Startup control method for electric heater, and controller and heating device

Abstract

Disclosed in the present application are a startup control method for an electric heater, and a controller and a heating device. The startup control method comprises: when a heating instruction is received, acquiring a temperature, which is measured by a first temperature sensor, wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged at a liquid inlet of an electric heater, a startup process of the electric heater is divided into a plurality of operation stages, and the operation stages respectively correspond to different power control strategies; determining a startup duration on the basis of a temperature interval corresponding to the temperature, which is measured by the first temperature sensor, wherein the startup duration comprises the duration of each operation stage among the plurality of operation stages; and on the basis of the duration of each operation stage, controlling the electric heater to start in the plurality of operation stages according to the corresponding power control strategies. By means of the present application, a water pump can rapidly establish flow in severe environments, and reliably and stably start with higher safety, so as to avoid an electric heater from being damaged due to the appearance of a localized overheating zone, such that the heating efficiency is high, and the probability of the protective locking of the electric heater can be effectively reduced while rapid temperature rise is realized.

Description

Method for starting control of electric heater, controller and heating device TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of heating, more particularly to a method for starting control of an electric heater, a controller and a heating device. BACKGROUND

[0002] New energy vehicles generally use electric heaters for heating. In the current new energy vehicles, the flow information of the water pump is generally not transmitted to the electric heater. Even if the control device estimates the flow information of the water pump according to the speed of the water pump, the ambient temperature and the viscosity of the coolant and other factors, since there is a large difference between the estimated flow and the actual flow, the controller of the electric heater is prone to controlling the heating element to work according to the wrong flow information, and there is a situation that the electric heater operates at a high power without flow or with very low flow, which causes the electric heater to be prone to over-temperature.

[0003] SUMMARY

[0004] Therefore, the present application provides a method for starting control of an electric heater, a controller and a heating device, which can quickly establish flow at low temperature, avoid damage to the electric heater due to local hot spots, improve heating efficiency, reliably and stably start in harsh environments, have high safety, and effectively reduce the probability of protection lock of the electric heater when achieving rapid heating.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides a method for starting control of an electric heater, the starting control method comprising: in the case of receiving a heating instruction, acquiring a temperature detected by a first temperature sensor, wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged at a liquid inlet of the electric heater, and a starting process of the electric heater is divided into a plurality of working stages, each working stage corresponding to a different power control strategy; determining a starting duration according to a temperature interval corresponding to the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor, wherein the starting duration includes a duration of each working stage in the plurality of working stages; and controlling the electric heater to start in the plurality of working stages according to the corresponding power control strategy according to the duration of each working stage.

[0006] Preferably, the plurality of working stages includes a starting heating stage, and in the starting heating stage, the power control strategy includes: in the case that a requested power of the electric heater when starting heating is less than or equal to a first preset power threshold, controlling the electric heater to operate at the requested power; and in the case that the requested power is greater than the first preset power threshold, controlling the electric heater to operate at the first preset power threshold for a first preset duration, the first preset duration being the duration of the starting heating stage.

[0007] Preferably, in the case that the requested power is greater than the first preset power threshold, the plurality of working stages comprises: a slow rising stage, in which the power control strategy comprises: increasing the power of the electric heater according to a preset acceleration or increasing the power of the electric heater according to a preset acceleration every second preset time interval, until the power is increased to a set proportion of the requested power, the set proportion is greater than the ratio of the first preset power threshold to the requested power and less than or equal to 1; and / or a fast rising stage, in which the power control strategy comprises: increasing the power of the electric heater to the requested power at a 1s low-pass filtered power rising rate.

[0008] Preferably, the plurality of working stages comprises a delay start stage, in which the power control strategy comprises: in the case that the heating instruction is received, controlling the electric heater to enter the starting heating stage after a third preset time interval and controlling the water pump to start working to flow the cooling liquid to the electric heater, wherein the third preset time interval is the duration of the delay start stage.

[0009] Preferably, the temperature interval comprises less than or equal to a first preset temperature threshold, greater than the first preset temperature threshold and less than a second preset temperature threshold, greater than or equal to the second preset temperature threshold; in the case that the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is less than or equal to the first preset temperature threshold, the sum of the durations of the plurality of working stages is a first time interval; in the case that the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is greater than the first preset temperature threshold and less than the second preset temperature threshold, the sum of the durations of the plurality of working stages is a second time interval, the second time interval is less than the first time interval; in the case that the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is greater than or equal to the second preset temperature threshold, the sum of the durations of the plurality of working stages is a third time interval, the third time interval is less than the second time interval.

