Seizure notification device

Abstract

To provide a seizure notification device which can accurately determine the occurrence of seizure caused by the deterioration of oil for use in lubrication and cooling, and can notify the occurrence of the seizure at proper timing.SOLUTION: A seizure notification device lubricated by oil, and determining the seizure of a rotation support part for supporting a rotating member and notifying the seizure, comprises a controller for performing the determination and the notification. The controller acquires a product of torque of the rotating member and a rotation number, acquires an integration value by integrating the number of times at which the product reaches a preset prescribed value or larger at each preset prescribed sampling time (step S2), compares the integration value and a preset threshold (step S3), and when the integration value exceeds the threshold which is held as a value lowered by an increase of a temperature of the oil, the torque and the rotation number (YES in step S3), performs the notification of the seizure (step S4).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a seizure warning device for warning a driver when there is a possibility of seizure of sliding parts due to deterioration of oil for cooling and lubrication in a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an oil change timing determination device for the purpose of accurately determining the oil change timing. The oil change timing determination device of Patent Document 1 calculates the value of each oil deterioration element such as torque, vehicle speed, mileage, and oil temperature for each predetermined time, and obtains the deterioration amount by referring to a table in which the deterioration amount is previously stored. The device of Patent Document 1 calculates the integrated value of the deterioration amount for each predetermined time, and calculates the deterioration degree of the oil by the integrated value and a predetermined weighting coefficient. The device of Patent Document 1 is configured to output oil change timing information that requires an oil change when the deterioration degree is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, and to output oil change timing information that is the mileage until the oil change is required when the deterioration degree is less than the predetermined threshold. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-96258 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] As described in Patent Document 1, when oil supplied to cool and lubricate a vehicle's power transmission device, etc., deteriorates due to additive consumption or oxidation, so-called seizure may occur, for example, at the contact surface between parts, such as deterioration of the material surface, wear, and dissolution. When oil deteriorates, the temperature and durability of such sliding parts may be affected, which may lead to reduced fuel efficiency. However, although the device in Patent Document 1 can determine the degree of deterioration of the oil, it does not take into consideration the relationship with the actual effects of the above-mentioned seizure caused by the deterioration of the oil. For example, not only is the above-mentioned seizure likely to occur when the engine is continuously operated under a high load, but when the oil deterioration has progressed, seizure may occur even more easily than when the oil is not deteriorated. Thus, there is room for improvement in dealing with the actual effects of the seizure of parts caused by the estimated deterioration of the oil.

[0005] The present invention has been made with a focus on the above-mentioned technical problems, and aims to provide a seizure warning device that can accurately determine the occurrence of seizure caused by deterioration of oil for lubrication and cooling, and can provide a timely warning. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a seizure notification device that judges and notifies of seizure of a rotating support part that is lubricated by oil and supports a rotating member, and is equipped with a controller that performs the judgment and notification, wherein the controller calculates the product of the torque and rotation speed of the rotating member, and calculates an integrated value by integrating the number of times that the product becomes equal to or exceeds a predetermined value at each predetermined sampling time, and compares the integrated value with a predetermined threshold value, the threshold value being held as a value that decreases with increases in the oil temperature, the torque, and the rotation speed, and notifies of the seizure when the integrated value exceeds the threshold value. Effect of the Invention

[0007] The seizure notification device of the present invention determines and notifies the seizure of a rotation support part that supports a rotating member. The seizure notification device obtains an integrated value by integrating the number of times that the product of the torque and the rotation speed of the rotating member becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined value at each predetermined sampling time. Then, the integrated value is compared with a predetermined threshold value, and when the integrated value exceeds the threshold value, a notification of seizure is given. In addition, the threshold value is a value that decreases with an increase in the oil temperature, torque, and rotation speed. Therefore, since the likelihood of seizure occurring is determined based on the torque and rotation speed of the rotating member, the likelihood of seizure occurring can be determined with high accuracy. In addition, since the threshold value decreases with an increase in the oil temperature, torque, and rotation speed, it is possible to suppress a delay in notification when seizure is likely to occur due to deterioration of the oil. In addition, the estimated deterioration degree of the oil can be effectively utilized. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing an example of a vehicle equipped with a burn-in notification device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram for explaining a functional configuration of a burn-in notification device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 3] 11 is a time chart for explaining values ​​that are integrated as burn-in parameters. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a predetermined threshold value for determining whether burn-in is likely to occur. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a predetermined threshold value that is set according to the degree of deterioration of oil. [Figure 6] 5 is a flowchart showing an example of control executed by the burn-in notification device according to the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] The present invention will be described below based on the embodiments shown in the drawings. Note that the embodiments described below are merely examples of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0010] Fig. 1 shows a vehicle Ve to which a burn-in notification device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. As shown in Fig. 1, the vehicle Ve includes a driving force source such as an engine (hereinafter referred to as engine) 1, a power transmission device 2, a display 3, wheels 4, a detection unit 5, and an electronic control unit (ECU) 6. The burn-in notification device according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured to notify the driver when there is a possibility of so-called burn-in occurring in parts such as rotating members and their rotation support parts that slide while the vehicle Ve is running, for example, when the engine 1 is operating, in the power transmission device 2 of the vehicle Ve.

