Method and device for operating a vehicle during rescue operation

Abstract

The invention relates, inter alia, to a method for operating a vehicle (1). In the method according to the invention, during a rescue operation in which the vehicle (1) is towed or pushed, kinetic energy of the vehicle (1) is converted into electrical energy, and this electrical energy is used by the vehicle.

Description

[0001] 202411781

[0002] 1

[0003] Description

[0004] Procedure and equipment for operating a vehicle during a salvage operation

[0005] The invention relates to a method for operating a vehicle, in particular a railway vehicle, while it is being recovered.

[0006] The invention is based on the objective of specifying an operating method for such a recovery operation in which the vehicle is enabled to continue operating still functional components, such as braking systems or anti-slip devices in the case of railway vehicles.

[0007] This problem is solved according to the invention by a method, a drive control device, and a vehicle with the respective features of the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments of the method according to the invention are specified in the respective dependent claims.

[0008] According to the invention, it is provided that during the recovery operation, in which the vehicle is pulled or pushed, the kinetic energy of the vehicle is converted into electrical energy and this electrical energy is used on the vehicle side.

[0009] A significant advantage of the method according to the invention is that it enables the vehicle to continue operating all or at least selected important vehicle components with electrical energy, even if no internally stored electrical energy is available and no electrical energy is supplied externally, either from the roadside or from a recovery vehicle. The inventive concept consists of supplying kinetic energy to the vehicle being recovered from the outside by mechanical means and converting this energy into electrical energy within the vehicle.The vehicle can then use the electrical energy gained by converting kinetic energy to further operate its own electrically operated braking system, thereby supporting the braking operation of the entire system comprising the recovery vehicle and the vehicle being recovered, and / or to further operate its own anti-slip devices to maintain anti-slip protection within the vehicle. The same applies to other technical components deemed essential by the operator. 202411781.

[0010] 2

[0011] The vehicle to be recovered can be a rail vehicle, such as a multiple unit or locomotive, or another self-propelled vehicle with electrical components that is not experiencing a malfunction. Similarly, the recovery equipment can also be a rail vehicle, such as a multiple unit or locomotive, or another type of vehicle.

[0012] In order to enable the described maintenance of independent braking operation with electrically operated brakes and / or the continued operation of anti-slip devices, it is considered advantageous if the conversion of kinetic energy into electrical energy includes generator operation of at least one of the vehicle's drive motors.

[0013] The vehicle can include a drive motor, which is used to convert kinetic energy into electrical energy, and which requires premagnetization, such as an asynchronous machine, a reluctance machine, or an electrically excited synchronous machine.

[0014] If a recovery signal indicating recovery operations is present, in the case of a drive motor requiring pre-magnetization, pre-magnetization preferably takes place first by feeding pre-magnetization energy into the drive motor, and only after pre-magnetization has taken place is the drive motor operated as a generator.

[0015] In one method variant considered advantageous, the premagnetization energy is taken from an on-board electrical system and / or an energy storage device of the vehicle connected to a DC intermediate circuit.

[0016] The energy storage system can include, for example, a traction battery used to power the drive motor during battery-assisted drive operation, an auxiliary battery used solely to store emergency energy for emergency operation, a flywheel storage system, a capacitor, a brake cell with hydrogen reservoir, etc.

[0017] It is advantageous if extracting the premagnetization energy from the vehicle electrical system includes a voltage conversion from a vehicle electrical system voltage level to a DC link level, as well as an energy transfer of the premagnetization energy from the vehicle electrical system to the DC link, and if the premagnetization energy is transferred via a circuit between the 202411781

[0018] 3

[0019] The DC link and the motor converter switched to the drive motor are taken from the DC link and fed into the drive motor.

[0020] The voltage conversion from the vehicle electrical system voltage level to the DC link level is preferably carried out using an auxiliary converter. The vehicle electrical system and the DC link can be galvanically isolated or galvanically coupled.

[0021] The electrical energy obtained through conversion is preferably fed at least also into a DC intermediate circuit of the vehicle.

[0022] The electrical energy obtained through conversion is preferably used at least also for the operation of an electrical consumer of the vehicle, in particular a traction control device and / or a braking system, and / or for charging an on-board battery of the vehicle electrical system and / or for charging an energy storage device connected to the DC link.

