Vehicle device

Abstract

The invention provides a vehicle device which appropriately heats a catalyst device and suppresses cost. A vehicle device (10) is provided with: an electrically heated catalyst device (16) disposed in an engine compartment of a vehicle; and an on-board charger (12) that is disposed in the engine compartment and supplies power to the catalyst device. A vehicle-mounted charger (12) is provided with: a current sensor (18) that detects the current of power supplied to a catalyst device (16); a voltage sensor (20) that detects the voltage of power supplied to the catalyst device (16); a calculation unit (22) that calculates the resistance value of the catalyst device (16) on the basis of the detection results of the current sensor (18) and the voltage sensor (20); a determination unit (24) that determines the range of power to be supplied to the catalyst device (16) on the basis of the calculated resistance value; and a supply unit (26) that supplies to the catalyst device (16) electric power that converges within the determined electric power range.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a technology for supplying power from an on-board charger to an electrically heated catalyst device. Background Technology

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle comprising: a catalyst device configured to perform electric heating and for purifying exhaust gases from an internal combustion engine; a first temperature detection unit for detecting the temperature of the catalyst device; an energy storage device; a second temperature detection unit for detecting the temperature of the energy storage device; a catalyst power supply device that receives power from the energy storage device and supplies heating power to the catalyst device; and a control device for controlling the catalyst power supply device. The control device calculates a first power supply that can be obtained from the energy storage device based on the charging state of the energy storage device and the output of the second temperature detection unit, and determines whether to supply the first power from the catalyst power supply device to the catalyst device based on the output of the first temperature detection unit.

[0003] [Existing technical documents]

[0004] [Patent Literature]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2011-111176 Summary of the Invention

[0006] [The problem the invention aims to solve]

[0007] In the technology described in Patent Document 1, it is desirable to avoid both overheating and underheating of the catalyst device. Therefore, if it is desired to detect the power supplied from the catalyst power supply device to the catalyst device with high accuracy, it will incur the cost of current sensors and voltage sensors for detecting the power.

[0008] The purpose of this invention is to provide a technique for properly heating a catalyst device and reducing costs.

[0009] [Methods used to solve problems]

[0010] To address the aforementioned issues, one embodiment of the present invention provides a vehicle device comprising: an electrically heated catalyst unit disposed in the engine compartment of a vehicle; and an on-board charger disposed in the engine compartment for supplying power to the catalyst unit. The on-board charger includes: a current sensor for detecting the current supplied to the catalyst unit; a voltage sensor for detecting the voltage supplied to the catalyst unit; a calculation unit for calculating the resistance value of the catalyst unit based on the detection results of the current and voltage sensors; a determination unit for determining the range of power supplied to the catalyst unit based on the calculated resistance value; and a supply unit for supplying power to the catalyst unit within the determined power range. The determination unit increases the power range when the calculated resistance value is greater than a predetermined value, compared to when the calculated resistance value is less than a predetermined value.

[0011] [Invention Effects]

[0012] According to the present invention, a technique is available that can provide a suitable catalyst heating device and suppress costs. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is a diagram illustrating the functional structure of the vehicle device in an embodiment.

[0014] Figure 2 This is a diagram used to illustrate the range of electricity supplied to the catalyst unit. Detailed Implementation

[0015] Figure 1 This is a diagram illustrating the functional structure of the vehicle device 10 in the embodiment. The vehicle equipped with the vehicle device 10 can be a PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle), HEV (Hybrid Electric Vehicle), or BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle), and can have autonomous driving control functions capable of autonomous driving.

[0016] The vehicle unit 10 includes an on-board charger 12, a temperature sensor 14, and a catalyst device 16, and is located in the engine compartment of the vehicle. The vehicle unit 10 calculates the state of the catalyst device 16 on the on-board charger 12 side to determine the power supply. Therefore, even without placing a sensor on the catalyst device 16, appropriate power can be supplied, reducing the number of components in the vehicle unit 10 and making the vehicle unit 10 more compact, thus ensuring space in the engine compartment.

[0017] Temperature sensor 14 is located in the engine compartment, in a different position than the catalyst unit 16, to detect temperature. Temperature sensor 14 may also be located outside the engine compartment, or it may detect the temperature of other devices or the ambient temperature of the driving environment. Temperature sensor 14 sends the detection results to the on-board charger 12.

[0018] The catalyst device 16 is electrically heated, using electricity supplied from the on-board charger 12 to heat the catalyst and purify the exhaust gas from the internal combustion engine. The resistance value of the catalyst device 16 varies according to the temperature of the catalyst, and the power or current that can be supplied varies as the temperature rises.

[0019] The on-board charger 12 is capable of bidirectional charging, supplying power to sources other than the catalyst device 16. For example, the on-board charger 12 can supply power to the vehicle's high-voltage battery or to external sources.

[0020] The on-board charger 12 includes a current sensor 18, a voltage sensor 20, a calculation unit 22, a decision unit 24, and a supply unit 26. The current sensor 18 is located in the output path of the on-board charger 12 and detects the current of the power supplied to the catalytic converter 16. The voltage sensor 20 is located in the output path of the on-board charger 12 and detects the voltage of the power supplied to the catalytic converter 16. When the on-board charger 12 and the catalytic converter 16 are located close to each other, the detection accuracy of the current sensor 18 and the voltage sensor 20 changes due to the influence of the catalytic converter 16 when the catalytic converter 16 is heated.

