WO2005080779A1

WO2005080779A1 - Engine operating condition detecting device

Info

Publication number: WO2005080779A1
Application number: PCT/JP2005/002845
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hironobu Watanabe; Makoto Sato
Original assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2004-02-24
Filing date: 2005-02-23
Publication date: 2005-09-01

Abstract

An engine operating condition detecting device where no wiring is required between a mobile body and the device to detect an engine operating condition and where the device can detect an engine operation condition at low cost and inform the condition to a user and external equipment. An engine operating condition detecting device (10) has vibration detecting means (11) for detecting from an output of a gyro (14) an amplitude level of only a vibration component by engine rotation, idling state detecting means (12) for determining whether an engine is in an idling state by using an amplitude level of an output signal in a specific frequency band detected by the vibration detecting means (11), and output means (13) for outputting and informing the result of the determination by the idling state detecting means (12) to an external equipment connected to the engine operating condition detecting device (10) or to user side output equipment.

Description

Specification

Engine operation status detection device

Technical field

The present invention relates to an engine operating condition detecting device, and for example, relates to an engine operating condition detecting device having a function of determining an operating condition of an engine installed on a moving body such as a vehicle capable of autonomous running by the engine.

Background art

[0002] In recent years, as awareness of the preservation of the global environment has increased, not only manufacturers but also users and consumers have increased the need for eco-friendly products. In particular, automobiles are required to reduce fossil fuel consumption and reduce emissions that affect global warming.Car manufacturers have vehicles with idling stop functions, and engines and motors as power sources. The development of hybrid vehicles and the like that use the same speed is being promoted.

[0003] Along with the development of such next-generation vehicles, it is extremely important to make hardware available to users correctly. To do so, it is necessary to devise hardware measures such as notifying the user of the hardware status, for example, the operating status of the engine.

[0004] Further, in such a next-generation vehicle, the load on the battery tends to increase due to an increase in the opportunity of the engine stop state. It is extremely useful to reduce the power consumption of onboard electrical components.

[0005] As a conventional technique for reducing the power consumption of this kind of on-vehicle electrical components, there is a technique as shown in Patent Document 1, which is shown in FIG. In FIG. 7, the vehicle power supply device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is opened and closed by a vehicle speed detection circuit 2 for detecting the speed of the vehicle 1, a switch operation circuit 3 connected to the vehicle speed detection circuit 2, and a switch operation circuit 3. And a switch circuit 4.

[0006] When the vehicle speed detection circuit 2 detects that the vehicle speed is equal to or lower than a predetermined vehicle speed or is in a stopped state, the switch operation circuit 3 controls the switch circuit 4 to open, and the vehicle speed detection circuit 2 exceeds the predetermined vehicle speed. When the switch operation is detected, the switch operation circuit 3 controls to close the switch circuit 4.

[0007] With such a configuration, the battery 5 and the stabilized power supply circuit 6 become non-conductive only when the vehicle speed is equal to or lower than a predetermined vehicle speed or when the vehicle is stopped, and power is supplied to the on-vehicle electrical equipment 7. Can be prevented. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of problems such as running out of the battery when the engine continues to apply a high electric load for a long time in an idling state.

[0008] Further, as shown in Patent Document 2, in a remote starting device for a vehicle engine, a function of detecting whether or not the engine is continuously rotating by capturing a pulsating wave of an ono-regenerator superimposed on a power supply voltage. Some are equipped with. This remote starter does not require wiring other than the power supply wiring to detect the start of the engine, so that the installation and wiring work of the equipment can be easily performed.

Patent Document 1: JP-A-7-257296 (paragraph 0010 and FIG. 1)

Patent Document 2: JP-A-10-61535 (paragraph 0011)

Disclosure of the invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

[0009] However, in the vehicle power supply device described in Patent Document 1, the power supply to the on-vehicle electrical equipment is controlled on / off by detecting the vehicle speed of the vehicle. There was a problem that the operation status of the engine itself could not be detected.

[0010] In addition, in order to determine the state of the vehicle using the in-vehicle electrical equipment, wiring for detecting the vehicle speed signal engine start state is generally required, so that mounting and wiring work of the device is troublesome. There was a problem.