[0023] The energy conversion of kinetic energy is preferably controlled such that the DC link voltage is within a desired DC link voltage window and / or the energy conversion corresponds to the energy consumption of the consumers supplied with the electrical energy and / or the on-board voltage of the on-board network is within a predetermined on-board voltage window and / or the energy conversion of the towed or pushed vehicle is increased during braking operation of a vehicle train comprising the towed or pushed vehicle and the braking device and / or wheel slippage due to generator-induced braking of the wheels is prevented and / or the energy conversion is terminated before an impending standstill of the towed or pushed vehicle and / or, if two or more drive motors are present, more than one drive motor is involved in the energy conversion and / or whenWhen considering two or more drive motors, the energy conversion is distributed evenly.

[0024] The invention also relates to a drive control unit for a vehicle. According to the invention, the drive control unit is designed to function in the context of a recovery operation in which the vehicle is towed or 202411781

[0025] 4. When pushed, at least one of the vehicle's drive motors is to be operated in generator mode and to provide regeneratively generated electrical energy on the vehicle side.

[0026] Regarding the advantages of the drive control device according to the invention and advantageous embodiments of the drive control device according to the invention, reference is made to the above statements in connection with the method according to the invention and its advantageous embodiments.

[0027] The drive control unit preferably comprises a recovery operation module which is designed in software form and which, during a recovery operation, controls a motor inverter of the drive motor for generator operation.

[0028] The invention also relates to a vehicle. According to the invention, the vehicle is provided to have a drive control device as described above.

[0029] The vehicle preferably comprises at least one drive motor, one motor inverter and one DC link, wherein the drive control device in recovery mode effects the regenerative operation of the drive motor by controlling the motor inverter.

[0030] In a vehicle variant considered advantageous, it is provided that the vehicle includes a machine requiring premagnetization as a drive motor or as at least one of the drive motors.

[0031] In the latter case, the drive control device is preferably designed to initiate premagnetization of the drive motor by supplying premagnetization energy via control of the motor inverter when a recovery signal indicating a recovery operation is present.

[0032] The vehicle preferably includes an auxiliary converter which, during the initial phase of pulling or pushing in recovery operations, extracts or can extract the premagnetization energy from the vehicle's electrical system and makes it available to the motor converter. For this purpose, the auxiliary converter preferably feeds the premagnetization energy into the DC link. 202411781

[0033] 5

[0034] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to exemplary embodiments; the following are shown as examples:

[0035] Figure 1 shows a vehicle combination comprising an embodiment of a rail vehicle according to the invention and a recovery device in the form of a towing locomotive for the rail vehicle,

[0036] Figure 2 Components of a first embodiment of the rail vehicle according to

[0037] Figure 1, and

[0038] Figure 3 Components of a second embodiment of the rail vehicle according to Figure 1.

[0039] For the sake of clarity, the same reference symbols are always used in the figures for identical or comparable components.

[0040] Figure 1 shows a vehicle combination comprising an embodiment of a rail vehicle 1 according to the invention and a recovery device 2 in the form of a towing locomotive for towing the rail vehicle 1. The towed rail vehicle 1 receives kinetic energy through the towing process, which the towing locomotive must provide by means of tractive force; the rail vehicle 1 uses part of this kinetic energy to generate electrical energy W and to operate electrical consumers (not shown) within the rail vehicle 1.

[0041] Alternatively, the towing locomotive can also push the rail vehicle 1; the further explanations apply accordingly to this case of recovery.

[0042] Figure 2 shows the rail vehicle 1 according to Figure 1 in more detail. Exemplary embodiments of the methods according to the invention are also described below with reference to Figure 2.

[0043] The rail vehicle 1 comprises one or more drive motors, which can be controlled by a drive control unit 20. For clarity, only a single drive motor, designated by reference numeral 10, is shown in Figure 2 as a representative of the drive motor(s), and the recovery operation is explained in more detail using this motor as an example. 202411781

[0044] 6

[0045] The drive control unit 20 controls the drive motor 10 preferably indirectly by controlling a motor inverter 30 connected to the drive motor 10, as is generally known; in this respect, conventional methods can be used both for drive operation of the rail vehicle 1 and for generator operation of the rail vehicle 1.

[0046] The drive control unit 20 comprises a computing unit 21 and a memory 22 in which vehicle control software FSS is stored. When the vehicle control software FSS is executed, the computing unit 21 can control the drive motor 10, either for propulsion or braking, for example, when the drive motor 10 is to operate as an electrodynamic brake.

