Circuit arrangement structure

Abstract

The invention relates to a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying components in a motor vehicle, the circuit arrangement (50) having at least two channels (54, 56) for controlling and supplying the components, in each of which at least one supply unit (60, 70), a computing unit, a drive unit and an output stage are arranged as components.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a circuit arrangement, in particular for use in a motor vehicle, which is provided for actuating a component, such as an electric motor. Background Art

[0002] Power electronics systems use electronic components to convert electrical energy and use it in various areas of the motor vehicle.

[0003] As the number of applications in motor vehicles increases, it is necessary to configure the power electronics systems used in motor vehicles redundantly. This means that the components in the power electronics system are provided redundantly so that even if one of the components fails, safe operation can be ensured. In this way, it can be ensured that multiple functions in the system can be reliably implemented even if the component assigned to the function fails. Therefore, multiple functions are implemented redundantly.

[0004] Examples of this include autonomous driving, automated driving and so-called drive-by-wire implementations, such as steering and brakes. High availability is required in these areas, as neither communication nor supply can fail.

[0005] This can currently be achieved through a fully redundant construction of the relevant components (i.e. full redundancy), which in turn means that the supply, communication and electronic modules need to be at least doubled, as referred to in Figure 1 . Summary of the invention

[0006] Against this background, a circuit arrangement is presented according to claim 1. Embodiments are derived from the dependent claims and from the description.

[0007] The circuit arrangement described is used for controlling and supplying components in a motor vehicle, wherein the circuit arrangement has at least two channels for controlling and supplying these components, and at least one supply unit, a computing unit such as a microcontroller, a driver unit such as a gate driver unit (GD) and an output stage are respectively arranged as components in the two channels.

[0008] In one embodiment, the components are arranged in both channels in electronic modules which can be reconfigured during operation.

[0009] This article proposes a reduced hardware outlay, which nevertheless achieves complete fail-safety. For this purpose, the partitioning of the electronic system is changed.

[0010] In the known methods, a central intelligent system is usually provided. The method described here makes it possible to divide the central intelligent system into a central and a decentralized intelligent system. In addition, a common communication bus can also be provided, including energy transmission.

[0011] When one of the electronic modules fails, it can be compensated by another electronic module. The other electronic module can handle the failure specifically, or it can also identify the failure and automatically take over the function of the failed module.

[0012] Further advantages and embodiments of the invention are apparent from the description and the drawings.

[0013] It is understood that the features mentioned above and those yet to be explained below can be used not only in the combination indicated in each case but also in other combinations or alone without leaving the scope of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 A redundantly designed circuit arrangement for controlling an electric motor is shown.

[0015] Figure 2 An embodiment of the described circuit arrangement for controlling an electric motor is shown.

[0016] Figure 3 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling an electric motor having three channels is shown.

[0017] Figure 4 A further specific embodiment of the described circuit arrangement for controlling an electric motor is shown.

[0018] Figure 5 An embodiment of the circuit arrangement presented for controlling an electric motor after a first fault is shown.

[0019] Figure 6 An embodiment of the circuit arrangement presented for controlling an electric motor after a second fault is shown.

[0020] Figure 7 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement having three channels for controlling an electric motor after a channel failure is shown.

[0021] Figure 8 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement having three channels for controlling an electric motor after a channel failure is shown.

[0022] Fig. 9 An embodiment of the described circuit arrangement for controlling an electric motor is shown with a flexible connection.

[0023] Fig.10 An embodiment of the circuit arrangement presented for controlling an electric motor after a fault is shown, with a flexible connection. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] The invention is schematically illustrated with the aid of embodiments in the drawings and is described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0025] Figure 1 A circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 10. Circuit arrangement 10, which is connected to an electric motor 12, comprises channels which are designed redundantly with respect to one another, wherein a first channel 14 and an nth channel 16 are shown in this illustration.

[0026] A first supply unit 20, a first microcontroller 22 as a computing unit, a first gate driver 24 and a first output stage 26 are provided in the first channel 14. An nth supply unit 30, an nth microcontroller 32, an nth gate driver 34 and an nth output stage 36 are provided in the nth channel 16.

[0027] Figure 1 It is shown that redundancy can only be achieved with this approach at great expense, for example by doubling or tripling, for example in combination with x-by-wire technology. The method described in this article also enables dynamic reconfiguration of the wiring. In this way, the required redundancy does not have to be set at the same frequency for all electronic modules, but can be adjusted according to the permissible probability of failure.

[0028] It should also be taken into account that a single electronic module can take over the functions of not only another module, but also a plurality of further modules. For example, the number of redundancies can be determined based on the tolerable power loss or computing loss.