[0021] The calculation unit 22 calculates the resistance value of the catalyst device 16 based on the detection results of the temperature sensor 14, the current sensor 18, and the voltage sensor 20. The calculation unit 22 calculates the power supplied to the catalyst device 16 based on the detection results of the current sensor 18 and the voltage sensor 20, and calculates the resistance value of the catalyst device 16 based on a series of power supplies to the catalyst device 16.

[0022] The power supplied to the catalyst unit 16 can be, for example, a cumulative value from the start of the supply. The calculation unit 22 calculates the heating amount of the catalyst unit 16 based on the detection results of the current sensor 18 and the voltage sensor 20, estimates the temperature of the catalyst unit 16, and calculates the resistance value of the catalyst unit 16 corresponding to its temperature. Additionally, the temperature sensor 14 determines the initial temperature of the catalyst unit 16. Furthermore, the initial temperature of the catalyst unit 16 is not limited to the detection result of the temperature sensor 14; it can also be obtained from weather information via a network.

[0023] The calculation unit 22 can use a mapping to calculate the resistance value of the catalyst device 16. The mapping takes the initial temperature and the detection results of a series of current sensors 18 and voltage sensors 20 as inputs to the mapping, and outputs the resistance value of the catalyst device 16.

[0024] The determination unit 24 determines the range of power supplied to the catalyst device 16 based on the resistance value calculated by the calculation unit 22. The supply unit 26 supplies power to the catalyst device 16 within the range of power determined by the determination unit 24. Here, the range of power supplied to the catalyst device 16 determined by the determination unit 24 will be explained with reference to the new accompanying drawings.

[0025] Figure 2 This is a diagram used to illustrate the range of electricity supplied to the catalyst unit 16. Figure 2 The vertical axis represents electricity, and the horizontal axis represents time. Additionally, Figure 2 (a) indicates the range of electricity determined by the determination unit 24 of the embodiment. Figure 2 (b) indicates the range of electrical technologies being compared.

[0026] exist Figure 2 (a) shows the upper limit 30 and lower limit 32 of the power that can be supplied when the catalyst device 16 is heated. The supply unit 26 supplies power to the catalyst device 16 in such a way that it converges to a first range 34 from time t0 to time t1.

[0027] The upper limit of power 30 is calculated by adding a predetermined ratio corresponding to the resistance value to the power (current or voltage), and the lower limit of power 32 is calculated by subtracting a predetermined ratio corresponding to the resistance value from the power (current or voltage). Furthermore, the upper limit of power 30 and the lower limit of power 32 can be calculated by increasing or decreasing the power by a predetermined ratio. This predetermined ratio is preset based on the resistance value of the catalyst device 16.

[0028] From the start of heating (t0) to time (t1), the available power is maintained within a first range (34). This first range (34) can be adjusted based on the resistance value. At time (t1), if the resistance value calculated by the calculation unit (22) becomes smaller than a predetermined value, the upper limit of the power (30) and the lower limit of the power (32) are changed to a second range (36) narrower than the first range (34). The first upper limit (U1) is greater than the second upper limit (U2), and the first lower limit (L1) is less than the second upper limit (L2). When the calculated resistance value is greater than the predetermined value, the determination unit (24) increases the range of power compared to when the calculated resistance value is less than the predetermined value.

[0029] The detection accuracy of current sensor 18 and voltage sensor 20 increases with rising temperature. Initially, the first range 34 is set relatively wide, thus allowing for lower detection accuracy of current sensor 18 and voltage sensor 20. By narrowing the second range 36 midway through the process, even if there are deviations in the detection results of current sensor 18 and voltage sensor 20, the cumulative value of the final supplied power can be controlled to converge within a predetermined range. This prevents inadequate heating of the catalyst device 16 or excessive power supply. Furthermore, the lower detection accuracy of current sensor 18 and voltage sensor 20 in the initial state allows for the use of inexpensive and lightweight sensors.

[0030] exist Figure 2 In the comparison technique shown in (b), from time t0 to time t1, the range 42 of the upper power limit 38 and the lower power limit 40 is narrower than the first range 34, and the on-board charger will pre-supply power within this narrow range. To achieve power control within this narrow range, high detection accuracy is required for the current and voltage sensors installed on the on-board charger; these sensors may be expensive and heavy. After time t1, with... Figure 2 The second range 36 shown in (a) is controlled.

[0031] The present disclosure has been described above based on embodiments. The present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiments, and various design changes and modifications can be made based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

[0032] [Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures]

[0033] 10 Vehicle device, 12 On-board charger, 14 Temperature sensor, 16 Catalyst device, 18 Current sensor, 20 Voltage sensor, 22 Calculation unit, 24 Decision unit, 26 Supply unit, 30 Upper limit of power, 32 Lower limit of power.

Claims

1. A vehicle device comprising: An electrically heated catalyst unit is located in the vehicle's engine compartment; and An on-board charger, located in the engine compartment, supplies power to the catalytic converter. The on-board charger has: A current sensor detects the current supplied with the power to the catalyst device; A voltage sensor detects the voltage of the power supplied to the catalyst device; The calculation unit calculates the resistance value of the catalyst device based on the detection results of the current sensor and the voltage sensor. The decision unit determines the range of electricity supplied to the catalyst device based on the calculated resistance value; as well as The supply unit supplies power to the catalyst device within the range of the determined power. When the calculated resistance value is greater than the specified value, the decision unit increases the range of electrical power compared to when the calculated resistance value is less than the specified value.

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