JP6168408B2 - Hybrid vehicle - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a hybrid vehicle, and more particularly to a hybrid vehicle equipped with an exhaust heat recovery device.

Some hybrid vehicles have an exhaust heat recovery device disposed in the middle of an exhaust pipe connected to an engine.
The exhaust heat recovery unit performs heat exchange between exhaust gas discharged from the engine and cooling water flowing in the engine.
As a vehicle provided with such an exhaust heat recovery device, for example, there are the following prior art documents.

JP 2008-169710 A

  The exhaust system structure for a vehicle according to Patent Document 1 includes an exhaust pipe extending in the vehicle front-rear direction below the vehicle floor, and an exhaust system heat exchanger (exhaust heat recovery) that recovers the heat of the exhaust gas in the middle of the exhaust pipe. This is a structure in which a container is arranged.

By the way, in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, the exhaust system heat exchanger (exhaust heat recovery device) is arranged to extend in front of the fuel tank arranged in the rear part of the vehicle and in the vehicle front-rear direction, and at the lower part of the vehicle body. In addition, an exhaust system heat exchanger (exhaust heat recovery device) is disposed at a central portion in the vehicle longitudinal direction.
For this reason, an exhaust system heat exchanger (exhaust heat recovery device) is disposed at the lower center of the vehicle between the front wheels and the rear wheels, and when the vehicle travels on a road with poor road surface conditions, The clearance dimension between the vehicle floor and the road surface between the rear wheels tends to fluctuate due to the unevenness of the road surface, and the exhaust heat exchanger (exhaust heat recovery device) and the road surface may come into contact with each other.
Further, since the exhaust system heat exchanger (exhaust heat recovery device) is disposed near and in front of the fuel tank disposed at the rear of the vehicle, it is between the engine and the exhaust system heat exchanger (exhaust heat recovery device). As a result, the overall length of the cooling water passage becomes larger, and the early warm-up performance of the engine may be reduced.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a hybrid vehicle equipped with an exhaust heat recovery device, and promotes early warm-up in cold weather, even when the vehicle travels on a road with poor road surface conditions, etc. An object of the present invention is to provide a hybrid vehicle that can prevent the vehicle from interfering with the road surface.

The present invention is connected to an engine mounted on a vehicle, a generator connected to the left end of the engine in the vehicle width direction, a drive motor disposed on the vehicle rear side of the generator, and the drive motor. And a gear box projecting downward from the drive motor, a suspension frame disposed behind the gear box and having left and right front wheels connected to left and right vehicle width direction ends via left and right arms, and the gear A drive shaft connecting the lower part of the box and the left and right front wheels; an exhaust pipe extending from the engine through the lower part of the vehicle body to the rear of the vehicle; and in the middle of the exhaust pipe and below the engine And an exhaust heat recovery unit that exchanges heat between the exhaust gas discharged from the engine and the cooling water flowing in the engine. In the vehicle, the suspension frame comprises a recess which is recessed toward the rear side of the vehicle at the front side, the gear box to the vehicle width direction right end side of the engine to the vehicle center line and extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction in the recess Arranged in a biased position, the exhaust heat recovery device has a front end portion and a rear end portion, and is arranged in a state in which its central axis is inclined with respect to the vehicle center line in the vehicle bottom view, A rear end portion of the exhaust heat recovery device is located in a space formed by the recess and a left end portion in the vehicle width direction of the gear box, and a front end portion of the exhaust heat recovery device is in the vehicle width direction of the exhaust heat recovery device. It is located in the vehicle width direction right end part side of the engine rather than the rear end part .

  In the hybrid vehicle equipped with the exhaust heat recovery device, the exhaust heat recovery device is provided on the road surface even when the vehicle travels on a bad road surface or the like while promoting early warm-up in cold weather. Can be prevented from interfering with.