[0010] Preferably, the start control method of the electric heater comprises: acquiring a temperature detected by a second temperature sensor, the second temperature sensor being arranged on the electric heater and being used to detect the temperature of the electric heater; in the case that the temperature detected by the second temperature sensor is greater than a temperature warning value, determining that the electric heater is over-temperature, stopping the electric heater from heating for a fourth preset time interval; after the fourth preset time interval arrives, re-controlling the electric heater to start in the plurality of working stages according to the duration of each working stage and the corresponding power control strategy until the electric heater operates normally.

[0011] Preferably, the starting control method of the electric heater comprises: determining a temperature difference between an inlet and an outlet of the electric heater in a steady state operation of the electric heater, wherein the heating power of the electric heater is fixed in the steady state operation; determining a target temperature difference according to the heating power and the target temperature difference, and the current heating power of the electric heater; comparing the temperature difference with the target temperature difference to obtain a first comparison result; and adjusting the current heating power of the electric heater according to the first comparison result.

[0012] Preferably, the starting control method of the electric heater comprises: determining a temperature difference between an inlet and an outlet of the electric heater in a steady state operation of the electric heater, wherein the heating power of the electric heater is fixed in the steady state operation; determining a target temperature difference according to the heating power and the target temperature difference, and the current heating power of the electric heater; comparing the temperature difference with the target temperature difference to obtain a first comparison result; and adjusting the current heating power of the electric heater according to the first comparison result.

[0013] In a second aspect, the present application provides a controller, comprising: a memory storing instructions; and a processor configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory to implement the starting control method of the electric heater according to the first aspect.

[0014] In a third aspect, the present application provides a heating device, comprising the controller according to the second aspect, wherein the controller is configured to control an electric heater, the heating device is the electric heater, and the controller is a controller of the electric heater; or the heating device is a vehicle comprising the electric heater, and the controller is a controller of the vehicle.

[0015] In the starting control method of the electric heater, different power control strategies are adopted in different stages, and the duration of each stage can be determined in advance according to the temperature at the inlet of the electric heater, so that the water pump can quickly establish the flow rate at different temperatures (e.g., at a lower temperature), avoid damage to the electric heater due to local hot spots, improve the heating efficiency, and reliably and stably start in harsh environments, with high safety, while effectively reducing the probability of electric heater protection lock when achieving rapid heating.

[0016] Other features and advantages of the present application will be described in detail in the following detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0017] The accompanying drawings, which form a part of this application, are included to provide a further understanding of the application and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application. In the drawings:

[0018] Fig. 1 is a structural schematic diagram of an application scenario of an electric heater according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0019] Fig. 2 is a flowchart of a starting control method of an electric heater according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0020] Fig. 3 is a starting power curve diagram of an electric heater using the starting control method shown in Fig. 2;

[0021] Fig. 4 is another starting power curve diagram of an electric heater using the starting control method shown in Fig. 2;

[0022] Fig. 5 is an exemplary structural schematic diagram of a controller according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The technical solutions of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and in conjunction with the embodiments.

[0024] In the thermal management starting process of an electric vehicle in a low-temperature environment, the viscosity of the coolant is large, and in order to protect the motor of the water pump, a process of deceleration and torque increase generally exists when the water pump starts, which causes a long time for the water pump to establish flow and a low flow, and is easy to produce bubbles, thereby causing local hot spots in the electric heater (such as a film heater and a PTC heater). In addition, the operation of the water pump and the electric heater of some vehicles is carried out at the same time, which further aggravates the damage of the electric heater. Among them, the film heater (such as a thin film and a thick film heater) and the PTC heater show different failure modes, the film heater is the damage of the heating element, and the PTC heater is the voltage breakdown and insulation failure of the ceramic resistor element after a certain time.

[0025] Moreover, the starting strategy of the electric heater at the present stage is relatively simple, such as starting slowly by a fixed delay time (the delay time and the power do not change with the change of the temperature of the coolant) or by adjusting the power rising rate, without intelligently adjusting the starting process of the electric heater according to the change of the temperature of the coolant, which causes heating lag and affects the passenger experience.

[0026] Further, most new energy vehicles at the present stage do not actively protect the electric heater in the thermal management system because there is no effective measure to judge the state of the water circuit. Although a small part of the heaters such as the film heater have an over-temperature protection mechanism, the electric heater will be locked and the fault state will be triggered when over-temperature occurs or a certain number of over-temperature times are reached, which causes the vehicle to be unable to heat.

