake valve necessary for realizing the filling amount calculated in step S108. Further, the ECU 19 calculates a fuel injection amount determined based on the filling amount and the theoretical air-fuel ratio.

  Then, the ECU 19 sets the current control value indicating the opening degree of the throttle valve 16, the opening / closing timing of the intake valve, and the fuel injection amount, and the calculated control value indicating the target opening degree, the target opening / closing timing, and the target injection amount. Get each difference. Based on each difference, the ECU 19 sets target control amounts for the throttle valve 16, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the fuel injector 15.

  When the target control amount calculation process is completed, the ECU 19 starts a rotation control start process (step S110), and based on the set target control amount, the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the spark plug 17, and the variable valve By controlling the operation of the mechanism 18, rotation control of the engine 2 is started. Thereafter, the ECU 19 proceeds with the process and returns to step S101.

  If the clutch signal is acquired from the clutch switch 13 in step S102 described above (step S102: Yes), the ECU 19 determines that the engagement of the clutch 4 has been released by the occupant's operation, and the control flag F Is determined to be “1” (step S111).

  When the control flag F is not “1” (step S111: No), the ECU 19 determines that the engine 2 is not in a controlled state with the idling speed as the target speed, and obtains it from the accelerator opening sensor 12. It is determined whether the accelerator opening calculated based on the accelerator signal is 1.5% or more (step S112).

When the accelerator opening is equal to or greater than 1.5% (step S112: Yes), the ECU 19 causes the accelerator pedal to be depressed by the occupant in the state in which the clutch 4 is disengaged, that is, the engine speed by the occupant's operation. Is determined to have been adjusted.
Therefore, the ECU 19 starts a target rotational speed setting process (step S113), and sets the target rotational speed of the engine 2 according to the accelerator opening.

  When the target rotational speed of the engine 2 is set, the ECU 19 starts a target torque calculation process (step S114), calculates the engine torque necessary to realize the target rotational speed, and sets it as the target engine torque.

  When the target engine torque is set, the ECU 19 advances the processing to step S108, starts the target filling amount calculation processing (step S108), calculates the filling amount necessary for outputting the target engine torque, and then performs target control. The amount calculation process is started (step S109), and target control amounts of the throttle valve 16, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the fuel injector 15 are calculated.

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts a rotation control start process (step S110), and controls the operations of the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the spark plug 17, and the variable valve mechanism 18 based on the set target control amount. Thus, the rotation control of the engine 2 is started.

  In step S112 described above, when the accelerator opening is less than 1.5% (step S112: No), the ECU 19 determines that the accelerator pedal is not depressed by the occupant and starts the rotation speed control process. (Step S115)

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the ECU 19 starts the shift speed acquisition process (step S116), reads the shift speed specified in step S105 of FIG. 3 and temporarily stored in the memory, The gear position immediately before acquiring the clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 is specified.
Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts a target rotational speed setting process (step S117), and sets the target rotational speed of the engine 2 based on the identified shift speed and the rear wheel rotational speed.

  Specifically, the ECU 19 determines whether or not the identified shift speed is 6th speed (step S118). If the identified shift speed is not 6th speed (step S118: No), the ECU 19 is one step higher than the identified shift speed. A target rotational speed is set based on the gear ratio of the gear position and the rear wheel rotational speed (step S119).

  For example, when the accelerator is returned and the clutch 4 is disengaged from the state of steady running at the 5th speed, the ECU 19 shifts the gear position one step higher than the 5th speed, that is, the 6th speed ratio, A target speed is set based on the rear wheel speed.

  On the other hand, when the specified shift speed is 6th speed (step S118: Yes), the ECU 19 sets the virtual 7th speed which is a virtual speed ratio having a virtual speed ratio smaller than the 6th speed speed ratio which is the maximum speed speed. A target rotational speed is set based on the gear ratio and the rear wheel rotational speed (step S120).

  Here, as shown in Table 1 above, the virtual seventh speed is set in advance as a virtual gear position having “0.778” as a virtual gear ratio. The gear ratio “0.778” of the virtual seventh speed is calculated by dividing the gear ratio “1.000” of the sixth speed by the step ratio “1.286” of the fifth speed and the sixth speed. In other words, as shown in Table 1, the virtual 7th speed has its virtual ratio so that the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed becomes the same value as the step ratio “1.286” between the 5th speed and the 6th speed. The gear ratio is set.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, the virtual 7th speed is represented by a straight line of a linear function having a slope smaller than the slope of the 6th speed, which is the highest gear, in the graph showing the relationship between the vehicle speed and the engine speed. Can do.

  The target rotational speed Nt set in step S119 described above is the transmission rotational speed, which is the output shaft rotational speed of the manual transmission 3, To, and the gear ratio of the gear stage that is one step higher than the specified gear stage, Gt. Nt = Gt × To.

  Here, assuming that the rear wheel rotational speed is D and the speed reduction ratio of the final reduction gear 6 is Gf, the transmission rotational speed To of the manual transmission 3 can be set to To = Gf × D. Therefore, the target rotational speed Nt is determined by Nt = Gt × To = Gt × Gf × D.

  When the target rotational speed is set, the ECU 19 starts a target torque calculation process (step S121), and calculates a target engine torque necessary for realizing the target rotational speed calculated in step S117.

  Specifically, the ECU 19 multiplies a value obtained by subtracting the current engine speed from the target speed by a predetermined constant set in advance, and the engine speed increase / decrease ratio per unit time. Is calculated.

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 obtains the torque increase / decrease amount required to increase / decrease the engine speed by the rotation speed increase / decrease rate based on the map data indicating the torque increase / decrease rate relative to the rotation speed increase / decrease rate. It is assumed that map data indicating the amount of torque increase / decrease with respect to the speed increase / decrease rate is stored in the ECU 19 in advance.

Further, the ECU 19 acquires a maintenance torque necessary for maintaining the current engine speed based on the map data indicating the maintenance torque with respect to the engine speed. It is assumed that the map data indicating the maintenance torque with respect to the engine speed is stored in the ECU 19 in advance.
Then, the ECU 19 sets a value obtained by adding the maintenance torque to the torque increase / decrease amount as the target engine torque.

  After calculating the target engine torque, the ECU 19 starts a control setting process (step S122), and sets the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the ignition plug 17 and the target control amount of the variable valve mechanism 18. .

  Specifically, the ECU 19 calculates the filling amount necessary for outputting the target engine torque, and then determines the opening degree of the throttle valve 16 and the opening / closing timing of the intake valve necessary for realizing the calculated filling amount. calculate. Further, the ECU 19 calculates a fuel injection amount determined based on the filling amount and the theoretical air-fuel ratio.

  Then, the ECU 19 sets the current control value indicating the opening degree of the throttle valve 16, the opening / closing timing of the intake valve, and the fuel injection amount, and the calculated control value indicating the target opening degree, the target opening / closing timing, and the target injection amount. Get each difference. Based on each difference, the ECU 19 sets target control amounts for the throttle valve 16, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the fuel injector 15.

  When the control setting process is completed, the ECU 19 starts a timer process (step S123), sets a control time for controlling the rotation of the engine 2 based on the target control amount, based on the control time map, and controls the control time. Start the countdown.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, the control time map is map data that can be represented by a graph in which the horizontal axis indicates the vehicle speed V and the vertical axis indicates the control time CT, and the control time for the vehicle speed C. CT is registered for each gear position.

  In this control time map, the control time CT with respect to the vehicle speed V can be expressed as a straight line of a linear function in which the first speed has the largest inclination and the inclination decreases in the order of the second speed, the third speed, the fourth speed, and the fifth speed. It is set to be possible.

  That is, under the same vehicle speed conditions, the control time CT for each gear position has the longest first control time CT1, as shown in FIG. 7, the second control time CT2, the third control time CT3, and the fourth speed. The control time CT4 is set to be shorter in the order of the fifth control time CT5.

  The time interval t2 between the second speed control time CT2 and the third speed control time CT3 is set to be shorter than the time interval t1 between the first speed control time CT1 and the second speed control time CT2. Similarly, the time interval t3 between the control speed CT3 for the third speed and the control time CT4 for the fourth speed is set to be shorter than the time interval t2 between the control time CT2 for the second speed and the control time CT3 for the third speed. The time interval t4 between the control time CT4 and the fifth speed control time CT5 is set shorter than the time interval t3 between the third speed control time CT3 and the fourth speed control time CT4.

  Further, the relationship of the control time CT with respect to the vehicle speed V at the sixth speed is set to coincide with the relationship with the control time CT with respect to the vehicle speed V at the fifth speed as shown in FIG. For this reason, under the same vehicle speed conditions, the 6th speed control time CT6 is set to be the same as the 5th speed control time CT5.

  In other words, the control time CT5 when the clutch 4 is disengaged at the fifth speed and the control time CT6 when the clutch is disengaged at the sixth speed, which is the highest gear, are set to the same time. Yes.

  In addition, in the control time map, for example, in order to secure time for the upshifting operation, a limit time CT7 is set at which the control time is constant at a predetermined vehicle speed or less at any gear position. .

  Based on such a control time map, the ECU 19 obtains a value indicating a control time corresponding to the identified shift speed and the current vehicle speed. Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts counting down the control time, and subtracts a value indicating the acquired control time every predetermined time.

  Further, the ECU 19 starts the rotation control start process (step S124), and the operations of the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the spark plug 17, and the variable valve mechanism 18 based on the target control amount set in step S122. Is controlled to start rotation control of the engine 2.

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 determines whether or not a clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 has been acquired (step S125). If the clutch signal is not acquired from the clutch switch 13 (step S125: No), the ECU 19 determines whether or not the accelerator opening is 1.5% or more (step S126).

  If the accelerator opening is less than 1.5% (step S126: No), the ECU 19 determines that the vehicle is in a coasting state and determines whether the remaining time of the control time has become “0”. Determination is made (step S127).

  If the remaining time of the control time is not “0” (step S127: No), the ECU 19 returns the process to step S125 and acquires the clutch signal from the clutch switch 13, and the accelerator opening becomes 1.5% or more. Alternatively, the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled based on the target control amount set in step S122 until the remaining control time reaches “0”.

