Ignition Coil Assembly

Abstract

This application can carefully perform maintenance of the engine and the work machine with appropriate evaluation indicators, grasp the operating states of the engine and the work machine respectively, and provide appropriate services to each user on the basis of understanding the operating characteristics of the user. The ignition coil assembly includes: an ignition circuit having a primary coil and a secondary coil; a power generation unit having a power generation coil; a control unit that controls the ignition timing of the ignition circuit according to an input signal generated by the induced voltage of the power generation coil; a sensor that inputs load information to the control unit, and the control unit includes a memory that stores the operating time information corresponding to the operating information and the load information based on the input signal as matrix data composed of operating information, load information, and time data.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an ignition coil assembly. Background Art

[0002] In an engine widely used as a power source for handheld work machines such as sprayers, spreaders, and weeders, a modularized ignition coil (hereinafter, ignition coil assembly) is adopted. The ignition coil assembly includes: a power generation coil that generates an induced voltage synchronously with the rotation of the engine; an ignition circuit having a primary coil and a secondary coil; and an ignition control circuit that supplies an ignition voltage to the primary coil at a predetermined ignition timing based on the voltage induced by the power generation coil, and these are modularized by resin molding or the like (for example, refer to Patent Document 1 below).

[0003] In addition, as an accumulation timer for obtaining an accumulated value of the operation time in an engine and a work machine, a device using an ignition pulse has been proposed (refer to Patent Document 2 below). Thereby, it is possible to count, store, and display the accumulated time from the start of the operation of the engine, and maintenance such as maintenance and inspection of the engine and the work machine can be performed based on the data of the accumulated time.

[0004] [Prior Art Documents]

[0005] [Patent Documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-75502

[0007] [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-170989 Summary of the Invention

[0008] By providing the accumulation timer in the ignition coil assembly, accumulated time data for the maintenance of the engine and the work machine can be obtained. However, in only the accumulation of the operation time, it is impossible to grasp in detail how the engine and the work machine are used in what operating state, and it is impossible to carefully evaluate during maintenance.

[0009] In addition, grasping how the engine and the work machine are used in what operating state is related to understanding the operating characteristics (characteristics of operation) of the user. Such operating characteristics of the user vary from user to user, but on the basis of seeking to understand them separately, appropriate services are provided to each user.

[0010] The present invention is proposed to address such problems. That is, the subject of the present invention is to carefully perform maintenance of the engine and the work machine with appropriate evaluation indexes; to be able to provide appropriate services to each user on the basis of grasping the operating states of the engine and the work machine respectively and understanding the operating characteristics of the user, etc.

[0011] In order to solve such problems, the present invention has the following configuration.

[0012] An ignition coil assembly, characterized by comprising: an ignition circuit having a primary coil and a secondary coil; a power generation unit having a power generation coil; a control unit that controls the ignition timing of the ignition circuit through an input signal generated by the induced voltage of the power generation coil; and a sensor that inputs load information to the control unit, wherein the control unit includes a memory that stores operation time information corresponding to the operation information based on the input signal and the load information as matrix data composed of the operation information, the load information, and time data.

[0013] According to the present invention having such characteristics, maintenance of an engine and a work machine can be performed with appropriate evaluation indices, and appropriate services can be provided to each user on the basis of grasping the operation states of the engine and the work machine respectively and understanding the operation characteristics of the user. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 It is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of an ignition coil assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0015] Figure 2 It is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of a waveform shaping circuit of a power generation unit ((a) is a waveform of an induced voltage generated by a power generation coil, (b) is a shaped waveform, and (c) shows a waveform period).

[0016] Figure 3 It is an explanatory diagram showing an example of matrix data stored in a memory.

[0017] Figure 4 It is a flowchart showing an operation example of a control unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0018] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals in different drawings denote parts having the same function, and repeated descriptions in each drawing will be appropriately omitted.

[0019] Figure 1 Among them, the ignition coil assembly 1 includes an ignition circuit 10, a power generation unit 20, a control unit 30, and a sensor 2, which are modularized.

