JP5447298B2 - Engine automatic stop / start control device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic engine that pushes out a starter pinion at a predetermined timing and jumps into a ring gear connected to the crankshaft of the engine during a period in which the engine rotational speed when the engine is automatically stopped decreases. The invention relates to a stop / start control device.

  This type of engine automatic stop / start control device is, as described in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-330813), a period during which the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped (engine rotation drop period). When the restart request is generated, the starter motor is energized to rotate the pinion, and the engine speed (ring gear) after a predetermined time corresponding to the time required for the pinion biting operation is reached. Rotation speed) is predicted, and the timing at which the pinion rotation speed is synchronized with the engine rotation speed (ring gear rotation speed) is predicted, and the pinion engagement timing is determined so that the pinion jumps into the ring gear and meshes at that timing. There is something to do.

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2005-330813

  However, as in Patent Document 1, during the engine rotation descent period when the engine is automatically stopped, the engine rotation speed (ring gear rotation speed) and the pinion rotation speed are predicted, and the pinion rotation speed becomes the engine rotation speed ( Even if the timing of synchronizing with the ring gear rotation speed) is predicted and the pinion biting operation is started so that the pinion jumps into and meshes with the ring gear at that timing, the following problems occur.

  That is, the engine rotation behavior during the engine rotation descent period does not decrease linearly, but the engine rotation speed decreases while pulsating, and the rotation speed of the ring gear connected to the engine crankshaft also pulsates. While descending. For this reason, even if the engine rotation speed (ring gear rotation speed) after a predetermined time corresponding to the time required for the pinion biting operation is predicted, the pinion rotation speed is the engine rotation speed (ring gear rotation speed). There is a possibility that the timing to synchronize with the pinion cannot be accurately predicted, and the difference between the pinion rotation speed and the ring gear rotation speed when the pinion is engaged may be large. As shown in FIG. 7, when the difference (relative rotational speed) between the pinion rotation speed and the ring gear rotation speed at the time of pinion biting becomes large, the noise level at the time of pinion biting becomes a problem.

  Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is an engine automatic stop / start control device that can accurately control the drive timing of the pinion when the pinion jumps into the ring gear and meshes during the engine rotation descent period during automatic engine stop. Is to provide.

In order to solve the above-described problem, the invention according to claim 1 is configured such that the starter pinion is pushed out at a predetermined timing and connected to the crankshaft of the engine during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped decreases. In an automatic engine stop / start control device that jumps into a ring gear and meshes with it, a rotation descent that predicts a trajectory (hereinafter referred to as an “engine rotation descent trajectory”) in which the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped descends while pulsating. The apparatus includes a trajectory prediction unit and a control unit that determines the drive timing of the pinion based on prediction data of the engine rotation descent trajectory by the rotation descent trajectory prediction unit.

  In this configuration, when the engine is automatically stopped, it is possible to predict a trajectory in which the engine rotation speed drops while pulsating, so even if the engine rotation speed pulsates during the engine rotation drop period, the pinion jumps into the ring gear and bites. The drive timing (push-out timing) of the pinion at the time of matching can be controlled with high accuracy.

  By the way, a general starter has a certain delay time between a pinion actuator (solenoid) that pushes out a pinion and engages with a ring gear on the engine side and meshes with a motor that rotationally drives the pinion when restarting. It is configured to be driven. When the present invention is applied to an engine automatic stop / start control device equipped with such a starter, the noise level at the time of pinion engagement is within an allowable range based on the prediction data of the engine rotation descending trajectory. What is necessary is just to determine the drive timing of the pinion so that the pinion jumps into and engages with the ring gear at the timing when the engine speed decreases.

  The present invention can also be applied to an engine automatic stop / start control device equipped with a starter capable of individually operating a pinion actuator that pushes out a pinion and a motor that rotationally drives the pinion. In this case, as in claim 2, the pinion drive timing and the motor drive timing may be determined based on the predicted data of the engine rotation descending trajectory. Here, whether the drive timing of the pinion or the drive timing of the motor comes first may be determined by the engine speed when the restart request is generated, for example, the restart request is made in a relatively high rotation region. If this occurs, restart the motor tip drive mode that rotates the motor before contacting the pinion to the ring gear (Claim 7), and if a restart request occurs in a relatively low rotation region The post-motor drive mode in which the motor is rotated after the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear may be restarted (claim 8).

Further, as described in claim 3, when the engine is automatically stopped, the rotational descent trajectory predicting means is based on engine loss torque (friction torque), engine rotational speed or angular speed, and inertia at a predetermined calculation cycle smaller than every TDC. The process of predicting the engine rotation speed or angular speed at the next calculation timing, and further predicting the engine rotation speed or angular speed at the next calculation timing based on the prediction data is repeated a plurality of times. It is preferable to predict the engine rotation descent trajectory until the calculation timing.

  Engine rotation behavior after engine combustion stop (after fuel cut) can be expressed by a relational expression with engine loss torque (friction torque), engine rotation speed or angular speed, and inertia as parameters. It is possible to accurately predict the engine rotation speed or angular velocity at the next calculation timing, and use the prediction data to further predict the engine rotation speed or angular velocity at the next calculation timing. If the operation is repeated a number of times, it is possible to accurately predict the engine rotation descent trajectory up to the calculation timing ahead several times.

  In this case, as described in claim 4, it is preferable to interpolate between the predicted data of the engine rotational speed or the angular velocity and predict the trajectory connecting the predicted data as a line as the engine rotational descending trajectory. Here, the interpolation between each prediction data may be performed with a straight line (linear interpolation) or with a curve. If the engine rotation descent trajectory interpolated between the prediction data is used, the pinion drive timing and the like can be accurately controlled.

  In the present invention, the engine rotation descending trajectory may be predicted using the crank angle as a parameter (horizontal axis). However, since the time required for pushing out the pinion is constant regardless of the engine rotation speed, the drive timing of the pinion is It is easier to decide by time (time) instead of crank angle. When the pinion drive timing is determined by the crank angle, it is necessary to convert the time required to push the pinion into the crank angle width, and to change the crank angle width in accordance with the engine rotation speed. become.

  Therefore, as in claim 5, when predicting the engine rotation descent trajectory, the engine rotation descent trajectory is predicted using the time elapsed from the arbitrarily set reference time as the time axis, and the pinion drive timing and the motor drive timing are calculated. May be determined by the elapsed time from the reference time. In this way, the drive timing of the pinion and the drive timing of the motor can be accurately determined by simple processing.

In this case, since the sampling of the engine speed and the like is performed at a predetermined crank angle that is finer than that of each TDC , a delay occurs in the prediction of the engine speed and the like. In order to correct this delay in prediction, after the engine rotational speed or angular speed is sampled at a predetermined crank angle smaller than every TDC and the engine rotational speed or angular speed is predicted at the next calculation timing, as in claim 6. The time of the predicted data should be advanced by the sampling delay. In this way, if the predicted data time is advanced by the sampling delay, the sampling delay can be compensated.