  On the other hand, when the remaining control time is “0” in step S127 (step S127: Yes), the ECU 19 changes the control flag F to “1” (step S128). Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts an idle control process (step S129), and controls the rotation of the engine 2 with a preset idling speed as a target speed.

  When the idle control process is started, the ECU 19 returns to step S115 in FIG. 3 and repeats the processes from step S101 to step S129 until the engine 2 stops.

  When the clutch signal is acquired from the clutch switch 13 in step S125 described above (step S125: Yes), or when the accelerator opening is 1.5% or more in step S126 (step S126: Yes), the ECU 19 Returning to step S115 in FIG. 3, the processing from step S101 to step S129 is repeated until the engine 2 stops.

  If the control flag F is “1” in step S111 of FIG. 3 (step S111), the ECU 19 continues the state in which the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled with the idling rotation speed as the target rotation speed. As a result, the process proceeds to return to step S101.

  As described above, in the method of controlling the engine 2 using the engine control device 10, when the engagement of the clutch 4 is released by the operation of the occupant and the specified shift speed is not the sixth speed, step S118 in FIG. : No, step S119, and the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled by the first rotation control process consisting of the processing from step S121 to step S127. If the specified shift speed is 6th speed, step S118 in FIG. The rotation of the engine 2 is controlled by the second rotation control process including steps S120 and steps S121 to S127.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 8, when the vehicle is traveling at a fifth gear speed and a constant vehicle speed, an occupant who has returned the accelerator pedal to shift up depresses the clutch pedal at the elapsed time ET1. To do.

  In this case, the ECU 19 obtains a clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 (step S102: Yes in FIG. 3), and the accelerator opening is less than 1.5% (step S112: No). Start processing. When the rotational speed control process is started, the ECU 19 determines that the specified shift speed is 5th speed (step S118: No in FIG. 4), so that the target rotational speed of the engine is one speed higher than 5th speed based on the 6th speed ratio. (Step S119).

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts counting down the control time set in step S123 of FIG. 4 and starts rotation control of the engine 2 based on the target control amount set through the processing of steps S121 and S122. (Step S124).

  When the occupant who has finished the shifting operation returns the clutch pedal and depresses the accelerator pedal at the elapsed time ET2 in FIG. 8, the ECU 19 acquires a clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 (step S125: Yes). Then, the control at the target rotational speed calculated based on the speed ratio of the sixth speed is stopped, and the rotational speed control process is terminated.

  When the rotational speed control process is finished, the clutch signal is not acquired from the clutch switch 13 (step S102: No in FIG. 3). Therefore, the ECU 19 specifies the gear position in step S105 in FIG. Based on the target control amount set through the processing of S109, rotation control of the engine 2 is started (step S110).

  Also, for example, as shown in FIG. 8, when the vehicle is traveling at a sixth gear and a constant vehicle speed, the accelerator pedal is kept in the sixth gear state to adjust the inter-vehicle distance at the elapsed time ET3. Assume that the returned passenger has stepped on the clutch pedal.

  In this case, the ECU 19 obtains a clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 (step S102: Yes in FIG. 3), and the accelerator opening is less than 1.5% (step S112: No). Start processing. When the rotation speed control process is started, the ECU 19 calculates the target rotation speed based on the gear ratio of the virtual 7th speed (step S120) because the identified shift speed is 6th speed (step S118: Yes in FIG. 4). .

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts counting down the control time set in step S123 of FIG. 4 and starts rotation control of the engine 2 based on the target control amount set through the processing of steps S121 and S122. (Step S124).

  As shown in FIG. 8, when the remaining time of the control time becomes “0” while the clutch pedal is depressed by the occupant at the elapsed time ET4 (step S127: Yes in FIG. 4), the ECU 19 After rewriting the control flag F to “1” in step S128, the engine 2 is started to rotate with the idling speed set as the target speed (step S129).

  The control method of the engine 2 using the engine control device 10 that realizes the above operation gives discomfort to the occupant even when the clutch 4 is disengaged during traveling at the sixth speed. The rotation of the engine 2 can be controlled.

  Specifically, by setting the control time CT6 to the same length as the control time CT5, the control method of the engine 2 sets the time for the engine 2 to rotate at the target rotation speed Nt in the second rotation control step. The time can be set to be equal to or less than the time for the engine 2 to rotate at the target rotation speed Nt in the one-rotation control process.

  As a result, the control method of the engine 2 is such that the behavior of the engine 2 when the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at the sixth speed is disengaged while the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at a speed other than the sixth speed. It is possible to suppress the occupant from recognizing that the behavior of the engine 2 is uncomfortable compared to the behavior of the engine 2 and the noise is large. For this reason, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress the sound accompanying the rotation of the engine 2 from becoming unpleasant noise for the occupant, and provide the occupant with a natural driving feeling.

  Therefore, the control method of the engine 2 can control the rotation of the engine 2 without causing discomfort to the passenger even when the engagement of the clutch 4 is released during traveling at the sixth speed.

  In addition, since the control speed of the engine 2 is set to be shorter as the gear ratio of the gear stage for which the control time CT is specified is smaller, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress the shift shock accompanying the upshift in the first rotation control step and Can be further suppressed.

  Specifically, the step ratio between adjacent gears is closer to “1.0” between high gears than between low gears. For this reason, the difference in engine speed between adjacent gears is smaller between adjacent high gears than between adjacent low gears. That is, the time required to control the engine rotation to the target rotation speed Nt is longer for the lower gear and shorter for the higher gear.

  Therefore, by setting the control time CT to be shorter as the gear ratio of the specified gear stage is smaller, the control method of the engine 2 appropriately secures the time necessary for changing the engine speed to the target speed Nt. can do. Thereby, the control method of the engine 2 can reliably suppress the rotational difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 in the case of upshifting.

  In addition, since the control time CT6 is set to the same length as the control time CT5, the control method of the engine 2 shortens the control time CT of the engine 2 in a stepwise manner from the low gear to the sixth gear. be able to.

  As a result, the control method of the engine 2 is such that the behavior of the engine 2 when the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at the sixth speed is disengaged while the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at a speed other than the sixth speed. Compared with the behavior of the engine 2 when the operation is performed, it is possible to further suppress the behavior that is uncomfortable.

  Therefore, in the first rotation control process, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress the shift shock accompanying the upshift and reduce the shift shock by reducing the control time CT as the gear ratio of the specified shift stage is smaller. The unpleasant feeling given can be further suppressed.

  Further, the target rotational speed Nt of the second rotational control process is set to a rotational speed that is lower than the rotational speed obtained by multiplying the transmission gear ratio To by the speed ratio of 6th speed and higher than the idling rotational speed, The control method of the engine 2 is given to the occupant because the shock caused by the rotational difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 can be suppressed when the clutch 4 is disengaged and engaged while traveling at the sixth speed. Discomfort can be reliably suppressed.

  Specifically, in the second rotation control step, the control method of the engine 2 is lower than the rotation speed obtained by multiplying the transmission gear ratio To by the gear ratio of 6th speed, that is, the input shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission 3, In addition, the rotation of the engine 2 can be controlled at a target rotational speed Nt higher than the idling rotational speed.

  Thereby, the control method of the engine 2 can reduce the rotational difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 as compared with the case where the target rotational speed Nt is the idling rotational speed. For this reason, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress the occurrence of a shock due to the rotation difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 when the clutch 4 is engaged again by the operation of the occupant.

  Furthermore, when the clutch 4 is disengaged at the 6th speed, the engine speed can be appropriately reduced during the control time CT6. The behavior of the engine 2 when the engagement is released is strange and loud compared to the behavior of the engine 2 when the engagement of the clutch 4 is released while traveling at a gear stage other than the sixth speed. It can be further suppressed that the occupant recognizes the behavior. Thereby, the control method of the engine 2 can provide a more natural driving feeling to the occupant.

  Therefore, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress a shock due to the rotational difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 when the clutch 4 is disengaged and engaged during traveling at the sixth speed. The uncomfortable feeling given to can be reliably suppressed.

  In addition, since the target rotational speed Nt in the second rotational control process is set to a rotational speed obtained by multiplying the virtual gear ratio of the virtual 7th speed by the transmission rotational speed To, the control method of the engine 2 runs at the 6th speed. When the clutch 4 is disengaged and engaged, discomfort given to the passenger can be more reliably suppressed.

  Specifically, the value of the gear ratio in the manual transmission 3 is generally smaller at the high gear stage than at the low gear stage. For this reason, if the vehicle speed is the same, the difference in engine speed between adjacent gears is smaller between adjacent high gears than between adjacent low gears.

  Therefore, by setting the rotation speed obtained by multiplying the transmission ratio To of the virtual 7-speed to the transmission rotation speed To as the target rotation speed Nt in the second rotation control step, the control method of the engine 2 is the engine rotation speed at 6th speed and the target rotation speed. The difference from the rotational speed Nt can be made smaller than the difference between the engine speed at the fifth speed and the engine speed at the sixth speed.

  That is, the control method of the engine 2 can reduce the rotation difference of the engine 2 under the same vehicle speed condition as the speed ratio including the virtual speed ratio decreases. As a result, the control method of the engine 2 is such that the behavior of the engine 2 when the clutch 4 is disengaged at the sixth speed is the same as when the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at a speed other than the sixth speed. Compared to the behavior of the engine 2, it can be suppressed that the behavior becomes strange.

  Therefore, the control method of the engine 2 can more reliably suppress discomfort given to the occupant when the clutch 4 is disengaged and engaged while traveling at the sixth speed.

  In addition, since the step ratio between the sixth speed and the virtual seventh speed is substantially equal to the step ratio between the fifth speed and the sixth speed, the control method of the engine 2 further reliably suppresses discomfort given to the occupant. be able to.

  Specifically, when the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed is set to be closer to “1.0” than the step ratio between the 5th speed and the 6th speed, the target rotation speed in the second rotation control step Nt is a rotational speed close to the engine rotational speed when the clutch 4 is disengaged. For this reason, there exists a problem that the effect by a 2nd rotation control process is hard to be transmitted to a passenger | crew.

  On the other hand, by making the step ratio of 6th speed and virtual 7th speed substantially the same as the step ratio of 5th speed and 6th speed, the control method of the engine 2 has released the engagement of the clutch 4. The engine speed that is surely lower than the actual engine speed can be set as the target engine speed Nt of the second rotation control process.