[0020] The ignition circuit 10 includes a primary coil 11 and a secondary coil 12, and also includes a capacitor 13, diodes 14, 15, a thyristor 16, etc. An ignition voltage stored in the capacitor 13 is supplied to the primary coil 11, and a spark plug 3 is connected to the secondary coil 12. In the capacitor 13, the induced voltage of the power generation coil 21 in the power generation unit 20 is rectified by the diode 14 and stored. When the thyristor 16 is controlled to be in the conducting state by the control unit 30, the capacitor 13 discharges, and current flows through the primary coil 11. When current flows through the primary coil 11, a high voltage is induced in the secondary coil 12 accordingly, and a spark can be generated at the spark plug 3 connected to the secondary coil 12.

[0021] The power generation unit 20 includes the above-mentioned power generation coil 21, and also includes a waveform shaping circuit 22. The waveform shaping circuit 22 stores electricity in the capacitor 13 with the induced voltage of the power generation coil 21, and shapes the waveform of the induced voltage of the power generation coil 21. The waveform shaping circuit 22 rectifies the waveform of the induced voltage generated in the power generation coil 21 as described in Figure 2 (a) in, and becomes two waveforms as shown in Figure 2 (b) in the figure. The waveform shaped by the waveform shaping circuit 22 is as shown in Figure 2 (c) in the figure, and can be processed into a pulse signal with a period T, which becomes an input signal to the control unit 30.

[0022] The control unit 30 controls the timing (ignition timing of the ignition circuit 10) at which the thyristor 16 becomes in the energized state through an input signal from the waveform shaping circuit 22 (an input signal generated by the induced voltage of the power generation coil 21). For this timing control, the control unit 30 includes a speed calculation processing unit 31 and an ignition timing calculation unit 32.

[0023] Based on the input signal from the waveform shaping circuit 2, the speed calculation processing unit 31 calculates the engine rotational speed (rotation speed) as operation information. Since the input signal is processed into a pulse signal with a period T as described above, the engine rotational speed can be obtained by calculating the reciprocal (1 / T) of this period T.

[0024] The ignition timing calculation unit 32 calculates and outputs the ignition timing according to the engine rotational speed obtained by the speed calculation processing unit 31. The ignition timing is calculated for each rotation of the engine, and a signal for setting the thyristor 16 in the energized state is output at a predetermined timing.

[0025] The sensor 2 provided in the ignition coil assembly 1 detects load information and inputs it to the control unit 30. The load information is information on how the engine equipped with the ignition coil assembly 1 or the work machine equipped with the engine operates under what load conditions. For example, temperature information, vibration information, sound information, etc. The sensor 2 uses a temperature sensor when detecting temperature information, a vibration sensor when detecting vibration information, and a sound sensor when detecting sound information. Hereinafter, an example in which a temperature sensor is used as the sensor 2 and the temperature inside the component is detected as the load information will be described, but this is not limited to this embodiment.

[0026] The control unit 30 includes a temperature measurement processing unit 33 that measures the temperature based on the detection signal of the sensor 2, and a memory 34 that stores the engine rotation speed as the operation information output from the speed calculation processing unit 31 and the temperature information inside the component as the load information output from the temperature measurement processing unit 33 as time-series information through a time stamp function or the like provided in the control unit 30. In addition, the control unit 30 includes a timer 35 that causes the memory 34 to store operation time information corresponding to the engine rotation speed as the above operation information and the temperature inside the component as the load information.

[0027] The control unit 30 includes a matrix determination unit 36 that causes the memory 34 to store operation time information corresponding to the engine rotation speed (hereinafter, only speed) as the operation information and the temperature inside the component (hereinafter, only temperature) as the load information as matrix data composed of operation information, load information, and time data.

[0028] Figure 3 An example of the configuration of the matrix data generated by the matrix determination unit 36 is shown. Here, the two axes dividing the matrix constituting the matrix data are set as speed (r / min) and temperature (°C). For example, the speed is divided into A1 (0 to less than 3000), A2 (3000 to less than 8000), A3 (8000 to less than 12000), A4 (12000 to less than 15000), A5 (15000 or more), and the temperature is divided into B1 (-99 to less than 0), B2 (0 to less than 30), B3 (30 to less than 50), B4 (50 to less than 85), B5 (85 or more).