FIG. 1 is a bottom view of the front portion of the vehicle. (Example) FIG. 2 is an enlarged bottom view around the exhaust heat recovery device at the front of the vehicle in FIG. (Example) FIG. 3 is a front view of the front portion of the vehicle excluding the radiator. (Example) 4 is a cross-sectional view of the front portion of the vehicle, taken along line IV-IV in FIG. (Example) FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of the cooling water path. (Example)

In the hybrid vehicle equipped with the exhaust heat recovery device, the exhaust heat recovery device is provided on the road surface even when the vehicle travels on a bad road surface or the like while promoting early warm-up in cold weather. The object of preventing interference with the vehicle is realized by arranging the central axis of the exhaust heat recovery device in an inclined state with respect to the vehicle central line .

1 to 5 show an embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a hybrid vehicle (hereinafter referred to as “vehicle”) 1 includes a left side frame 3 and a right side as a vehicle body 2 that extend in the vehicle front-rear direction X and are spaced apart in the vehicle width direction Y. And a frame 4.
The left side frame 3 and the right side frame 4 are connected by a suspension frame 5 extending in the vehicle width direction Y at the front portion of the vehicle.
Left and right front wheels 8 and right front wheels 9 as left and right front wheels are coupled to left and right vehicle width direction ends of the suspension frame 5 via left and right arms 6 and right arms 7. The suspension frame 5 extends in the vehicle width direction Y and supports the left front wheel 8 and the right front wheel 9.

The vehicle 1 forms an engine room 10 at the front of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 4, the engine room 10 is formed by being surrounded by a vehicle hood 12 to which a front grill portion 11 is connected and a dash panel 13.
In the engine room 10, a power generation device 14 is disposed horizontally. The power generation device 14 includes an engine 15 and a generator 16.
As shown in FIG. 4, the engine 15 is configured by integrating a cylinder block 17, a cylinder head 18, and a cylinder head cover 19. A crankshaft 20 is supported on the cylinder block 17.
As shown in FIG. 4, the generator 16 is connected to the left end of the engine 15 in the vehicle width direction . The generator 16 is disposed in a housing 21 connected to the left end surface of the cylinder block 17 and is connected to the crankshaft 20 of the engine 15.

A driving device 22 is connected to the power generation device 14. The drive device 22 includes a drive motor 23 and a gear box 24.
The drive motor 23 is disposed on the vehicle rear side of the generator 16.
The gear box 24 is connected to the drive motor 23 and is disposed so as to protrude downward from the drive motor 23. Therefore, the suspension frame 5 is disposed behind the gear box 24 as shown in FIGS.
The lower part of the gear box 24 and the left front wheel 8 and right front wheel 9 are connected by a drive shaft 25.
As shown in FIG. 2, the drive shaft 25 includes an intermediate drive shaft portion 26, a left drive shaft portion 27 connected to the left end of the intermediate drive shaft portion 26, and a right drive shaft portion connected to the right end of the intermediate drive shaft portion 26. 28. The intermediate drive shaft portion 26 is supported at the lower end portion of the drive motor 23 by a support bracket 29 at the left end portion, and the movement is restricted in the vehicle vertical direction.
The drive shaft 25 connects the gear box 24 to the left front wheel 8 and the right front wheel 9 below the vehicle body 2 and to the rear part of the engine room 10, and transmits the driving force of the driving device 22 to the left front wheel 8 and the right front wheel 9. To do.

An exhaust device 30 is disposed in front of the cylinder head 18 of the engine 15.
As shown in FIG. 4, the exhaust device 30 includes an exhaust manifold 31 attached to the front portion of the cylinder head 18, a catalytic converter 33 that is connected to the exhaust manifold 31 and extends downward in the vehicle and incorporates a catalyst 32, And an exhaust pipe 34 connected to the catalytic converter 33.
As shown in FIG. 4, the exhaust pipe 34 extends from the engine 15 below the vehicle body 2 and extends rearward of the drive shaft 25 and the suspension frame 5.