[0011] On the other hand, the remote starting device described in Patent Document 2 detects a pulsation wave of the alternator superimposed on a power supply voltage capable of detecting the start of the engine only with a power supply line from an automobile. This requires dedicated hardware and control software, which increases the cost.

[0012] The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and it is possible to eliminate the need for wiring between a moving body and an engine operating condition detecting device for detecting an engine operating condition. It is intended to provide an engine operating condition detecting device capable of detecting an operating condition of an engine at a low cost and notifying the operating condition of the engine to a user or an external device.

Means for solving the problem

[0013] An engine operating condition detecting device according to the present invention includes a vibration detecting means for detecting a vibration generated in a moving body that can run by an engine, and a magnitude of the vibration detected by the vibration detecting unit. Engine operating state determining means for determining the operating state of the engine in accordance with the condition, and notifying means for notifying the determination result of the engine operating state determining means.

[0014] With this configuration, by detecting the magnitude of the vibration generated in the moving body, the vibration of the engine is indirectly detected, thereby detecting the engine operation state between the moving body and the engine operation state detecting device. This eliminates the need for wiring and reduces the cost of the engine operation status detection device with a simple configuration, while ensuring reliable detection of the engine operation status.

[0015] In addition, by notifying an external device or a user of the operating state of the engine to control the engine to stop when the engine is idling or stopping, the fuel efficiency can be improved, or the engine can be mounted on a moving object. Power consumption of the used electronic device can be reduced.

[0016] In the engine operating condition detecting device of the present invention, the vibration detecting means detects a signal of a specific frequency due to rotation of the engine, and the engine state determining means detects the signal detected by the vibration detecting means. It determines whether or not the vehicle is idling by using the amplitude level of the output signal in the frequency band of (1).

[0017] With this configuration, a signal related to the engine can be reliably determined from the vibration of the moving body, and further, it can be determined whether the engine is idling.

[0018] Further, in the engine operation state detecting device of the present invention, the vibration detecting means includes an angular velocity sensor for detecting an angular velocity of at least one of a pitch, a roll, and a yaw axis of the moving body.

[0019] With this configuration, the magnitude of vibration of the moving body can be detected by the angular velocity sensor provided on the moving body, so that the operation of the engine without adding new hardware is performed. The situation can be detected, and the cost of the engine operation situation detecting device can be further reduced.

[0020] Further, in the engine operation state detecting device according to the present invention, the vibration detecting means includes an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration in at least one of a front-rear direction, a left-right direction, and a vertical direction of the moving body.

[0021] With this configuration, the magnitude of vibration of the moving body can be detected by the acceleration sensor provided on the moving body, so that the operating state of the engine without adding new hardware can be detected. Therefore, the cost of the engine operation status detecting device can be further reduced.

[0022] Further, the engine operating condition detecting device of the present invention is configured such that the vibration detecting means is built in a car navigation device mounted on the moving body.

[0023] According to this configuration, the sensor used for the positioning function of the car navigation device can be shared, so that it is possible to detect the operating state of the engine without adding new hardware, The cost of the engine operating condition detecting device can be further reduced.

The invention's effect

As described above, the present invention can eliminate the need for wiring for detecting the engine operation state between the moving object and the engine operation state detection device, and can operate the engine operation state at low cost. The present invention can provide an engine operation status detection device capable of detecting an engine operation status and notifying a user or an external device of an engine operation status.

Brief Description of Drawings

[FIG. 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an engine operating condition detecting device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [FIG. 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an engine stopped state in the engine operating condition detecting device in one embodiment. Gyro output frequency spectrum diagram

[FIG. 3] FIG. 3 is a gyro output frequency spectrum diagram in an engine idling state in the engine operation state detecting device according to the embodiment.

[FIG. 4] FIG. 4 is a gyro output frequency spectrum diagram in a running state in the engine operating condition detecting device according to the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of idling determination processing according to one embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of another configuration of the engine operating condition detecting device according to the embodiment.

[FIG. 7] FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a conventional vehicle power supply device.