[0027] Therefore, the application provides a starting control method of an electric heater, which can quickly establish flow at low temperature, avoid damage to the electric heater caused by local hot spots, improve heating efficiency, and reliably and stably start in a harsh environment, has high safety, and can effectively reduce the probability of protection lock of the electric heater when achieving rapid heating.

[0028] FIG. 1 is a structural schematic diagram of an application scenario of an electric heater provided by an embodiment of the application. As shown in FIG. 1, the electric heater can be applied to a vehicle, and the vehicle includes a vehicle controller, a heater (i.e., a heating element such as a thin-film resistor), a heating element temperature sensor, an inlet liquid temperature sensor, an outlet liquid temperature sensor, a water pump, and a heat exchange system, etc. The heating element temperature sensor is used to detect the temperature of the heating element and can be arranged on the surface of the heating element or the surface of a metal for conducting the heat of the heating element. The water pump, the heater, and the heat exchange system are sequentially connected in series to form a circulation loop, and the heat exchange system can include components such as a passenger cabin, a battery pack, and an automatic driving system that need to be heated.

[0029] FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a starting control method of an electric heater provided by an embodiment of the application. As shown in FIG. 2, the starting control method includes the following steps:

[0030] S201, in the case of receiving a heating instruction, obtaining the temperature detected by a first temperature sensor, wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged at the inlet of the electric heater, and the starting process of the electric heater is divided into a plurality of working stages, and each working stage corresponds to a different power control strategy.

[0031] Exemplarily, the first temperature sensor can be the inlet liquid temperature sensor shown in FIG. 1.

[0032] S202, determining a starting duration according to the temperature range corresponding to the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor, wherein the starting duration includes the duration of each working stage in the plurality of working stages.

[0033] Exemplarily, when the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is low, the sum of the durations of the plurality of working stages is long, and when the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is high, the sum of the durations of the plurality of working stages is short.

[0034] S203, controlling the electric heater to start according to the corresponding power control strategy in each working stage according to the duration of each working stage. That is, the duration of different working stages can be different, and the power control strategy of different working stages can be different.

[0035] In the start-up control method of the electric heater, different power control strategies are adopted in different stages, and the duration of each stage can be determined in advance according to the temperature at the liquid inlet of the electric heater. Therefore, the water pump can quickly establish flow at different temperatures (e.g., at a lower temperature), avoid damage to the electric heater caused by local hot spots, improve heating efficiency, and reliably and stably start up in harsh environments, with high safety. At the same time, the probability of electric heater protection lock can be effectively reduced when achieving rapid heating.

[0036] In the start-up control method of the electric heater, different power control strategies are adopted in different stages, and the duration of each stage can be determined in advance according to the temperature at the liquid inlet of the electric heater. Therefore, the water pump can quickly establish flow at different temperatures (e.g., at a lower temperature), avoid damage to the electric heater caused by local hot spots, improve heating efficiency, and reliably and stably start up in harsh environments, with high safety. At the same time, the probability of electric heater protection lock can be effectively reduced when achieving rapid heating.

[0037] Further, in the case where the request power is greater than the first preset power threshold, the plurality of working stages can further include a slow rising stage and / or a fast rising stage. In the slow rising stage, the power control strategy includes increasing the power of the electric heater at a preset acceleration (as shown in FIG. 3 to be introduced below) or increasing the power of the electric heater at a preset acceleration every second preset time interval (as shown in FIG. 4 to be introduced below) until the request power reaches a set proportion, and the set proportion is greater than the ratio of the first preset power threshold to the request power and less than or equal to 1. For example, the preset acceleration is greater than 0 w / s and less than or equal to 508 w / s. In the fast rising stage, the power control strategy includes increasing the power of the electric heater to the request power at a 1s low-pass filtered power rising rate. For example, the power of the electric heater is increased to the request power at a power rising rate of 2000 W / s.

[0038] In some embodiments, the plurality of working stages further includes a delay start-up stage, and in the delay start-up stage, the power control strategy includes: in the case where the heating instruction is received, controlling the electric heater to enter the start-up heating stage after a delay of a third preset time interval, and controlling the water pump to start working to flow the cooling liquid to the electric heater, wherein the third preset time interval is the duration of the delay start-up stage. For example, the third preset time interval is in the range of 0s-56s.

[0039] That is, taking the first preset power threshold of 2000W as an example, the start-up control method of the electric heater can include the following four stages:

[0040] 1) Delay start stage, when the electric heater receives a heating request, the delay timer starts, the delay time is X seconds, X can be 0s-56s, when the electric heater counts to X, the heating starts. This period can realize that the water pump runs first to provide a certain flow for the electric heater.