  In the middle of the exhaust pipe 34, as shown in FIG. 4, an exhaust heat recovery device 35 is disposed downstream of the exhaust converter 33 and below the power generation device 14. The exhaust heat recovery unit 35 exchanges heat between the exhaust gas discharged from the engine 15 and the cooling water flowing in the engine 15.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, a radiator 36 extending in the vehicle width direction Y is disposed in front of the engine room 10 in front of the power generation device 14. The radiator 36 cools the cooling water of the engine 15, and is connected to the engine 15 by a radiator inlet pipe 37 and a radiator outlet pipe 38.
The radiator inlet pipe 37 guides high-temperature cooling water from the engine 15 to the radiator 36, and one end thereof is connected to a thermostat 39 attached to the cylinder head 18 of the engine 15 and the other end is connected to the radiator 36. The upper tank 40 is connected. The thermostat 39 is disposed on the generator 16 side in the vehicle width direction Y.
The radiator outlet pipe 38 guides the cooling water cooled by the radiator 36 to the engine 15. One end of the radiator outlet pipe 38 is connected to the lower tank 41 of the radiator 36 and the other end of the front of the cylinder block 17 of the engine 15. It connects with the water pump 42 attached to the part. The water pump 42 is driven by the engine 15 and supplies cooling water from the radiator 36 side to a water jacket in the engine 15.

As shown in FIG. 1, the suspension frame 5 includes a concave portion 43 having a curved shape so as to form a first space S <b> 1 that is recessed toward the vehicle rear side at the front side portion. Further, the gear box 24 is located on the right side in the vehicle width direction Y that is the vehicle direction right end side of the engine 15 with respect to the vehicle center line C1 ( center line that penetrates the engine 15 ) in the recess 43 and extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction X. It is arranged at a position deviated by a distance L. Further, the exhaust heat recovery device 35 is disposed on the vehicle width direction center side with respect to the gear box 24 and on the front side of the suspension frame 5.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle of the gear box 24 is formed by the first space S <b> 1 of the recess 43 and the second space S < b> 2 formed between the left end of the gear box 24 in the vehicle width direction. It is possible to form a third space (space straddling the first space S1 of the recess 43) S3 that is lateral to the width direction Y and is largely open on the front side of the suspension frame 5. A heat recovery unit 35 is arranged.