[0047] In the embodiment shown in Figure 2, the vehicle control software FSS includes a recovery operation module BM, which controls the drive motor 10 during recovery operations. Recovery operations can be understood as any operation in which the rail vehicle 1 is moved by an external influence, i.e., pulled or pushed.

[0048] In the embodiment shown in Figure 2, a DC link 40 is connected to the motor inverter 30, which is connected to an on-board electrical system 60 via an auxiliary inverter 50. The on-board electrical system 60 can be a DC network or an AC or three-phase network. The on-board electrical system 60 can be galvanically isolated from the DC link 40.

[0049] Electrical consumers 70 of the rail vehicle 1, such as air conditioning units 71, ventilation units 72, braking systems or brake devices 73, or wheel slip protection devices 74, as well as an on-board battery 80, which serves to support the on-board voltage Ub, can be connected to the on-board electrical system 60. If the on-board electrical system 60 is a DC system, the on-board battery 80 can be connected directly or indirectly via a DC / DC converter (DC voltage regulator), which is not shown for clarity. If the on-board electrical system 60 is an AC or three-phase system, the on-board battery 80 can be connected indirectly via an AC / DC converter, which is also not shown for clarity. 202411781

[0050] 7

[0051] In the embodiment shown in Figure 2, an energy storage device 90 is also connected to the DC link 40. This energy storage device serves, or at least can serve, to support the DC link voltage Uz of the DC link 40. As the following explanations will show, such an energy storage device 90 can be advantageous with regard to premagnetization; however, it is not absolutely necessary and can be omitted, for example, if no premagnetization is required or if the premagnetization energy can be drawn from the vehicle electrical system 60.

[0052] The energy storage device 90 can include a drive battery 91, which serves to supply the drive motor 10 during battery-assisted drive operation and is connected directly or indirectly to the DC link 40 via a DC / DC converter which is not shown for the sake of clarity.

[0053] Alternatively or additionally, the energy storage device 90 can include an auxiliary battery 92, which is used solely for storing emergency energy for emergency operation. This emergency energy can be used, for example, to provide the pre-magnetization energy for a potential salvage operation, in order to pre-magnetize the drive motor 10 if necessary; such pre-magnetization may be required, for example, if the drive motor 10 is an asynchronous machine, a reluctance machine, or an electrically excited synchronous machine.

[0054] Alternatively or additionally, the energy storage device 90 can include one or more other elements 93 that can provide energy, for example for the aforementioned premagnetization, such as flywheel storage devices, capacitors, brake cells with hydrogen reservoir, etc.

[0055] The rail vehicle 1 according to Figure 2 can, for example, be operated as follows when it is pulled or pushed in recovery operations:

[0056] If the drive control unit 20 receives a recovery signal BS indicating a recovery operation of the rail vehicle 1, the recovery operation module BM of the vehicle control software FSS is activated.

[0057] Once activated, the salvage operation module BM begins to control the motor inverter 30 in such a way that it operates in generator mode. If the 202411781

[0058] 8

[0059] If the drive motor 10 is one that must be pre-magnetized for generator operation, the recovery operation module BM first controls the motor converter 30 in such a way that the pre-magnetization energy required for pre-magnetization is taken from the DC intermediate circuit 40.

[0060] If the capacity of the DC link 40 is insufficient to provide the premagnetization energy, this energy can flow into the DC link 40 from the aforementioned drive battery 91 without further intervention, if the voltage level of the DC link voltage Uz decreases accordingly due to the energy withdrawal.

[0061] Alternatively or additionally, the premagnetization energy can be taken from the auxiliary battery 92 - if present - for example by appropriately controlling a DC / DC converter 92a assigned to the auxiliary battery 92 by means of an auxiliary battery control signal HBS, which is generated by the recovery operation module BM.

[0062] Alternatively or additionally, the premagnetization energy can be taken from one or more of the other elements mentioned above (93), if they are available.

[0063] Alternatively or additionally, the premagnetization energy can be drawn from the vehicle electrical system 60 by the recovery operation module BM controlling the auxiliary converter 50 by means of a converter control signal USS such that it draws energy from the vehicle electrical system 60 and feeds it into the DC link 40 or directly into the motor converter 30. The vehicle electrical system voltage Ub is preferably maintained automatically by a corresponding energy draw from the vehicle electrical system battery 80.

[0064] After the recovery operation module BM has completed the pre-magnetization of the drive motor 10, or in the case of a drive motor 10 that does not require pre-magnetization, preferably immediately after the recovery signal BS is received, the recovery operation module BM begins to operate the drive motor 10 as a generator by appropriately controlling the motor inverter 30 and to feed the electrical energy W generated in the process into the DC link 40.