  Further, as in claim 7, when a restart request is generated during a period in which the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped decreases, the motor-first drive mode in which the motor is rotated before the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear. The means for executing the restart and the motor front drive prohibition time for prohibiting the restart of the motor front drive mode from the time at which the restart of the motor front drive mode is allowed to be the lower limit value of the engine rotation speed range. It is good also as a structure provided with the means to set to the time set ahead only for the predetermined time required for extrusion.

  In short, if the motor is rotated before the pinion contacts the ring gear in a relatively low rotation range, the rotation speed of the pinion when contacting the ring gear is too higher than the rotation speed of the ring gear (engine speed). As a result, the noise level at the time of pinion contact may increase, or the wear amount between the pinion and the ring gear may increase, resulting in a decrease in durability. Therefore, as in claim 7, the time when the motor drive prohibition time is advanced by a predetermined time required to push out the pinion from the time when the motor drive speed is allowed to restart in the lower limit of the engine speed range. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prohibit the restart of the motor drive mode from being executed in a rotation region lower than the lower limit value of the engine rotational speed range in which the restart of the motor drive mode is permitted. it can.

Further, as in claim 8, in a post-motor drive mode in which the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear and the motor is rotated when a restart request is generated during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped is lowered. it may be configured to include a means to perform a restart.

In short, if the motor is rotated after the pinion is in contact with the ring gear in a relatively high rotation range, the rotation speed of the ring gear (engine speed) is too high than the rotation speed of the pinion contacting the ring gear. There is a possibility that the noise level at the time of contact increases, the wear amount between the pinion and the ring gear increases, and the durability decreases. Therefore, the driving permission time after motors, so as to set a predetermined time by advancing the time required from the time the restart of the motor after the driving mode is the upper limit value of the allowed engine speed range for extrusion of the pinion By doing so, it is possible to reliably inhibit the restart of the post-motor drive mode from being executed in a rotation region higher than the upper limit value of the engine rotational speed range in which the post-motor drive mode is allowed to restart.

  Further, as in claim 9, when a restart request is not generated during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped, a preset control for pushing the pinion and contacting the ring gear in preparation for the next restart And a means for setting the preset control execution time for executing the preset control to a time that is advanced by a predetermined time required for pushing out the pinion from the time when the preset control is permitted to be the engine speed. It is good also as a structure provided. In this way, the preset control execution time can be obtained easily and accurately.

  Further, as described in claim 10, when preset control is prohibited, post-motor drive for rotating the motor after bringing the pinion into contact with the ring gear when a restart request is generated during a period when the engine speed decreases. Means for executing the mode restart and a time for increasing the delay time from the push-out of the pinion to the driving of the motor; a predetermined time required for the push-out of the pinion from a time when the predicted engine speed becomes a predetermined value or less It is good also as a structure provided with the means to set only to the time of advance.

  In general, when the engine rotation stops, the piston cannot get over the compression top dead center, so that an unstable rotation behavior appears such that the engine rotation once reversely rotates and then stops. For this reason, if the push-out of the pinion is started just before the engine rotation is stopped, the pinion may jump into the ring gear that is rotating in the reverse direction. Since the pinion is difficult to mesh with the ring gear that is rotating in reverse, the time (delay time) required for the pinion to mesh with the ring gear becomes longer.

  In view of this point, in the invention according to claim 10, the time for increasing the delay time from the pinion push-out until the motor is driven is required for the pinion push-out from the time when the predicted engine rotation speed becomes a predetermined value or less. This is set to a time that is advanced by a predetermined time, whereby the time for increasing the delay time can be obtained easily and accurately.

  Further, as in claim 11, when restarting in the motor front drive mode, the rotation ascending trajectory of the pinion after the start of driving of the motor is predicted, the prediction data of the engine rotation descending trajectory and the prediction data of the pinion rotation increasing trajectory It is also possible to predict, as the drive timing of the pinion, a time that is advanced by a predetermined time required for pushing out the pinion from the time when the difference between and reaches a predetermined value. In this way, it is possible to accurately predict the drive timing of the pinion when restarting in the motor drive mode, and to calculate the rotation speed of the pinion and the ring gear rotation speed (engine rotation speed) when the pinion jumps. It can be reliably synchronized.

  Further, as in claim 12, when the engine rotational speed suddenly changes during prediction of the engine rotation descending trajectory and the required prediction accuracy cannot be ensured, a meshing prohibition request for prohibiting the meshing between the pinion and the ring gear is generated. The control means may stop or prohibit the restart during the engine speed reduction period when the meshing prohibition request is generated. If the engine rotation speed changes suddenly during prediction of the engine rotation descent trajectory and the required prediction accuracy cannot be ensured, the pinion drive timing accuracy deteriorates and the noise level when the pinion jumps increases, or the pinion and ring gear There is a possibility that the wear amount increases and the durability decreases. Accordingly, if the restart during the engine rotation descent period is stopped or prohibited when the meshing prohibition request is generated, an increase in noise level and a decrease in durability when the pinion jumps can be prevented.

  By the way, when restarting the motor first drive mode in which the motor is rotated before the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear, when a meshing prohibition request occurs after the start of pushing out the pinion, In some cases, the ring gear may be halfway engaged, and in this case, the pinion and the ring gear rotate while rubbing against each other, and the wear amount of both increases and durability decreases.

  Therefore, as in claim 13, when restarting the motor front drive mode in which the motor is rotated before the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear, (1) When a meshing prohibition request is generated before the start of pushing out the pinion Stop pushing out the pinion and stop the motor to stop restarting the motor drive mode. (2) When a meshing prohibition request occurs after the start of pushing out the pinion, ignore the meshing prohibition request and drive the motor drive mode. The restart may be continued. In this way, when a meshing prohibition request occurs before the start of pushing out the pinion, by stopping the pushing out of the pinion, the pinion and the ring gear rub against each other and the amount of wear increases rapidly, resulting in durability. Can be prevented from decreasing. On the other hand, when a meshing prohibition request occurs after the start of pinion extrusion, the meshing prohibition request is ignored and the restart of the motor drive mode is continued. This is because the pinion starts after the pinion extrusion starts. This is because the operation of jumping into the ring gear cannot be stopped with certainty, and immediately after the meshing prohibition request is generated, the difference in rotational speed between the pinion and the ring gear is relatively small, and the pinion is used as the ring gear. This is because they can be engaged with each other relatively easily.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an engine start control system according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a prediction result of the engine rotation descent trajectory. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a prediction calculation method of the engine rotation descending trajectory. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a method for determining pinion drive timing. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the engine rotation descent trajectory prediction routine of the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the starter control routine of the first embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing data obtained by measuring the relationship between the difference between the pinion rotation speed and the ring gear rotation speed when the pinion is engaged and the noise level. FIG. 8 is a time chart showing an example in which the predicted engine speed is corrected by a sampling delay of the engine speed. FIG. 9 is a time chart for explaining a method of obtaining an engine rotation descent trajectory by interpolating between predicted data of the predicted engine rotation speed corrected for sampling delay and connecting the predicted data with a line. FIG. 10 is a time chart for explaining a method of calculating the determination times A to D in each drive mode using the predicted engine rotation descent trajectory. FIG. 11 is a time chart for explaining the relationship between the determination times A to D of each drive mode and each drive mode. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the drive mode determination routine of the second embodiment. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the pinion engagement prohibition determination routine of the third embodiment. FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the motor drive mode control routine of the third embodiment.