In this structure, the gearbox 24 that projects downward from the drive motor 23, the vehicle center line C1 of and extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction X in the recess 43 formed in the front portion of the suspension pen Deployment frame 5 Since the engine 15 is disposed at a position biased toward the right end side in the vehicle direction, a third space S3 is created in which the exhaust heat recovery device 35 is disposed on the vehicle center line C1 side and on the front side of the suspension frame 5 with respect to the gear box 24. it can.
The rear end F2 of the exhaust heat recovery device 35 is located in a space S3 formed by the recess 43 of the suspension frame 5 and the left end of the gear box 24 in the vehicle width direction. The front end F1 of the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 is located in the vehicle width direction Y on the right end side of the engine 15 in the vehicle width direction with respect to the rear end F2 of the exhaust heat recovery unit 35. As a result, the exhaust heat recovery device 35 can be disposed close to the engine 15 while avoiding interference with the gear box 24.
For this reason, the temperature of the exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 can be increased, and the cooling water of the engine 15 can be raised quickly.
Further, as shown in FIG. 4, when the vehicle 1 travels on a rough road, the front wheel 8 is easier to secure a clearance with the road surface G than the portion between the front wheels 8 and 9 and the rear wheel in the vehicle longitudinal direction X. The exhaust heat recovery device 35 can be disposed near the center of the vehicle in the vehicle width direction, which is close to 9 and hardly collides with stones and foreign matters scattered from the front wheels 8 and 9.
Thereby, it is possible to prevent the exhaust heat recovery device 35 from interfering with the road surface G when the cooling water of the engine 15 is raised in temperature early and the vehicle 1 travels on a rough road.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the exhaust heat recovery device 35 has a central axis C2 ( center line passing through the front end portion F1 and the rear end portion F2) C2 inclined with respect to the vehicle center line C1 by an angle θ. The vehicle center line C1 is disposed.
With such a structure, the exhaust heat recovery device 35 can be disposed on the front side of the suspension frame 5 while maintaining the length necessary for recovering the exhaust heat. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the front end portion F1 of the exhaust heat recovery device 35 can be disposed on the vehicle rear side by a distance D from the front end portions P1 of the front wheels 8 and 9. In FIG. 1, reference numeral P <b> 2 is a rear end portion of the front wheels 8 and 9.
As a result, the exhaust heat recovery device 35 can be prevented from projecting larger than the front end portions P1 of the front wheels 8 and 9, and the front end portion F1 of the exhaust heat recovery device 35 can be prevented from colliding with a step on the road surface G. That is, since the exhaust heat recovery device 35 is disposed at a position close to the drive shaft 25, it becomes difficult to contact the road surface G when the exhaust heat recovery device 35 exceeds the step of the road surface G.
As shown in FIG. 4, the height dimension H from the road surface G to the lower end B1 of the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 may be set to the height dimension from the lower end B2 of the front wheels 8 and 9 to the exhaust heat recovery unit 35. it can.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the front end F1 of the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 passes through the cooling water introduction unit 44 into which the cooling water of the engine 15 is introduced and the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 and passes through the engine 15. And a cooling water discharge part 45 for returning the cooling water.
An upstream side cooling water pipe 47 that forms an upstream side cooling water passage 46 is connected to the cooling water introduction part 44. The upstream cooling water pipe 47 has one upstream end connected to the thermostat 39 and the other downstream end connected to the cooling water introducing portion 44.
A downstream cooling water pipe 49 that forms a downstream cooling water passage 48 is connected to the cooling water discharge portion 45. The downstream side cooling water pipe 49 has one end on the upstream side connected to the cooling water discharge part 45 and the other end on the downstream side connected in the middle of the radiator outlet pipe 38.
As shown in FIG. 2, the exhaust heat recovery device 35 has a front end portion F1 positioned on the right end portion side in the vehicle width direction of the engine 15 in the vehicle width direction Y and a rear end portion F2 in the vehicle width direction Y. The central axis C2 of the exhaust heat recovery device 35 is disposed so as to be inclined at a predetermined angle θ with respect to the vehicle center line C1 so as to be located on the side (the left end side in the vehicle width direction of the engine 15) .
As shown in FIG. 2, a control valve 50 disposed between the upstream side cooling water pipe 47 and the cooling water introducing portion 44 is attached to the exhaust heat recovery device 35. In order to warm up the engine 15 early, the control valve 50 flows into the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 and the temperature of the cooling water is equal to or lower than a first predetermined value (the same state as the first predetermined value). Or lower than the first predetermined value), the cooling water flows into the exhaust heat recovery unit 35, and the cooling water receives the heat of the exhaust gas, while the engine 15 is heated more than necessary. In order to prevent this, the warm-up of the engine 15 is completed and the temperature of the cooling water is equal to or higher than a second predetermined value higher than the first predetermined value (the same state as the second predetermined value, or the second When the state becomes higher than the predetermined value), the closing operation is performed to stop the cooling water from flowing into the exhaust heat recovery unit 35.
Due to such a structure, in this embodiment, the cooling of the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 is reduced as compared with the structure in which the cooling water introduction unit 44 and the cooling water discharge unit 45 are provided at the rear end F2 of the exhaust heat recovery unit 35. The overall length of the downstream cooling water passage 48 from the water discharge part 45 to the radiator outlet pipe 38 or the water pump 42 can be shortened.
As a result, the amount of cooling water in the downstream side cooling water passage 48 is reduced, and the cooling water received by the exhaust heat recovery device 35 is instantaneously supplied to the engine 15 via the water pump 42 so that the engine can be cooled. 15, the coolant flowing from the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 to the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 can be warmed up early, and the cooling water heated by the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 can be returned to the engine 15, thereby facilitating the early warming up of the engine 15. be able to. Further, by shortening the overall length dimension of the downstream side cooling water passage 48, it is possible to shorten the time required for the cooling water discharged from the exhaust heat recovery device 35 to pass through the downstream side cooling water pipe 49. With this, it is possible to prevent the heat of the cooling water from being taken away.
Furthermore, the rear end F2 of the exhaust heat recovery device 35 can be disposed in the third space S3, and the exhaust heat recovery device 35 can be disposed between the left front wheel 8 and the right front wheel 9.

Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the drive shaft 25 has an intermediate drive shaft portion 26 that extends in the vehicle width direction Y from the left end portion of the gear box 24 in the vehicle width direction . The intermediate drive shaft portion 26 is supported by the drive motor 23 by a support bracket 29. The exhaust heat recovery device 35 is disposed below the intermediate drive shaft portion 26. Alternatively, the exhaust heat recovery device 35 is disposed below the intermediate drive shaft portion 26 and between the gear box 24 and the support bracket 29.
With such a structure, the exhaust heat recovery device 35 or a part of the exhaust heat recovery device 35 is disposed below the intermediate drive shaft flange portion 26 that is held by the support bracket 29 of the drive shaft 25 and does not fluctuate in the vehicle vertical direction. Therefore, it is not necessary for the exhaust heat recovery device 35 to set an excessive gap between the exhaust heat recovery device 35 and the intermediate drive shaft portion 26 of the drive shaft 25 in consideration of the fluctuation of the drive shaft 25. This prevents the distance between the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 and the road surface G from becoming excessively small, ensures a sufficient distance between the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 and the road surface G, and the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 and the road surface. Contact with G can be prevented.

FIG. 5 specifically illustrates the structure of the cooling water path according to this embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 5, one end of a radiator inlet pipe 37 is connected to the thermostat 39. The other end of the radiator inlet pipe 37 is connected to the radiator 36. In addition, one end of a radiator outlet pipe 38 is connected to the radiator 36. The other end of the radiator outlet pipe 38 is connected to the water pump 42.
In addition, one end of an upstream side cooling water pipe 47 is connected to the thermostat 39. The other end of the upstream cooling water pipe 47 is connected to the exhaust heat recovery unit 35. A control valve 50 is disposed between the upstream side cooling water pipe 47 and the exhaust heat recovery unit 35. One end of a downstream cooling water pipe 49 is connected to the exhaust heat recovery device 35. The other end of the downstream coolant pipe 49 is connected to the radiator outlet pipe 38.
Further, one end of the first communication cooling water pipe 51 is connected to the thermostat 39. The other end of the first communication cooling water pipe 51 is connected to the radiator outlet pipe 38 upstream of the downstream cooling water pipe 49. A heater core 52 of the heating device is disposed in the middle of the first communication cooling water pipe 51.
Furthermore, one end of the second communication cooling water pipe 53 is connected to the thermostat 39. The other end of the second communication cooling water pipe 53 is connected to the middle of the first communication cooling water pipe 51 on the downstream side of the heater core 52. A flow control valve 54 is disposed in the middle of the second communication cooling water pipe 53.
In such a cooling water path structure, the high-temperature cooling water from the water jacket 55 of the engine 15 is led to the radiator 36 from the radiator inlet pipe 37 and cooled when the thermostat 39 opens. Then, the low-temperature cooling water cooled by the radiator 36 reaches the water pump 42 from the radiator outlet pipe 38 and then flows into the water jacket 55 of the engine 15.
Further, when the high-temperature cooling water from the water jacket 55 of the engine 15 flows into the upstream side cooling water pipe 47, it reaches the control valve 50. As described above, the control valve 50 opens and closes according to the temperature state, and supplies / stops the cooling water from the upstream side cooling water pipe 47 to the exhaust heat recovery unit 35. As described above, the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 exchanges heat between the exhaust gas discharged from the engine 15 and passing through the catalytic converter 33 and the cooling water from the control valve 50 side. The cooling water that has passed through the exhaust heat recovery unit 35 reaches the water pump 42 and then flows into the water jacket 55 of the engine 15.
Further, when the high-temperature cooling water from the water jacket of the engine 15 flows into the first communication cooling water pipe 51, it reaches the heater core 52. The heater core 52 warms the air in the passenger compartment. Cooling water that has been subjected to heat exchange with the air in the heater core 52 and has reached a low temperature reaches the water pump 42 and then flows into the water jacket 55 of the engine 15.
Further, when the high-temperature cooling water from the water jacket of the engine 15 flows into the second communication cooling water pipe 53, the flow control valve 54 is reached. The flow rate control valve 54 is connected to the first communication cooling water pipe 51 from the thermostat 39 by the first communication cooling water pipe 51 and the second communication cooling water pipe 53 when the engine 15 is cold and the thermostat 39 is closed. The flow rate of the cooling water flowing to the heater core 52 is adjusted, and the flow rate of the cooling water flowing to the heater core 52 is adjusted. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the cooling water from being overcooled by the heater core 52 when the engine 15 is cooled. The cooling water that has passed through the flow control valve 54 reaches the water pump 42 and then flows into the water jacket 55 of the engine 15.