[0011] The engine 1, like a conventionally known engine, is configured to generate driving force for the vehicle Ve by burning a mixture of air and a fuel such as gasoline. Specifically, the engine 1 has a plurality of cylinders, and outputs power by carrying out the processes of intake, compression, combustion (expansion), and exhaust in the plurality of cylinders. Note that the engine 1 may also be configured to use a motor as a driving force source, or the driving force source may be a motor alone.

[0012] The power transmission device 2 is a mechanism for transmitting the output of the engine 1 to the wheels 4, and includes mechanisms such as a planetary gear mechanism (transmission), a transmission mechanism, and a differential gear. Oil (not shown) is supplied to the power transmission device 2 to lubricate or cool these mechanisms. The oil is supplied to the parts where sliding occurs between the parts, thereby suppressing deterioration of the material surface at the contact surfaces between the parts, wear, melting, and other seizures. Examples of parts where sliding occurs include bearings, gears, differential parts of differential gears, and sliding bearings.

[0013] The display 3 is provided on an instrument panel of the vehicle Ve, and is, for example, a meter panel or a car navigation display. The display 3 displays information necessary for driving the vehicle Ve and notifications for the user. The display 3 is also configured to notify the driver or passengers by displaying a symbol or the like when there is a possibility that the power transmission device 2 is prone to seizure due to deterioration of the oil or the like. Note that audio notifications from speakers or the like provided in the vehicle may also be used in combination.

[0014] The detection unit 5 is a device or apparatus for acquiring various data and information required for controlling the running of the vehicle Ve and estimating the degree of deterioration of the oil. The detection unit 5 has various sensors and devices such as a rotation speed sensor 5a for detecting the rotation speed of the engine 1, an engine torque sensor 5b for detecting the output torque of the engine 1, and an oil temperature sensor 5c for detecting the temperature of the oil described above. The torque may be calculated based on the operating state or control state of the engine 1. For example, it may be calculated based on the output of the engine 1 and the rotation speed of the output shaft of the engine 1. Alternatively, when a motor is used in combination as a driving force source, the torque of the output shaft may be calculated based on the rotation speed of the motor to which the torque of the engine is input by a resolver and the gear ratio in the power transmission device, or may be converted into torque based on an instruction current value to the motor, and the torque of the output shaft may be calculated based on the gear ratio.

[0015] The ECU 6 corresponds to a controller in the embodiment of the present invention, and is mainly composed of a microcomputer, similar to a conventionally known ECU. Signals are input from various sensors provided in the vehicle Ve, and the ECU 6 is configured to output a result obtained based on the input signals and a map or an arithmetic expression stored in advance as a control command signal to the engine 1, etc. The data input to the ECU 6 includes the torque and rotation speed of the engine 1, the oil temperature, etc., as described above. The detection unit 5, the ECU 6, and each actuator and sensor for driving the vehicle Ve are electrically connected to each other, for example, by a CAN or a wire harness, and output an electric signal corresponding to the acquired detection value or calculation value to the ECU 6 as detection data. As shown in FIG. 2, the ECU 6 also includes an integration execution determination unit 7, a seizure parameter calculation unit 8, a seizure determination unit 9, an oil deterioration degree calculation unit 10, and a seizure notification unit 11.

[0016] The integration execution determination unit 7 determines whether or not to execute a calculation for calculating a parameter that contributes to the occurrence of seizure in the power transmission device 2. A predetermined integration execution threshold Stn is stored in the integration execution determination unit 7. The integration execution determination unit 7 acquires the output torque and rotation speed of the engine 1, and when a reference value obtained by multiplying the output torque and the rotation speed becomes equal to or greater than the integration execution threshold Stn, determines that a calculation for estimating the occurrence of seizure should be started. In addition, the integration execution determination unit 7 is configured to determine that the calculation should be terminated when the time during which the reference value is smaller than the integration execution threshold Stn becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined time Ty. The integration execution threshold Stn can be determined in advance by experiment or simulation.