[0029] In addition, the matrix determination unit 36 determines which of the 25 divisions of the matrix division (An, Bn) {(A1, B1), (A1, B2), ..., (A1, B5), (A2, B1), ..., (A2, B5), ..., (A5, B5)} the speed and temperature during engine operation conform to, and calculates the cumulative time of the operating time of each division by measuring the operating time of the corresponding division by the timer 35, which is stored in the memory 34 as the above-mentioned matrix data.

[0030] The control unit 30 also causes the memory 34 to store operating status data. The operating status data herein includes at least one of the following: the total operating time of the working machine, the maximum value of operating information such as the engine rotational speed, the maximum value of load information such as the temperature inside the component, the number of times the engine is started by recoil, the number of times the engine is started (number of starts), and the number of times the engine rotational speed exceeds a set value. The control unit 30 causes the memory 34 to store and update this operating status data at any time.

[0031] pass Figure 4 The operation of the control unit 30 will be described in more detail below. First, when the waveform of the input signal (pulse signal) generated by the waveform shaping unit 22 of the power generation unit 20 is input (step S01), the speed calculation processing unit 31 of the control unit 30 calculates the engine rotational speed based on the period T of the input signal (the time difference from the previous input) (step S02). A determination is made as to whether the currently calculated speed exceeds a set value (step S02A). If the speed exceeds the set value (step S02A: Yes), the number of times the speed exceeds the set value is accumulated (step S02B).

[0032] Then, by comparing the currently determined speed with the previously determined maximum speed, a determination is made as to whether the maximum speed should be updated (step S03). If an update is required (step S03: Yes), the currently determined speed is set as the maximum speed and stored in memory 34 (step S04). For the first waveform input, the currently determined speed is directly stored as the maximum speed.

[0033] When the maximum speed is not updated (step S03; No) or after the maximum speed is stored in the memory 34, the ignition timing calculation unit 32 calculates the ignition timing based on the speed obtained this time (step S05).

[0034] In addition, based on the above input signal, the thermometer measurement processing unit 33 of the control unit 30 obtains a detection signal from the sensor 2 and performs thermometer measurement (step S06). Then, by comparing the temperature obtained this time with the highest temperature obtained last time, it is determined whether to update the highest temperature (step S07). If an update is to be performed (step S07; YES), the temperature obtained this time is set as the highest temperature and stored in the memory 34 (step S09).

[0035] If the highest temperature is not updated (step S07; NO), by comparing the temperature obtained this time with the lowest temperature obtained last time, it is determined whether to update the lowest temperature (step S08). If an update is to be performed (step S08; YES), the temperature obtained this time is set as the lowest temperature and stored in the memory 34 (step S10). In the comparison and determination of steps S07 and S08 here, in the case of the first input, the temperature obtained this time is directly stored in the memory 34 as the highest temperature and the lowest temperature.

[0036] After the determination of the highest temperature and the lowest temperature updates, based on the speed and temperature obtained this time, matrix determination by the matrix determination unit 36 is performed (step S11).

[0037] In the matrix determination, it is determined which of the pre-set matrix divisions (An, Bn) the speed and temperature obtained this time conform to, and the timer value that times the period T of the input signal is obtained from the timer 35 (step S12). For each conforming matrix division, the obtained timer value is subjected to cumulative processing (step S13). After that, according to the ignition timing obtained in step S05, an output signal is output to the ignition circuit 10, and the thyristor 16 of the ignition circuit 10 is set to the conducting state, thereby performing ignition of each input signal (step S14).

[0038] Although Figure 4 not shown in the flow, the control unit 30 obtains the number of recoils and the number of starts as operating condition data by discriminating the persistence of the input signal, etc., and these are appropriately stored in the memory 34. The number of starts here is judged as a start and accumulated when the rotational speed of the engine is above the set value and the engine continues to rotate for the set number of times. The recoil is judged based on the persistence of the input signal before the engine starts after the power supply of the control unit 30 is turned on, and the number of recoils is accumulated.