  As a result, the control method of the engine 2 can reliably ensure a rotational difference between the engine speed when the clutch 4 is disengaged and the target speed Nt in the second rotation control step, and is thus given to the occupant. A sense of incongruity and noise can be reliably suppressed.

  Therefore, the control method of the engine 2 further suppresses the uncomfortable feeling given to the occupant by making the step ratio between the sixth speed and the virtual seventh speed substantially equal to the step ratio between the fifth speed and the sixth speed. Can do.

  The engine control device 10 having the above-described configuration controls the rotation of the engine 2 without causing discomfort to the occupant even when the clutch 4 is disengaged during traveling at the sixth speed. Can do.

In correspondence between the configuration of the present invention and the above-described embodiment,
The engagement state detection step of the present invention corresponds to step S102 of FIG. 3 of the embodiment,
Similarly,
The engine output shaft speed corresponds to the engine speed N,
The output shaft speed of the manual transmission corresponds to the transmission speed To,
The gear position specifying step corresponds to step S116 in FIG.
The maximum shift speed corresponds to 6th speed,
The first predetermined time corresponds to the control time CT1, CT2, CT3, CT4, CT5,
The first rotation control process corresponds to step S118 of FIG. 4: No, step S119, and step S121 to step S127,
The second predetermined time corresponds to the control time CT6,
The second rotation control process corresponds to step S118 of FIG. 4: Yes, step S120, and step S121 to step S127,
The virtual gear ratio corresponds to the gear ratio of virtual 7th speed,
The step ratio between the maximum gear and the virtual gear ratio corresponds to the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed,
The step ratio between the shift stage that is one step lower than the maximum shift stage and the maximum shift stage corresponds to the step ratio between the fifth speed and the sixth speed.
The control device corresponds to the engine control device 10,
The engagement state detection means corresponds to the clutch switch 13 and the ECU 19,
The gear position specifying means corresponds to the ECU 19,
The first rotation control means and the second rotation control means correspond to the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the spark plug 17, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the ECU 19,
The present invention is not limited only to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and many embodiments can be obtained.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the vehicle is a rear-wheel drive vehicle in which the engine 2 is disposed in the front portion. However, the present invention is not limited to this and may be a front-wheel drive vehicle or a four-wheel drive vehicle.
Further, the manual transmission 3 has the first to sixth forward gears and one reverse gear. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and has the first to fifth forward gears and one reverse gear. It may be a manual transmission or the like. Further, an auxiliary transmission may be provided between the manual transmission 3 and the final reduction gear 6.

  Further, although the gear ratio and the step ratio of the manual transmission 3 are the values shown in Table 1, the present invention is not limited to this, and the gear ratio and the step ratio of the manual transmission may be appropriately configured. Even in this case, the gear ratio of the virtual 7th speed is set so that the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed is substantially equal to the step ratio between the 5th speed and the 6th speed.

  Further, the step ratio between adjacent gears is a value obtained by dividing the gear ratio on the low gear side by the gear ratio on the high gear side between the adjacent gears, but is not limited to this. A value obtained by dividing the gear ratio on the stage side by the gear ratio on the low gear stage side may be used. In this case, the step ratio is a value of “1.0” or less, but the same effect as in the above-described embodiment can be obtained.

  Further, the vehicle speed and the transmission rotational speed of the manual transmission 3 are calculated based on the wheel speed signal output from the wheel speed sensor 14, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a sensor for detecting the output shaft rotation of the manual transmission. And the vehicle speed and the transmission rotational speed of the manual transmission 3 may be calculated based on the output signal from the sensor.

  Further, the engine speed is calculated based on the crank angle signal output from the crank angle sensor 11. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a sensor for detecting the input shaft rotation of the manual transmission 3 is provided. The input shaft speed of the manual transmission 3 calculated based on the output signal from the engine may be used as the engine speed.

  Further, in step S105 of FIG. 3, the current gear position is specified based on the relationship between the vehicle speed (rear wheel rotation speed) and the engine rotation speed. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the output shaft rotation of the manual transmission 3 is not limited thereto. The current gear position may be specified on the basis of the relationship between the transmission rotation speed, which is a number, and the engine rotation speed.

  Further, in step S112 of FIG. 3 and step S126 of FIG. 4, the accelerator opening degree indicating that the accelerator pedal is depressed by the occupant is set to 1.5% or more. However, the present invention is not limited to this. An appropriate value may be used as long as the accelerator opening degree indicates that is depressed.

Further, the 6-speed control time CT6 in the second rotation control process is set to the same time as the 5-speed control time CT5 in the first rotation control process. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The control time CT6 may be shorter than the fifth speed control time CT5 in the first rotation control step.
Further, when the control time is set in step S123 of FIG. 4, the countdown is started and the control time is subtracted. When the remaining time of the control time becomes “0” in step S127, the idle control process is started. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and when the control time is determined in step S123 of FIG. 4, counting up is started and a timer is added.In step S127, when the timer value matches the control time, It may be configured to start the idle control process.

2 ... Engine 3 ... Manual transmission 4 ... Clutch 10 ... Engine controller 13 ... Clutch switch 15 ... Fuel injector 16 ... Throttle valve 17 ... Spark plug 18 ... Variable valve mechanism 19 ... ECU
CT1 ... Control time CT2 ... Control time CT3 ... Control time CT4 ... Control time CT5 ... Control time CT6 ... Control time Gt ... Gear ratio N ... Engine speed Nt ... Target speed To ... Transmission speed

  The present invention relates to an engine control method and an engine control device for controlling, for example, engine rotation in an automobile in accordance with a gear position of a manual transmission.

  In a vehicle such as an automobile, a manual transmission that can be switched to an arbitrary gear stage by an occupant's operation is connected to the engine via a clutch as a mechanism for increasing / decreasing the driving force and rotation of the engine. .

  In such a vehicle, if the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation and then the gear position is switched, the engine output shaft rotational speed and the manual transmission input shaft rotational speed do not match. For this reason, when the clutch is engaged again by the operation of the occupant, a shift shock due to the rotation difference occurs, which may cause discomfort to the occupant.

Therefore, various techniques have been proposed for suppressing a shift shock due to a rotational difference when the shift stage of the manual transmission is switched by an occupant's operation.
For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an engine that controls the rotation of an engine at a target rotational speed that is determined based on the gear ratio of the identified shift speed, while specifying the shift speed when the clutch is disengaged. A control device is described.

  More specifically, in the engine control device disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the clutch is disengaged, the shift when the clutch is disengaged is determined based on the vehicle speed of the vehicle and the output shaft rotational speed of the engine. The stage is specified.

  Then, the control device disclosed in Patent Document 1 sets the engine speed for a predetermined time by using a value obtained by multiplying the gear ratio of the gear stage that is one step higher than the specified gear stage and the output shaft rotational speed of the manual transmission as a target rotational speed. Is controlling the rotation. As a result, Patent Document 1 can reduce the rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission that occurs during upshifting, and suppresses a shift shock due to the rotational difference.

  Such an engine control method is called shift assist control, and does not require adjustment of engine rotation by an occupant's operation, and can improve comfort by suppressing a shift shock.

JP-A-2006-35211

  By the way, for example, when the flow of the vehicle train is deteriorated during traveling at the maximum gear position, the occupant may adjust the inter-vehicle distance by inertial traveling while watching the situation in front with the clutch pedal depressed.

  At this time, since the state in which the clutch is disengaged is maintained by the occupant at the maximum gear position, the engine control method as described in Patent Document 1 does not determine that the shift is up, and the engine speed is determined by the idling speed. The rotation will be controlled.

  For this reason, the rotational difference between the output shaft speed of the engine and the input shaft speed of the manual transmission is greater than when the clutch is disengaged at a speed other than the maximum speed. When the occupant reengages the clutch in the staged state, a large shock may occur due to the rotational difference between the engine output shaft rotational speed and the manual transmission input shaft rotational speed. Therefore, even when the clutch is disengaged while traveling at the maximum gear position, it is desirable to set the engine speed higher than the idling engine speed as the target engine speed and control the engine rotation. .

However, if the rotation of the engine is controlled at a higher rotational speed than the idling rotational speed, the passenger may be further uncomfortable if the time for controlling the rotational speed of the engine is not appropriate.
For example, when traveling at a high vehicle speed range such as on an expressway, the maximum gear position is often selected by the occupant, but the engine output shaft speed is relatively high at a high vehicle speed range even at the maximum gear position. Get higher.

  Therefore, when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum gear position, if the engine speed is maintained at a higher speed than the idling speed for a long time, the high engine output shaft speed The sound generated by the numbers becomes unpleasant noise for the passenger. In particular, an occupant who has performed the clutch disengagement operation tends to feel more unpleasant noise from the engine sound maintained at a high rotational speed.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to control engine rotation without causing discomfort to the occupant even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum gear position. To do.

  The invention described in the present application that solves the above-described problem is that, when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum speed, the speed higher than the idling speed is set as the target speed and the speed other than the maximum speed is set. The engine speed is controlled for a time length equal to or shorter than the engine control time when the clutch is disengaged during traveling.

  With this control, the time during which the engine rotates at the target rotational speed when the clutch is disengaged while traveling at the maximum gear position is released, and the clutch is disengaged while traveling at a gear position other than the maximum gear position. The target rotation speed is the same as or less than the engine rotation time. At this time, since the behavior of the engine approaches the behavior of the engine when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at a speed other than the maximum speed, the invention described in this application provides a natural driving feeling to the occupant. can do.

  More specifically, an engine control method in which a manual transmission that can be switched to an arbitrary gear stage by an occupant's operation to solve the above-described problem is connected via a clutch detects the engagement state of the clutch. An engagement state detection step, a shift stage identification step for identifying a shift stage of the manual transmission based on the output shaft rotation speed of the engine and the output shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission, and the engagement state detection In the process, when it is detected that the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation, and the shift speed specified by the shift speed specifying process is not the maximum speed, the target speed is higher than the idling speed. As a number, in the first rotation control step for controlling the rotation of the engine for a first predetermined time and the engagement state detection step, the clutch is engaged by an occupant's operation. And when the shift stage specified by the shift stage specifying step is the maximum shift stage, a speed that is higher than the idling speed is set as a target speed and is equal to or less than the first predetermined time. And a second rotation control step for controlling the rotation of the engine for a second predetermined time set to the length.