[0041] 2) Start heating stage, after the delay start of the electric heater, the electric heater judges whether the request power is >2000W, if >2000W, then maintain 2000W power for Y seconds, the value range of Y can be 20s-76s, if <2000W, then the electric heater runs at the request power. In this stage, if the electric heater over-temperature occurs, the influence on the electric heater is small because the power is small.

[0042] 3) Slowly rising power stage, after the electric heater completes the start heating stage, the electric heater slowly rises the power to B% of the request power at the rate of Aw / s, the value range of A can be 0w / s-508w / s, the value range of B can be the ratio of the first preset power threshold to 100%. This process can also effectively avoid the damage of the heating element caused by the too fast rising power when the electric heater over-temperature occurs.

[0043] 4) Fast rising power stage, after the electric heater completes the slowly rising power stage, the electric heater quickly reaches the request power at the 1s low-pass filter rising power rate. Thus, the electric heater completes the whole cold start process.

[0044] Fig. 3 is a start power curve diagram of the electric heater using the start control method shown in Fig. 2. As shown in Fig. 3, the delay time is the duration of the delay start stage, the start heating time is the duration of the start heating stage, the soft start rising power time is the duration of the slowly rising power stage, and the inclined line after the nearly vertical line of the slowly rising power stage corresponds to the fast rising power stage. Exemplarily, in Fig. 3, taking the first preset power threshold of 2000W as an example, the request power is greater than 2000W, the start heating stage runs at 2000W power, and the soft start rising power rate of the slowly rising power stage and the soft start power of the fast rising power stage are set according to the work requirements.

[0045] Fig. 4 is another start power curve diagram of the electric heater using the start control method shown in Fig. 2. The difference between the start power curve diagram of the electric heater shown in Fig. 3 and that shown in Fig. 4 is that in Fig. 4, the power of the electric heater increases according to a preset acceleration every second preset time interval in the slowly rising power stage. That is, in Fig. 3, the rising power rate of the slowly rising power stage can be linear, and in Fig. 4, the rising power rate of the slowly rising power stage can be segmented.

[0046] In addition, exemplary, the temperature range can include less than or equal to the first preset temperature threshold, greater than the first preset temperature threshold and less than the second preset temperature threshold, greater than or equal to the second preset temperature threshold. In the case of the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is less than or equal to the first preset temperature threshold, the sum of the duration of the plurality of working stages is the first duration; in the case of the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is greater than the first preset temperature threshold and less than the second preset temperature threshold, it is determined that the vehicle installed with the electric heater has defrosting and demisting demand, the sum of the duration of the plurality of working stages is the second duration, the second duration is less than the first duration; in the case of the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is greater than or equal to the second preset temperature threshold, the sum of the duration of the plurality of working stages is the third duration, the third duration is less than the second duration.

[0047] For example, the first preset temperature threshold can be -10℃, and the second preset temperature threshold can be 10℃. In this way, according to different temperatures of the cooling liquid at the liquid inlet of the electric heater, the heating demand can be divided into the following three working conditions: 1) the temperature of the cooling liquid at the liquid inlet is below -10℃, when the running ability of the water pump is extremely weak, the vehicle has heating demand and can accept slow start of the heater, at this time, the sum of the duration of the plurality of working stages can be the first duration; 2) the temperature of the cooling liquid at the liquid inlet is between -10℃ and 10℃, when the running ability of the water pump is weak, the vehicle has defrosting and demisting demand, and the heater needs to be started in a short time, at this time, the sum of the duration of the plurality of working stages can be the second duration; 3) the temperature of the cooling liquid at the liquid inlet is above 10℃, when the running ability of the water pump is normal, the vehicle has heating demand, and the heater should be started quickly, at this time, the sum of the duration of the plurality of working stages can be the third duration.

[0048] That is, the heater of the present application can automatically adjust different start-up times according to the temperature of the cooling liquid at the liquid inlet to adapt to the demand of vehicle heating. Exemplary, the electric heater can detect the temperature of the cooling liquid at the liquid inlet through the liquid inlet temperature sensor, and automatically configure the running time of the above-mentioned initial heating stage, power slow rising stage and power rapid rising stage according to the detected different temperatures of the cooling liquid at the liquid inlet.

[0049] For example, if the electric heater detects that the coolant temperature is below -10°C, the delay time is set to 56s, the initial heating time is set to 76s, the soft start power-up time is set to 100s, the total start-up time (i.e. the first duration) is about 240s, and the low-temperature slow start function is realized; if the electric heater detects that the coolant temperature is between -10°C and 10°C, the delay time is set to 20s, the initial heating time is set to 20s, the soft start power-up time is set to 12s, the total start-up time (i.e. the second duration) is about 60s, and the defrosting and demisting start function is realized; if the electric heater detects that the coolant temperature is above 10°C, the delay time is set to 0s, the initial heating time is set to 20s, the soft start power-up time is set to 2s, the total start-up time (i.e. the third duration) is about 30s, and the normal-temperature fast start function is realized.