[0029] The method shown can be used for systems with p-phases. For example, these systems can continue to operate even if a phase failure occurs and the distributed reconfigurable intelligence and power electronics can appropriately divide the necessary control signals to the units that are still operating normally.

[0030] In this case the performance capacity It can be designed to maintain full performance even after the first E / E failure, or in other designs the performance capacity can be reduced, especially in terms of performance and / or regulation speed and communication speed.

[0031] This concept can be used in all areas of energy conversion, such as drive technology. For example, the phase angle of a rotating motor can be adjusted so that the motor continues to operate even if a phase failure occurs.

[0032] Depending on redundancy or fail-safety requirements, a single line is doubled, see Figure 1 This would increase effort, installation space and costs to a great extent.

[0033] The lines here include independent power supplies, for example power supplies 1 and 2 in a vehicle. These power supplies are usually distributed to a certain number of supply units, for example internal voltage converters, for example also to more than two internal voltage converters.

[0034] Each supply unit serves a computer that controls a gate driver that is connected to a power output stage that serves, for example, one phase of an actuator or is rigidly wired to n phases, ie cannot be dynamically reconfigured.

[0035] Figure 2 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 50. Circuit arrangement 50, which is connected to an electric motor 52, comprises channels that are designed redundantly with respect to one another, wherein a first channel 54 and an nth channel 56 are shown in the illustration.

[0036] A first supply unit 60, a first unit 62 with a microcontroller (μC) + a gate driver (GD) and a second unit 64 with an output stage (PS) and a GD are provided in the first channel 54. An nth supply unit 70, a first nth unit 72 with a μC + GD and a second nth unit 74 with an output stage and a GD are provided in the nth channel 56.

[0037] The following features can be achieved with the described circuit arrangement:

[0038] 1. Electronic modules that can be reconfigured at run time to supply and control actuators or energy storage,

[0039] 2. The number of μC+GD* and PS+GD** modules supplied can be different here.

[0040] 3. For example, the potential separation required for different vehicle electrical systems is transferred from the motor to the supply module,

[0041] 4. The connection between μC+GD* and PS+GD** is implemented as point-to-multipoint, other variants are implemented as point-to-point, multipoint-to-point or multipoint-to-multipoint (swarm intelligence),

[0042] 5. The redundancy is flexible and easy to expand (skalierbar),

[0043] 6. The topology includes a microcontroller (μC) with a pre-driver and an intelligent power output stage,

[0044] 7. The topology can implement different transmission media on flexible routes.

[0045] Points 4 to 7 are discussed in detail below:

[0046] About (4)

[0047] System availability should be increased by achieving full to reduced functionality and performance after a first fault and a safe state after a second fault.

[0048] The conventional approach to dual-channel drive systems enables continued operation of the system after the first fault. However, after a second fault the system is no longer available, which is critical for safety-related systems and drive-by-wire systems. To meet safety requirements, a third channel is required to bring the system to a safe state after a second fault. This solution has considerable disadvantages in terms of cost and space requirements, see Figure 3 .

[0049] Figure 3 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 100. Circuit arrangement 100, which is connected to an electric motor 102, comprises three channels, namely a first channel 104, a second channel 106 and a third channel 108, which are designed redundantly with respect to one another.

[0050] A first supply unit 110, a first unit 112 with μC+GD, and a second unit 114 with an output stage (PS) and GD are provided in the first channel 104. A first supply unit 120, a first unit 122 with μC+GD, and a second unit 124 with an output stage and GD are provided in the second channel 106. A first supply unit 130, a first unit 132 with μC+GD, and a second unit 134 with an output stage and GD are provided in the third channel 108.

[0051] Units 122, 124, 132 and 134 represent electronic modules of the type described herein, which in this embodiment can be freely reconfigured. This also applies to the embodiments in the other figures.

[0052] The point-to-multipoint connection of electronic components is important in order to increase the availability of the drive system without having to double the logic channels. The purely serial wiring of the electronic units is transformed into a flexible wiring that is dynamically reconfigured according to the requirements in normal operation. In the event of a fault, the redistribution is based on the possibilities. The sheer component expenditure is reduced, but the abstract complexity, for example in terms of algorithms, increases.

[0053] The point-to-multipoint approach results in a 2-channel solution and couples the electronics of the two channels so that they can be interchanged in the event of a failure in one of the components. After the first failure, the requirements for fail-operation, i.e. requirements in terms of fault tolerance, are met. After the second failure, the system remains operational and brings the system to a safe state with limited performance, which also meets the safety requirements, see Figure 4 .