Explanation of symbols

[0026] 10 Engine operation status detection device

11 Vibration detection means

12 Idling state detecting means (engine operating state determining means)

13 Output means (Notification means)

14 Gyro (vibration detection means)

31 Acceleration sensor (vibration detection means)

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

1 to 6 are diagrams showing an embodiment of an engine operation state detecting device according to the present invention, and a vehicle is described as an example of a moving object.

First, the configuration will be described. In FIG. 1, an engine operating state detecting device 10 includes a vibration detecting unit 11, an idling state detecting unit (engine operating state determining unit) 12, and an output unit (notifying unit) 13.

[0028] The vibration detecting means 11 removes a signal component whose frequency is lower than fl from an output signal from a gyro (vibration detecting means) 14 for detecting a turning angular velocity of the vehicle so as to detect only a vibration component of the vehicle. Has become. Here, the frequency fl is set in advance in consideration of the installation state of the engine operation state detection device 10 and the characteristics of the vehicle.

[0029] The idling state detection means 12 determines whether the engine is in a stopped state or an idling state using the vibration detection result of the vibration detection means 11.

The output unit 13 outputs a control signal for controlling the opening / closing of the switch circuit 15 in accordance with the state of the engine determined by the idling state detection unit 12. Then, when the switch circuit 15 is closed, power is supplied from the stabilized power supply circuit 16 to the on-vehicle electrical equipment side. The gyro 14 outputs the outputs shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 while the engine is stopped, idling, and running. Fig. 2 shows a state where the engine is stopped, Fig. 3 shows a state where the engine is idling, and Fig. 4 shows a state where the vehicle is running. This is the frequency spectrum at the time.

[0032] The peak signal 22 in Fig. 3 represents the vibration caused by the idling of the engine, the peak signal 23 in Fig. 4 is the vibration due to the rotation of the engine during running, and the peak signal 24 is caused by the unevenness of the road surface during running. The vibration and the signal at the time of turning of the vehicle are shown.

[0033] Since these peak signals 22, 23 are not detected when the engine is stopped as shown in Fig. 2, the signal components included in the frequency band are signals generated by the operation of the engine. That is, it is possible to determine the operation state of the engine by passing the output of the gyro 14 through a filter that transmits only the signal of the frequency band 21. When the vibration detecting means 11 detects the output from the gyro 14, The idling state detecting means 12 determines the operating state of the engine based on the output signal.

Next, the idling determination process as the engine operation status detection process will be described based on the flowchart of FIG.

First, after performing a wait process for a fixed time in order to input the data detected by the gyro 14 at a period T (step S 1), the vibration detection means 11 samples the output data of the gyro 14 and The data is accumulated in the buffer provided in the detecting means 11 (step S2).

Next, it is determined whether or not the number of data stored in the buffer has exceeded a predetermined number n of data (step S3) .If the number of stored data is not less than に, the process proceeds to step S4. Return to

In step S 4, the vibration detection means 11 performs a discrete Fourier transform using the past n output data stored in the data buffer, and calculates a frequency spectrum for the output data.

Next, an output amplitude level within the frequency band fl-fu is calculated from the frequency spectrum by the vibration detecting means 11 (step S5). Next, the idling state detecting means In step 12, it is determined whether the output amplitude level calculated in step S5 exceeds a predetermined amplitude level (step S6) .If the output amplitude level is lower than the predetermined level, the process proceeds to step S7. Move to S8.

[0038] In step S7, the notification content of the output means 13 is set so that the engine is stopped. In step S8, the notification content of the output means 13 is set so as to be idling. The operation state is notified to the external device (step S9).

When the process of step S9 is completed, the process returns to step S1, and the processes after step S1 are repeatedly executed. As a result, power control of the vehicle-mounted electrical equipment is performed according to the notification content of the output means 13.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the vibration detecting means 11 that detects only the signal due to the engine rotation included in the output of the gyro 14 and the output of the specific frequency band detected by the vibration detecting means 11 Idling state detection means 12 for judging whether or not the engine is idling using the amplitude level of the signal, and output means for notifying and outputting the judgment result of the idling state detection means 12 to an external device connected to the engine operation state detection device 10 13 to detect the magnitude of the vibration generated in the vehicle and indirectly detect the vibration of the engine to detect the engine operation status between the vehicle and the engine operation status detection device 10. It is possible to notify whether or not the engine is idling while reducing costs with a simple configuration without the need for wiring.