[0017] The seizure parameter calculation unit 8 calculates the seizure parameter Dyaki based on a plurality of parameters that are factors that cause oil deterioration. The seizure parameter calculation unit 8 calculates a reference value by multiplying the output torque of the engine 1 and the rotation speed of the engine 1 for each sampling time, and calculates the seizure parameter Dyaki, which is an integrated value. In other words, the seizure parameter Dyaki is a value obtained by integrating the number of times that the reference value becomes equal to or greater than the integration execution threshold Stn for each sampling time. Moreover, the integration execution threshold Stn corresponds to a predetermined value in the embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] The outline of the calculation of the seizure parameter Dyaki will be described with reference to FIG. 3, which is a time chart with the reference value on the vertical axis and the time on the horizontal axis. As shown in FIG. 3, at time t1, the reference value obtained by multiplying the output torque and the rotation speed of the engine 1 becomes equal to or greater than the integration execution threshold value Stn, so that the integration execution determination unit 7 determines that the condition for performing the calculation is satisfied. As a result of such a determination, the seizure parameter calculation unit 8 starts the calculation for calculating the deterioration degree of the oil described above. After that, the reference value becomes smaller than the integration execution threshold value Stn, and this state continues for a predetermined time Ty, so that the calculation in the seizure parameter calculation unit 8 is terminated at time t2. Also, at time t2, the seizure parameter Dyaki calculated by the calculation performed from t1 to t2 is reset.

[0019] After that, at time t3, the reference value becomes equal to or greater than the integration threshold value Stn, and the seizure parameter calculation unit 8 starts the calculation for calculating the deterioration degree of the oil. At time t4, the reference value becomes smaller than the integration threshold value Stn, and this state continues until time t5, and from time t5, the reference value becomes equal to or greater than the integration threshold value Stn again. In this case, although the reference value becomes smaller than the integration threshold value Stn at time t4, the time from time t4 to time t5 is shorter than the predetermined time Ty, so the integration value is not reset. In other words, the calculation for calculating the deterioration degree of the oil, which has been performed since time t3, continues to calculate the seizure parameter Dyaki after time t5, except for the period from time t4 to time t5. After time t5, the calculation of the integration value continues until the time during which the reference value is smaller than the integration threshold value Stn becomes equal to or greater than the predetermined time Ty.

[0020] The seizure determination unit 9 determines whether seizure may occur between parts in the power transmission device 2 that slide, based on the seizure parameter Dyaki calculated by the seizure parameter calculation unit 8. Specifically, the seizure determination unit 9 stores a predetermined threshold value Dyaki_lim for the seizure parameter, and determines whether the seizure parameter Dyaki is greater than the threshold value Dyaki_lim, as shown in FIG. 4. If the seizure parameter Dyaki is greater than the threshold value Dyaki_lim, it determines that the oil is in a state where seizure is likely to occur due to deterioration, and conversely, if the seizure parameter Dyaki is equal to or less than the threshold value Dyaki_lim, it determines that the possibility of seizure occurring is low. The threshold value Dyaki_lim can be determined in advance by experiment or simulation.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 5, the oil degradation degree calculation unit 10 gradually reduces the threshold value Dyaki_lim according to the increase in the oil temperature, the torque input to the rotating member, and the rotation speed. Specifically, the oil degradation degree calculation unit 10 stores an acceleration factor that is preset according to the oil temperature based on experiments, simulations, and the like. The oil degradation degree calculation unit 10 calculates a value obtained by multiplying the acceleration factor by the seizure parameter Dyaki described above as the oil degradation degree. As shown in FIG. 5, the oil degradation degree calculation unit 10 is configured to gradually reduce the threshold value Dyaki_lim as the oil degradation degree increases. In other words, since the threshold value Dyaki_lim is reduced according to the progress of the oil degradation degree, it is configured to make it easier to determine the occurrence of seizure. Note that the relationship between the progress of the oil degradation degree and the reduction range of the threshold value Dyaki_lim at this time is determined in advance by experiments and simulations. Also, the acceleration factor corresponds to a predetermined constant in the embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] When the burn-in determination unit 9 determines that the power transmission device 2 is in a state where burn-in is likely to occur, the burn-in notification unit 11 notifies the driver of the vehicle Ve of such a state. That is, the burn-in notification unit 11 notifies the driver of the vehicle Ve by, for example, displaying a predetermined symbol or message on the display 3. Therefore, the notification of burn-in is not limited to a notification of a state in which burn-in has occurred or a state immediately before that, but may also be a notification of a state in which the possibility of burn-in occurring has become higher than a predetermined standard.

[0023] Next, the control executed when notifying the driver that there is a possibility of seizure occurring in the power transmission device 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 6, in step S1, a reference value is calculated by multiplying the output torque and rotation speed of the engine 1, and it is determined that the reference value is equal to or greater than an integration execution threshold value Stn. In step S1, it is determined that the condition for accelerating oil deterioration is met because the reference value is equal to or greater than an integration execution threshold value Stn that is determined in advance based on the characteristics of the oil. If the reference value is smaller than the integration execution threshold value Stn and therefore NO is determined in step S1, the process proceeds to step S5.

[0024] In step S5, it is determined whether the state in which the reference value is smaller than the integration threshold Stn continues for a predetermined time. In step S5, when the burn-in parameter Dyaki is being calculated, it is determined whether to reset the integration by the calculation. That is, as described above, when the reference value becomes equal to or larger than the integration threshold Stn, the calculation of the burn-in parameter Dyaki is started. Then, since the reference value becomes smaller than the integration threshold Stn, the calculation is temporarily stopped. In step S5, it is determined whether the state in which the calculation is temporarily stopped is continued or the value calculated by the calculation (integration value) is reset based on the duration of the state in which the reference value is smaller than the integration threshold Stn. If the reference value has continued for less than a predetermined time since it fell below the integration threshold Stn, NO is determined in step S5, and this flowchart is temporarily terminated. In that case, when the reference value becomes equal to or larger than the integration threshold Stn again, the temporarily stopped calculation is resumed, and the integration of the number of times the reference value has become equal to or larger than the integration threshold Stn for each sampling time is continued.

[0025] On the other hand, if the reference value has remained above the integration threshold value Stn for a predetermined period of time or more, the determination in step S5 is YES, and the process proceeds to step S6. In step S6, the seizure parameter Dyaki is reset once. That is, in step S6, since the reference value has remained above the integration threshold value Stn for a predetermined period of time or more, the possibility of immediate seizure occurring in the power transmission device 2 is low, so the calculation of the seizure parameter Dyaki is terminated.

[0026] Returning to step S1, if the reference value is equal to or greater than the integration threshold value Stn, and thus the determination in step S1 is YES, the process proceeds to step S2. In step S2, the seizure parameter Dyaki is calculated. As described above, the seizure parameter Dyaki is calculated by integrating the number of times of the reference value obtained by multiplying the output torque of the engine 1 and the rotation speed of the engine 1 when the reference value is equal to or greater than the integration threshold value Stn for each sampling time.

[0027] After the seizure parameter Dyaki is calculated in step S2, the process proceeds to step S3. In step S3, it is determined whether the calculated seizure parameter Dyaki is greater than a predetermined threshold Dyaki_lim. The threshold Dyaki_lim is determined in advance by experiment or simulation, and is set to a value that makes it possible to determine whether seizure may occur in the power transmission device 2 based on the degree of oil deterioration and the characteristics of the engine 1, the power transmission device 2, etc. As described above, the threshold Dyaki_lim is set to a value that gradually decreases as the deterioration of the oil progresses. If the seizure parameter Dyaki is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold Dyaki_lim and therefore NO is determined in step S3, the flow chart is temporarily terminated without executing the subsequent control.

[0028] On the other hand, if it is determined that the burn-in parameter Dyaki is equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold value Dyaki_lim, then the determination in step S3 is YES, and the process proceeds to step S4. In step S4, the driver and passengers are notified that there is a high possibility of burn-in occurring. The notification is made by a display device 3 mounted on the vehicle Ve, and is configured to notify the driver and passengers by displaying, for example, a symbol or a message.

[0029] Therefore, in the burn-in notification device in the embodiment of the present invention, a reference value is calculated by multiplying the output torque of the engine 1 and the rotation speed of the engine 1, and the number of times that the reference value is equal to or greater than the integration implementation threshold Stn is integrated for each sampling time to calculate the burn-in parameter Dyaki. Then, when the burn-in parameter exceeds a predetermined threshold Dyaki_lim, the driver or passenger is notified that the possibility of the occurrence of the burn-in is high. In addition, the threshold Dyaki_lim is set to a smaller value as the deterioration of the oil progresses. In other words, as the deterioration of the oil progresses, the notification that the possibility of the occurrence of the burn-in is high is more likely to occur. That is, the occurrence of the burn-in can be appropriately notified to the driver according to the estimated deterioration degree of the oil. Therefore, it is possible to suppress delays in notification when the oil is relatively likely to cause the burn-in due to the deterioration of the oil. In addition, the estimated deterioration degree of the oil can be effectively utilized. [Explanation of symbols]

[0030] 1 Engine 2. Power transmission device 3 Display 7. Estimation execution judgment section 8 Burn-in parameter calculation section 9 Image retention judgment section 10 Oil Deterioration Calculation Unit 11 Burn-in Notification Section Vehicle

Claims

[Claim 1] A seizure notification device that detects and notifies of seizure in a rotation support portion that is lubricated by oil and supports a rotating member, A controller for performing the determination and notification, The controller calculates a product of the torque and the rotation speed of the rotating member, The number of times that the product is equal to or greater than a predetermined value is calculated for each predetermined sampling time to obtain an integrated value; The integrated value is compared with a predetermined threshold value, the threshold value being held as a value that decreases with increases in the oil temperature, the torque, and the rotation speed, and when the integrated value exceeds the threshold value, the burnout is notified. A burn-in notification device.

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