[0054] Figure 4 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 150. Circuit arrangement 150, which is connected to an electric motor 152, comprises channels that are designed redundantly with respect to one another, wherein a first channel 154 and an nth channel 156 are shown in the illustration.

[0055] A first supply unit 160, a first unit 162 with μC+GD, and a second unit 164 with an output stage and GD are provided in the first channel 154. A first supply unit 170, a first unit 72 with μC+GD, and a second unit 174 with an output stage and GD are provided in the nth channel 156.

[0056] Figure 5 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 200. Circuit arrangement 200, which is connected to an electric motor 202, includes channels that are designed redundantly with respect to one another, wherein a first channel 204 and an nth channel 206 are shown in the illustration.

[0057] A first supply unit 210, a first unit 212 with μC+GD, and a second unit 214 with an output stage and GD are provided in the first channel 204. A first supply unit 220, a first unit 222 with μC+GD, and a second unit 224 with an output stage and GD are provided in the nth channel 206.

[0058] After the first unit 212 in the first channel 204 fails for the first time, the first unit 222 in the second channel 206 takes over the control of the motor, and the total power continues to be ensured.

[0059] Figure 6 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 250. Circuit arrangement 250, which is connected to an electric motor 252, comprises channels that are designed redundantly with respect to one another, wherein a first channel 254 and an nth channel 256 are shown in the illustration.

[0060] A first supply unit 260, a first unit 262 with μC+GD, and a second unit 264 with an output stage and GD are provided in the first channel 254. A first supply unit 270, a first unit 272 with μC+GD, and a second unit 274 with an output stage and GD are provided in the nth channel 256.

[0061] After a second fault occurs in the second unit 274 in the second channel 256, the control of the motor is taken over by the unit 264 in the first channel 254. In this case, only three phases can be controlled, so that only 50% of the power is available.

[0062] The advantages are:

[0063] Reduces the number of electronic components required to improve availability,

[0064] Higher system availability, reduced costs, installation space and integration effort,

[0065] Scalable redundant mapping concept.

[0066] An alternative approach is to double the logical channels, but to achieve the same availability, the installation space and integration effort also increase accordingly.

[0067] For example, point-to-multipoint connection of electronic components can be used in electric drives with high requirements for safety-critical availability, such as brakes, steering and systems. This approach can also be used in multi-actuator applications.

[0068] About (5)

[0069] A requirement-based redundancy expansion possibility is introduced.

[0070] If the system must be able to tolerate an initial fault, this can be achieved in known practice by duplicating or redundancies in the electronic components. This allows the system to continue to operate after the initial fault. However, since a second channel can fail at any time, especially in the case of wire-controlled systems, the system must be transferred to a safe state as quickly as possible after the initial fault.

[0071] In order to ensure high availability after an initial failure, a third channel is required so that the system can still be transferred to a safe state after a second failure. This solution has significant disadvantages in terms of cost and space. With flexible point-to-multipoint wiring, a complete third channel does not necessarily have to be implemented. It is sufficient to have three times the number of components determined. If a failure occurs in channel 1 or 2, the corresponding component can take over the tasks of the failed component as required.

[0072] Figure 7An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for driving and supplying a 6-phase electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 300. Circuit arrangement 300, which is connected to an electric motor 302, comprises three channels, namely a first channel 304, a second channel 306 and a third channel 308, which are designed redundantly with respect to one another.

[0073] A first supply unit 310, a first unit 312 with μC+GD, and a second unit 314 with an output stage and GD are provided in the first channel 304. A first supply unit 320, a first unit 322 with μC+GD, and a second unit 324 with an output stage and GD are provided in the second channel 306. A first supply unit 330 and a first unit 332 with μC+GD are provided in the nth channel 308.

[0074] Figure 8 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 350. Circuit arrangement 350, which is connected to an electric motor 352, comprises three channels, namely a first channel 354, a second channel 356 and a third channel 358, which are designed redundantly with respect to one another.

[0075] A first supply unit 360, a first unit 362 with μC+GD, and a second unit 364 with an output stage and GD are provided in the first channel 354. A first supply unit 370, a first unit 372 with μC+GD, and a second unit 374 with an output stage and GD are provided in the second channel 356. A first supply unit 380 and a first unit 382 with μC+GD are provided in the nth channel 358.

[0076] After a first fault occurs in the first channel (reference numeral 362 ), the second μC 372 takes over the control of the power output stage, so that the total power continues to be available.

[0077] After the second failure of the μC in unit 372, the control of gate driver 1 and gate driver 2 is taken over by the μC in unit 382. Ideally, therefore, up to 100% of the system power is still available before the transition to the safe state.

