Autonomous Switch for Motor Vehicle Power Supply Redundancy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Motor vehicles with automatic start-stop systems face challenges in ensuring operational safety when the engine is shut off, as the generator cannot supply energy, and critical electrical consumers like power-steering systems and sensors require reliable power sourcing.
Innovation Solution
A power supply system with two electric systems, each with its own battery, connected by an autonomous switch that detects failures and connects the systems to maintain energy supply, allowing one battery to support the other in case of a failure, ensuring continuous power for safety-relevant consumers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If the engine is shut off to save energy, then energy consumption is reduced, but the reliability of power supply to safety-relevant consumers deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines two previously separate electric systems into a unified system with a common battery. The autonomous switch enables the systems to be electrically connected when needed, allowing power to be shared between safety-relevant consumers and non-safety consumers, ensuring continuous power supply to safety components even when the engine is off.
Solution Approach 2:
The autonomous switch acts as an intermediary device that monitors the operational state of both electric systems and automatically connects them when a failure or impending failure is detected in one system, ensuring continuous power supply without manual intervention.
2Device complexity
If a single battery is used to power all consumers, then system complexity is reduced, but the reliability of power supply deteriorates when the engine is shut off
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges two separate battery systems into a single unified power source while retaining the structural separation of safety-relevant and non-safety consumers. This approach reduces complexity by eliminating one battery while maintaining reliability through the autonomous switch that enables power sharing when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adapts its configuration through the autonomous switch, which automatically changes the electrical connectivity between the two electric systems based on real-time monitoring of battery state and system operational status, optimizing both reliability and complexity.
3Reliability
If the autonomous switch connects the two electric systems, then the reliability of power supply is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous switch is equipped with monitoring capabilities that enable it to automatically detect failures or impending failures in either electric system and initiate connection without external control. This self-service approach minimizes the need for additional control system complexity while maintaining high reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The autonomous switch serves as an intelligent intermediary that simplifies the overall system architecture by handling the complexity of system monitoring and connection management internally, allowing the rest of the system to remain simple while achieving high reliability through automatic failover.
Data Source
AI summary
A power supply system of a motor vehicle includes a first electric system having a first motor vehicle battery and a first consumer. A second electric system includes a second motor vehicle battery and a second consumer. An autonomous switch is configured to connect and separate the first electric system and the second electric system. The autonomous switch connects the first electric system and the second electric system to one another by closing the autonomous switch if a failure or impending failure of the energy supply of the first electric system or the second electric system is detected.