[0039] In addition, the control unit 30 obtains the total operating time as operating condition data by totaling the cumulative times of the respective matrix divisions stored as matrix data.

[0040] The control unit 30 passes through Figure 4By further adding processing in the process, the memory 34 can store the log data of the speed and temperature calculated for each input signal. In this case, for example, the log data every few seconds is continuously stored in the memory 34 for several minutes. When the set time has passed, the old data is rewritten and the new log data is stored. Thus, with a limited memory capacity, the memory 34 can store meaningful log data such as the log data before the engine stops.

[0041] Based on such an ignition coil assembly 1, by referring to the matrix data and operating condition data stored in the memory 34 built into the ignition coil assembly 1, maintenance, replacement timing, and fault diagnosis can be carried out meticulously with appropriate evaluation indexes. In addition, based on the analysis of the data stored in the memory 34 built into the ignition coil assemblies 1 of each engine, the operating characteristics of the users of each engine and work machine and the usage conditions of the work machine can be understood, and services corresponding to each user can be provided with a personalized menu. Moreover, by adding a memory function to the ignition coil assembly 1 essential for the engine, the problems of meticulous maintenance and the like can be solved at a relatively low cost.

[0042] A usage example of such an ignition coil assembly 1 will be specifically described. For example, when maintaining, the user of the work machine brings the work machine to a dealership or the like, removes the ignition coil assembly 1 from the engine, and connects the memory 34 of the ignition coil assembly 1 to a diagnostic system or the like. The diagnostic system includes, for example, a display device, and the matrix data and operating condition data stored in the memory 34 are displayed on the display device.

[0043] At this time, by making the memory 34 store user information (for example, user ID, etc.), the matrix data and operating condition data read from the memory 34 can be associated with the user information and referred to or analyzed. By adopting such a diagnostic system, the dealership side can provide services corresponding to the characteristics of each user to each user.

[0044] Understanding the usage condition based on the matrix data In the matrix data of the engine rotation speed and temperature, when operating within a predetermined rotation speed range and a predetermined temperature range, it can be used as a material for judging that the user uses the engine ideally. In the matrix data of the engine rotation speed and temperature, when operating outside the predetermined rotation speed range and the predetermined temperature range, it can be used as a material for judging that the user does not use the engine ideally.

[0045] In addition, in grasping the usage based on the operating condition data, data such as the maximum rotational speed, the number of times the rotational speed exceeds the set value, and the maximum and minimum temperatures during use can be used by the dealer side to determine whether the user is using the engine ideally. In particular, when analyzing the cause of a failure based on the number of times the rotational speed exceeds the set value, an analysis of the failure caused by high rotation can be obtained. Based on the maximum and minimum temperatures during use, by verifying whether the use is suitable for the operating temperature conditions of the electronic components in the ignition coil assembly 1, an analysis of the cause of the failure due to temperature can be obtained. Moreover, especially in the case of frequent failures, by presenting the matrix data and the operating condition data to the user side, it can be used as data for the dealer side to guide the user to operate closer to the ideal use.

[0046] In grasping the usage based on other operating condition data, the starting performance of the work machine can be evaluated according to the number of recoils and the number of starts. The starting performance of the work machine becomes data for the dealer side to grasp the state of the work machine (for example, the deterioration of the work machine). In addition, since there is a causal relationship between the starting performance of the work machine and the usage environment, by analyzing the correlation between the number of recoils or the number of starts and the matrix data or the maximum and minimum usage temperatures on the dealer side, the influence of the usage environment on the starting performance of the work machine can be grasped.

[0047] Thus, by adopting the ignition coil assembly 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the operating characteristics (usage conditions) of the user, the state of the work machine, and the usage environment can be grasped based on the matrix data and the operating condition data (total operating time, maximum usage temperature, maximum rotational speed, number of recoils, number of starts, etc.) stored in the memory 34. Therefore, the seller side can separately suggest the next maintenance period, etc. to the user according to the operating characteristics of the user.

[0048] In addition, based on the operating condition data such as the total operating time, the dealer side can determine whether the user is a heavy user who frequently uses the work machine or a light user who only uses it occasionally. When introducing new products or goods to the user, the dealer side can provide products or goods suitable for the user's usage conditions, and can also provide maintenance suitable for the user's usage conditions for subsequent maintenance.