[0078] The advantages of this approach are:

[0079] Reduced number of electronic components required for increased availability,

[0080] High system availability, reduced installation space and costs compared to existing concepts,

[0081] Scalable redundant mapping concept.

[0082] An alternative approach is to double the total number of logical channels, but this comes at a correspondingly higher cost in terms of installation space requirements to achieve the same availability.

[0083] For example, the scalable redundancy principle can be used for electric drives with high availability and safety requirements, such as brakes, steering and systems with similar requirements.

[0084] About (6)

[0085] The conventional approach to two-channel drive systems enables the system to continue operating after the first fault. However, after a second fault the system is no longer available. This is crucial for safety-related systems and drive-by-wire systems. To meet safety requirements, a third channel is required in order to bring the system into a safe state after a second fault. This solution has significant disadvantages in terms of cost and space. “Dumme” electronic modules for supply units, gate drivers and power output stages are well known. The control and energy transmission are carried out with analog or digital signals, but usually without a combination of signal types. Combinations and intelligent evaluations at the module level enable flexibility and fault redundancy. The “dumb” electronic modules become intelligent and autonomously search for information and energy that is important to them from the data and energy flows.

[0086] The purely serial wiring of the electronic units is transformed into a flexible wiring that is dynamically reconfigured according to the requirements in normal operation. In the event of a fault, it is redistributed according to the possibilities. The sheer component expenditure is reduced, but the abstract complexity increases, for example in terms of algorithms, see Figure 2 .

[0087] For example, it is known for DC voltage converters that the current ripple and voltage ripple of the converter is minimized if the phase shift between the phases of an n-phase converter is 360° / n. If an electronic module fails, the remaining modules preferably control the phases together. If this is not possible or inconvenient, the phase shift is readjusted and the computing effort is redistributed. The current method facilitates or even enables this. The same can also be applied to multi-phase drive motors.

[0088] This is also achieved by the circuit arrangement described. The topology of the circuit changes: the supply module, μC and pre-drivers and the power output stage with gate driver form a unit. The supply and communication signals are distributed to the different modules in a matrix. This allows the system to be dynamically reconfigured in the event of a failure in a line or a module, avoiding the need for doubling for redundancy. Within the module, communication intelligence and decentralized supply groups are always required in this topology. These blocks work together with the central intelligence in the μC+GD module and the central supply module. The division of the intelligence into central and decentralized parts and the division of the supply into central and decentralized parts allows the modules to be reconfigured flexibly during operation. The resulting computing tasks can be redistributed or simplified in a chronological order. Due to the division into modules, the total electrical power available in the event of a failure is slightly reduced, but this does not restrict the basic functionality.

[0089] If no restrictions are allowed in the event of a failure, replacement units, called spares, are kept ready to dynamically take over if any module of the same type fails.

[0090] If all modules are functioning properly, maximum performance can be achieved in terms of computing power, regulation performance and electrical power. Alternatively, spare parts can provide the necessary performance capacity over the entire service life in case of planned performance degradation.

[0091] If, for example, a single module fails, resulting in reduced computing performance, another computing module can take over the task in a chronological order using the innovative topology. In this case, the reaction speed is reduced and the corresponding vehicle can only be operated at a reduced speed or drive power, for example. However, depending on the number of modules, this limitation is not severe. Severe restrictions on operational readiness or even complete failure can be avoided. This is done by precisely coordinating the total computing performance requirement, for example, among n modules, which is divided up according to the importance of the functions being processed.

[0092] About (7)

[0093] As mentioned above, a purely serial wiring of the electronic units can be used to achieve a flexible wiring that can be dynamically reconfigured according to the requirements of normal operation. In the event of a fault, the redistribution will be carried out according to the possibilities. The pure component expenditure is reduced, but the abstract complexity, for example in terms of algorithms, increases.

[0094] For example, it is well known for DC voltage converters that if the phase shift between the phases of an n-phase converter is 360° / n, the current ripple and voltage ripple of the converter are minimized. If one electronic module fails, the remaining modules preferably control the phases together. If this is not feasible or convenient, the phase shift is readjusted and the computing power is redistributed. The method described herein facilitates or even enables this. This approach can also be used for multi-phase drive motors.

[0095] The use of flexible lines is now proposed as a completely flexible solution to replace fixed wiring connections. Flexible lines can be represented by infrared, power lines, radio, etc. for example.

