System and method for braking in an electric vehicle

Abstract

An electric traction system for an electric vehicle includes an internal combustion engine and a generator coupled to the engine, a power bus coupled to the generator, a power storage unit coupled to the power bus, a drive controller coupled to an electric motor and to the power bus, and a vehicle controller coupled to the drive controller. The generator is configured to receive electrical power regenerated onto the power bus by the electric motor in order to provide mechanical power to the engine, and the engine is configured to dissipate the mechanical power in order to provide a braking function.

Description

[0001] Cross References to Related Applications [0002] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Application No. 10 / 718,051, filed March 16, 2004, which is a continuation of U.S. Application No. 09 / 774,981, filed January 31, 2001, now Patent No. 6,757,597. Divisional Case, both of which are incorporated herein by reference. This application is also a continuation-in-part of US Application No. 10 / 326,862, filed December 19, 2002, which is also incorporated herein by reference. technical field [0003] The present invention relates generally to the field of electric vehicles, and more particularly to systems and methods for providing braking capability in electric vehicles. Background technique [0004] An electric traction vehicle is a vehicle that uses electricity in one way or another to provide all or part of the vehicle's propulsion. This electricity can come from a variety of sources, such as energy storage devices that rely on chemical changes to generate e...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

Using this method to store and dissipate excess power during a large number of braking cycles reduces the service life of the energy storage device and, depending on the size required, adds cost and complexity to the system with additional energy dissipating systems

Also, high costs can be associated with using and maintaining mechanical braking systems, especially on heavy electric vehicles such as fire trucks, military vehicles, garbage disposals, etc.

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