  Hereinafter, some embodiments embodying the mode for carrying out the present invention will be described.

A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
First, the schematic configuration of the engine automatic stop / start control system will be described with reference to FIG.
The starter 11 is a so-called pinion push-out starter, and includes a motor 12, a pinion 13 that is rotationally driven by the motor 12, a pinion actuator 14 that pushes out the pinion 13, and the like. And can be operated individually. The pinion 13 is provided so as to be movable in the axial direction. The pinion actuator 14 is provided with a plunger 15 and a solenoid 16 that drives the plunger 15, and the driving force of the plunger 15 is transmitted to the pinion 13 via a lever 17 or the like.

  A relay 19 is provided between the battery 18 and the pinion actuator 14, and the ECU 20 (engine control circuit) turns on the relay 19 to turn on the energization of the pinion actuator 14 to move the plunger 15 in the pinion pushing direction. By moving the pinion 13, the pinion 13 is pushed out and engaged with the ring gear 23 connected to the crankshaft 22 of the engine 21.

  Further, a switching element 24 is provided between the battery 18 and the motor 12, and the ECU 20 controls on / off of the switching element 24 and duty-controls the energization of the motor 12, thereby controlling the rotation speed of the pinion 13. It comes to control.

  The engine 21 is provided with a crank angle sensor 25 that outputs a crank pulse every time the crankshaft 22 rotates a predetermined crank angle (for example, 30 ° C.), and the engine rotational speed or angular speed is determined based on the output interval of the crank pulse. While being calculated, the crank pulse is counted to detect the crank angle. The crank angle reference position may be detected by a missing tooth portion (a portion where one to several pulses are not continuously output) of the crank angle sensor 25, or the position at which the cam pulse is output from the cam angle sensor. The crank angle reference position may be used.

  The ECU 20 is composed mainly of a microcomputer, and controls the fuel injection amount and ignition timing of the engine 21 according to the engine operating state by executing various engine control programs stored in the built-in ROM.

  Further, the ECU 20 executes engine automatic stop / start control (so-called idle stop control) by executing an engine automatic stop / start control routine (not shown). In this automatic engine stop / start control, when the driver performs a deceleration operation (accelerator fully closed, brake operation, etc.) while the vehicle is running, the vehicle enters a predetermined deceleration state that may cause the vehicle to stop, or the vehicle is stopped. When the brake operation is continued, it is determined that an automatic stop request (idle stop request) has occurred, and combustion (fuel injection and / or ignition) of the engine 21 is stopped to automatically start the engine 21. Stop. Further, in the first embodiment, just before the engine 21 is automatically stopped, as will be described later, in preparation for the next restart, the pinion actuator 14 is energized to cause the pinion 13 to jump into the ring gear 23 on the engine 21 side. The pinion 13 is kept engaged with the ring gear 23 on the engine 21 side until the next restart is completed.

  After that, it is determined that a restart request has occurred when the driver performs a preparation operation for starting the vehicle (brake release, operation of the shift lever to the drive range, etc.) or a start operation (depressing the accelerator, etc.). Then, the motor 12 of the starter 11 is energized to rotationally drive the pinion 13 to crank the engine 21, restart the fuel injection and restart it. In addition, the engine 11 may be restarted when a restart request is generated from a control system of an in-vehicle device such as a battery charge control system or an air conditioner. At the time of restart, when the engine speed exceeds the start completion determination threshold value, it is determined that restart has been completed, and energization of the motor 12 of the starter 11 is stopped and energization of the pinion actuator 14 is stopped. Then, the pinion 13 is extracted from the ring gear 23 on the engine 21 side and returned to the original position by a return spring (not shown).

Further, the ECU 20 executes a later-described engine rotation descent trajectory prediction routine of FIG. 5 so that the engine rotation speed when the engine 21 is automatically stopped drops while pulsating (hereinafter referred to as “engine rotation descent trajectory”). Further, as a control means for determining the drive timing of the pinion 13 based on the prediction data of the engine rotation descent trajectory by executing a starter control routine of FIG. 6 to be described later. Function.

Here, a method for predicting the engine rotation descent trajectory of the first embodiment will be described.
In the following description, an example will be described in which the crank angle sensor 25 is used in which the crank pulse is output every 30 ° C. A that is finer than every TDC (every 180 ° C. A in the first embodiment) . As a result, during the period when the engine rotation speed decreases during the automatic engine stop, the angular speed ω [rad / sec] is calculated by the following equation for every 30 ° C. when the crank pulse is input from the crank angle sensor 25 to the ECU 20.
ω = 30 × 2π / (360 × tp)
tp: Crank pulse interval [sec]

  From the above equation, the angular velocity ω [0, i-1] at a crank angle of 0 ° A after the TDC of the 180 ° A section [i-1] in the previous time, the angular velocity ω [30, i-1] at a crank angle of 30 ° A , Angular speed ω [60, i-1] with a crank angle of 60 ° C, angular speed ω [90, i-1] with a crank angle of 90 ° C, angular speed ω [120, i-1] with a crank angle of 120 ° C, An angular velocity ω [150, i-1] at an angle 150 ° C. and an angular velocity ω [0, i] at a crank angle 0 ° A after TDC in the current 180 ° A section [i] are calculated.

  Further, loss torque T [0-30, i-1] from crank angle 0 ° C to 30 ° A after TDC of the previous 180 ° C section [i-1], crank angle 30 ° A to 60 ° A Loss torque T [30-60, i-1], loss torque T [60-90, i-1] from crank angle 60 ° C. to 90 ° C., and loss torque T [ 90-120, i-1], loss torque T [120-150, i-1] from crank angle 120 ° C to 150 ° A, after TDC of crank angle 150 ° A to current 180 ° A section [i] The loss torque T [150-0, i-1] up to 0 ° C is calculated.

T [0-30, i-1] = − J · (ω [30, i-1] ² −ω [0, i-1] ² ) / 2
T [30-60, i-1] = −J ・ (ω [60, i-1] ² −ω [30, i-1] ² ) / 2
T [60-90, i-1] = −J · (ω [90, i-1] ² −ω [60, i-1] ² ) / 2
T [90-120, i-1] = − J · (ω [120, i-1] ² −ω [90, i-1] ² ) / 2
T [120-150, i-1] = − J · (ω [150, i-1] ² −ω [120, i-1] ² ) / 2
T [150-0, i-1] = − J · (ω [0, i] ² −ω [150, i-1] ² ) / 2

Here, J is the inertia of the engine 21. The calculated values of the loss torques T [0-30, i-1] to T [150-0, i-1] are updated and stored in the registers (see FIG. 3).
Then, at 30 ° C. A (current time) after TDC of the current 180 ° C. section [i], the angular velocity ω [30, i] is calculated, and the loss torque T [0-30, i] is calculated in the same manner. The loss torque T [0-30, i] is updated and stored in the register.

  After that, as shown in FIG. 3, the current 180 ° C. section [i-1] is used for the current 180 ° torque loss T [30-60, i-1] from the crank angle 30 ° A to 60 ° C. The predicted angular velocity ω ′ [60, i] of the crank angle 60 ° C. after TDC in the ° C interval [i] is calculated, and the predicted arrival time t [30 until the crank angle 30 ° A reaches 60 ° C. -60, i] is calculated, and the loss torque T [60-90, i-1] from the crank angle 60 ° C to 90 ° C in the previous 180 ° A section [i-1] and the predicted angular velocity ω are calculated. '[60, i] is used to calculate the predicted angular velocity ω' [90, i] of the crank angle 90 ° C after TDC in the current 180 ° C section [i] and from the crank angle 60 ° A to 90 ° C. The estimated arrival time t [60-90, i] until reaching ℃ A is calculated, and the loss torque T [from the crank angle 90 ℃ A to 120 ℃ A in the previous 180 ℃ A section [i-1] is calculated. 90-120, i-1] and above Using the predicted angular velocity ω ′ [90, i], the predicted angular velocity ω ′ [120, i] of the crank angle 120 ° C. after the TDC of the current 180 ° A section [i] is calculated, and the crank angle 90 ° C. The engine rotation descent trajectory is predicted by repeating the process of calculating the predicted arrival time t [90-120, i] from A to 120 ° C. A (see FIG. 2).

  This prediction calculation is executed using the time until the next crank pulse is input every time the crank pulse is input (every 30 ° C. A), and the prediction data of the engine rotation orbit is updated each time. If the calculation time until the next crank pulse is input has a margin, the engine rotation descent trajectory until the engine rotation stops is predicted, but if the calculation time is insufficient, the prediction calculation is interrupted halfway, The process proceeds to a new prediction calculation using the actual angular velocity at the next crank angle. It goes without saying that the prediction calculation may be performed by converting the angular velocity into the engine rotation speed.

  In the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, when a restart request is generated during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine 21 is automatically stopped, the starter 11 is supplied to the motor 12 at that time. The energization is started and the pinion 13 is rotated to predict the rotation ascending trajectory of the pinion 13, and the difference between the prediction data of the engine rotation descending trajectory and the prediction data of the rotation ascending trajectory of the pinion 13 reaches within a predetermined value K1. The timing is predicted as the drive timing of the pinion 13. Here, the method for predicting the rotation rising trajectory of the pinion 13 is, for example, using the following model formula in which the rotation rising trajectory of the pinion 13 is modeled by a first-order lag model of a predetermined time constant τ. Can be predicted.

Np = Npmax {1-exp (-t / τ)}
Np: rotational speed of the pinion 13
Npmax: Maximum rotation speed of the pinion 13
t: Elapsed time

  Here, the time required to push out the pinion 13 is constant regardless of the engine speed. Accordingly, the driving timing (time) of the pinion 13 is determined by pushing out the pinion 13 from the timing (time) when the difference between the predicted data of the engine rotation descending trajectory and the predicted data of the rotation ascending trajectory of the pinion 13 falls within the predetermined value K2. You may make it set to the time which carried out only the required predetermined time.

  The prediction of the engine rotation descending trajectory and the control of the starter 11 according to the first embodiment described above are executed by the ECU 20 according to the routines shown in FIGS. Hereinafter, the processing content of each routine of FIG.5 and FIG.6 is demonstrated.

[Engine rotation descent trajectory prediction routine]
The engine rotation descent trajectory prediction routine of FIG. 5 is repeatedly executed at a predetermined cycle during engine operation (during the power-on period of the ECU 20), and serves as a rotation descent trajectory prediction means in the claims. When this routine is started, first, at step 101, it is determined whether or not an automatic stop request (fuel injection stop) has occurred. If an automatic stop request has not occurred, this routine is terminated as it is.

Thereafter, when an automatic stop request is generated, the process proceeds to step 102, where it is determined whether or not a crank pulse is input from the crank angle sensor 25 to the ECU 20, and the process waits until the crank pulse is input. Each time a crank pulse is input, the process proceeds to step 103 to calculate an angular velocity ω when the crank pulse is input this time.
ω = 30 × 2π / (360 × tp)
tp: Crank pulse interval [sec]

  Thereafter, the process proceeds to step 104, and the loss torque of the engine 21 stored in the register is read. As this loss torque, the loss torque calculated at the time of crank pulse input before 150 ° C. A and stored in the register is used. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step 105, where the predicted angular velocity ω ′ at the input timing of the next crank pulse is calculated using the loss torque, and the predicted arrival time t until the input timing of the next crank pulse is calculated.

  Thereafter, the routine proceeds to step 106, where it is determined whether or not the prediction of the engine rotation descent trajectory until the engine rotation is stopped is made depending on whether or not the predicted angular velocity ω ′ at the input timing of the next crank pulse is 0 or less. judge. If it is determined in step 106 that the predicted angular velocity ω ′ is not less than or equal to 0, the process proceeds to step 107, the loss torque of the engine 21 is calculated and stored in the register, and the processing of steps 104 and 105 described above is repeated. Using the loss torque and the predicted angular velocity ω ′, the process of calculating the predicted angular velocity ω ′ and the predicted arrival time t at the input timing of the next crank pulse is repeated.

  The predicted angular velocity ω ′ and predicted arrival time t every 30 ° C. are repeated many times, and when the predicted angular velocity ω ′ becomes 0 or less, the engine rotation descent trajectory until the engine rotation is stopped is predicted. When it is determined that the process has been completed, the process returns to step 102 and waits until the next crank pulse is input. Thus, every time a crank pulse is input, a prediction calculation of the engine rotation descent trajectory until the engine rotation is stopped is performed.

If the calculation time until the next crank pulse is input is shorter than the time required for the prediction calculation of the engine rotation descent trajectory until the engine rotation stops, the prediction calculation is interrupted and the next calculation is interrupted. The process proceeds to a new prediction calculation using the actual angular velocity ω at the crank angle.
[Starter control routine]
The starter control routine of FIG. 6 is repeatedly executed at a predetermined period during the power-on period of the ECU 20, and serves as control means in the claims. When this routine is started, first, at step 201, it is determined whether or not a restart request has been generated. If no restart request has been generated, this routine is immediately terminated.

  Thereafter, when a restart request is generated, the process proceeds to step 202 to determine whether or not the engine rotation is decreasing (whether or not the engine rotation is stopped). If it is determined that the pinion actuator 14 is present, the pinion actuator 14 is energized to cause the pinion 13 to jump into the ring gear 23. In the next step 209, the motor 12 is energized after a predetermined delay time and the pinion 13 is energized. Rotate. Thereby, the engine 21 is cranked and restarted.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 202 that the engine speed is decreasing, the process proceeds to step 203 to determine whether or not energization of the motor 12 is permitted, for example, if the engine speed is equal to or lower than a predetermined speed. It is determined whether or not there is an electric current, and if energization to the motor 12 is not permitted, the process waits until energization to the motor 12 is permitted. Thereafter, when energization of the motor 12 is permitted, the process proceeds to step 204, where energization of the motor 12 is started and the pinion 13 is rotated.

  Thereafter, the process proceeds to step 205, and the rotation ascending trajectory of the pinion 13 is predicted using a model formula obtained by modeling the rotation ascending trajectory of the pinion 13 with a first-order lag model. Then, in the next step 206, the timing at which the difference between the predicted data of the engine rotation descent trajectory calculated by the engine rotation descent trajectory prediction routine of FIG. 5 and the predicted data of the rotation increase trajectory of the pinion 13 is within a predetermined value K1 ( It is determined whether or not the drive timing of the pinion 13 has been reached, and the system waits until this timing is reached. Thereafter, when the timing (the driving timing of the pinion 13) at which the difference between the prediction data of the engine rotation descending trajectory and the prediction data of the rotation ascending trajectory of the pinion 13 reaches within a predetermined value K1 (drive timing of the pinion 13) is reached, the process proceeds to step 207. 14 is energized to cause the pinion 13 to jump into and engage with the ring gear 23, and the engine 21 is cranked and restarted.

  At this time, the time when the difference between the prediction data of the engine rotation descending trajectory and the prediction data of the rotation ascending trajectory of the pinion 13 is within the predetermined value K2 is the time when the pinion is advanced by a predetermined time required for pushing out the pinion 13 13 drive timings (time) may be used. The predetermined value K1 used in step 206 may be set to a value larger than the predetermined value K2 in consideration of a predetermined time required for pushing out the pinion 13.

  If the restart request is not generated during the engine rotation descent period when the engine 21 is automatically stopped, the noise level when the pinion is engaged is extremely low based on the predicted data of the engine rotation descent trajectory. What is necessary is just to determine the drive timing of the pinion 13 so that the pinion 13 jumps into and engages with the ring gear 23 at the timing when the engine rotation speed decreases to the rotation region.

  According to the first embodiment described above, when the engine 21 is automatically stopped, it is possible to predict a trajectory in which the engine rotation speed drops while pulsating, so even if the engine rotation speed pulsates during the engine rotation drop period, The drive timing of the pinion 13 when the pinion 13 jumps into the ring gear 23 and meshes can be controlled with high accuracy.

  Moreover, in the first embodiment, when the starter 11 capable of individually operating the pinion actuator 14 for causing the pinion 13 to jump into the ring gear 23 and the motor 12 for rotationally driving the pinion 13 is mounted, the engine 21 is automatically stopped. When a restart request is generated during the engine rotation descent period, the motor 12 is energized, the pinion 13 is rotated, the rotation rising trajectory of the pinion 13 is predicted, engine rotation descent trajectory prediction data and The timing at which the difference from the predicted data of the rotation ascending orbit of the pinion 13 falls within a predetermined value is predicted as the driving timing of the pinion. Therefore, even if the engine speed pulsates during the engine rotation descent period, the pinion Timing at which the rotational speed of 13 is synchronized with the rotational speed of the engine (the rotational speed of the ring gear 23) Accurately predict, it can pinion 13 at that timing to accurately determine the driving timing of the pinion 13 so as to mesh jumps into the ring gear 23.

  In the first embodiment, the calculation calculation of the engine speed is performed at the input interval (for example, 30 ° C.) of the crank pulse from the crank angle sensor 25. However, at every timing of TDC (compression top dead center). By performing the calculation calculation of the engine rotation speed, the engine rotation speed at the next TDC timing can be predicted. As a result, if the engine speed at the next TDC timing is a negative value (imaginary value), the current TDC can be determined as the final TDC in the forward rotation direction, It can be seen that the engine rotation speed becomes a negative value (it can be seen that the rotation direction of the engine 21 is reversed).

  Furthermore, as another method for predicting the engine rotation speed, the period of pulsation occurring in the engine rotation descent trajectory coincides with the TDC timing, so it is effective to predict the engine rotation descent trajectory at every TDC interval (pulsation period). Therefore, the next TDC timing is first predicted based on the prediction of the future torque behavior, and then the engine rotation orbit from the current TDC to the next TDC timing is predicted. The method for predicting the engine rotation descent trajectory is, for example, predicting the engine rotation descent trajectory in the section from the current TDC to the next TDC based on the history data of the engine rotation speed in the section from the previous TDC to the current TDC. You may make it do. In addition, the engine rotation descent trajectory may be predicted for each section having the same crank angle instead of the TDC as the engine rotation descent trajectory prediction. Can be predicted.

  Further, by adding an interpolation process in a section where no crank pulse is input to the prediction of the engine rotation descent trajectory in the first embodiment, it is updated only at each crank pulse input timing, and an error with respect to the actual engine speed. Can be predicted to be closer to the actual engine speed.

  Next, Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. However, since the mechanical system configuration is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment (FIG. 1), description thereof will be omitted, and different portions will be mainly described.

  In the present invention, the engine rotation descending trajectory may be predicted using the crank angle as a parameter (horizontal axis), but the time required for pushing out the pinion 13 is constant regardless of the engine rotation speed, and therefore the driving of the pinion 13 is performed. It is easier to determine the timing not by the crank angle but by time (time). When the drive timing of the pinion 13 is determined by the crank angle, it is necessary to convert the time required for pushing the pinion 13 into the crank angle width and to change the crank angle width according to the engine rotation speed. Becomes complicated.

  Therefore, in the second embodiment, when predicting the engine rotation descent trajectory, the engine rotation descent trajectory is predicted using an arbitrarily set elapsed time from the reference time as a time axis, and the drive timing of the pinion 13 and the drive of the motor 12 are estimated. The timing is determined by the elapsed time (time) from the reference time. Here, the reference time may be set to one of the following, for example.

(1) When the fuel cut for automatically stopping the engine 21 is started
(2) When the engine speed drops to the specified speed
(3) When the calculation calculation of the engine rotation descent trajectory is started
(4) When an automatic stop request occurs

FIG. 8 is a time chart showing an example of the behavior of the predicted engine speed and the actual engine speed. Since the engine speed sampling (reading timing of the output signal of the crank angle sensor 25) is at a predetermined crank angle that is finer than every TDC (for example, every 30 ° C. A), the calculation of the predicted engine speed is also smaller than every TDC. It is done for every corner. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 9, the behavior of the predicted engine rotational speed is delayed from the behavior of the actual engine rotational speed.

  Therefore, in the second embodiment, the time of the predicted engine rotation speed is advanced by the sampling delay of the engine rotation speed to compensate for the sampling delay. Specifically, assuming that the predicted engine rotational speed is the average rotational speed in the previous pulse width, the predicted engine rotational speed is set to a delay time of ½ of the prediction calculation interval (cycle) Δt calculated from the average rotational speed. Advance the time.

  Further, in the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the engine rotation drop is caused by interpolating between the predicted data of the predicted engine rotation speed corrected by the sampling delay with a straight line or a curve and connecting the predicted data with a line. It is predicted as a trajectory.

Next, a driving mode determination method based on prediction data of the engine rotation descent trajectory of the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11.
As the drive mode, one of the following four types of drive modes (1) to (4) is selected.

(1) Motor drive mode + preset control permission
(2) Motor drive mode + preset control prohibited
(3) Motor post drive mode + preset control permission
(4) Motor post drive mode + preset control prohibited

  Here, in the motor front drive mode, the motor 12 is rotated before the pinion 13 is brought into contact with the ring gear 23 when a restart request is generated during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine 21 is automatically stopped is lowered. Drive mode.

  In short, when the motor 12 is first driven to rotate the pinion 13 and then the pinion 13 is pushed out in a relatively low rotational range, the rotational speed of the pinion 13 jumping into the ring gear 23 is higher than the rotational speed of the ring gear 23 (engine The rotational speed) may become too high, and the noise level when the pinion 13 jumps may increase, or the wear amount between the pinion 13 and the ring gear 23 may increase, resulting in a decrease in durability.

  Therefore, the motor drive prohibition time A for prohibiting the restart of the motor drive mode is required to push out the pinion 13 from the time when the restart of the motor drive mode is allowed to be the lower limit value Ne4 of the engine rotation speed range. The time A is set at the time A set aside for a predetermined time t4. Here, the actual time required to push out the pinion 13 does not change depending on the engine speed, but varies depending on the operating environment such as manufacturing variations, changes over time, power supply voltage fluctuations, etc. It is preferable to set the upper limit value (maximum value) of the actual time variation range required for 13 extrusions. In this way, it is possible to reliably inhibit the restart of the motor drive mode from being executed in a rotation region lower than the lower limit value Ne4 of the engine rotation speed range in which the restart of the motor drive mode is permitted. .

  On the other hand, the post-motor drive mode is a drive mode when restart of the motor-first drive mode is prohibited, and is a drive mode in which the motor 12 is rotated after the pinion 13 is brought into contact with the ring gear 23.

  In short, when the motor 12 is driven after the pinion 13 is first pushed out in a relatively high rotation region, the rotation speed of the ring gear 23 (engine rotation speed) is too high than the rotation speed of the pinion 13 jumping into the ring gear 23. There is a possibility that the noise level at the time of jumping 13 increases, the wear amount between the pinion 13 and the ring gear 23 increases, and the durability decreases.

  Therefore, the post-motor drive permission time B for permitting the restart of the post-motor drive mode is required to push out the pinion 13 from the time when the restart value of the post-motor drive mode is allowed to be the upper limit value Ne3 of the engine rotation speed range. The time B is set at the time B which is advanced by a predetermined time t3. In this way, it is possible to reliably prohibit the restart of the post-motor drive mode from being executed in a rotation region higher than the upper limit value Ne3 of the engine rotational speed range in which the restart of the post-motor drive mode is permitted. .

  In the example of FIG. 10, the upper limit value Ne3 of the engine rotational speed range in the post-motor drive mode is set lower than the lower limit value Ne4 of the engine rotational speed range in the motor front drive mode, but both are the same (Ne3 = Ne4) may be set.

  Preset control is control in which the pinion 13 is pushed out and brought into contact with the ring gear 23 in preparation for the next restart when a restart request is not generated during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine 21 is automatically stopped. . When the preset control is permitted, the preset control execution time C for executing the preset control is advanced by a predetermined time t2 required for pushing out the pinion 13 from the time at which the preset engine control is permitted. Time C is set. Here, the engine rotational speed Ne2 for which the preset control is permitted is set to an engine rotational speed at which the noise level and wear amount when the pinion 13 jumps are within an allowable range. The predetermined time t2 required for pushing out the pinion 13 used in the preset control may be set to the median value of the actual time variation range required for pushing out the pinion 13. Thereby, even if the actual time required for pushing out the pinion 13 varies, the pinion 13 can be reliably brought into contact with the ring gear 23 in the vicinity of the engine rotational speed Ne2 that is the target rotational speed of the preset control.

  On the other hand, when the preset control is prohibited, when the restart request is generated during the period when the engine rotation speed when the engine 21 is automatically stopped is decreased, the post-motor drive mode is restarted.

  In general, when the engine rotation stops, the piston cannot get over the compression top dead center, so that an unstable rotation behavior appears such that the engine rotation once reversely rotates and then stops. For this reason, if the push-out of the pinion 13 starts just before the engine rotation stops, the pinion 13 may jump into the ring gear 23 that is rotating in the reverse direction. Since the pinion 13 is difficult to mesh with the ring gear 23 that is rotating in the reverse direction, the time (delay time) required for the pinion 13 to mesh with the ring gear 23 becomes long.

  In consideration of this point, in the second embodiment, when the preset control is prohibited, the delay time from the push-out of the pinion 13 to the driving of the motor 12 is executed when the post-motor drive mode is restarted. Is set to a time D that is advanced by a predetermined time t1 required to push out the pinion 13 from a time when the predicted engine rotational speed becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value Ne1. Here, the predetermined value Ne1 is preferably set to a rotational speed of, for example, 0 rpm or slightly higher. The predetermined time t1 is preferably set to an upper limit value (maximum value) of an actual time variation range required for pushing out the pinion 13. In this way, even if the actual time required for pushing out the pinion 13 varies, the delay time can be reliably increased in the region where the predicted engine speed is equal to or less than the predetermined value Ne1, and the engine speed is reduced. Even in the reverse rotation region just before stopping, the pinion 13 can be reliably meshed with the ring gear 23.

  The predetermined times t4 to t1 required for pushing out the pinion 13 used for calculating the times A to D may all be set to the same time. In this case, the determination rotational speeds Ne4 to Ne1 for each drive mode are set. It is sufficient to increase or decrease in accordance with the range of actual time required for pushing out the pinion 13 and the specification of each drive mode.

  The determination of the drive mode of the second embodiment described above is executed by the ECU 20 as follows according to the drive mode determination routine of FIG. This routine is repeatedly executed at a predetermined cycle during the power-on period of the ECU 20, and serves as a control means in the claims. When this routine is started, first, at step 301, it is determined whether or not the engine rotation descent trajectory is being predicted. If the engine rotation descent trajectory is not being predicted, the present processing is performed without performing the subsequent processing. End the routine.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 301 that the engine rotation descent trajectory is being predicted, the routine proceeds to step 302, where it is determined whether a restart request has occurred. As a result, if it is determined that a restart request has occurred, the process proceeds to step 303, where the motor destination drive mode is determined by whether or not the current time (elapsed time from the reference time) is before the motor destination drive inhibition time A. If it is before the motor drive prohibition time A, it is determined that it is the execution region of the motor drive mode, and the process proceeds to step 304 to re-start the motor drive mode. Perform startup.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 303 that the current time is later than the motor drive prohibition time A, the process proceeds to step 305 to determine whether or not the current time has reached the motor drive permission time B. If the post-motor drive permission time B has not yet been reached, the system waits until the post-motor drive permission time B is reached. Thereafter, when the post-motor drive permission time B is reached, it is determined that the motor pre-drive mode execution area has been entered, and the process proceeds to step 306 to restart the post-motor drive mode.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 302 that a restart request has not occurred, the process proceeds to step 307, where it is determined whether preset control is permitted, and it is determined that preset control is permitted. For example, the process proceeds to step 308 to determine whether or not the current time has reached the preset control execution time C. If the current time has not yet reached the preset control execution time C, the present routine is terminated. Thereafter, this routine is executed, and when it is determined in step 308 that the preset control execution time C has been reached, the routine proceeds to step 309 and preset control is executed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 307 that the preset control is not permitted, the process proceeds to step 310, where it is determined whether or not the current time has reached the delay time increase time D, and the delay time increase time is still reached. If it has not reached D, this routine is terminated as it is. Thereafter, this routine is executed, and when it is determined in step 310 that the delay time increase time D has been reached, the routine proceeds to step 311 where the pinion 13 is turned on when restarting the post-motor drive mode. The delay time from the extrusion until the motor 12 is driven is increased.