[0050] To realize the over-temperature protection function, the start-up control method of the electric heater includes the following steps: first, obtaining the temperature detected by the second temperature sensor, which is arranged on the electric heater and used to detect the temperature of the electric heater; then, in the case that the temperature detected by the second temperature sensor is greater than the temperature warning value, determining that the electric heater has over-temperature, and stopping the electric heater from heating for a fourth preset duration; and then, after the fourth preset duration arrives, re-controlling the electric heater to start up in multiple working stages according to the duration of each working stage and the corresponding power control strategy, until the electric heater operates normally.

[0051] That is, when the electric heater has over-temperature in any one of the initial heating stage, the power slow-rising stage and the power fast-rising stage, the abnormal over-temperature diagnosis of the electric heater will be triggered, the electric heater will stop heating, and after the coolant temperature is balanced, the electric heater will be automatically restarted and the above-mentioned initial heating stage, power slow-rising stage and power fast-rising stage will be repeated until the electric heater operates normally.

[0052] Further, in order to better protect the electric heater, the flow rate of the electric heater can also be estimated in the start-up stage and / or the stage after the start-up is completed and the power changes. In this way, for the start-up stage, the power can be determined according to the start-up control method, and then the power of the heater can be adjusted according to the estimation of the flow rate of the heater. The estimation of the flow rate of the heater can be divided into two scenarios, i.e. steady-state operation and dynamic operation.

[0053] In the case that the electric heater is in a steady state operation, the temperature difference between the inlet and outlet of the electric heater can be determined (i.e. the actual measured temperature difference), wherein in the steady state operation, the heating power of the electric heater is fixed, for example, the coolant temperature at the inlet is determined by a temperature sensor arranged at the inlet, the coolant temperature at the outlet is determined by a temperature sensor arranged at the outlet, and then the difference between the coolant temperature at the inlet and the coolant temperature at the outlet is calculated, so as to obtain the temperature difference between the inlet and outlet; then, the target temperature difference (i.e. the theoretical temperature difference) is determined according to the mapping relationship between the heating power and the target temperature difference and the current heating power of the electric heater; then, the temperature difference (i.e. the actual measured temperature difference) and the target temperature difference (i.e. the theoretical temperature difference) are compared to obtain a first comparison result; finally, the current heating power of the electric heater is adjusted according to the first comparison result.

[0054] That is, considering that the temperature difference between the inlet and outlet of the electric heater is related to the coolant flow rate, the temperature difference between the inlet and outlet of the electric heater is different under the same power and different coolant flow rates, the flow rate is estimated by detecting the temperature difference between the inlet and outlet of the electric heater and combining the actual power, and the power is adjusted to protect the electric heater, so that the electric heater can be prevented from running at a high power under a low flow rate or no flow rate.

[0055] Exemplarily, the electric heater is provided with a MAP (i.e. a multi-dimensional characteristic curve of related parameters, also referred to as a graph) for calculating the temperature difference ΔT1 between the inlet and outlet (i.e. the theoretical temperature difference). During the stable power operation of the electric heater, the inlet and outlet temperatures are detected by the inlet and outlet temperature sensors, the difference ΔT2 between the outlet temperature and the inlet temperature (i.e. the actual measured temperature difference) is calculated and compared with ΔT1, and the power is automatically adjusted after the power limit value is obtained according to the comparison result through closed-loop control, so as to realize the function that the power of the electric heater is automatically adjusted according to the change of the flow rate during the stable power operation. In addition, the temperature difference used in the above embodiment is the difference between the outlet temperature and the inlet temperature, and in other embodiments, the difference between the heating element temperature and the inlet temperature, or the difference between the heating element temperature and the outlet temperature can also be used.

[0056] In the case that the electric heater is in dynamic operation, the temperature rising rate of the electric heater (i.e. the actual measured temperature rising rate) can be determined first, which is the change rate of the temperature of the electric heater per unit time, for example, obtained by the second temperature sensor arranged on the electric heater for detecting the temperature of the electric heater, wherein the heating power of the electric heater changes with time in the dynamic operation; then, the target temperature rising rate (i.e. the theoretical temperature rising rate) is determined according to the mapping relationship between the heating power and the target temperature rising rate and the current heating power of the electric heater; then, the temperature rising rate (i.e. the actual measured temperature rising rate) is compared with the target temperature rising rate (i.e. the theoretical temperature rising rate) to obtain a second comparison result; finally, the current heating power of the electric heater is adjusted according to the second comparison result.

