Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Vehicle control – guidance – operation – or indication – With indicator or control of power plant
Reexamination Certificate
2001-10-02
2004-09-21
Wolfe, Willis R. (Department: 3747)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Vehicle control, guidance, operation, or indication
With indicator or control of power plant
C123S179300, C701S114000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06795766
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention is based on a circuit arrangement for controlling a starting relay of a starter for a motor vehicle internal combustion engine as generically defined by the preamble to the main claim. From German Patent Disclosure DE 198 11 176 A1, an arrangement and a method are already known in which a computer (controller) controls the starter current for starting the starter after the closure of the contacts of a starting relay (two-stage process). The computer controls the voltage and/or current, or the ON time for the starter until such time as the engine has turned over. However, if some malfunction of the computer occurs, which can happen especially with an old, weak battery, and at low temperatures, for instance, then this necessarily causes the failure of the starting relay and thus the undesired interruption of the starting event. The engine can no longer turn over in that case.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The circuit arrangement of the invention for controlling the starting relay has the advantage over the prior art that the starting event for the engine can be continued even if a chronologically limited voltage drop occurs at the starting relay. This has the advantage that even with a weak battery, as long as there is still enough energy to crank the engine, the engine can in fact turn over. This means that a trip to a repair facility can at least be postponed.
It is especially advantageous that upon the occurrence of a voltage dip, the memory circuit with the flip-flop freezes the instantaneous logic switching state of the starting relay. This is because a voltage dip can means that the controlling computer can no longer be supplied with sufficient energy. In that case, the computer switches to the reset mode, to prevent mistaken control actions. Only once the undervoltage has been eliminated and the computer has regained full control after the voltage dip, does the computer switch the locking circuit to inactive status again and can now resume the normal control mode for operating the starting relay.
The locking circuit is advantageously embodied such that it functions perfectly even at such low voltages that the controlling computer can no longer be operated. In this way, voltage dips down to approximately 4 volts, for instance, can be spanned without chronological limitation. By buffering the supply voltage, for instance using electrolyte capacitors, brief voltage dips, lasting 100 ms and longer, for instance, even down to 0 volts, can be spanned; the duration is determined by the corresponding dimensioning.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4005342 (1977-01-01), Davis
patent: 4331109 (1982-05-01), Arnault
patent: 4862010 (1989-08-01), Yamamoto
patent: 4888697 (1989-12-01), Hemminger et al.
patent: 4924399 (1990-05-01), Kaiser et al.
patent: 6389353 (2002-05-01), Kondo
patent: 6415210 (2002-07-01), Hozuka et al.
patent: 6438487 (2002-08-01), Mingo et al.
patent: 198 11 176 (1999-04-01), None
Gruenewald Martin
Theisen Johannes
Hoang Johnny H.
Robert & Bosch GmbH
Striker Michael J.
Wolfe Willis R.
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