US6853893B2
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Electronic control system for torque distribution in hybrid vehicles
Assignee: STMicroelectronics SRL
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Filing: 2003-10-29
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Granted: 2005-02-08
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Expires: 2023-10-29
Abstract
Abstract An electronic torque control and distribution system is provided for a hybrid propulsion vehicle. The drive thrust of the hybrid propulsion vehicle is distributed between an electric engine and an internal combustion engine through a transmission system. The transmission system delivers the torque of both engines to the vehicle wheels. The electronic torque control and distribution system is slaved to a control unit, and includes a controller for incorporating a fuzzy logic processor to predict through soft computing techniques the torque contributions of the electric engine and of the internal combustion engine. A sensor estimates the vehicle polluting emissions. The controller and the sensor are both connected to the control unit.
Inventors
- 👤 Giuseppe Esposito Corcione
- 👤 Gianguido Rizzotto
- 👤 Gianluca Vitale
- 👤 Tommaso Novia
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-27 23:52
CPC Classifications
B; B60; B60W; B60W10/00; B60W10/04; B60W10/06; B60K; B60K6/00; B60K6/20; B60K6/42; B60K6/48; B60K6/50; B60K6/54; B60K6/543; B60W50/00; B60W50/0097; B60L; B60L2240/00; B60L2240/40; B60L2240/48; B60L2240/486; B60W20/00; B60W2510/00; B60W2510/06; B60W2510/0657; B60W2510/24; B60W2510/242; B60W2510/244; B60W2552/00; B60W2552/35; B60W2710/00; B60W2710/10; B60W2710/105; Y; Y02; Y02T; Y02T10/00; Y02T10/10; Y02T10/40; Y02T10/60; Y02T10/62; Y10; Y10S; Y10S903/00; Y10S903/902; Y10S903/903; Y10S903/904; Y10S903/915; Y10S903/917; Y10S903/918
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 36
Claim 1
Independent Claim
101 words
An electronic torque control and distribution system for a hybrid propulsion vehicle wherein a drive thrust of the vehicle is distributed between an electric engine and an internal combustion engine through a transmission system delivering torque of both engines to wheels of the vehicle, the system comprising: a control unit for controlling the transmission system; a controller connected to said control unit and comprising a fuzzy logic processor for predicting through soft computing techniques torque contributions of the electric engine and of the internal combustion engine; and a sensor connected to said control unit for estimating polluting emissions from the vehicle.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
101 words
An electronic torque control and distribution system for a hybrid propulsion vehicle wherein a drive thrust of the vehicle is distributed between an electric engine and an internal combustion engine through a transmission system delivering torque of both engines to wheels of the vehicle, the system comprising: a control unit for controlling the transmission system; a controller connected to said control unit and comprising a fuzzy logic processor for predicting through soft computing techniques torque contributions of the electric engine and of the internal combustion engine; and a sensor connected to said control unit for estimating polluting emissions from the vehicle.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
63 words
A system according to claim 1 , wherein said controller and said control unit receive as input a predetermined number of operating parameters of the vehicle and of the engines, and respectively comprise control outputs for actuator elements of the vehicle and for the engines; and wherein said controller further comprises a control output for providing a torque request to said control unit.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
25 words
A system according to claim 2 , wherein the actuator elements of the vehicle comprise at least one of a clutch and the transmission system.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
39 words
A system according to claim 2 , wherein said controller receives at least one of the following inputs: path profiles, driving commands, system component status, fuel mass capacity, electric drive phase currents, battery supplied current, and transmission system status.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
30 words
A system according to claim 1 , wherein the internal combustion engine operates at steady state, and wherein additional torque required by the vehicle is provided by the electric engine.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
62 words
A system according to claim 1 , wherein the vehicle comprises batteries for supplying energy to the electric engine; and wherein said fuzzy logic processor in said controller receives as input at least one of a state-of-charge signal of the batteries supplying the electric engine and a signal indicating a path calculated based upon an average and variance of the vehicle speed.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
20 words
A system according to claim 6 , wherein the signal indicating the calculated path is recalculated at predetermined time intervals.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
40 words
A system according to claim 1 , wherein said control unit receives the following inputs: electric drive phase currents, electric machine angular speed, thermal machine angular speed, thermal engine timing, out-vehicle conditions, and a torque requests output by said controller.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
135 words
A system according to claim 6 , wherein said fuzzy logic processor operates on membership functions according to the following fuzzy inference rules: A) if (cycle is off) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 0) (time is 0); B) if (cycle is urban) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 0) (time is 1); C) if (cycle is comb) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 50) (time is 1); D) if (cycle is extra) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 50) (time is 1); and E) if (soc is soc_low) then (Tice is 100) (time is 0); wherein cycle is the signal indicating the path calculated based upon an average and variance of the vehicle speed, and soc is the signal of the batteries supplying the electric engine.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
34 words
A system according to claim 1 , wherein said control unit provides an output signal defining a fuel capacity required for the internal combustion engine, with the output signal being provided through said sensor.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
33 words
A system according to claim 1 , wherein the predicting is performed by monitoring a present vehicle state and a past history related to driving conditions based upon data stored in said controller.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
94 words
A hybrid propulsion vehicle comprising: an electric engine; an internal combustion engine; at least one axle; a transmission system delivering torque from said electric energy and said internal combustion engine to said at least one axle; and an electronic torque control and distribution system comprising a control unit for controlling said transmission system, a controller connected to said control unit and comprising a fuzzy logic processor for predicting contributions of said electric engine and of said internal combustion engine, and a sensor connected to said control unit for estimating polluting emissions from the vehicle.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
94 words
A hybrid propulsion vehicle comprising: an electric engine; an internal combustion engine; at least one axle; a transmission system delivering torque from said electric energy and said internal combustion engine to said at least one axle; and an electronic torque control and distribution system comprising a control unit for controlling said transmission system, a controller connected to said control unit and comprising a fuzzy logic processor for predicting contributions of said electric engine and of said internal combustion engine, and a sensor connected to said control unit for estimating polluting emissions from the vehicle.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
71 words
A vehicle according to claim 12 , further comprising at least one actuator element; wherein said controller and said control unit receive as input a predetermined number of operating parameters of the vehicle and of said engines, and respectively comprise control outputs for said at least one actuator element and for said engines; and wherein said controller further comprises a control output for providing a torque request to said control unit.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
17 words
A vehicle according to claim 13 , wherein said at least one actuator element comprises a clutch.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
39 words
A vehicle according to claim 13 , wherein said controller receives at least one of the following inputs: path profiles, driving commands, system component status, fuel mass capacity, electric drive phase currents, battery supplied current, and transmission system status.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
30 words
A vehicle according to claim 12 , wherein said internal combustion engine operates at steady state, and wherein additional torque required by the vehicle is provided by said electric engine.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
66 words
A vehicle according to claim 12 , further comprising at least one battery for supplying energy to said electric engine; and wherein said fuzzy logic processor in said controller receives as input at least one of a state-of-charge signal of said at least one battery supplying said electric engine and a signal indicating a path calculated based upon an average and variance of the vehicle speed.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
20 words
A vehicle according to claim 17 , wherein the signal indicating the calculated path is recalculated at predetermined time intervals.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
40 words
A vehicle according to claim 12 , wherein said control unit receives the following inputs: electric drive phase currents, electric machine angular speed, thermal machine angular speed, thermal engine timing, out-vehicle conditions, and a torque requests output by said controller.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
135 words
A vehicle according to claim 17 , wherein said fuzzy logic processor operates on membership functions according to the following fuzzy inference rules: A) if (cycle is off) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 0) (time is 0) B) if (cycle is urban) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 0) (time is 1); C) if (cycle is comb) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 50) (time is 1); D) if (cycle is extra) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 50) (time is 1); and E) if (soc is soc_low) then (Tice is 100) (time is 0); wherein cycle is the signal indicating the path calculated based upon an average and variance of the vehicle speed, and soc is the signal of the batteries supplying the electric engine.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
33 words
A vehicle according to claim 22 , wherein said control unit provides an output signal defining a fuel capacity required for said internal combustion engine, the output signal being provided via said sensor.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
33 words
A vehicle according to claim 12 , wherein the predicting is performed by monitoring a present vehicle state and a past history related to driving conditions based upon data stored in said controller.
