Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Vehicle control – guidance – operation – or indication – Vehicle subsystem or accessory control
Reexamination Certificate
2003-06-26
2004-10-19
Camby, Richard M. (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Vehicle control, guidance, operation, or indication
Vehicle subsystem or accessory control
C701S054000, C701S101000, C165S271000, C062S181000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06807470
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention belongs to a technical field of a vehicle control system that performs optimum control over an engine in consideration of power load applied onto the engine by auxiliary machines.
2. Description of the Related Art
A control system disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 6-137148 is well known as a control system of this type.
This prior publication describes a technique for controlling a cooling fan with the aim of controlling the operation of the cooling fan according to the operation state of an airconditioner, the control being performed in such a manner that the use of a thermostat is switched over, according to the operating ratio of an airconditioning compressor, between a low-temperature setting thermostat and a high-temperature setting thermostat, which are provided in parallel in an engine cooling water circulation circuit.
Specifically, in this prior art, when the operating ratio of the airconditioning compressor is equal to or higher than a set value, an engine cooling water is made to flow toward the low-temperature setting thermostat side. Consequently, the engine cooling water is controlled to a temperature in a lower range, so that the temperature rise by a radiator is controlled to a low level, which inhibits the temperature rise in an engine room. On the other hand, when the operating ratio of the airconditioning compressor is lower than the set value, the engine cooling water is made to flow toward the high-temperature setting thermostat side, so that the engine cooling water is controlled to a temperature in a higher range to improve engine efficiency.
The above-described prior art, however, has the following problems.
Specifically, the engine cooling water is controlled to a temperature in a lower range under the condition in which the airconditioning heat load on a vehicle side is high as in summer, while the engine cooling water is controlled to a temperature in a higher range under the condition in which heating is necessary as in winter, which means that the water temperature is controlled independently of the engine load.
Therefore, even when the engine load is high as in, for example, an acceleration mode or a slope ascending mode, the engine cooling water is controlled to a temperature in a higher range since the operating ratio of the compressor is low in winter, and the cooling fan is operated at a high speed even in winter, which results in large power consumption for driving the fan. This increases the engine load due to the increase in the alternator load to further raise the water temperature.
Further, under the summer conditions, the control of the engine cooling water to a temperature in a lower range results in insufficient decrease in viscosity of a lubricating oil inside the engine, so that friction drag inside the engine becomes high compared with that in the case when the engine cooling water is controlled to an appropriately high temperature. This increases a fuel consumption amount by the engine to lower fuel efficiency.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is made in view of the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle control system capable of controlling the total engine load expressed by the sum total of the loads given on an engine by auxiliary machines to improve fuel efficiency which is dependent on the total engine load.
In order to achieve the object stated above, a vehicle control system according to claim
1
of the present invention includes:
an engine configured to drive a vehicle;
an alternator as an auxiliary machine of the engine, driven mainly by the engine;
an airconditioning compressor driven mainly by the engine and having a refrigerant discharge rate control unit capable of adjusting a refrigerant discharge rate per one rotation;
a cooling motor fan driven by an electric power generated by the alternator, including a motor having a motor rotation speed control unit capable of adjusting a rotation speed of the motor, and being configured to introduce an outside air mainly to an airconditioning heat exchanger and an engine cooling heat exchanger;
an engine cooling unit configured to adjust at least one of a water temperature and an oil temperature of the engine; and
a control unit configured to control the engine and auxiliary machines,
the vehicle control system being characterized in that:
the control unit includes an engine control section consisting of:
a temperature-dependent engine control section configured to control a fuel consumption amount of the engine based on at least one of the water temperature and the oil temperature of the engine;
a power-dependent engine control section configured to control the fuel consumption amount of the engine based on an electric power essentially consumed by the cooling motor fan in the vehicle; and
an airconditioning-dependent engine control section configured to control the fuel consumption amount of the engine based on the refrigerant discharge rate of the airconditioning compressor; and
the control unit performs one of the following control operations:
to derive, by an optimizing technique, a combination of controls over the auxiliary machines that minimizes the fuel consumption amount of the engine, to control the auxiliary machines;
to control an object to be controlled involved in at least two engine control sections among the engine control sections, prior to other objects to be controlled, in order to minimize the fuel consumption amount of the engine; and
to control the auxiliary machines in descending order of magnitude of motive power.
A vehicle control system according to claim
2
includes:
an engine configured to drive a vehicle;
a transmission unit configured to transmit a motive power generated in the engine to a vehicle driving system by changing a rotation speed;
an alternator as an auxiliary machine of the engine, driven mainly by the engine;
an airconditioning compressor driven mainly by the engine and having a refrigerant discharge rate control unit capable of adjusting a refrigerant discharge rate per one rotation;
a cooling motor fan driven by an electric power generated by the alternator, including a motor having a motor rotation speed control unit capable of adjusting a rotation speed of the motor, and being configured to introduce an outside air mainly to an airconditioning heat exchanger and an engine cooling heat exchanger;
an engine cooling unit configured to adjust at least one of a water temperature and an oil temperature of the engine;
a transmission unit oil temperature adjusting unit configured to adjust an oil temperature of the transmission unit; and
a control unit configured to control the engine and auxiliary machines,
the vehicle control system being characterized in that:
the control unit includes an engine control section consisting of:
a temperature-dependent engine control section configured to control a fuel consumption amount of the engine based on at least one of the water temperature of the engine, the oil temperature of the engine, and the oil temperature of the transmission unit;
a power-dependent engine control section configured to control the fuel consumption amount of the engine based on an electric power mainly consumed by the cooling motor fan in the vehicle; and
an airconditioning-dependent engine control section for controlling the fuel consumption amount of the engine based on the refrigerant discharge rate of the airconditioning compressor; and
the control unit performs one of the following control operations:
to derive, by an optimizing technique, a combination of controls over the auxiliary machines that minimizes the fuel consumption amount of the engine, to control the auxiliary machines;
to control an object to be controlled involved in at least two engine control sections among the engine control sections, prior to other objects to be controlled, in order to minimize the fuel consumption amount of the engine; and
to control the auxiliary machines in descending order of mag
Calsonic Kansei Corporation
Camby Richard M.
Wenderoth , Lind & Ponack, L.L.P.
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