  According to the second embodiment described above, when predicting the engine rotation descent trajectory, the engine rotation descent trajectory is predicted with the elapsed time from the arbitrarily set reference time as the time axis, and the drive timing of the pinion 13 and the motor Since the drive timing of 12 is determined by the elapsed time (time) from the reference time, the drive timing of the pinion 13 and the drive timing of the motor 12 can be accurately determined by simple processing.

  Moreover, since the time of the predicted engine rotation speed is advanced by the sampling delay, the sampling delay can be compensated and the prediction accuracy of the engine rotation descending trajectory can be improved.

  Next, Embodiment 3 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. However, since the mechanical system configuration is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment (FIG. 1), the description is omitted, and different portions are mainly described.

  In the third embodiment, a meshing prohibition request for prohibiting the meshing between the pinion 13 and the ring gear 23 is generated when the engine speed changes suddenly during the prediction of the engine rotation descending trajectory and the required prediction accuracy cannot be ensured. Means are provided, and when a meshing prohibition request is generated, the restart during the engine rotation descent period is stopped or prohibited.

  If the engine rotation speed changes suddenly during the prediction of the engine rotation descent trajectory and the required prediction accuracy cannot be ensured, the accuracy of the drive timing of the pinion 13 deteriorates and the noise level when the pinion 13 jumps increases, There is a possibility that the wear amount between the pinion 13 and the ring gear 23 increases and the durability decreases. Accordingly, if the restart during the engine rotation descent period is stopped or prohibited when the meshing prohibition request is generated, it is possible to prevent an increase in noise level and a decrease in durability when the pinion 13 jumps.

  By the way, when restarting the motor-first drive mode in which the motor 12 is rotated before the pinion 13 is brought into contact with the ring gear 23, the motor 12 is driven when a meshing prohibition request is generated after the push-out of the pinion 13 is started. If the operation is stopped, the pinion 13 and the ring gear 23 may be incompletely engaged. In this case, the pinion 13 and the ring gear 23 rotate while being rubbed against each other, and both wear amounts increase and durability is increased. It will decline.

  Therefore, in the third embodiment, when restarting the motor tip drive mode in which the motor 12 is rotated before the pinion 13 is brought into contact with the ring gear 23, (1) the meshing prohibition request is issued before the push-out of the pinion 13 is started. When this occurs, the push-out of the pinion 13 is stopped and the motor 12 is stopped to restart the motor-first drive mode. (2) When a meshing prohibition request is generated after the push-out of the pinion 13 is started, the meshing prohibition request Is ignored, and the restart of the motor drive mode is continued.

  In this way, when the meshing prohibition request is generated before the push-out of the pinion 13 is started, the push-out of the pinion 13 is stopped, so that the pinion 13 and the ring gear 23 are idled while being rubbed and the wear amount of both is rapidly increased. And it can prevent that durability falls. On the other hand, when a mesh prohibition request is generated after the start of pushing out the pinion 13, the mesh prohibition request is ignored and the restart of the motor drive mode is continued. This is because after the pinion 13 begins to push out. This is because the operation of causing the pinion 13 to jump into the ring gear 23 cannot be stopped in the middle, and if the meshing prohibition request is generated, the rotational speed difference between the pinion 13 and the ring gear 23 is relatively small. This is because the pinion 13 is small and can be engaged with the ring gear 23 relatively easily.

  The control of the motor tip drive mode of the third embodiment described above is executed by the ECU 20 according to the routines of FIGS. Hereinafter, the processing content of each routine of FIG.13 and FIG.14 is demonstrated.

[Pinion meshing prohibition routine]
The pinion engagement prohibition determination routine of FIG. 13 is repeatedly executed at a predetermined cycle during the power-on period of the ECU 20. When this routine is started, first, at step 401, it is determined whether or not the engine rotation descent trajectory is being predicted. If the engine rotation descent trajectory is not being predicted, the routine proceeds to step 404 and the meshing prohibition flag is set. This routine is terminated after maintaining or resetting OFF (meshing permission).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 401 that the engine rotation descent trajectory is being predicted, the process proceeds to step 402 where the required prediction accuracy cannot be ensured depending on whether the engine rotation speed fluctuation amount exceeds the determination threshold value. It is determined whether or not. Here, as the engine rotational speed fluctuation amount, the vertical fluctuation amount per predetermined time of the actual engine rotational speed (detection value) may be used, or the vertical fluctuation amount per predetermined time of the predicted engine rotational speed may be used. .

  If it is determined in step 402 that the engine rotational speed fluctuation amount exceeds the determination threshold value, it is determined that the required prediction accuracy cannot be ensured, and the process proceeds to step 403 where the meshing prohibition flag is set. Set to ON (no meshing) and end this routine.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 402 that the engine rotational speed fluctuation amount does not exceed the determination threshold value, it is determined that the required prediction accuracy can be ensured, and the process proceeds to step 404 to turn off the meshing prohibition flag. This routine is terminated after maintaining or resetting (meshing permission).

[Motor drive mode control routine]
The motor ahead drive mode control routine of FIG. 14 is repeatedly executed at a predetermined cycle during the power-on period of the ECU 20. When this routine is started, first, at step 501, it is determined whether or not the engine rotation descent trajectory is being predicted. If the engine rotation descent trajectory is not being predicted, this routine is terminated as it is.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 501 that the engine rotation descent trajectory is being predicted, the process proceeds to step 502, where it is determined whether a restart request has been generated. This routine ends.

  If it is determined in step 502 that a restart request has occurred, the process proceeds to step 503, where it is determined whether the current drive mode is the motor destination drive mode, and it is not the motor destination drive mode. If this is done, this routine is terminated as it is.

  If it is determined in step 503 that the current drive mode is the motor first drive mode, the process proceeds to step 504 to determine whether or not the motor 12 is ON (driven), and the motor 12 is still ON. If not, the process proceeds to step 505 to determine whether or not the meshing prohibition flag is set to ON (meshing prohibition). If the meshing prohibition flag is determined to be OFF (meshing permission), the process returns to step 504 to Whether or not 12 is ON is determined.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 505 that the meshing prohibition flag is set to ON (meshing prohibition), the process proceeds to step 506 to stop (prohibit) restart of the motor drive mode and this routine. Exit.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 504 that the motor 12 has already been turned on, the process proceeds to step 507 where it is determined whether or not the push-out of the pinion 13 has started. As a result, if it is determined that the push-out of the pinion 13 is not started, the process proceeds to step 508, where it is determined whether or not the meshing prohibition flag is set to ON (meshing prohibition). Proceeding to 509, the motor 12 is turned off and the push-out of the pinion 13 is stopped, the restart of the motor destination drive mode is stopped, and this routine is finished.