[0096] This approach can be used, for example, from point to multipoint. If, for example, one controller (μC+GD) fails, another controller can take over control. By using flexible routing, downstream units can be controlled directly, in this case the output stage (PS+GD). This can be done, for example, using a unique identifier for each downstream unit.

[0097] It is also possible to control multiple phases by one controller via flexible routing. Thus, the controller 2 can control the power output stage 1 and the power output stage 2 at the right time.

[0098] The further use of controller units connected via flexible routing can increase redundancy and thus reduce failures in time (FIT). Each individual controller can control the downstream power output stage.

[0099] Fig. 9 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 400. Circuit arrangement 400, which is connected to an electric motor 402, comprises channels that are designed redundantly with respect to one another, wherein a first channel 404 and a second channel 406 are shown in the illustration.

[0100] A first supply unit 410, a first unit 412 with μC+GD, and a second unit 414 with an output stage and GD are provided in the first channel 404. A first supply unit 420, a first unit 422 with μC+GD, and a second unit 424 with an output stage and GD are provided in the second channel 406.

[0101] Fig.10 An embodiment of a circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying an electric motor is shown, which is generally designated by reference numeral 450. Circuit arrangement 450, which is connected to an electric motor 452, comprises channels that are designed redundantly with respect to one another, wherein a first channel 454 and a second channel 456 are shown in the illustration.

[0102] A first supply unit 460, a first unit 462 with μC+GD, and a second unit 464 with an output stage and GD are provided in the first channel 454. A first supply unit 470, a first unit 472 with μC+GD, and a second unit 474 with an output stage and GD are provided in the second channel 456.

[0103] The advantages of this solution are:

[0104] No fixed wiring connection required,

[0105] Individual control of each downstream component,

[0106] It is also possible to operate multiple downstream components simultaneously or staggered.

[0107] Flexible design to map out the required redundancy,

[0108] Point-to-point, point-to-multipoint, multipoint-to-point and multipoint-to-multipoint configurations are available.

[0109] An alternative approach is to use hardwired connections to provide as many connections as possible and then switch these connections individually. This would result in a lot of additional wiring effort and components.

[0110] Point-to-multipoint connection of electronic components can be used, for example, in electric drives where high availability and safety levels are required, such as brakes, steering and systems. This method can also be used for multi-actuator control.

Claims

1. A circuit arrangement for controlling and supplying a component in a motor vehicle, wherein: The circuit arrangement (10, 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400, 450) has at least two channels (14, 16, 54, 56, 104, 106, 154, 156, 204, 206, 254, 256, 304, 306, 354, 356, 404, 406, 454, 456) for controlling and supplying the component, In the two channels (14, 16, 54, 56, 104, 106, 154, 156, 204, 206, 254, 256, 304, 306, 354, 356, 404, 406, 454, 456) at least one supply unit (20, 30, 60, 70, 110, 120, 160, 170, 210, 220, 260, 270, 310, 330, 360, 370, 380, 410, 420, 460, 470), a computing unit, a driver unit (24) and an output stage (26) are respectively arranged as components.

2. The circuit arrangement according to claim 1, wherein: In both channels ( 14 , 16 , 54 , 56 , 104 , 106 , 154 , 156 , 204 , 206 , 254 , 256 , 304 , 306 , 354 , 356 , 404 , 406 , 454 , 456 ) the components are arranged in an electronic module which can be reconfigured during operation.

3. The circuit arrangement according to claim 1 or 2, which is provided for controlling and supplying an electric motor (12, 52, 102, 152, 202, 252, 302, 352, 402, 452).

4. The circuit arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The electronic modules are at least partially interconnected in the at least two channels (14, 16, 54, 56, 104, 106, 154, 156, 204, 206, 254, 256, 304, 306, 354, 356, 404, 406, 454, 456) via a point-to-multipoint connection.

5. The circuit arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The at least two channels (14, 16, 54, 56, 104, 106, 154, 156, 204, 206, 254, 256, 304, 306, 354, 356, 404, 406, 454, 456) are designed redundantly with respect to one another, wherein a flexible and expandable redundancy is achieved.

6. The circuit arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: A microcontroller is used as the computing unit and an intelligent power output stage is used as the output stage.

7. The circuit arrangement according to claim 6, wherein: Set up additional front drives.

8. The circuit arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The communication between the electronic modules takes place via a flexible transmission medium.

9. The circuit arrangement according to claim 8, wherein: The communication is performed via power lines, radio and / or infrared.

10. The circuit arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein: The circuit arrangement is provided to transfer the electronic module into a safe state in the event of a fault in at least one of the electronic modules.

11. The circuit arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein: The potential separation is transferred to the at least one supply unit.

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