  The structure of the hybrid vehicle according to the present invention can be applied to various devices.

1 vehicle (hybrid vehicle)
2 Car body 3 Left side frame 4 Right side frame 5 Suspension frame 6 Left arm 7 Right arm 8 Left front wheel 9 Right front wheel 10 Engine room 14 Power generator 15 Engine 16 Generator 20 Crankshaft 22 Drive device 23 Drive motor 24 Gear box 25 Drive Shaft 26 Intermediate drive shaft portion 27 Left drive shaft portion 28 Right drive shaft portion 30 Exhaust device 31 Exhaust manifold 32 Catalyst 33 Catalytic converter 34 Exhaust pipe 35 Exhaust heat recovery device 36 Radiator 37 Radiator inlet pipe 38 Radiator outlet pipe 39 Thermostat 43 Recessed portion 44 Cooling water introduction part 45 Cooling water discharge part 46 Upstream cooling water passage 47 Upstream cooling water pipe 48 Downstream cooling water passage 49 Downstream cooling water pi 50 Control valve

Claims (4)

An engine mounted on the vehicle,
A generator coupled to the left end of the engine in the vehicle width direction ;
A drive motor disposed on the vehicle rear side of the generator;
A gear box connected to the drive motor and projecting downward from the drive motor;
A suspension frame disposed at the rear of the gear box and having left and right front wheels coupled to left and right vehicle width direction ends via left and right arms;
A drive shaft connecting the lower part of the gear box and the left and right front wheels;
An exhaust pipe extending from the engine to the rear of the vehicle through the lower part of the vehicle body;
In a hybrid vehicle comprising an exhaust heat recovery device that is disposed in the middle of the exhaust pipe and below the engine and exchanges heat between exhaust gas discharged from the engine and cooling water flowing in the engine ,
The suspension frame includes a recess that is recessed toward the vehicle rear side at the front side portion,
The gear box is disposed at a position that is biased toward the right end of the engine in the vehicle width direction with respect to a vehicle center line extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction in the recess,
The exhaust heat recovery device has a front end portion and a rear end portion, and is arranged in a state in which a central axis thereof is inclined with respect to the vehicle center line in a vehicle bottom view,
A rear end portion of the exhaust heat recovery device is located in a space formed by the concave portion and a left end portion of the gear box in the vehicle width direction, and a front end portion of the exhaust heat recovery device is in the vehicle width direction in the exhaust heat recovery direction. The hybrid vehicle is located on the right end side of the engine in the vehicle width direction with respect to the rear end of the container . The exhaust heat recovery unit, the hybrid vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the central axis in a state of being inclined with respect to the vehicle center line, characterized in that disposed on the vehicle center line. The front end of the exhaust heat recovery unit includes a cooling water inlet portion of the cooling water of the engine is introduced, that passes through the exhaust heat recovery unit and a cooling water discharge portion returning the engine f coolant The hybrid vehicle according to claim 2, characterized in that: The drive shaft has an intermediate drive shaft portion extending in the vehicle width direction from the left end portion of the gear box in the vehicle width direction , the intermediate drive shaft portion is supported by the drive motor by a support bracket, and the exhaust heat recovery device is The hybrid vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the hybrid vehicle is disposed below the intermediate drive shaft portion.

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