US5664635A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Control system for inhibiting unintended use of hybrid electric vehicle
Assignee: Mitsubishi Motors Corp
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Filing: 1995-05-18
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Granted: 1997-09-09
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Expires: 2015-05-18
Abstract
Abstract A hybrid electric vehicle is equipped with a combustion engine for driving a generator or a combustion engine for driving vehicle wheels. The hybrid electric vehicle has a battery unit, an electric drive motor, the combustion engine directly or indirectly usable for driving wheels, and a controller for controlling operations of the electric drive motor and the combustion engine. The hybrid electric vehicle is further provided with a microcomputer for determining whether or not the battery unit meets a predetermined specification. When the battery unit is determined as failing to meet the predetermined specification by the microcomputer, the controller limits an output of the electric drive motor or the combustion engine.
Inventors
- 👤 Hisamitsu Koga
- 👤 Naotake Kumagai
- 👤 Tomiji Ohwada
- 👤 Nobuya Furukawa
- 👤 Masaaki Kato
- 👤 Nobuyuki Kawamura
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 00:02
CPC Classifications
B; B60; B60L; B60L58/00; B60L58/10; B60K; B60K28/00; B60K28/10; B60K6/00; B60K6/20; B60K6/42; B60K6/46; B60K6/48; B60K6/485; B60L15/00; B60L15/20; B60L3/00; B60L3/0023; B60L3/0046; B60L3/04; B60L50/00; B60L50/10; B60L50/16; B60L50/50; B60L50/60; B60L50/61; B60W; B60W10/00; B60W10/04; B60W10/06; B60W10/08; B60W10/24; B60W10/26; B60W20/00; B60W20/50; B60W50/00; B60W50/08; B60W50/082; B60W50/085; B60K1/00; B60K1/04; B60K2001/0455; B60L2250/00; B60L2250/12; B60W50/14; B60W2050/143; B60W2050/146; B60W2510/00; B60W2510/24; B60W2510/242; B60W2510/244; B60W2540/00; B60W2540/215; Y; Y02; Y02T; Y02T10/00; Y02T10/60; Y02T10/62; Y02T10/64; Y02T10/70; Y02T10/7072; Y02T10/72
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 8
Claim 1
Independent Claim
136 words
A hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: a rechargeable battery unit; an electric drive motor which drives wheels of said vehicle by an electric power from said rechargeable battery unit; a generator which charges said rechargeable battery unit; a combustion engine which drives said generator; a controller which controls operations of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine; a determining unit which determines whether said rechargeable battery unit has been removed or replaced with another battery unit which fails to meet a predetermined specification; wherein said controller limits the output from said electric drive motor by inhibiting operation of at least one of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine when said determining unit determines that said rechargeable battery unit has been removed or said rechargeable battery unit has been replaced with said another battery unit.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
136 words
A hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: a rechargeable battery unit; an electric drive motor which drives wheels of said vehicle by an electric power from said rechargeable battery unit; a generator which charges said rechargeable battery unit; a combustion engine which drives said generator; a controller which controls operations of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine; a determining unit which determines whether said rechargeable battery unit has been removed or replaced with another battery unit which fails to meet a predetermined specification; wherein said controller limits the output from said electric drive motor by inhibiting operation of at least one of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine when said determining unit determines that said rechargeable battery unit has been removed or said rechargeable battery unit has been replaced with said another battery unit.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
148 words
A hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: a recharge able battery unit; an electric drive motor which drives wheels of said vehicle by an electric power from said rechargeable battery unit; a generator which charges said rechargeable battery unit; a combustion engine which drives said generator; a controller which controls operations of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine; a determining unit which determines whether said rechargeable battery unit has been removed or replaced with another battery unit which fails to meet a predetermined specification; wherein, when said determining unit determines that said rechargeable battery unit has been removed or said rechargeable battery unit has been replaced with said another battery unit, said controller limits the output from said electric drive motor by gradually reducing a maximum output torque when at least one of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine operates faster than a preset rotational speed.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
148 words
A hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: a recharge able battery unit; an electric drive motor which drives wheels of said vehicle by an electric power from said rechargeable battery unit; a generator which charges said rechargeable battery unit; a combustion engine which drives said generator; a controller which controls operations of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine; a determining unit which determines whether said rechargeable battery unit has been removed or replaced with another battery unit which fails to meet a predetermined specification; wherein, when said determining unit determines that said rechargeable battery unit has been removed or said rechargeable battery unit has been replaced with said another battery unit, said controller limits the output from said electric drive motor by gradually reducing a maximum output torque when at least one of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine operates faster than a preset rotational speed.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
130 words
A hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: a rechargeable battery unit; an electric drive motor which drives wheels of said vehicle by an electric power from said rechargeable battery unit; a combustion engine which indirectly drives said wheels; and a control unit which controls operations of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine; a battery removal determining unit which determines whether said rechargeable battery unit is being mounted in a specific mounting position; wherein said control unit gradually reduces an output torque of said electric drive motor to limit an output of said electric drive motor, when said battery removal determination unit determines that said rechargeable battery unit is not being mounted in said specific mounting position and a rotational speed of said electric drive motor exceeds a preset rotational speed.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
130 words
A hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: a rechargeable battery unit; an electric drive motor which drives wheels of said vehicle by an electric power from said rechargeable battery unit; a combustion engine which indirectly drives said wheels; and a control unit which controls operations of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine; a battery removal determining unit which determines whether said rechargeable battery unit is being mounted in a specific mounting position; wherein said control unit gradually reduces an output torque of said electric drive motor to limit an output of said electric drive motor, when said battery removal determination unit determines that said rechargeable battery unit is not being mounted in said specific mounting position and a rotational speed of said electric drive motor exceeds a preset rotational speed.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
97 words
A hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: a rechargeable battery unit; an electric drive motor which drives wheels of said vehicle by an electric power from said rechargeable battery unit; a combustion engine which directly drives said wheels; a controller which controls operations of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine; and a battery removal determination unit which determines whether said rechargeable battery unit is being mounted at a specified mounting position; wherein said controller limits an output of said electric drive motor, when said battery removal determination unit determines that said rechargeable battery unit has been removed.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
97 words
A hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: a rechargeable battery unit; an electric drive motor which drives wheels of said vehicle by an electric power from said rechargeable battery unit; a combustion engine which directly drives said wheels; a controller which controls operations of said electric drive motor and said combustion engine; and a battery removal determination unit which determines whether said rechargeable battery unit is being mounted at a specified mounting position; wherein said controller limits an output of said electric drive motor, when said battery removal determination unit determines that said rechargeable battery unit has been removed.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2000-09-08 | 2001-03-10 | 2001-09-09 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2004-09-08 | 2005-03-10 | 2005-09-09 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2008-09-08 | 2009-03-10 | 2009-09-09 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |