Vehicle Autostop Metric Display for Fuel Efficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Modern vehicle architectures fail to effectively utilize energy-saving modes due to user-selectable features that inhibit continuous operation, leading to disabled energy conserving modes and unknown causal relationships between feature controls and energy conserving mode functioning, resulting in missed fuel economy benefits.
Innovation Solution
A user interface and controller system that presents a metric based on the number of engine autostops during a drive cycle, including a counter and efficiency value, to inform drivers about the operation and benefits of the automatic start-stop system, allowing for increased driver awareness and modification of driving behavior for improved fuel efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If user-selectable features are enabled for optimal performance, then feature performance is improved, but energy conserving mode is disabled
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides feedback to the driver through a user interface that displays the number of autostop events and fuel economy benefits. This feedback mechanism helps drivers understand the relationship between disabling user-selectable features and achieving fuel economy benefits, enabling them to make informed decisions about feature usage versus energy conservation.
2Use of energy by moving object
If energy conserving mode is activated, then fuel economy is improved, but driver awareness of causal relationships is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The user interface provides continuous feedback to the driver by displaying the number of autostop events that have occurred and the corresponding fuel economy benefits. This feedback maintains driver awareness of the causal relationship between system operations and fuel economy improvements, preventing information loss while enabling energy conservation.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller acts as an intermediary between the autostop system and the driver, translating complex system operations into simple, understandable metrics displayed on the user interface. This intermediary function preserves driver understanding of how the system achieves fuel economy benefits without requiring the driver to understand complex causal relationships.
3Use of energy by moving object
If automatic start-stop system operates continuously, then fuel consumption is reduced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and displays only the essential information about autostop operation (number of events and fuel economy benefits) on the user interface, separating this critical feedback from the complex control logic. This extraction approach maintains continuous system operation for fuel savings while simplifying the driver's interaction with the system by presenting only the most relevant operational metrics.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle according to the present disclosure includes an engine configured to autostop and autostart during a drive cycle. The vehicle additionally includes a user interface and a controller. The controller is configured to present on the user interface a metric indicative of a quantity of engine autostops during a drive cycle.