[0065] The recovery operations module BM will adjust the generator operation and the extent of electrical power generation according to the respective operating conditions and needs of the rail vehicle 1. For example, the recovery operations module BM will adjust the 202411781

[0066] 9

[0067] Control the energy conversion of kinetic energy in such a way that one or more of the following operating conditions are met, which preferably provide that

[0068] - a DC link voltage Uz applied to the DC link 40 lies within a desired DC link voltage window and / or

[0069] - the energy conversion corresponds to the energy consumption of the consumers supplied with the electrical energy 70 and / or

[0070] - the on-board voltage Ub of the on-board network 60 lies within a specified on-board voltage window and / or

[0071] - during braking operation of the vehicle train comprising the towed or pushed vehicle, the energy conversion of the towed or pushed rail vehicle 10 is increased and / or

[0072] - slippage of the wheels of the rail vehicle 10 during generator-induced braking of the wheels is avoided and / or

[0073] - before an imminent standstill of the towed or pushed rail vehicle 10, the energy conversion is terminated and / or

[0074] - if two or more drive motors are present, more than one drive motor is involved in the energy conversion and / or

[0075] - when considering two or more drive motors 10, the energy conversion is evenly distributed.

[0076] In order to enable the recovery operation module BM to operate as described with regard to the DC link voltage window and the on-board voltage window, measured values ​​M are preferably supplied to it, which describe the DC link voltage Uz and the on-board voltage Ub.

[0077] The energy transfer of the generator-generated electrical energy from the DC intermediate circuit 40 towards the on-board network 60 can be carried out by means of the auxiliary converter 50, provided that it is suitable for bidirectional energy transfer and is to be used for this purpose.

[0078] Alternatively, an additional auxiliary converter 100 can be used for transmitting the electrical energy generated by the generator, as shown by way of example in Figure 3. The additional auxiliary converter 100 according to Figure 3 can operate independently or be controlled by the drive control unit 20. The additional auxiliary converter 100 can include a DC voltage converter or be formed by one. The independent operation of the additional auxiliary converter 100 or the control of the additional 202411781

[0079] 10

[0080] The auxiliary converter 100 is preferably operated by the drive control unit 20 in such a way that the additional auxiliary converter 100 does not counteract an energy transfer from the on-board network 60 towards the DC intermediate circuit 40, for example in the context of the transfer of the premagnetization energy, or does not prevent this by simultaneously returning the energy.

[0081] The electrical energy W provided by the recovery operation module BM by controlling the motor inverter 30 can, for example, at least also be used

[0082] - for the operation of the vehicle's electrical consumers 70, in particular a wheel slip protection device 74 and / or a braking system or braking device 73, and / or

[0083] - for charging an on-board battery 80 of the on-board network 60 and / or

[0084] - for charging an energy storage device 90 connected to the DC link 40 and / or

[0085] - for the power supply of consumers connected to the DC intermediate circuit 40 and not shown in Figures 2 and 3 for the sake of clarity.

[0086] Finally, it should be mentioned that the features of all the embodiments described above can be combined with each other in any way to form further embodiments of the invention.

[0087] Furthermore, all features of dependent patent claims can each be combined with each of the subordinate claims, either individually or in any combination with one or more other dependent patent claims, in order to obtain further embodiments.

[0088] 202411781

[0089] 11

[0090] Reference symbol list

[0091] 1 rail vehicle

[0092] 2 recovery devices

[0093] 10 Drive motor

[0094] 20 Drive control unit

[0095] 21 Computing equipment

[0096] 22 storage

[0097] 30 motor inverters

[0098] 40 DC link

[0099] 50 auxiliary converters

[0100] 60 On-board network

[0101] 70 electrical consumers

[0102] 71 Air conditioner

[0103] 72 Ventilation unit

[0104] 73 Brake device

[0105] 74 Anti-slip device

[0106] 80 On-board battery

[0107] 90 energy storage

[0108] 91 Drive battery

[0109] 92 Auxiliary battery

[0110] 92a DC / DC converter

[0111] 93 Element

[0112] 100 additional auxiliary converters

[0113] BM Recovery Operations Module

[0114] BS rescue signal

[0115] FSS vehicle control software

[0116] HBS auxiliary battery control signal

[0117] M measured value llb on-board voltage

[0118] USS inverter control signal

[0119] Uz DC link voltage

[0120] W electrical energy

Claims

202411781 12 Patent claims 1. Method for operating a vehicle (1), characterized in that during a recovery operation in which the vehicle (1) is pulled or pushed, kinetic energy of the vehicle (1) is converted into electrical energy (W) and this electrical energy (W) is used on the vehicle side.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the conversion of the kinetic energy into the electrical energy (W) comprises generator operation of at least one drive motor (10) of the vehicle (1).

3. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - the vehicle (1) includes a machine requiring pre-magnetization as a drive motor (10) and - if a recovery signal (BS) indicating recovery operation is present, the drive motor (10) is premagnetized by feeding premagnetization energy into the drive motor (10) and after premagnetization the drive motor (10) is operated as a generator.

4. Method according to claim 3, characterized in that the premagnetization energy is taken from an on-board network (60) and / or from an energy storage device (90) of the vehicle (1) connected to a DC intermediate circuit (40).

5. Method according to claim 4, characterized in that - the extraction of the premagnetization energy from the vehicle electrical system (60) includes a voltage conversion from a vehicle electrical system voltage level (60) to a DC link level of the DC link (40) and - the premagnetization energy is extracted from the DC link (40) by a motor inverter (30) connected between the DC link (40) and the drive motor (10). 202411781 13 DC intermediate circuit (40) is taken and fed into the drive motor (10).

6. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the electrical energy (W) is at least also fed into a DC intermediate circuit (40) of the vehicle (1).

7. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the electrical energy (W) is at least also used. - for the operation of an electrical consumer (70) of the vehicle (1), in particular an anti-skid device (74) and / or a braking system or braking device (73), and / or - for charging an on-board battery (80) of the on-board electrical system (60) and / or - for charging an energy storage device (90) connected to the DC intermediate circuit (40).

8. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the energy conversion of the kinetic energy is controlled such that - a DC link voltage (Uz) applied to the DC link (40) lies within a desired DC link voltage window and / or - the energy conversion corresponds to the energy consumption of the consumers (70) supplied with the electrical energy (W) and / or - a system voltage (Ub) of the system (60) lies within a specified system voltage window and / or - during braking operation of a vehicle train comprising the towed or pushed vehicle (1), the energy conversion of the towed or pushed vehicle (1) is increased and / or - wheel slippage is avoided during generator-related wheel braking and / or - before the towed or pushed vehicle is about to come to a standstill (1) the energy conversion is terminated and / or - if two or more drive motors (10) are present, more than one drive motor (10) is involved in the energy conversion and / or 202411781 14 - when considering two or more drive motors (10) the energy conversion is evenly distributed.

9. Drive control device (20) for a vehicle (1), characterized in that the drive control device (20) is designed to operate at least one drive motor (10) of the vehicle (1) in generator mode during a recovery operation in which the vehicle (1) is pulled or pushed, and to provide generatively generated electrical energy (W) to the vehicle.

10. Drive control device (20) according to claim 9, characterized in that the drive control device (20) comprises a recovery operation module (BM) which is designed by software and during a recovery operation controls a motor inverter (30) of the drive motor (10) for generator operation.

11. Vehicle (1), characterized in that the vehicle (1) comprises a drive control device (20) according to one of the preceding claims 9 to 10 and / or is suitable for carrying out a method according to one of the preceding claims 1 to 8.

12. Vehicle (1) according to claim 11, characterized in that - the vehicle (1) comprises at least one drive motor (10), one motor inverter (30) and one DC link (40) and - the drive control unit (20) in recovery operation causes the regenerative operation of the drive motor (10) by controlling the motor inverter (30).

13. Vehicle (1) according to claim 12, characterized in that - the vehicle (1) includes a machine requiring pre-magnetization as a drive motor (10) and - the drive control device (20) is designed to premagnetize the drive control device when a recovery signal (BS) indicating a recovery operation is present. 202411781 15 to cause the drive motor (10) to be activated by supplying premagnetization energy by controlling the motor inverter (30).

14. Vehicle (1) according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that the vehicle (1) comprises an auxiliary converter (50) which, during the initial phase of pulling or pushing in recovery operation, extracts or can at least extract premagnetization energy from an on-board network (60) of the vehicle (1) and makes this available to the motor converter (30) or can at least make it available.

15. Vehicle (1) according to claim 14, characterized in that the auxiliary converter (50) feeds the premagnetization energy into the DC intermediate circuit (40).

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