According to the present invention, even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the highest gear position, the rotation of the engine can be controlled without causing discomfort to the occupant.
Specifically, by setting the second predetermined time to a time length equal to or shorter than the first predetermined time, the engine control method sets the time for the engine to rotate at the target rotational speed in the second rotation control step. It can be set to be equal to or less than the time for which the engine rotates at the target rotation speed in the rotation control process.

  As a result, the engine control method is such that the behavior of the engine when the clutch is disengaged while traveling at the maximum gear position is released, and the clutch is disengaged while traveling at a gear position other than the maximum gear position. It is possible to suppress the occupant from recognizing that the behavior is strange compared to the behavior of the engine at the time and the behavior is noisy. For this reason, the engine control method can suppress the sound accompanying the rotation of the engine from becoming unpleasant noise for the occupant and provide the occupant with a natural driving feeling.

  Therefore, the engine control method can control the rotation of the engine without causing discomfort to the occupant even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum gear position.

As a first aspect of the present invention, the first predetermined time is set to be shorter as the gear ratio of the identified shift speed is smaller.
According to the present invention, in the first rotation control step, the engine control method can suppress the shift shock accompanying the upshift and can further suppress the discomfort given to the occupant.

  Specifically, in general, the step ratio between adjacent gears is closer to “1.0” between high gears than between low gears. For this reason, the difference in the engine output shaft rotational speed between adjacent gears is smaller between adjacent high gears than between adjacent low gears. That is, the time required to change the engine output shaft rotational speed to the target rotational speed is longer for lower gears and shorter for higher gears.

  Therefore, by setting the first predetermined time shorter as the gear ratio of the specified gear stage is smaller, the engine control method appropriately sets the time required to change the engine output shaft speed to the target speed. Can be secured. Thereby, the engine control method can reliably suppress the rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission in the case of upshifting.

  In addition, since the second predetermined time is set to a time length equal to or shorter than the first predetermined time, the engine control method shortens the engine control time in a stepwise manner from the low gear to the maximum gear. be able to.

  As a result, the engine control method is such that the behavior of the engine when the clutch is disengaged while traveling at the maximum gear position is released, and the clutch is disengaged while traveling at a gear position other than the maximum gear position. Compared with the behavior of the engine at the time, it can be further suppressed that the behavior becomes strange.

  Therefore, in the first rotation control step, the engine control method can suppress the shift shock accompanying the shift up and reduce the shift shock caused by the shift, by setting the first predetermined time shorter as the gear ratio of the specified shift stage is smaller. The unpleasant feeling given can be further suppressed.

  As a second aspect of the present invention, the target rotational speed in the second rotational control step is lower than a rotational speed obtained by multiplying the speed ratio of the highest gear stage by the output shaft rotational speed of the manual transmission, and The rotation speed is set higher than the idling rotation speed.

  According to the present invention, the engine control method can suppress a shock due to a rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission when the clutch is disengaged and engaged during traveling at the maximum gear position. The unpleasant feeling given can be reliably suppressed.

  Specifically, in the second rotation control step, the engine control method is based on the rotation speed obtained by multiplying the gear ratio of the maximum gear stage by the output shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission, that is, the input shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission. The engine speed can be controlled at a target speed that is low and higher than the idling speed.

  As a result, the engine control method can reduce the rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission as compared with the case where the target rotational speed is the idling rotational speed. For this reason, the engine control method can suppress the occurrence of shock due to the rotational difference between the engine and the manual transmission when the clutch is engaged again by the operation of the occupant.

  Furthermore, when the clutch is disengaged at the maximum gear, the engine output shaft speed can be reduced appropriately for the second predetermined time. When the clutch is disengaged, the engine behavior is strange compared to the engine behavior when the clutch is disengaged while driving at a speed other than the maximum speed. It can be further suppressed that the occupant recognizes that the behavior is large. Thus, the engine control method can provide a more natural driving feeling to the occupant.

  Therefore, the engine control method can suppress a shock due to a difference in rotation between the engine and the manual transmission when the clutch is disengaged and engaged during traveling at the maximum gear position, and thus is not applied to the occupant. Pleasure can be reliably suppressed.

Further, as a third aspect of the present invention, a virtual gear ratio that is smaller than the gear ratio of the highest gear is set as a virtual gear ratio, and the target rotational speed in the first rotation control step is greater than the specified gear. Is set to a rotational speed obtained by multiplying the gear ratio of the gear stage that is one step higher by the output shaft rotational speed of the manual transmission, and the target rotational speed in the second rotational control step is set to the virtual gear ratio. The rotation speed is set by multiplying the output shaft rotation speed.

  According to the present invention, the engine control method can more reliably suppress discomfort given to the occupant when the clutch is disengaged and engaged while traveling at the maximum gear.

  Specifically, the value of the gear ratio in a manual transmission is generally smaller at a high gear than at a low gear. For this reason, the difference in engine output shaft rotational speed between adjacent gears is smaller between adjacent high gears than between adjacent low gears if the vehicle speed is the same.

  Therefore, the engine control method is the highest by setting the rotation speed obtained by multiplying the virtual transmission gear ratio smaller than the transmission gear ratio of the highest gear stage by the output shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission as the target rotation speed in the second rotation control step. The difference between the engine output shaft speed at the shift speed and the target speed is greater than the difference between the engine output shaft speed at the speed lower than the maximum speed and the engine output speed at the maximum speed. Can be small.

  In other words, the engine control method can reduce the engine rotation difference under the same vehicle speed condition as the gear ratio including the virtual gear ratio decreases. As a result, the engine control method is such that the engine behavior when the clutch is disengaged at the maximum gear is the engine when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at a gear other than the maximum gear. It can suppress that it becomes a strange behavior compared with the behavior of.

  Therefore, the engine control method can more reliably suppress discomfort given to the occupant when the clutch is disengaged and engaged during traveling at the maximum gear.

As a fourth aspect of the present invention, the step ratio between the gear ratio of the highest gear and the virtual gear ratio is substantially equal to the step ratio of the highest gear and the lower gear. It has been made.
The above step ratio is the value obtained by dividing the gear ratio on the low gear stage side by the gear ratio on the high gear stage side or the gear ratio on the high gear stage side divided by the gear ratio on the low gear stage between adjacent gear stages. Value.
According to the present invention, the engine control method can more reliably suppress discomfort given to the occupant.

  Specifically, the step ratio between the gear ratio of the highest gear and the virtual gear ratio is set to be closer to “1.0” than the step ratio of the gear that is one step lower than the highest gear and the highest gear. In this case, the target rotational speed in the second rotational control step is a rotational speed close to the output shaft rotational speed of the engine when the clutch is disengaged. For this reason, there exists a problem that the effect by a 2nd rotation control process is hard to be transmitted to a passenger | crew.

  In contrast, the step ratio between the maximum gear and the virtual gear ratio is substantially equal to the step ratio between the gear that is one step lower than the maximum gear and the maximum gear, so that the engine control method A rotational speed that is surely lower than the engine output shaft rotational speed when the engagement is released can be set as the target rotational speed of the second rotational control step.

  As a result, the engine control method can reliably ensure the rotation difference between the engine output shaft rotation speed when the clutch is disengaged and the target rotation speed in the second rotation control step, and is thus given to the occupant. A sense of incongruity and noise can be reliably suppressed.

  Therefore, the engine control method has a step ratio between the maximum gear and the virtual gear ratio that is approximately equal to the step ratio between the gear that is one step lower than the maximum gear and the maximum gear, and thus is not given to passengers. Pleasure can be more reliably suppressed.

  In addition, an engine control device in which a manual transmission that can be switched to an arbitrary gear stage by an occupant's operation is connected via a clutch is used to solve the above-described problem. Detection means, shift speed specifying means for specifying the shift speed of the manual transmission based on the output shaft speed of the engine and the output shaft speed of the manual transmission, engagement of the clutch by the operation of the occupant When the engagement state detecting means detects that the engagement is released and the gear position specified by the gear position specifying means is not the maximum gear speed, the engine speed is set to a target engine speed that is higher than the idling engine speed. A first rotation control means for controlling the rotation of the engine for a predetermined time; and the engagement state detection means for detecting that the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation; When the shift stage specified by the shift stage specifying means is the maximum shift stage, a second predetermined speed set to a time length equal to or shorter than the first predetermined time is set to a target engine speed that is higher than the idling engine speed. Second rotation control means for controlling the rotation of the engine for a period of time.

  According to the present invention, even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the highest gear position, the rotation of the engine can be controlled without causing discomfort to the occupant.

  According to the present invention, even when the clutch is disengaged during traveling at the maximum gear position, the rotation of the engine can be controlled without causing discomfort to the occupant.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the power train in a vehicle. The block diagram which shows the structure of an engine control apparatus. The flowchart which shows the operation | movement in an engine control apparatus. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of a rotation speed control process. Explanatory drawing explaining the relationship between a vehicle speed and an engine speed for every gear stage. Explanatory drawing explaining an acceleration characteristic map. Explanatory drawing explaining a control time map. The time chart which shows the operation state of each part in the vehicle in driving | running | working.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
1 shows a configuration diagram of the power train 1 in the vehicle, and FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of the engine control device 10.

  In FIG. 1, arrows Fr and Rr indicate the vehicle front-rear direction, arrow Fr indicates the vehicle front, and arrow Rr indicates the vehicle rear. Furthermore, arrows Rh and Lh indicate the vehicle width direction, arrow Rh indicates the vehicle right direction, and arrow Lh indicates the vehicle left direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle powertrain 1 according to the present embodiment includes an engine 2 disposed at the front of the vehicle, a manual transmission 3 connected to the engine 2, and a manual transmission of the driving force of the engine 2. A clutch 4 for transmission to the machine 3, a propeller shaft 5 connected to the manual transmission 3, a final speed reducer 6 connected to the rear part of the propeller shaft 5, a final speed reducer 6, and left and right rear wheels 7 are connected. And a pair of left and right drive shafts 8.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the engine 2 includes, for example, an engine main body 21 having four pistons (not shown), an intake device 22 that introduces outside air into the engine main body 21 as fresh air, and exhaust gas generated in the engine main body 21. It is comprised by the exhaust apparatus 23 etc. which discharge | emit it outside.

  The engine body 21 is a vertically mounted engine having a crankshaft 21a extending in the vehicle front-rear direction, and is configured to receive a supply of fuel and output a driving force. Further, the engine main body 21 is filled with a combustion chamber (not shown) filled with a mixture of fuel and outside air, an intake port (not shown) communicating with the combustion chamber and the intake device 22, a combustion chamber, and exhaust. An exhaust port (not shown) that communicates with the device 23 is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the intake device 22 includes an internal hollow intake pipe 22a through which external air can flow, and an intake manifold 22b that supplies external air introduced through the intake pipe 22a to an intake port of the engine body 21. It is configured.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the exhaust device 23 includes an exhaust manifold 23 a connected to the engine main body 21 and an internal hollow exhaust pipe 23 b through which exhaust gas discharged from the engine main body 21 can flow down.

  The manual transmission 3 is a transmission having a plurality of shift stages that can be selectively switched by the operation of the occupant. In the present embodiment, the six forward stages from the first speed to the sixth speed, the one reverse stage, It shall have.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the manual transmission 3 is arranged between an input shaft 3a to which the clutch 4 is connected, an output shaft (not shown) to which the propeller shaft 5 is connected, and the input shaft 3a and the output shaft. A plurality of gear pairs (not shown) provided, and a switching mechanism (not shown) for switching the gear pairs by an occupant's operation.

  Further, as shown in Table 1, the gear stage of the manual transmission 3 is configured such that the gear ratio decreases gradually from the first speed to the sixth speed, which is the highest gear stage.

Here, of the adjacent shift speeds, assuming that the shift speed close to the first speed is the low shift speed and the shift speed close to the sixth speed is the high shift speed, the step ratio (the ratio of the change in the gear ratio of the adjacent shift speeds) As shown in Table 1, the gear ratio of the low gear stage / the gear ratio of the high gear stage is closer to “1.0” as the gear ratio of the adjacent gear stage is smaller.
The virtual 7th speed in Table 1 and the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed will be described in detail later.

  The clutch 4 is connected to a clutch pedal disposed in the vehicle interior of the vehicle. The clutch 4 is engaged with an engagement state in which the driving force of the engine 2 can be transmitted to the manual transmission 3 by the operation of the clutch pedal by an occupant. It is configured to be able to shift to the disengaged state in which the state is released.

  More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the clutch 4 is connected to the engine side clutch plate 4 a connected to the crankshaft 21 a of the engine 2 so as to be integrally rotatable, and to the input shaft 3 a of the manual transmission 3 so as to be integrally rotatable. The transmission-side clutch plate 4b.

The clutch 4 is in an engaged state in which the driving force of the engine 2 can be transmitted to the manual transmission 3 when the transmission side clutch plate 4b is pressed against the engine side clutch plate 4a.
The engine side clutch plate 4a includes, for example, a flywheel connected to the crankshaft 21a and a clutch cover fastened and fixed to the rear surface of the flyhole.
On the other hand, the transmission-side clutch plate 4b has, for example, a disc shape in which a high friction material is disposed, and is disposed so as to be sandwiched between the flywheel and the clutch cover.

  The final reduction gear 6 is composed of, for example, a hypoid gear pair having a predetermined reduction ratio, a differential gear, and the like, and drives the driving force of the engine 2 via the manual transmission 3 and the propeller shaft 5. It is configured to be able to transmit to the left and right rear wheels 7 via the shaft 8.

Next, the engine control apparatus 10 that controls the operation of the engine 2 in the power train 1 will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the engine control device 10 includes a crank angle sensor 11, an accelerator opening sensor 12, a clutch switch 13, a wheel speed sensor 14, a fuel injector 15, a throttle valve 16, The spark plug 17, the variable valve mechanism 18, and an electronic control unit 19 (Electronic Control Unit, hereinafter referred to as “ECU 19”) for controlling these operations.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the crank angle sensor 11 is a sensor fixed to the engine body 21, and has a function of detecting the rotation of the crankshaft 21a and the detected rotation of the crankshaft 21a to the ECU 19 as a crank angle signal. It has a function to output.

  The accelerator opening sensor 12 is a sensor provided integrally with an accelerator pedal (not shown), and has a function of detecting the opening degree of the accelerator pedal operated by a passenger, and the opening of the detected accelerator pedal. And a function of outputting the degree to the ECU 19 as an accelerator signal.

  Further, the clutch switch 13 is a so-called push button switch, and a function of detecting depression of the clutch pedal by the occupant and a clutch signal indicating that the switch is ON when the depression of the clutch pedal is detected are sent to the ECU 19. Output function.

  The clutch switch 13 is fixed to a pedal bracket (not shown) that supports a clutch pedal (not shown), and is disposed at a position where the clutch pedal comes into contact when the clutch pedal is depressed by about 20%. It is installed.

  In addition to the clutch switch 13, a clutch start switch (not shown) required for starting the engine 2 is provided on the pedal bracket. The clutch start switch is disposed at a position where the clutch pedal comes into an ON state when the clutch pedal comes into contact when the clutch pedal is depressed about 75%.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the wheel speed sensor 14 is a sensor fixed to a knuckle (not shown) that supports the rear wheel 7, and rotates the drive shaft 8, in other words, the rotation of the rear wheel 7. It has a function to detect and a function to output the detected rotation of the rear wheel 7 to the ECU 19 as a wheel speed signal.

The fuel injector 15 is fixed to the engine body 21 such that the tip is exposed in the combustion chamber, and has a function of injecting fuel into the combustion chamber at a predetermined timing.
Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the throttle valve 16 is an openable and closable valve disposed inside the intake pipe 22a of the intake device 22, and has a function of adjusting the amount of outside air supplied to the engine body 21. have.

The spark plug 17 is fixed to the engine main body 21 so that the tip is exposed in the combustion chamber, and sparks are scattered at a predetermined timing, and the outside air supplied to the combustion chamber and the fuel injected into the combustion chamber It has a function of igniting the air-fuel mixture.
The variable valve mechanism 18 is disposed in the engine body 21 and has a function of varying the opening / closing timing and lift amount of an intake valve (not shown) that opens and closes an intake port and an exhaust valve (not shown) that opens and closes an exhaust port. have.

  In addition, the ECU 19 includes a CPU and a memory with a hardware configuration and a software configuration such as a program and data. The ECU 19 stores various information relating to the rotation control of the engine 2 such as a gear ratio for each gear stage of the manual transmission 3, a speed reduction ratio of the final reduction gear 6, an acceleration characteristic map described later, and a control time map. Yes.

  Further, the ECU 19 acquires the signals output from the crank angle sensor 11, the accelerator opening sensor 12, the clutch switch 13, and the wheel speed sensor 14, and based on the acquired signals, the engine speed and the accelerator opening. And a function for controlling the operation of the fuel injector 15, throttle valve 16, spark plug 17, and variable valve mechanism 18.

Next, a method for controlling the engine 2 using the above-described engine control apparatus 10 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
3 shows a flowchart of the operation in the engine control device 10, FIG. 4 shows a flowchart of the rotational speed control process, and FIG. 5 shows an explanatory diagram for explaining the relationship between the vehicle speed and the engine rotational speed for each gear position. 6 shows an explanatory diagram for explaining the acceleration characteristic map, FIG. 7 shows an explanatory diagram for explaining the control time map, and FIG. 8 shows a time chart of each part in the running vehicle.

  First, when the engine 2 is started by an occupant's operation, the ECU 19 starts acquisition signal processing (step S101) and starts processing various acquired signals as shown in FIG. For example, the ECU 19 starts calculating the rotation speed of the crankshaft 21a, that is, the engine rotation speed, based on the crank angle signal acquired from the crank angle sensor 11.

  Further, the ECU 19 starts calculating the accelerator opening based on the accelerator signal acquired from the accelerator opening sensor 12. In addition, the ECU 19, based on the wheel speed signal acquired from the wheel speed sensor 14, the rear wheel rotational speed that is the rotational speed of the rear wheel 7, the transmission rotational speed that is the rotational speed of the output shaft in the manual transmission 3, And the calculation of the vehicle speed is started.

Thereafter, the ECU 19 determines whether or not the clutch signal output from the clutch switch 13 has been acquired (step S102). If the clutch signal is not acquired from the clutch switch 13 (step S102: No), the ECU 19 determines whether or not the control flag F indicating the rotation control state of the engine 2 is “1” (step S103).
Incidentally, “1” of the control flag F indicates a state in which the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled with the idling rotation speed as the target rotation speed.

If the control flag F is “1” (step S103: Yes), the ECU 19 changes the control flag F to “0” (step S104), and the process proceeds to step S105.
Note that “0” of the control flag F indicates a state in which the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled based on the accelerator opening, the gear position, and the like, for example, during normal travel.

  On the other hand, if the control flag F is not “1” (step S103: No), the ECU 19 advances the process to step S105 and starts a gear position specifying process for specifying the current gear position (step S105).

Specifically, the ECU 19 specifies the current gear position based on the relationship between the vehicle speed and the engine speed.
Here, the relationship between the vehicle speed and the engine speed can be represented by a graph in which the horizontal axis indicates the vehicle speed V and the vertical axis indicates the engine speed N, as shown in FIG.

  In the graph showing the relationship between the vehicle speed V and the engine speed N, the engine speed N with respect to the vehicle speed V is, as shown in FIG. 5, when the slip of the clutch 4 and the transmission efficiency of the power train 1 are ignored, as shown in FIG. Each can be represented by a proportional relationship with different slopes.

  More specifically, the relationship between the vehicle speed V and the engine speed N is such that the first speed has the largest inclination, the second speed, the third speed, the fourth speed, the fifth speed, and the highest speed in the order of the sixth speed. It can be expressed by a straight line of a linear function that becomes smaller. Since the vehicle speed V of the vehicle is determined by V = D × 2πr, where D is the rear wheel rotational speed of the rear wheel 7 and r is the radius of the rear wheel 7, the relationship between the vehicle speed V and the engine rotational speed N is The relationship between the rear wheel speed D and the engine speed N can be substituted.

  Accordingly, the ECU 19 calculates the engine speed based on the crank angle signal acquired from the crank angle sensor 11 and calculates the rear wheel speed based on the wheel speed signal acquired from the wheel speed sensor 14.