[0049] Thus, the ignition coil assembly 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention can grasp the user's usage conditions, the cause of the failure, the state of the work machine, the usage environment, etc. based on the matrix data and the operating condition data. Therefore, it is possible to carefully evaluate during the maintenance of the engine and the work machine, and in addition, it is possible to provide personalized services corresponding to the operating characteristics of each user.

[0050] As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and design changes and the like that do not depart from the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention. In addition, as long as there are no particular contradictions or problems in the purpose and configuration of the above-described embodiments, the techniques of each other can be used in combination.

[0051]

Reference Numeral Explanation

[0052] 1: Ignition Coil Assembly, 2: Sensor, 3: Spark Plug,

[0053] 10: Ignition Circuit, 11: Primary Coil, 12: Secondary Coil, 13: Capacitor,

[0054] 14, 15: Diodes, 16: Thyristor,

[0055] 20: Power Generation Unit, 21: Power Generation Coil, 22: Waveform Shaping Circuit,

[0056] 30: Control Unit, 31: Speed Calculation Processing Unit, 32: Ignition Timing Calculation Unit,

[0057] 33: Temperature Measurement Processing Unit, 34: Memory, 35: Timer,

[0058] 36: Matrix Determination Unit.

Claims

1. An ignition coil assembly, characterized in that, Comprising: An ignition circuit having a primary coil and a secondary coil; A power generation unit having a power generation coil; A control unit that controls the ignition timing of the ignition circuit through an input signal generated by the induced voltage of the power generation coil; And A sensor that inputs load information to the control unit, The control unit includes a memory that stores operation time information corresponding to the operation information based on the input signal and the load information as matrix data composed of the operation information, the load information, and time data, Wherein, the matrix data is the accumulation of the operation time information obtained by dividing according to each matrix, and the operation time information includes the engine rotation speed and the temperature inside the component, Wherein, the memory stores user information.

2. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 1, wherein The operation information is the engine rotation speed.

3. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 1, wherein The sensor is a temperature sensor, and the load information is the temperature inside the component.

4. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 2, wherein The sensor is a temperature sensor, and the load information is the temperature inside the component.

5. The ignition coil assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The input signal is a pulse signal obtained by shaping the waveform of the induced voltage of the power generation coil, The operation information is obtained by calculating and processing the pulse period of the pulse signal.

6. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The input signal is a pulse signal obtained by shaping the waveform of the induced voltage of the power generation coil, The operation information is obtained by calculating and processing the pulse period of the pulse signal.

7. The ignition coil assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The control unit also causes the memory to store operation status data.

8. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 1, wherein The control unit also causes the memory to store operation status data.

9. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 5, wherein The control unit also causes the memory to store operation status data.

10. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 6, wherein The control unit also causes the memory to store operation status data.

11. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 7, wherein The operation status data includes at least one of the total operation time, the maximum value of the operation information, the maximum value of the load information, the number of recoil times to start the engine, the number of times the engine is started, and the number of times the engine rotation speed exceeds the set value, The control unit causes the memory to store the operation status data with real-time update.

12. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 8, wherein The operation status data includes at least one of the total operation time, the maximum value of the operation information, the maximum value of the load information, the number of recoil times to start the engine, the number of times the engine is started, and the number of times the engine rotation speed exceeds the set value, The control unit causes the memory to store the operation status data with real-time update.

13. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 9, wherein The operating condition data includes at least one of total operating time, the maximum value of the operating information, the maximum value of the load information, the number of recoil operations to start the engine, the number of times the engine is started, and the number of times the engine rotation speed exceeds a set value. The control unit causes the memory to store the operating condition data with updates at any time.

14. The ignition coil assembly according to claim 10, wherein The operating condition data includes at least one of total operating time, the maximum value of the operating information, the maximum value of the load information, the number of recoil operations to start the engine, the number of times the engine is started, and the number of times the engine rotation speed exceeds a set value. The control unit causes the memory to store the operating condition data with updates at any time.

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