Claim 25
Independent Claim
108 words
A method for providing electronic torque control and distribution in a hybrid propulsion vehicle wherein a drive thrust of the vehicle is distributed between an electric engine and an internal combustion engine through a transmission system delivering torque of both engines to wheels of the vehicle, the method comprising: controlling the transmission system using a control unit; predicting torque contributions of the electric engine and of the internal combustion engine using a controller connected to the control unit, the controller comprising a fuzzy logic processor for performing the predicting through soft computing techniques; and estimating polluting emissions from the vehicle using a sensor connected to the control unit.
Claim 26
Independent Claim
108 words
A method for providing electronic torque control and distribution in a hybrid propulsion vehicle wherein a drive thrust of the vehicle is distributed between an electric engine and an internal combustion engine through a transmission system delivering torque of both engines to wheels of the vehicle, the method comprising: controlling the transmission system using a control unit; predicting torque contributions of the electric engine and of the internal combustion engine using a controller connected to the control unit, the controller comprising a fuzzy logic processor for performing the predicting through soft computing techniques; and estimating polluting emissions from the vehicle using a sensor connected to the control unit.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
63 words
A method according to claim 23 , wherein the controller and the control unit receive as input a predetermined number of operating parameters of the vehicle and of the engines, and respectively comprise control outputs for actuator elements of the vehicle and for the engines; and wherein the controller further comprises a control output for providing a torque request to the control unit.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
25 words
A method according to claim 24 , wherein the actuator elements of the vehicle comprise at least one of a clutch and the transmission system.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
39 words
A method according to claim 24 , wherein said controller receives at least one of the following inputs: path profiles, driving commands, system component status, fuel mass capacity, electric drive phase currents, battery supplied current, and transmission system status.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
30 words
A method according to claim 23 , wherein the internal combustion engine operates at steady state, and wherein additional torque required by the vehicle is provided by the electric engine.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
62 words
A method according to claim 23 , wherein the vehicle comprises batteries for supplying energy to the electric engine; and wherein the fuzzy logic processor in the controller receives as input at least one of a state-of-charge signal of the batteries supplying the electric engine and a signal indicating a path calculated based upon an average and variance of the vehicle speed.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
20 words
A method according to claim 28 , wherein the signal indicating the calculated path is recalculated at predetermined time intervals.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
40 words
A method according to claim 23 , wherein the control unit receives the following inputs: electric drive phase currents, electric machine angular speed, thermal machine angular speed, thermal engine timing, out-vehicle conditions, and a torque requests output by said controller.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
135 words
A method according to claim 28 , wherein the fuzzy logic processor operates on membership functions according to the following fuzzy inference rules: A) if (cycle is off) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 0) (time is 0); B) if (cycle is urban) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 0) (time is 1); C) if (cycle is comb) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 50) (time is 1); D) if (cycle is extra) and (soc is not soc_low) then (Tice is 50) (time is 1); and E) if (soc is soc_low) then (Tice is 100) (time is 0); wherein cycle is the signal indicating the path calculated based upon an average and variance of the vehicle speed, and soc is the signal of the batteries supplying the electric engine.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
34 words
A method according to claim 23 , wherein the control unit provides an output signal defining a fuel capacity required for the internal combustion engine, with the output signal being provided through the sensor.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
36 words
A method according to claim 23 , wherein the predicting is performed by monitoring a present vehicle state and a past history related to driving conditions based upon a plurality of data stored in said controller.
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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) | 2008-02-08 | 2008-08-09 | 2009-02-08 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2012-02-08 | 2012-08-09 | 2013-02-08 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2016-02-08 | 2016-08-09 | 2017-02-08 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |