Dual tank control system and method

Abstract

The application discloses a double-oil-tank control system and method, and the system comprises a vehicle-mounted ECU, a communication valve is arranged on a communication pipe between a vice oil tank and a main oil tank, the main oil tank and the vice oil tank are connected with an oil tank switching valve, a man-machine interaction module, the oil tank switching valve, the communication valve and a network communication module are electrically connected with the vehicle-mounted ECU. The method comprises the following steps: a, inputting a destination, the man-machine interaction module giving a plurality of recommended routes, and a driver selecting a route; b, obtaining the lowest temperature T1 in the selected route through the network communication module, comparing T1 with a preset temperature T0, and the driver selecting a fuel mode recommended by the system; if the fuel mode is a summer fuel mode, the communication valve is controlled to be opened, so that the main oil tank is communicated with the vice oil tank; if the fuel mode is a winter fuel mode, the communication valve is controlled to be closed, so that the main oil tank is disconnected with the vice oil tank. The application can combine vehicle and driving path information to provide a refueling scheme and an oil tank control scheme.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to an oil tank control system, in particular to a double oil tank control system and control method. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the rapid development of the logistics industry, the market demand for long-distance logistics is also increasingly obvious, and the north-south and east-west transportation of goods has become the norm. In order to meet the needs of long-distance logistics, whole vehicle manufacturers have developed southern version, northern version and even four-season version long-distance logistics vehicles. The southern version generally matches a large oil tank of about 1000L to meet the demand of one-time refueling for transportation work. The northern version and the four-season version generally match a main tank and a small tank or a large tank and a small tank, with a total capacity of about 1000L, and the small tank is about 200L. The double oil tank supply system generally uses manual switching or electric switching to realize the switching of the main tank and the small tank through the flow change of the three-way valve after switching.

[0003] Due to the limitation of the oil tank structure, the bottom layer oil of the small tank cannot be pumped out, so it cannot be used. In order to ensure the purity of low-grade diesel in winter, the northern version and the four-season version of the vehicle model generally do not add oil to the small tank in summer, which forces the oil tank to be reduced in summer, and the one-time refueling mileage is shortened. In addition, whether it is manual or electric, it needs to be operated manually, and the manual operation is more complex. The driver needs to get off the car repeatedly to manually switch the oil tank mechanical valve, which increases the driver's requirement for vehicle use. If the driver is careless or inexperienced, it is easy to cause the oil pipe and the internal fuel of the switching valve to be waxed, which cannot be pumped out and cannot be started. If the user does not understand the environmental changes of the destination and the way area, the oil circuit may also be waxed. SUMMARY

[0004] The purpose of the present application is to provide a double oil tank control system to solve the technical problems in the prior art, which can combine vehicle and driving path information to provide a refueling scheme and an oil tank control scheme.

[0005] Another purpose of the present application is to provide a double oil tank control method to solve the technical problems in the prior art, which can reasonably switch the working state of the main tank and the small tank, and prevent the oil circuit from being waxed.

[0006] The present application provides a double oil tank control system, which comprises a vehicle-mounted ECU, a man-machine interaction module, a main tank, a small tank, an oil tank switching valve and a network communication module. A communication valve is arranged on the communication pipe of the small tank and the main tank. The main tank and the small tank are connected with the oil tank switching valve. The man-machine interaction module, the oil tank switching valve, the communication valve and the network communication module are electrically connected with the vehicle-mounted ECU.

[0007] In the foregoing dual-tank control system, preferably, an auxiliary heating module is arranged on the main tank, and the auxiliary heating module is electrically connected with the vehicle-mounted ECU.

[0008] In the foregoing dual-tank control system, preferably, the auxiliary heating module is a PTC electric heater, a fuel heater or an electric heating wire.

[0009] In the foregoing dual-tank control system, preferably, the bottom surface of the auxiliary tank is higher than the lowest oil taking surface of the main tank, the bottom of the auxiliary tank is communicated with the side surface of the main tank through the communication oil pipe, and the connection position of the communication oil pipe with the main tank is lower than the lowest oil taking surface of the main tank.

[0010] In the foregoing dual-tank control system, preferably, the vehicle-mounted ECU is further electrically connected with an outdoor temperature sensor, an oil temperature sensor and an alarm module.

[0011] A dual-tank control method using the foregoing dual-tank control system, specifically comprising the following steps:

[0012] In step a, after the vehicle is powered on, the driver inputs a destination through a human-computer interaction module, the human-computer interaction module gives a plurality of recommended routes, and the driver selects a route;

[0013] In step b, the human-computer interaction module sends the route information selected by the driver to the vehicle-mounted ECU, the vehicle-mounted ECU acquires the lowest temperature T1 on the selected route through a network communication module, compares T1 with a preset temperature T0, recommends a summer fuel mode to the driver if T1≥T0, recommends a winter fuel mode to the driver if T1

[0014] In step c, the vehicle-mounted ECU controls the communication valve to be opened, so that the main tank is communicated with the auxiliary tank.

[0015] In step d, the vehicle-mounted ECU controls the communication valve to be closed, so that the main tank is disconnected from the auxiliary tank.

[0016] In the foregoing dual-tank control method, preferably, in step a, the departure place is the current position of the vehicle by default, and the driver can also manually input the departure place.

[0017] In the foregoing dual-tank control method, preferably, in step b, T0 is 5℃, and in this step, the vehicle-mounted ECU can also collect the fuel remaining amount in the main tank and the auxiliary tank, calculate the required fuel amount of the route selected by the driver, calculate the required refueling amount by subtracting the fuel remaining amount from the required fuel amount, and give a reference value of the required refueling amount of the driver.

[0018] In the foregoing dual-tank control method, preferably, in the winter fuel mode, the key is in the ON position, the driver inputs the current fuel grade in the main tank and the auxiliary tank through the human-machine interaction module, the vehicle-mounted ECU collects the outdoor ambient temperature T2 and the minimum allowable temperature T3 of the fuel in the main tank through the outdoor temperature sensor, when T3-T2≤5℃, the vehicle-mounted ECU controls the auxiliary heating module to work for a preset time, after the auxiliary heating module is heated, the vehicle-mounted ECU controls the tank switching valve to make the main tank supply fuel to the engine alone; when T3-T2>5℃, the vehicle-mounted ECU controls the tank switching valve to make the auxiliary tank supply fuel to the engine alone, after the vehicle is driven, the vehicle-mounted ECU collects the oil temperature T4 in the main tank in real time through the oil temperature sensor, when T4-T3≥t, the vehicle-mounted ECU controls the tank switching valve to make the main tank supply fuel to the engine alone, and t is a calibration value.

[0019] In the foregoing dual-tank control method, preferably, in the winter fuel mode, the vehicle is parked and turned off, the vehicle-mounted ECU controls the tank switching valve to switch to supply fuel to the auxiliary tank.

[0020] Compared with the prior art, the vehicle information and the driving path information are obtained through the human-machine interaction module, the meteorological environment is collected in combination with the network communication module, reasonable fuel mode recommendation is given, the summer fuel mode or the winter fuel mode is started under the selection of the driver, the meteorological condition of the driving route and the fuel filling requirement are informed to the driver, and the user is guided to reasonably fill fuel.

[0021] The main tank and the auxiliary tank are connected or disconnected through the control of the communication valve, the main tank and the auxiliary tank are connected in the summer fuel mode, and the maximum utilization rate of the tank is realized; in the winter fuel mode, the fuel temperature in the main tank is collected, the switching valve and the auxiliary heating module are automatically controlled in combination with the environment, the user operation and the process state recognition are reduced, and then the corresponding risk is avoided. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0022] Figure 1 is a system block diagram of the application;

[0023] Figure 2 is a structural schematic view of the main tank and the auxiliary tank of the application.

[0024] Legend: vehicle-mounted ECU 1, human-machine interaction module 2, main tank 3, auxiliary tank 4, tank switching valve 5, communication valve 6, auxiliary heating module 7, network communication module 8, outdoor temperature sensor 9, oil temperature sensor 10, alarm module 11, partition plate 12. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The following describes embodiments of the present invention in detail, examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are intended only to explain the present invention and are not to be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0026] Embodiments of the present invention: Figure 1 As shown, a dual fuel tank control system includes an on-board ECU 1, a human-computer interaction module 2, a main fuel tank 3, an auxiliary fuel tank 4, a fuel tank switching valve 5 and a network communication module 8. A connecting valve 6 is provided on the connecting oil pipe between the auxiliary fuel tank 4 and the main fuel tank 3. The main fuel tank 3 and the auxiliary fuel tank 4 are both connected to the fuel tank switching valve 5. The human-computer interaction module 2, the fuel tank switching valve 5, the connecting valve 6 and the network communication module 8 are all electrically connected to the on-board ECU 1.

[0027] The human-computer interaction module 2 can be embedded in an MP5, car instrument panel, smartphone, or IPD. When embedded in a car instrument panel, it connects to the onboard ECU 1 via a wired connection. When embedded in an MP5, smartphone, or IPD, it connects wirelessly to the onboard ECU 1 via the network communication module 8. The human-computer interaction module 2 allows the driver to input vehicle information, departure point, destination, and other information, and can also generate multiple recommended routes for the driver to choose from. Upon receiving the driver's selected route, the onboard ECU 1 obtains weather information along the route through the network communication module 8 and provides the driver with the preferred fuel mode. Once the driver selects the fuel mode, the onboard ECU 1 controls the operating states of the fuel tank switching valve 5 and the connecting valve 6 according to the selected mode, and simultaneously provides the driver with the required fuel grade and amount.

[0028] Furthermore, the main fuel tank 3 is provided with an auxiliary heating module 7, which is electrically connected to the onboard ECU 1. The auxiliary heating module 7 provides auxiliary heating for the fuel within the main tank. Commercial vehicles are typically fueled with 0# diesel, which waxes at low temperatures, leading to blockage in the fuel delivery pipeline. Without the auxiliary heating module 7 and the auxiliary fuel tank, the vehicle would be unable to start. By providing the auxiliary heating module 7, the present invention can rapidly raise the diesel fuel temperature when waxing is not severe, ensuring that it meets the required operating conditions. This allows the vehicle to start without using lower-grade diesel, thereby reducing vehicle operating costs.

[0029] The auxiliary heating module 7 can adopt a water circulation heating of a PTC electric heater in scheme one, a water circulation heating of a fuel oil heater in scheme two, and an electric heating of an electric heating wire in scheme three. In the water circulation heating mode of scheme one and scheme two, the PTC heater and the fuel oil heater are arranged as close to the main oil tank as possible to reduce energy loss, and are communicated with the oil quantity sensor of the main oil tank through a water pipe. The vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the working state of the PTC heater and the fuel oil heater to realize water heating and further heating of the fuel oil. In the electric heating wire scheme, the electric heating wire is wound on the connecting oil pipe between the oil tank and the engine, and the electric heating wire is arranged in the oil quantity sensor. The vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the electric heating wire to work to heat the connecting oil pipe, thereby improving the temperature of the diesel oil. The auxiliary heating module 7 can realize an increase of about 6-8℃ of the oil product. For example, the O# diesel oil under normal circumstances meets the environment of 4℃ or above, and after the auxiliary heating module 7 is adopted, the environment of about -3℃ can be met.

[0030] Please refer to Figure 2 The bottom surface of the auxiliary oil tank 4 is higher than the lowest oil taking surface of the main oil tank 3. The auxiliary oil tank 4 is separated from the main oil tank 3 by a partition plate 12. The bottom of the auxiliary oil tank 4 is communicated with the side surface of the main oil tank 3 through a communication oil pipe. The connection position of the communication oil pipe with the main oil tank 3 is lower than the lowest oil taking surface of the main oil tank 3.

[0031] The structure design can ensure that all the oil in the auxiliary oil tank 4 flows into the main oil tank 3, and prevent the problem of mixed oil caused by residual oil. It should be noted that the bottom of the auxiliary oil tank 4 and the bottom of the main oil tank 3 are both provided with a drain valve. When the auxiliary oil tank 4 urgently needs to be filled with low-grade diesel oil and the oil quantity in the main oil tank 3 is still relatively large, the communication valve 6 can be controlled to be closed, and the high-grade diesel oil in the auxiliary oil tank 4 can be discharged through the drain valve.

[0032] In a preferred embodiment, as shown in Figure 1 The vehicle-mounted ECU 1 is also electrically connected with an outdoor temperature sensor 9, an oil temperature sensor 10, and an alarm module 11. The outdoor temperature sensor 9 is arranged outside the cab, usually inside the cab bumper, for real-time collection of the environmental temperature of the position where the vehicle is located. The oil temperature sensor 10 is arranged at the bottom in the oil tank, for measurement of the fuel oil temperature in the oil tank, which can realize more accurate calculation of the appropriate fuel oil mode. The alarm module 11 is used to issue alarm information to prompt the driver.

[0033] A double oil tank control method using the above double oil tank control system, specifically comprising the following steps:

[0034] Step a: After the vehicle is powered on, i.e. the key door is in the ON gear, the driver inputs the destination through the human-computer interaction module 2. The input can be made through a touch display screen or a physical button. The driver can also input the departure location and departure time, etc. When the departure location information is not input, the current location of the vehicle is defaulted as the departure location. The human-computer interaction module 2 gives a plurality of recommended routes, and the driver selects a suitable route.

[0035] Step b, the man-machine interaction module 2 sends the route information selected by the driver to the vehicle-mounted ECU 1, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 obtains the lowest temperature T1 in the selected route through the network communication module 8 and the network interaction, compares T1 with the preset temperature T0, if T1≥T0 and there is no strong temperature drop weather of cold current, the summer fuel mode is recommended to the driver, in the embodiment, T0 is preferably 5℃, T0 changes according to the grade of oil, since the commercial vehicle is filled with 0# diesel oil, therefore T0 is preferably 5℃, if T1

[0036] In this step, preferably, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 can also collect the fuel remaining amount in the main fuel tank 3 and the auxiliary fuel tank 4, calculate the required fuel amount of the route selected by the driver, and obtain the required refueling amount by subtracting the required fuel amount from the fuel remaining amount, to give the reference value of the required refueling amount of the driver;

[0037] Step c, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the communication valve 6 to open, so that the main fuel tank 3 and the auxiliary fuel tank 4 are communicated, at the same time, the information that the summer fuel mode has been switched and the communication valve 6 has been opened is prompted on the screen, and the latest fuel remaining amount information is displayed on the screen, if the driver opens the voice prompt function, the prompt sound will also be issued through the alarm module 11;

[0038] Step d, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the communication valve 6 to close, so that the main fuel tank 3 and the auxiliary fuel tank 4 are disconnected. At the same time, the information that the winter fuel mode has been switched and the communication valve 6 has been disconnected is prompted on the screen, and the latest fuel remaining amount information and the prompt that the fuel in the auxiliary fuel tank should be replaced are displayed on the screen, if the driver opens the voice prompt function, the prompt sound will also be issued through the alarm module 11;

[0039] In winter fuel mode, the key is in the ON gear, the driver inputs the current fuel grade in the main tank 3 and the auxiliary tank 4 through the human-computer interaction module 2, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 collects the outdoor ambient temperature T2 through the outdoor temperature sensor 9, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 stores the minimum allowable temperature of each grade of fuel, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 calls the minimum allowable temperature T3 of the current fuel, when T3-T2≤5℃, it indicates that the wax in the connecting oil pipe between the main tank 3 and the engine can be melted in a short time, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the auxiliary heating module 7 to work for a preset time, which is preferably 3 minutes, after the auxiliary heating module 7 is heated, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the oil tank switching valve 5 to work, so that the main tank 3 supplies fuel to the engine alone, because the fuel in the auxiliary tank 4 is low in grade and high in price, the fuel in the auxiliary tank 4 is used as little as possible to save the cost of using the vehicle; when T3-T2>5℃, it indicates that the wax in the connecting oil pipe between the main tank 3 and the engine cannot be melted in a short time, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the oil tank switching valve 5, so that the auxiliary tank 4 supplies fuel to the engine alone, after the vehicle is driven, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 collects the oil temperature T4 in the main tank 3 in real time through the oil temperature sensor 10, when T4-T3≥t, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the oil tank switching valve 5, so that the main tank 3 supplies fuel to the engine alone, t is a calibration value, for example, t can be 5℃, 6℃ or 7℃.

[0040] In the embodiment, the oil tank switching valve 5, the communication valve 6 and the auxiliary heating module 7 are electrically controlled, and automatically adjust the working state by receiving the instructions sent by the vehicle-mounted ECU 1, these parts are all commercially available parts and can be directly purchased, of course, in order to reduce the cost, manually controlled parts can also be selected, and the driver is prompted by the prompt information on the screen of the human-computer interaction module 2 or voice to manually switch the working state of the corresponding parts.

[0041] In winter fuel mode, when the vehicle is parked and turned off before reaching the destination, the vehicle-mounted ECU 1 controls the oil tank switching valve 5 to switch to supply fuel from the auxiliary tank 4, and the fuel supply needs to run for a period of time, the fuel supply time>oil way single cycle time (calibration confirmation), to ensure that there is no residual oil in the pipeline and no wax is formed, after completion, the system automatically enters hibernation; in order to reduce the driver's misoperation of turning off the storage battery too early, the system should be powered and controlled by constant current.

[0042] The operation is mainly to prevent the temperature of the location where the vehicle is parked and turned off from being too low, if the pipeline contains high-grade diesel fuel in a low-temperature environment, wax is easy to form, which makes it difficult to start the vehicle, and the pipeline is filled with low-grade fuel in advance when the temperature is too low, which can effectively prevent wax from forming. It should be noted that the auxiliary tank 4 is filled with low-grade fuel, and the main tank 3 is filled with high-grade fuel.

[0043] When the vehicle reaches the destination, if it is summer mode at this time, the system directly enters hibernation, if the system is winter mode, the mode remains unchanged, the oil tank switching valve 5 is switched to the auxiliary oil tank for oil supply, and the oil supply time > the single cycle time of the oil circuit (calibration confirmation), to ensure that there is no residual oil in the pipeline and no wax is formed, and after completion, the system automatically enters hibernation.

[0044] The above describes the structure, features and effects of the present application in detail according to the embodiments shown in the drawings. The above description is only the preferred embodiments of the present application, but the present application is not limited to the embodiments shown in the drawings. Any changes or modifications made according to the concept of the present application, or equivalent embodiments with equivalent changes, are still within the scope of protection of the present application, as long as they do not exceed the spirit of the specification and drawings.

Claims

1. A dual fuel tank control method, characterized by: A dual fuel tank control system is used, the dual fuel tank control system comprising an on-board ECU (1), a human-machine interaction module (2), a main fuel tank (3), an auxiliary fuel tank (4), a fuel tank switching valve (5) and a network communication module (8), a connecting valve (6) is provided on the connecting oil pipe between the auxiliary fuel tank (4) and the main fuel tank (3), the main fuel tank (3) and the auxiliary fuel tank (4) are both connected to the fuel tank switching valve (5), and the human-machine interaction module (2), the fuel tank switching valve (5), the connecting valve (6) and the network communication module (8) are all electrically connected to the on-board ECU (1); An auxiliary heating module (7) is provided on the main fuel tank (3), and the auxiliary heating module (7) is electrically connected to the on-board ECU (1); the auxiliary heating module (7) is a PTC electric heater; The vehicle-mounted ECU (1) is also electrically connected to an outdoor temperature sensor (9), an oil temperature sensor (10), and an alarm module (11); The dual fuel tank control method specifically includes the following steps: Step a: after the vehicle is powered on, the driver inputs a destination through the human-computer interaction module (2), the human-computer interaction module (2) provides a plurality of recommended routes, and the driver selects a route; In step b, the human-computer interaction module (2) sends the route information selected by the driver to the on-board ECU (1), and the on-board ECU (1) obtains the lowest temperature T1 in the selected route through the network communication module (8), compares T1 with the preset temperature T0, and recommends the summer fuel mode to the driver if T1 ≥ T0, and recommends the winter fuel mode to the driver if T1 < T0, and if the driver selects the summer fuel mode, proceeds to step c, and if the driver selects the winter fuel mode, proceeds to step d; Step c, the on-board ECU (1) controls the communication valve (6) to open, so that the main fuel tank (3) is connected to the auxiliary fuel tank (4); In step d, the vehicle-mounted ECU (1) controls the connecting valve (6) to close, thereby disconnecting the main fuel tank (3) from the auxiliary fuel tank (4); In step a, the departure point is set to the vehicle's current location by default, but the driver can also manually enter the departure point; In step b, T0 is 5°C. In this step, the onboard ECU (1) can also collect the remaining fuel in the main fuel tank (3) and the auxiliary fuel tank (4), and simultaneously calculate the required fuel quantity for the route selected by the driver, and calculate the required refueling quantity by subtracting the required fuel quantity from the remaining fuel quantity, thereby providing the driver with a reference value for the required refueling quantity.

2. The dual fuel tank control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In winter fuel mode, the key is in the ON position, the driver inputs the current oil grade in the main fuel tank (3) and the auxiliary fuel tank (4) through the human-computer interaction module (2), the on-board ECU (1) collects the outdoor ambient temperature T2 and the minimum allowable temperature T3 of the oil in the main fuel tank (3) through the outdoor temperature sensor (9), when T3-T2≤5℃, the on-board ECU (1) controls the auxiliary heating module (7) to work for a preset time, and after the auxiliary heating module (7) has finished heating, the on-board ECU (1) controls The fuel tank switching valve (5) enables the main fuel tank (3) to supply fuel to the engine alone; when T3-T2>5°C, the on-board ECU (1) controls the fuel tank switching valve (5) to enable the auxiliary fuel tank (4) to supply fuel to the engine alone; after the vehicle is driven, the on-board ECU (1) collects the oil temperature T4 in the main fuel tank (3) in real time through the oil temperature sensor (10); when T4-T3≥t, the on-board ECU (1) controls the fuel tank switching valve (5) to enable the main fuel tank (3) to supply fuel to the engine alone, and t is a calibration value.

3. The dual fuel tank control method according to claim 2, characterized in that: In winter fuel mode, when the vehicle is parked and the engine is turned off, the onboard ECU (1) controls the fuel tank switching valve (5) to switch to the auxiliary fuel tank (4) for fuel supply.

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