[0057] That is, considering that the temperature rising rate of the heating element of the electric heater is related to the flow rate of the cooling liquid, in the case of power switching operation, the temperature rising rate of the heating element of the electric heater is different for different flow rates of the cooling liquid. When the heating power is switched, the flow rate is estimated by detecting the temperature rising rate of the heating element of the electric heater and combining the actual power, and the power is automatically adjusted to protect the electric heater, so that the electric heater can be prevented from operating at a high power in the case of low flow rate or no flow rate.

[0058] Exemplarily, a MAP (i.e. a multi-dimensional characteristic curve of related parameters, also referred to as a graph) for calculating the temperature rising rate S1 (i.e. the theoretical temperature rising rate or the theoretical value of the change rate of the temperature of the heating element) of the heating element is built in the electric heater. In the process of power switching operation of the electric heater, the temperature of the heating element is detected by the heating element temperature sensor, and the change rate S2 (i.e. the actual measured temperature rising rate or the actual detected value of the change rate of the temperature of the heating element) of the temperature of the heating element per unit time is compared with S1, and the power is automatically adjusted after the power limit value is obtained by closed-loop control according to the comparison result, so that the function of automatically adjusting the power when the flow rate changes with the change of the temperature rising rate of the heating element in the process of power dynamic operation of the electric heater is realized.

[0059] In summary, for the starting problem of the electric heater of the vehicle in a low temperature environment, the power adjustment of the electric heater can be realized by receiving the flow rate signal of the vehicle to ensure the reliable and safe operation of the electric heater. However, under the existing technical conditions, it is difficult for the vehicle to provide an accurate flow rate signal, so it is difficult to realize the method of adjusting the power of the electric heater by the flow rate signal.

[0060] The starting control method of the electric heater according to the embodiments of the present application can be executed by the controller of the electric heater or the controller of the vehicle in which the electric heater is installed. The electric heater does not need to rely on the flow signal transmitted by the system for power adjustment, and the system can ensure that the electric heater reliably operates at different temperatures and effectively protects the electric heater, avoids triggering the over-temperature protection of the electric heater or the failure of the system to heat.

[0061] Specifically, in the scheme of the embodiments of the present application, the intelligent starting strategy is realized by software control, which can flexibly adapt to the starting requirements at different temperatures, can reliably start the electric heater at low temperature, and can help the water pump to quickly establish flow at low temperature, effectively avoiding damage to the electric heater caused by over-temperature due to insufficient or no flow of the electric heater, and can also effectively reduce the probability of protection lock of the electric heater caused by over-temperature. Further, in the case of relatively poor waterway design, small water pump power, long starting time, etc., the electric heater can be reliably and stably started. At the same time, it supports safe, reliable and fast vehicle defrosting and demisting, and achieves the goal of passenger comfort and vehicle power management. In addition, the temperature of the temperature sensor can be used to estimate the coolant flow of the electric heater and automatically adjust the power to protect the electric heater.

[0062] The present application also provides a controller, which includes a memory and a processor. The memory stores instructions. The processor is configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory to implement the starting control method of the electric heater described above. Further, the embodiments of the present application also provide a heating device, which includes the controller described above, and the controller is configured to control the electric heater. Wherein, the heating device is the electric heater, and the controller is the controller of the electric heater; or the heating device is a vehicle with the electric heater, and the controller is the controller of the vehicle.

[0063] FIG. 5 is an exemplary structural schematic diagram of a controller according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 5, the controller 500 includes at least one processor 501, a memory 502, at least one network interface 504 and other user interfaces 503. The various components in the controller 500 are coupled together through a bus system 505. It can be understood that the bus system 505 is used to realize the connection and communication between the components. In addition to the data bus, the bus system 505 also includes a power bus, a control bus and a status signal bus. However, for the purpose of clear illustration, all kinds of buses are marked as the bus system 505 in FIG. 5.

[0064] The user interface 503 can include a display, a keyboard, or a pointing device (e.g., a mouse, a trackball, a touchpad, or a touchscreen). It is to be understood that the memory 502 in embodiments of the present application can be volatile or non-volatile memory, or can include both volatile and non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory can be read-only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), electrically EPROM (EEPROM), or flash memory. The volatile memory can be random access memory (RAM) used as external cache memory. By way of example, and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, for example, static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), Synchlink DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct Rambus RAM (DRRAM). Memory 502 described herein is intended to include, without being limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0065] In some embodiments, the memory 502 stores the following elements: executable units or data structures, or a subset thereof, or an extended set thereof. For example, the memory 502 includes an operating system 5021 and an application program 5022. The operating system 5021 contains various system programs, such as a framework layer, a core library layer, a driver layer, and the like, for implementing various basic services and handling hardware-based tasks. The application program 5022 contains various application programs, such as a media player, a browser, and the like, for implementing various application services. Furthermore, programs implementing the methods of embodiments of the present application can be included in the application program 5022.

[0066] In the embodiments of the present application, by invoking the program or instruction stored in the memory 502, specifically, the program or instruction stored in the application program 5022, the processor 501 is configured to execute the method steps provided by the method embodiments, for example, comprising: in the case that the heating instruction is received, obtaining the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor, wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged at the liquid inlet of the electric heater, and the starting process of the electric heater is divided into a plurality of working stages, each working stage corresponding to a different power control strategy; determining the starting duration according to the temperature interval corresponding to the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor, wherein the starting duration comprises the duration of each working stage in the plurality of working stages; and controlling the electric heater to start in the plurality of working stages according to the corresponding power control strategy according to the duration of each working stage.

[0067] The method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be applied to the processor 501 or implemented by the processor 501. The processor 501 can be an integrated circuit chip having a signal processing capability. In the implementation process, each step of the above method can be completed by the integrated logic circuit or the instruction in the form of software in the processor 501. The processor 501 described above can be a general processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component. Each method, step and logic block disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or executed. The general processor can be a microprocessor or the processor can also be any conventional processor. The steps of the method disclosed in combination with the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as a hardware code processor for execution, or a combination of hardware and software units in the code processor for execution. The software unit can be located in a random access memory, a flash memory, a read only memory, a programmable read only memory, an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register or other mature storage medium in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory 502, and the processor 501 reads the information in the memory 502 and combines the hardware to complete the steps of the above method.

[0068] It can be understood that the embodiments described herein can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, or a combination thereof. For hardware implementation, the processing units can be implemented within one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSP Devices), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), general purpose processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, other electronic units designed to perform the functions described herein, or a combination thereof.

[0069] For software implementation, the techniques described herein can be implemented with a technology to perform the functions described herein. The software code can be stored in a memory and executed by a processor. The memory can be implemented in the processor or external to the processor.

[0070] The control device provided by the embodiment can be the control device shown in FIG. 5, can execute all steps of the starting control method of the electric heater shown in FIG. 2, and further realizes the technical effects of the starting control method of the electric heater shown in FIG. 2. For brevity, details are not described herein.

[0071] The embodiment of the present application further provides a storage medium (computer readable storage medium). The storage medium stores one or more programs. The storage medium can include a volatile memory, such as a random access memory; the storage medium can also include a non-volatile memory, such as a read-only memory, a flash memory, a hard disk, or a solid state disk; and the storage medium can also include a combination of the above-mentioned memories. The one or more programs stored in the storage medium can be executed by one or more processors to implement the steps of the starting control method of the electric heater executed by the control device.

[0072] The processor is configured to execute a program of the starting control method of the electric heater stored in the memory to implement the following steps of the starting control method of the electric heater, for example, including: in the case of receiving a heating instruction, obtaining a temperature detected by a first temperature sensor, wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged at a liquid inlet of the electric heater, and a starting process of the electric heater is divided into a plurality of working stages, each working stage corresponding to a different power control strategy; determining a starting duration according to a temperature interval corresponding to the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor, wherein the starting duration includes a duration of each working stage in the plurality of working stages; and controlling the electric heater to start in the plurality of working stages according to the corresponding power control strategy according to the duration of each working stage.

[0073] Those skilled in the art will further appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of the examples described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of both. To clearly illustrate the interchangeability of hardware and software, various aspects of examples have been described generally in terms of their functionality without reference to the corresponding

[0074] It should be noted that the terms "one embodiment", "an embodiment", "some embodiments", "one example", "some examples", and the like, mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrases in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the purview of one skilled in the art to effect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other ones of the embodiments, whether or not explicit reference to that particular feature, structure, or characteristic is made.

[0075] It should be noted that, in the present document, the terms such as "first" and "second" and the like are merely used to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between such entities or operations. Also, the terms "comprises", "comprising", or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but can also include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising a" does not exclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes the element.