Then, the ECU 19 starts from N = k × D based on the graph of FIG. 5 showing the relationship between the vehicle speed V and the engine speed N, in other words, the graph showing the relationship between the rear wheel speed D and the engine speed N. A gear stage having an inclination approximate to the calculated constant k is specified as the current gear stage. The ECU 19 temporarily stores the specified current shift speed in the memory.
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 3, the ECU 19 starts a target acceleration setting process (step S106), and sets the target acceleration of the vehicle based on the acceleration characteristic map stored in advance.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, the acceleration characteristic map is map data that can be plotted with a graph in which the horizontal axis indicates the accelerator opening and the vertical axis indicates the target acceleration. The target acceleration differs depending on the accelerator opening range. In the acceleration characteristic map, different data for each gear position and vehicle speed is stored in advance in the ECU 19.

  Then, the ECU 19 reads an acceleration characteristic map corresponding to the specified shift speed and the current vehicle speed, and calculates the accelerator opening based on the accelerator signal acquired from the accelerator opening sensor 12. Thereafter, the ECU 19 acquires the target acceleration for the accelerator opening from the acceleration characteristic map and sets it as the target acceleration of the vehicle.

  When the target acceleration is set, the ECU 19 starts a target torque calculation process (step S107), and calculates the target engine torque necessary for realizing the target acceleration based on the specified gear position and the current vehicle speed. To do. At this time, the ECU 19 calculates a target engine torque within a range of engine torque that can be output by the engine 2.

When the target engine torque is calculated, the ECU 19 starts a target filling amount calculation process (step S108), and calculates the mass of air that is filled in the combustion chamber necessary for outputting the target engine torque, that is, the filling amount. .
Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts a target control amount calculation process (step S109), and calculates target control amounts for the throttle valve 16, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the fuel injector 15.

  Specifically, the ECU 19 calculates the opening degree of the throttle valve 16 and the opening / closing timing of the intake valve necessary for realizing the filling amount calculated in step S108. Further, the ECU 19 calculates a fuel injection amount determined based on the filling amount and the theoretical air-fuel ratio.

  Then, the ECU 19 sets the current control value indicating the opening degree of the throttle valve 16, the opening / closing timing of the intake valve, and the fuel injection amount, and the calculated control value indicating the target opening degree, the target opening / closing timing, and the target injection amount. Get each difference. Based on each difference, the ECU 19 sets target control amounts for the throttle valve 16, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the fuel injector 15.

  When the target control amount calculation process is completed, the ECU 19 starts a rotation control start process (step S110), and based on the set target control amount, the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the spark plug 17, and the variable valve By controlling the operation of the mechanism 18, rotation control of the engine 2 is started. Thereafter, the ECU 19 proceeds with the process and returns to step S101.

  If the clutch signal is acquired from the clutch switch 13 in step S102 described above (step S102: Yes), the ECU 19 determines that the engagement of the clutch 4 has been released by the occupant's operation, and the control flag F Is determined to be “1” (step S111).

  When the control flag F is not “1” (step S111: No), the ECU 19 determines that the engine 2 is not in a controlled state with the idling speed as the target speed, and obtains it from the accelerator opening sensor 12. It is determined whether the accelerator opening calculated based on the accelerator signal is 1.5% or more (step S112).

When the accelerator opening is equal to or greater than 1.5% (step S112: Yes), the ECU 19 causes the accelerator pedal to be depressed by the occupant in the state in which the clutch 4 is disengaged, that is, the engine speed by the occupant's operation. Is determined to have been adjusted.
Therefore, the ECU 19 starts a target rotational speed setting process (step S113), and sets the target rotational speed of the engine 2 according to the accelerator opening.

  When the target rotational speed of the engine 2 is set, the ECU 19 starts a target torque calculation process (step S114), calculates the engine torque necessary to realize the target rotational speed, and sets it as the target engine torque.

  When the target engine torque is set, the ECU 19 advances the processing to step S108, starts the target filling amount calculation processing (step S108), calculates the filling amount necessary for outputting the target engine torque, and then performs target control. The amount calculation process is started (step S109), and target control amounts of the throttle valve 16, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the fuel injector 15 are calculated.

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts a rotation control start process (step S110), and controls the operations of the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the spark plug 17, and the variable valve mechanism 18 based on the set target control amount. Thus, the rotation control of the engine 2 is started.

  In step S112 described above, when the accelerator opening is less than 1.5% (step S112: No), the ECU 19 determines that the accelerator pedal is not depressed by the occupant and starts the rotation speed control process. (Step S115)

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the ECU 19 starts the shift speed acquisition process (step S116), reads the shift speed specified in step S105 of FIG. 3 and temporarily stored in the memory, The gear position immediately before acquiring the clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 is specified.
Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts a target rotational speed setting process (step S117), and sets the target rotational speed of the engine 2 based on the identified shift speed and the rear wheel rotational speed.

  Specifically, the ECU 19 determines whether or not the identified shift speed is 6th speed (step S118). If the identified shift speed is not 6th speed (step S118: No), the ECU 19 is one step higher than the identified shift speed. A target rotational speed is set based on the gear ratio of the gear position and the rear wheel rotational speed (step S119).

  For example, when the accelerator is returned and the clutch 4 is disengaged from the state of steady running at the 5th speed, the ECU 19 shifts the gear position one step higher than the 5th speed, that is, the 6th speed ratio, A target speed is set based on the rear wheel speed.

  On the other hand, when the specified shift speed is 6th speed (step S118: Yes), the ECU 19 sets the virtual 7th speed which is a virtual speed ratio having a virtual speed ratio smaller than the 6th speed speed ratio which is the maximum speed speed. A target rotational speed is set based on the gear ratio and the rear wheel rotational speed (step S120).

  Here, as shown in Table 1 above, the virtual seventh speed is set in advance as a virtual gear position having “0.778” as a virtual gear ratio. The gear ratio “0.778” of the virtual seventh speed is calculated by dividing the gear ratio “1.000” of the sixth speed by the step ratio “1.286” of the fifth speed and the sixth speed. In other words, as shown in Table 1, the virtual 7th speed has its virtual ratio so that the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed becomes the same value as the step ratio “1.286” between the 5th speed and the 6th speed. The gear ratio is set.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, the virtual 7th speed is represented by a straight line of a linear function having a slope smaller than the slope of the 6th speed, which is the highest gear, in the graph showing the relationship between the vehicle speed and the engine speed. Can do.

  The target rotational speed Nt set in step S119 described above is the transmission rotational speed, which is the output shaft rotational speed of the manual transmission 3, To, and the gear ratio of the gear stage that is one step higher than the specified gear stage, Gt. Nt = Gt × To.

  Here, assuming that the rear wheel rotational speed is D and the speed reduction ratio of the final reduction gear 6 is Gf, the transmission rotational speed To of the manual transmission 3 can be set to To = Gf × D. Therefore, the target rotational speed Nt is determined by Nt = Gt × To = Gt × Gf × D.

  When the target rotational speed is set, the ECU 19 starts a target torque calculation process (step S121), and calculates a target engine torque necessary for realizing the target rotational speed calculated in step S117.

  Specifically, the ECU 19 multiplies a value obtained by subtracting the current engine speed from the target speed by a predetermined constant set in advance, and the engine speed increase / decrease ratio per unit time. Is calculated.

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 obtains the torque increase / decrease amount required to increase / decrease the engine speed by the rotation speed increase / decrease rate based on the map data indicating the torque increase / decrease rate relative to the rotation speed increase / decrease rate. It is assumed that map data indicating the amount of torque increase / decrease with respect to the speed increase / decrease rate is stored in the ECU 19 in advance.

Further, the ECU 19 acquires a maintenance torque necessary for maintaining the current engine speed based on the map data indicating the maintenance torque with respect to the engine speed. It is assumed that the map data indicating the maintenance torque with respect to the engine speed is stored in the ECU 19 in advance.
Then, the ECU 19 sets a value obtained by adding the maintenance torque to the torque increase / decrease amount as the target engine torque.

  After calculating the target engine torque, the ECU 19 starts a control setting process (step S122), and sets the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the ignition plug 17 and the target control amount of the variable valve mechanism 18. .

  Specifically, the ECU 19 calculates the filling amount necessary for outputting the target engine torque, and then determines the opening degree of the throttle valve 16 and the opening / closing timing of the intake valve necessary for realizing the calculated filling amount. calculate. Further, the ECU 19 calculates a fuel injection amount determined based on the filling amount and the theoretical air-fuel ratio.

  Then, the ECU 19 sets the current control value indicating the opening degree of the throttle valve 16, the opening / closing timing of the intake valve, and the fuel injection amount, and the calculated control value indicating the target opening degree, the target opening / closing timing, and the target injection amount. Get each difference. Based on each difference, the ECU 19 sets target control amounts for the throttle valve 16, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the fuel injector 15.

  When the control setting process is completed, the ECU 19 starts a timer process (step S123), sets a control time for controlling the rotation of the engine 2 based on the target control amount, based on the control time map, and controls the control time. Start the countdown.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, the control time map is map data that can be represented by a graph in which the horizontal axis indicates the vehicle speed V and the vertical axis indicates the control time CT, and the control time for the vehicle speed C. CT is registered for each gear position.

  In this control time map, the control time CT with respect to the vehicle speed V can be expressed as a straight line of a linear function in which the first speed has the largest inclination and the inclination decreases in the order of the second speed, the third speed, the fourth speed, and the fifth speed. It is set to be possible.

  That is, under the same vehicle speed conditions, the control time CT for each gear position has the longest first control time CT1, as shown in FIG. 7, the second control time CT2, the third control time CT3, and the fourth speed. The control time CT4 is set to be shorter in the order of the fifth control time CT5.

  The time interval t2 between the second speed control time CT2 and the third speed control time CT3 is set to be shorter than the time interval t1 between the first speed control time CT1 and the second speed control time CT2. Similarly, the time interval t3 between the control speed CT3 for the third speed and the control time CT4 for the fourth speed is set to be shorter than the time interval t2 between the control time CT2 for the second speed and the control time CT3 for the third speed. The time interval t4 between the control time CT4 and the fifth speed control time CT5 is set shorter than the time interval t3 between the third speed control time CT3 and the fourth speed control time CT4.

  Further, the relationship of the control time CT with respect to the vehicle speed V at the sixth speed is set to coincide with the relationship with the control time CT with respect to the vehicle speed V at the fifth speed as shown in FIG. For this reason, under the same vehicle speed conditions, the 6th speed control time CT6 is set to be the same as the 5th speed control time CT5.

  In other words, the control time CT5 when the clutch 4 is disengaged at the fifth speed and the control time CT6 when the clutch is disengaged at the sixth speed, which is the highest gear, are set to the same time. Yes.

  In addition, in the control time map, for example, in order to secure time for the upshifting operation, a limit time CT7 is set at which the control time is constant at a predetermined vehicle speed or less at any gear position. .

  Based on such a control time map, the ECU 19 obtains a value indicating a control time corresponding to the identified shift speed and the current vehicle speed. Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts counting down the control time, and subtracts a value indicating the acquired control time every predetermined time.

  Further, the ECU 19 starts the rotation control start process (step S124), and the operations of the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the spark plug 17, and the variable valve mechanism 18 based on the target control amount set in step S122. Is controlled to start rotation control of the engine 2.

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 determines whether or not a clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 has been acquired (step S125). If the clutch signal is not acquired from the clutch switch 13 (step S125: No), the ECU 19 determines whether or not the accelerator opening is 1.5% or more (step S126).

  If the accelerator opening is less than 1.5% (step S126: No), the ECU 19 determines that the vehicle is in a coasting state and determines whether the remaining time of the control time has become “0”. Determination is made (step S127).

  If the remaining time of the control time is not “0” (step S127: No), the ECU 19 returns the process to step S125 and acquires the clutch signal from the clutch switch 13, and the accelerator opening becomes 1.5% or more. Alternatively, the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled based on the target control amount set in step S122 until the remaining control time reaches “0”.

  On the other hand, when the remaining control time is “0” in step S127 (step S127: Yes), the ECU 19 changes the control flag F to “1” (step S128). Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts an idle control process (step S129), and controls the rotation of the engine 2 with a preset idling speed as a target speed.

  When the idle control process is started, the ECU 19 returns to step S115 in FIG. 3 and repeats the processes from step S101 to step S129 until the engine 2 stops.

  When the clutch signal is acquired from the clutch switch 13 in step S125 described above (step S125: Yes), or when the accelerator opening is 1.5% or more in step S126 (step S126: Yes), the ECU 19 Returning to step S115 in FIG. 3, the processing from step S101 to step S129 is repeated until the engine 2 stops.

  If the control flag F is “1” in step S111 of FIG. 3 (step S111), the ECU 19 continues the state in which the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled with the idling rotation speed as the target rotation speed. As a result, the process proceeds to return to step S101.

  As described above, in the method of controlling the engine 2 using the engine control device 10, when the engagement of the clutch 4 is released by the operation of the occupant and the specified shift speed is not the sixth speed, step S118 in FIG. : No, step S119, and the rotation of the engine 2 is controlled by the first rotation control process consisting of the processing from step S121 to step S127. If the specified shift speed is 6th speed, step S118 in FIG. The rotation of the engine 2 is controlled by the second rotation control process including steps S120 and steps S121 to S127.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 8, when the vehicle is traveling at a fifth gear speed and a constant vehicle speed, an occupant who has returned the accelerator pedal to shift up depresses the clutch pedal at the elapsed time ET1. To do.

  In this case, the ECU 19 obtains a clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 (step S102: Yes in FIG. 3), and the accelerator opening is less than 1.5% (step S112: No). Start processing. When the rotational speed control process is started, the ECU 19 determines that the specified shift speed is 5th speed (step S118: No in FIG. 4), so that the target rotational speed of the engine is one speed higher than 5th speed based on the 6th speed ratio. (Step S119).

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts counting down the control time set in step S123 of FIG. 4 and starts rotation control of the engine 2 based on the target control amount set through the processing of steps S121 and S122. (Step S124).

  When the occupant who has finished the shifting operation returns the clutch pedal and depresses the accelerator pedal at the elapsed time ET2 in FIG. 8, the ECU 19 acquires a clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 (step S125: Yes). Then, the control at the target rotational speed calculated based on the speed ratio of the sixth speed is stopped, and the rotational speed control process is terminated.

  When the rotational speed control process is finished, the clutch signal is not acquired from the clutch switch 13 (step S102: No in FIG. 3). Therefore, the ECU 19 specifies the gear position in step S105 in FIG. Based on the target control amount set through the processing of S109, rotation control of the engine 2 is started (step S110).

  Also, for example, as shown in FIG. 8, when the vehicle is traveling at a sixth gear and a constant vehicle speed, the accelerator pedal is kept in the sixth gear state to adjust the inter-vehicle distance at the elapsed time ET3. Assume that the returned passenger has stepped on the clutch pedal.

  In this case, the ECU 19 obtains a clutch signal from the clutch switch 13 (step S102: Yes in FIG. 3), and the accelerator opening is less than 1.5% (step S112: No). Start processing. When the rotation speed control process is started, the ECU 19 calculates the target rotation speed based on the gear ratio of the virtual 7th speed (step S120) because the identified shift speed is 6th speed (step S118: Yes in FIG. 4). .

  Thereafter, the ECU 19 starts counting down the control time set in step S123 of FIG. 4 and starts rotation control of the engine 2 based on the target control amount set through the processing of steps S121 and S122. (Step S124).

  As shown in FIG. 8, when the remaining time of the control time becomes “0” while the clutch pedal is depressed by the occupant at the elapsed time ET4 (step S127: Yes in FIG. 4), the ECU 19 After rewriting the control flag F to “1” in step S128, the engine 2 is started to rotate with the idling speed set as the target speed (step S129).

  The control method of the engine 2 using the engine control device 10 that realizes the above operation gives discomfort to the occupant even when the clutch 4 is disengaged during traveling at the sixth speed. The rotation of the engine 2 can be controlled.

  Specifically, by setting the control time CT6 to the same length as the control time CT5, the control method of the engine 2 sets the time for the engine 2 to rotate at the target rotation speed Nt in the second rotation control step. The time can be set to be equal to or less than the time for the engine 2 to rotate at the target rotation speed Nt in the one-rotation control process.

  As a result, the control method of the engine 2 is such that the behavior of the engine 2 when the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at the sixth speed is disengaged while the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at a speed other than the sixth speed. It is possible to suppress the occupant from recognizing that the behavior of the engine 2 is uncomfortable compared to the behavior of the engine 2 and the noise is large. For this reason, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress the sound accompanying the rotation of the engine 2 from becoming unpleasant noise for the occupant, and provide the occupant with a natural driving feeling.

  Therefore, the control method of the engine 2 can control the rotation of the engine 2 without causing discomfort to the passenger even when the engagement of the clutch 4 is released during traveling at the sixth speed.

  In addition, since the control speed of the engine 2 is set to be shorter as the gear ratio of the gear stage for which the control time CT is specified is smaller, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress the shift shock accompanying the upshift in the first rotation control step and Can be further suppressed.

  Specifically, the step ratio between adjacent gears is closer to “1.0” between high gears than between low gears. For this reason, the difference in engine speed between adjacent gears is smaller between adjacent high gears than between adjacent low gears. That is, the time required to control the engine rotation to the target rotation speed Nt is longer for the lower gear and shorter for the higher gear.

  Therefore, by setting the control time CT to be shorter as the gear ratio of the specified gear stage is smaller, the control method of the engine 2 appropriately secures the time necessary for changing the engine speed to the target speed Nt. can do. Thereby, the control method of the engine 2 can reliably suppress the rotational difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 in the case of upshifting.

  In addition, since the control time CT6 is set to the same length as the control time CT5, the control method of the engine 2 shortens the control time CT of the engine 2 in a stepwise manner from the low gear to the sixth gear. be able to.

  As a result, the control method of the engine 2 is such that the behavior of the engine 2 when the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at the sixth speed is disengaged while the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at a speed other than the sixth speed. Compared with the behavior of the engine 2 when the operation is performed, it is possible to further suppress the behavior that is uncomfortable.

  Therefore, in the first rotation control process, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress the shift shock accompanying the upshift and reduce the shift shock by reducing the control time CT as the gear ratio of the specified shift stage is smaller. The unpleasant feeling given can be further suppressed.

  Further, the target rotational speed Nt of the second rotational control process is set to a rotational speed that is lower than the rotational speed obtained by multiplying the transmission gear ratio To by the speed ratio of 6th speed and higher than the idling rotational speed, The control method of the engine 2 is given to the occupant because the shock caused by the rotational difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 can be suppressed when the clutch 4 is disengaged and engaged while traveling at the sixth speed. Discomfort can be reliably suppressed.

  Specifically, in the second rotation control step, the control method of the engine 2 is lower than the rotation speed obtained by multiplying the transmission gear ratio To by the gear ratio of 6th speed, that is, the input shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission 3, In addition, the rotation of the engine 2 can be controlled at a target rotational speed Nt higher than the idling rotational speed.

  Thereby, the control method of the engine 2 can reduce the rotational difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 as compared with the case where the target rotational speed Nt is the idling rotational speed. For this reason, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress the occurrence of a shock due to the rotation difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 when the clutch 4 is engaged again by the operation of the occupant.

  Furthermore, when the clutch 4 is disengaged at the 6th speed, the engine speed can be appropriately reduced during the control time CT6. The behavior of the engine 2 when the engagement is released is strange and loud compared to the behavior of the engine 2 when the engagement of the clutch 4 is released while traveling at a gear stage other than the sixth speed. It can be further suppressed that the occupant recognizes the behavior. Thereby, the control method of the engine 2 can provide a more natural driving feeling to the occupant.

  Therefore, the control method of the engine 2 can suppress a shock due to the rotational difference between the engine 2 and the manual transmission 3 when the clutch 4 is disengaged and engaged during traveling at the sixth speed. The uncomfortable feeling given to can be reliably suppressed.

  In addition, since the target rotational speed Nt in the second rotational control process is set to a rotational speed obtained by multiplying the virtual gear ratio of the virtual 7th speed by the transmission rotational speed To, the control method of the engine 2 runs at the 6th speed. When the clutch 4 is disengaged and engaged, discomfort given to the passenger can be more reliably suppressed.

  Specifically, the value of the gear ratio in the manual transmission 3 is generally smaller at the high gear stage than at the low gear stage. For this reason, if the vehicle speed is the same, the difference in engine speed between adjacent gears is smaller between adjacent high gears than between adjacent low gears.

  Therefore, by setting the rotation speed obtained by multiplying the transmission ratio To of the virtual 7-speed to the transmission rotation speed To as the target rotation speed Nt in the second rotation control step, the control method of the engine 2 is the engine rotation speed at 6th speed and the target rotation speed. The difference from the rotational speed Nt can be made smaller than the difference between the engine speed at the fifth speed and the engine speed at the sixth speed.

  That is, the control method of the engine 2 can reduce the rotation difference of the engine 2 under the same vehicle speed condition as the speed ratio including the virtual speed ratio decreases. As a result, the control method of the engine 2 is such that the behavior of the engine 2 when the clutch 4 is disengaged at the sixth speed is the same as when the clutch 4 is disengaged while traveling at a speed other than the sixth speed. Compared to the behavior of the engine 2, it can be suppressed that the behavior becomes strange.

  Therefore, the control method of the engine 2 can more reliably suppress discomfort given to the occupant when the clutch 4 is disengaged and engaged while traveling at the sixth speed.

  In addition, since the step ratio between the sixth speed and the virtual seventh speed is substantially equal to the step ratio between the fifth speed and the sixth speed, the control method of the engine 2 further reliably suppresses discomfort given to the occupant. be able to.

  Specifically, when the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed is set to be closer to “1.0” than the step ratio between the 5th speed and the 6th speed, the target rotation speed in the second rotation control step Nt is a rotational speed close to the engine rotational speed when the clutch 4 is disengaged. For this reason, there exists a problem that the effect by a 2nd rotation control process is hard to be transmitted to a passenger | crew.

  On the other hand, by making the step ratio of 6th speed and virtual 7th speed substantially the same as the step ratio of 5th speed and 6th speed, the control method of the engine 2 has released the engagement of the clutch 4. The engine speed that is surely lower than the actual engine speed can be set as the target engine speed Nt of the second rotation control process.

  As a result, the control method of the engine 2 can reliably ensure a rotational difference between the engine speed when the clutch 4 is disengaged and the target speed Nt in the second rotation control step, and is thus given to the occupant. A sense of incongruity and noise can be reliably suppressed.

  Therefore, the control method of the engine 2 further suppresses the uncomfortable feeling given to the occupant by making the step ratio between the sixth speed and the virtual seventh speed substantially equal to the step ratio between the fifth speed and the sixth speed. Can do.

  The engine control device 10 having the above-described configuration controls the rotation of the engine 2 without causing discomfort to the occupant even when the clutch 4 is disengaged during traveling at the sixth speed. Can do.

In correspondence between the configuration of the present invention and the above-described embodiment,
The engagement state detection step of the present invention corresponds to step S102 of FIG. 3 of the embodiment,
Similarly,
The engine output shaft speed corresponds to the engine speed N,
The output shaft speed of the manual transmission corresponds to the transmission speed To,
The gear position specifying step corresponds to step S116 in FIG.
The maximum shift speed corresponds to 6th speed,
The first predetermined time corresponds to the control time CT1, CT2, CT3, CT4, CT5,
The first rotation control process corresponds to step S118 of FIG. 4: No, step S119, and step S121 to step S127,
The second predetermined time corresponds to the control time CT6,
The second rotation control process corresponds to step S118 of FIG. 4: Yes, step S120, and step S121 to step S127,
The virtual gear ratio corresponds to the gear ratio of virtual 7th speed,
The step ratio between the maximum gear and the virtual gear ratio corresponds to the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed,
The step ratio between the shift stage that is one step lower than the maximum shift stage and the maximum shift stage corresponds to the step ratio between the fifth speed and the sixth speed.
The control device corresponds to the engine control device 10,
The engagement state detection means corresponds to the clutch switch 13 and the ECU 19,
The gear position specifying means corresponds to the ECU 19,
The first rotation control means and the second rotation control means correspond to the fuel injector 15, the throttle valve 16, the spark plug 17, the variable valve mechanism 18, and the ECU 19,
The present invention is not limited only to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and many embodiments can be obtained.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the vehicle is a rear-wheel drive vehicle in which the engine 2 is disposed in the front portion. However, the present invention is not limited to this and may be a front-wheel drive vehicle or a four-wheel drive vehicle.
Further, the manual transmission 3 has the first to sixth forward gears and one reverse gear. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and has the first to fifth forward gears and one reverse gear. It may be a manual transmission or the like. Further, an auxiliary transmission may be provided between the manual transmission 3 and the final reduction gear 6.

  Further, although the gear ratio and the step ratio of the manual transmission 3 are the values shown in Table 1, the present invention is not limited to this, and the gear ratio and the step ratio of the manual transmission may be appropriately configured. Even in this case, the gear ratio of the virtual 7th speed is set so that the step ratio between the 6th speed and the virtual 7th speed is substantially equal to the step ratio between the 5th speed and the 6th speed.

  Further, the step ratio between adjacent gears is a value obtained by dividing the gear ratio on the low gear side by the gear ratio on the high gear side between the adjacent gears, but is not limited to this. A value obtained by dividing the gear ratio on the stage side by the gear ratio on the low gear stage side may be used. In this case, the step ratio is a value of “1.0” or less, but the same effect as in the above-described embodiment can be obtained.

  Further, the vehicle speed and the transmission rotational speed of the manual transmission 3 are calculated based on the wheel speed signal output from the wheel speed sensor 14, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a sensor for detecting the output shaft rotation of the manual transmission. And the vehicle speed and the transmission rotational speed of the manual transmission 3 may be calculated based on the output signal from the sensor.

  Further, the engine speed is calculated based on the crank angle signal output from the crank angle sensor 11. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a sensor for detecting the input shaft rotation of the manual transmission 3 is provided. The input shaft speed of the manual transmission 3 calculated based on the output signal from the engine may be used as the engine speed.

  Further, in step S105 of FIG. 3, the current gear position is specified based on the relationship between the vehicle speed (rear wheel rotation speed) and the engine rotation speed. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the output shaft rotation of the manual transmission 3 is not limited thereto. The current gear position may be specified on the basis of the relationship between the transmission rotation speed, which is a number, and the engine rotation speed.

  Further, in step S112 of FIG. 3 and step S126 of FIG. 4, the accelerator opening degree indicating that the accelerator pedal is depressed by the occupant is set to 1.5% or more. However, the present invention is not limited to this. An appropriate value may be used as long as the accelerator opening degree indicates that is depressed.

Further, the 6-speed control time CT6 in the second rotation control process is set to the same time as the 5-speed control time CT5 in the first rotation control process. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The control time CT6 may be shorter than the fifth speed control time CT5 in the first rotation control step.
Further, when the control time is set in step S123 of FIG. 4, the countdown is started and the control time is subtracted. When the remaining time of the control time becomes “0” in step S127, the idle control process is started. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and when the control time is determined in step S123 of FIG. 4, counting up is started and a timer is added.In step S127, when the timer value matches the control time, It may be configured to start the idle control process.

2 ... Engine 3 ... Manual transmission 4 ... Clutch 10 ... Engine controller 13 ... Clutch switch 15 ... Fuel injector 16 ... Throttle valve 17 ... Spark plug 18 ... Variable valve mechanism 19 ... ECU
CT1 ... Control time CT2 ... Control time CT3 ... Control time CT4 ... Control time CT5 ... Control time CT6 ... Control time Gt ... Gear ratio N ... Engine speed Nt ... Target speed To ... Transmission speed

Claims (6)

A manual transmission that can be switched to an arbitrary shift stage by an occupant's operation is an engine control method connected via a clutch,
An engagement state detection step of detecting an engagement state of the clutch;
A shift speed specifying step for specifying a shift speed of the manual transmission based on the output shaft speed of the engine and the output shaft speed of the manual transmission;
In the engagement state detection step, when it is detected that the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation, and the shift stage specified by the shift stage specifying step is not the maximum shift stage, it is higher than the idling speed. A first rotation control step of controlling the rotation of the engine for a first predetermined time with the rotation speed as a target rotation speed;
In the engagement state detection step, when it is detected that the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation, and the shift stage specified by the shift stage specification process is the maximum shift stage, the idling speed And a second rotation control step for controlling the rotation of the engine for a second predetermined time set to a time length equal to or shorter than the first predetermined time with a higher rotation speed as a target rotation speed. Method. The first predetermined time is
The engine control method according to claim 1, wherein the engine speed is set to be shorter as the gear ratio of the identified shift speed is smaller. The target rotation speed of the second rotation control step is
3. The engine according to claim 1, wherein the engine speed is set to be lower than a rotation speed obtained by multiplying a speed ratio of the highest gear stage by an output shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission and higher than an idling rotation speed. Control method. A virtual gear ratio that is smaller than the gear ratio of the highest gear is set as a virtual gear ratio,
The target rotational speed in the second rotational control step is
The engine control method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the engine speed is set to a rotation speed obtained by multiplying the virtual gear ratio by an output shaft rotation speed of the manual transmission. The step ratio between the gear ratio of the highest gear and the virtual gear ratio is:
The engine control method according to claim 4, wherein the engine speed is substantially equal to a step ratio between the highest gear and the lowest gear. A manual transmission that can be switched to an arbitrary gear stage by an occupant operation is an engine control device connected via a clutch,
Engagement state detection means for detecting the engagement state of the clutch;
Gear position specifying means for specifying the gear position of the manual transmission based on the output shaft speed of the engine and the output shaft speed of the manual transmission;
When the engagement state detecting means detects that the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation, and the shift speed specified by the shift speed specifying means is not the highest speed, the rotation speed is higher than the idling speed. A first rotation control means for controlling the rotation of the engine for a first predetermined time, with the number as a target rotation number;
When the engagement state detecting means detects that the clutch is disengaged by an occupant's operation, and the shift speed specified by the shift speed specifying means is the maximum speed, the idling speed is higher than the idling speed. An engine control apparatus comprising: a second rotation control unit configured to control rotation of the engine for a second predetermined time set to a time length equal to or shorter than the first predetermined time with a high rotation speed as a target rotation speed .

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