[0041] As described above, when the engine operation status detecting device notifies the engine stop, the power consumption of the electronic device is reduced by not supplying power to a part of the electronic device mounted on the vehicle. S can. It should be noted that the idling state detecting means 12 may notify the user by a user-side output device such as a voice or a liquid crystal display panel.

[0042] In the above description, the engine operating condition detecting device 10 that detects the operating condition of the engine using the output of the gyro 14 that detects the turning angular velocity of the vehicle has been described. As shown in (5), an acceleration sensor (vibration detecting means) 31 used to detect the moving acceleration of the vehicle in the front-back direction, the left-right direction, the up-down direction, or the inclination angle with respect to the horizontal plane may be used. With this configuration, the magnitude of the vehicle vibration can be detected by the acceleration sensor 31 provided on the vehicle. It is possible to detect the operation state of the engine without adding hardware, and it is possible to further reduce the cost of the engine operation state detection device 10.

Further, the same effect can be obtained by using an angular velocity sensor that detects an angular velocity around at least one of the pitch, roll, and yaw axes of the vehicle instead of the acceleration sensor 31.

[0044] Furthermore, if the gyro, acceleration sensor, and angular velocity sensor for detecting the vibration of the vehicle are shared with the sensors used for the positioning function of the car navigation device mounted on the vehicle, new hardware is added. It is possible to detect the operating state of the engine that does not need to be performed, and the cost of the engine operating state detecting device can be further reduced.

If the built-in battery 32 is provided in the engine operating condition detecting device 10 as shown in FIG. 6, no wiring is required between the vehicle and the engine operating condition detecting device 10 for detecting the engine operating condition. As a result, the engine operation status detection device 10 can be detached from the vehicle by forming a unit, and can be used as an optional device retrofitted to the engine operation status detection device 10. .

Industrial applicability

As described above, the engine operating condition detecting device according to the present invention can eliminate the need for wiring between the moving body and the engine operating condition detecting device for detecting the engine operating condition, and can reduce the cost. An engine installed on a moving object such as a vehicle that has the effect of being able to detect the operating status of the engine and notify the operating status of the engine to users and external devices, and that can be driven by the engine. It is useful as an engine operation status detecting device having a function of determining the operation status of the engine.

Claims

The scope of the claims

[1] vibration detecting means for detecting vibration generated in a moving body that can travel by an engine,

An engine operation state determination unit that determines an operation state of the engine according to the vibration detected by the vibration detection unit;

And a notifying means for notifying a result of the judgment by the engine operating state judging means.

[2] The vibration detecting means detects a signal of a specific frequency due to rotation of the engine, and the engine state determining means uses an amplitude level of an output signal of a specific frequency band detected by the vibration detecting means. The engine operating condition detecting device according to claim 1, wherein the engine operating state is determined by an idling state.

3. The vibration detecting means according to claim 1, wherein the vibration detecting means comprises an angular velocity sensor for detecting an angular velocity around at least one of a pitch, a roll and a yaw axis of the moving body.

2. The engine operating condition detecting device according to any one of the two items.

4. The vibration detecting means according to claim 1, wherein the vibration detecting means includes an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration in at least one direction of the moving body in the front-back direction, the left-right direction, and the up-down direction. The engine operating condition detection device according to item 4.

[5] Vibration detecting means for detecting vibration generated in the moving body in a moving body that can run by the engine,

Notification means for notifying the determination result of the engine operation state determination means, wherein the vibration detection means detects an angular velocity around at least one of a pitch, a roll and a yaw axis of the moving body, or the movement An acceleration sensor configured to detect acceleration in at least one of a front-rear direction, a left-right direction, and a vertical direction of the body, wherein the vibration detecting means is incorporated in a car navigation device mounted on the moving body. Characteristic engine operation status detection device.