  If it is determined in step 508 that the meshing prohibition flag is OFF (meshing permission), the process proceeds to step 511, the pinion 13 is pushed out at a predetermined timing, the motor-driven mode is restarted, and this routine is terminated. To do.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step 507 that it is not before the start of pushing out of the pinion 13 (that is, after the start of pushing), the process proceeds to step 510, the meshing prohibition flag is ignored, and the process proceeds to step 511, where a predetermined timing is reached. Then, the pinion 13 is pushed out to restart the motor tip drive mode, and this routine is finished.
The control of the third embodiment described above may be implemented by being applied to the motor destination drive mode of the second embodiment.

[Other Examples]
The present invention is not limited to a system equipped with a starter 11 that can individually operate the pinion actuator 14 and the motor 12 that rotationally drives the pinion 13, and a constant delay between the pinion actuator and the motor that rotationally drives the pinion. The present invention can be applied to a system equipped with a starter driven with time. In this case, the pinion jumps into and engages with the ring gear at the timing when the engine speed is reduced to the extremely low rotation range where the noise level when the pinion is engaged is within the allowable range based on the prediction data of the engine rotation descending trajectory. What is necessary is just to determine the drive timing.

  In addition, it goes without saying that the present invention can be implemented with various modifications, such as being similarly applicable even when the interval of the crank pulse output from the crank angle sensor 25 is other than 30 ° C.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Starter, 12 ... Motor, 13 ... Pinion, 14 ... Pinion actuator, 20 ... ECU (rotational descent trajectory prediction means, control means), 21 ... Engine, 22 ... Crankshaft, 23 ... Ring gear

Claims (13)

An automatic engine stop / start control device that pushes the pinion of the starter at a predetermined timing and jumps into the ring gear connected to the crankshaft of the engine and engages it during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped In
A rotation descent trajectory predicting means for predicting a trajectory in which the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped descends while pulsating (hereinafter referred to as “engine rotation descent trajectory”);
And an engine automatic stop / start control device comprising: control means for determining drive timing of the pinion based on prediction data of engine rotation descent trajectory by the rotation descent trajectory prediction means. The starter is configured to be able to individually operate a pinion actuator that pushes out the pinion and a motor that rotationally drives the pinion,
2. The engine automatic stop / start control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control means determines the drive timing of the pinion and the drive timing of the motor based on prediction data of the engine rotation descending orbit. When the engine is automatically stopped, the rotation descent trajectory predicting means determines the engine rotation speed at the next calculation timing based on the engine loss torque, engine rotation speed or angular speed, and inertia at a predetermined calculation cycle finer than every TDC. Or, the process of predicting the angular speed and predicting the engine speed or angular speed at the next calculation timing based on the prediction data is repeated a plurality of times to predict the engine rotation descent trajectory up to the next calculation timing. The engine automatic stop / start control device according to claim 2.   4. The rotational descent trajectory predicting means predicts a trajectory in which prediction data of the engine rotation speed or angular velocity are interpolated and connected between the prediction data as the engine rotation descent trajectory. The engine automatic stop / start control device according to 1. The rotation descent trajectory predicting means predicts the engine rotation descent trajectory with an elapsed time from a reference time arbitrarily set as a time axis,
5. The engine automatic stop / start control apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control means determines the drive timing of the pinion and the drive timing of the motor based on an elapsed time from the reference time. The rotational descent trajectory predicting means samples the engine rotational speed or angular speed at every predetermined crank angle smaller than every TDC , predicts the engine rotational speed or angular speed at the next calculation timing, and then samples the time of the predicted data. 6. The engine automatic stop / start control device according to claim 5, wherein the engine automatic stop / start control device is advanced by a delay.   The control means is configured to perform a motor-first drive mode in which the motor is rotated before the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear when a restart request is generated during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped is decreased. The means for executing the restart, and the motor drive prohibition time for prohibiting the restart of the motor drive mode are set to the lower limit value of the engine speed range in which the restart of the motor drive mode is permitted. The engine automatic stop / start control device according to claim 5 or 6, further comprising means for setting a time that is advanced a predetermined time required for pushing out the pinion. In the post-motor drive mode in which the control means rotates the motor after the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear when a restart request is generated during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped is decreased. engine automatic stop and start control system according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that it comprises a means to perform a restart.   The control means performs preset control to push out the pinion and abut against the ring gear in preparation for the next restart when a restart request is not generated during a period when the engine rotation speed when the engine is automatically stopped decreases. Means for permitting, and means for setting a preset control execution time for executing the preset control to a time that is advanced by a predetermined time required for pushing out the pinion from a time at which the preset control is permitted to be an engine speed. The engine automatic stop / start control device according to claim 7 or 8, further comprising:   The control means includes means for prohibiting preset control for pushing out the pinion and meshing with the ring gear in preparation for the next restart in a period during which the engine speed when the engine is automatically stopped decreases. Means for executing a restart in a post-motor drive mode for rotating the motor after the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear when a restart request is generated during the descent period; and driving the motor from the push-out of the pinion And a means for setting the time for increasing the delay time until the start time is set to a time that is advanced by a predetermined time required to push out the pinion from a time when the predicted engine rotation speed becomes a predetermined value or less. The engine automatic stop / start control device according to claim 7 or 8.   The control means predicts the rotation rising trajectory of the pinion after the start of driving of the motor when restarting in the motor front drive mode, and predicts the engine rotation lowering trajectory data by the rotation lowering trajectory prediction means and the pinion 8. The driving time of the pinion is predicted as a driving time of the pinion from a time when a difference from the predicted data of the rotation ascending trajectory reaches within a predetermined value by a predetermined time required for pushing out the pinion. The engine automatic stop / start control device described. A meshing prohibition request for prohibiting meshing between the pinion and the ring gear is generated when the engine rotational speed changes suddenly and the required prediction accuracy cannot be ensured during the prediction of the engine rotational descending orbit by the rotational descending orbit predicting means. Means to
The engine automatic stop / start control device according to claim 1, wherein the control means stops or prohibits restart during an engine rotation descent period when the meshing prohibition request is generated. A meshing prohibition request for prohibiting meshing between the pinion and the ring gear is generated when the engine rotational speed changes suddenly and the required prediction accuracy cannot be ensured during the prediction of the engine rotational descending orbit by the rotational descending orbit predicting means. Means to
When the control means restarts the motor first drive mode in which the motor is rotated before the pinion is brought into contact with the ring gear, (1) the meshing prohibition request is generated before the push-out of the pinion is started. Sometimes the push-out of the pinion is stopped and the motor is stopped to stop the restart of the motor drive mode. (2) When the engagement prohibition request is generated after the start of the pinion extrusion, the engagement prohibition request is ignored. The engine automatic stop / start control apparatus according to claim 7, wherein restart of the motor-first drive mode is continued.

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