[0076] It should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, and are not intended to limit the present application; although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the above embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that the technical solutions recorded in the above embodiments can be modified, or some or all of the technical features can be replaced by equivalents; and these modifications or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A method of starting control of an electric heater, characterized by, Comprising: In the case of receiving a heating instruction, acquiring the temperature detected by a first temperature sensor, wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged at the liquid inlet of the electric heater, and the starting process of the electric heater is divided into multiple working stages, each of which corresponds to a different power control strategy; According to the temperature range corresponding to the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor, determining the starting duration, wherein the starting duration includes the duration of each working stage in the multiple working stages; According to the duration of each working stage, control the electric heater to start in the multiple working stages respectively according to the corresponding power control strategy.

2. The method of controlling the activation of an electric heater according to claim 1, wherein The multiple working stages include a starting heating stage, and in the starting heating stage, the power control strategy includes: In the case that the requested power of the electric heater when starting heating is less than or equal to a first preset power threshold, control the electric heater to operate according to the requested power; In the case that the requested power is greater than the first preset power threshold, control the electric heater to operate according to the first preset power threshold for a first preset time duration, which is the duration of the starting heating stage.

3. The method of controlling the activation of an electric heater according to claim 2, wherein In the case that the requested power is greater than the first preset power threshold, the multiple working stages include: a slow rising stage, in which the power control strategy includes: increasing the power of the electric heater according to a preset acceleration or increasing the power of the electric heater according to a preset acceleration every interval of a second preset time duration, until increasing to a set proportion of the requested power, the set proportion is greater than the ratio of the first preset power threshold to the requested power and less than or equal to 1; and / or, a fast rising stage, in which the power control strategy includes: increasing the power of the electric heater to the requested power at a 1s low-pass filtered power rising rate. The multiple working stages include a delay starting stage, and in the delay starting stage, the power control strategy includes:

4. The method of claim 2, wherein In the case of receiving the heating instruction, control the electric heater to enter the starting heating stage after delaying for a third preset time duration and control the water pump to start working to make the cooling liquid flow to the electric heater, wherein the third preset time duration is the duration of the delay starting stage. The temperature range includes less than or equal to a first preset temperature threshold, greater than the first preset temperature threshold and less than a second preset temperature threshold, greater than or equal to the second preset temperature threshold; 5. The method of claim 1, wherein In the case that the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is less than or equal to the first preset temperature threshold, the sum of the durations of the multiple working stages is a first time duration; In the case that the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is greater than the first preset temperature threshold and less than the second preset temperature threshold, the sum of the durations of the multiple working stages is a second time duration, which is less than the first time duration; In the case that the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is greater than the first preset temperature threshold and less than the second preset temperature threshold, the sum of the durations of the multiple working stages is a second time duration, which is less than the first time duration; In a case where the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor is greater than or equal to the second preset temperature threshold, a sum of durations of the plurality of working stages is a third duration, and the third duration is less than the second duration.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein The method comprises: obtaining a temperature detected by a second temperature sensor, the second temperature sensor being arranged on the electric heater and configured to detect a temperature of the electric heater; In a case where the temperature detected by the second temperature sensor is greater than a temperature warning value, determining that the electric heater is over-temperature, and stopping the electric heater from heating for a fourth preset duration; After the fourth preset duration is reached, controlling the electric heater to start in the plurality of working stages according to the duration of each working stage and the corresponding power control strategy until the electric heater is in normal operation. The method comprises:

7. The method of starting control of an electric heater according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized by, In a case where the electric heater is in steady-state operation, determining a temperature difference between an inlet and an outlet of the electric heater, wherein the heating power of the electric heater is fixed in the steady-state operation; determining the target temperature difference according to the heating power and the target temperature difference of the mapping relationship, and the current heating power of the electric heater; comparing the temperature difference with the target temperature difference to obtain a first comparison result; adjusting the current heating power of the electric heater according to the first comparison result. The method comprises:

8. The method of starting control of an electric heater according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized by, In a case where the electric heater is in dynamic operation, determining a temperature rise rate of the electric heater, wherein the heating power of the electric heater changes with time in the dynamic operation; determining the target temperature rise rate according to the heating power and the target temperature rise rate of the mapping relationship, and the current heating power of the electric heater; comparing the temperature rise rate with the target temperature rise rate to obtain a second comparison result; adjusting the current heating power of the electric heater according to the second comparison result. The method comprises:

9. A controller characterized by comprising: a memory storing instructions; a processor configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory to implement the starting control method of the electric heater according to any one of claims 1-8. The controller according to claim 9 is used to control the electric heater, wherein:

10. A heating device, characterized by the heating device is the electric heater, and the controller is a controller of the electric heater; or the heating device is a vehicle having the electric heater, and the controller is a controller of the vehicle. ​

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