Vehicle Battery Power Cutoff Control After Sensor Failure
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional power control apparatuses in vehicles require stopping battery charging and vehicle driving when the temperature detection function is lost, failing to address new safety protocols for excessive battery temperature rise.
Innovation Solution
A power control apparatus that calculates battery power using current and voltage sensors to operate cutoff elements when the temperature detection function is lost, preventing excessive temperature rise by cutting off current flow based on heat generation and cooling characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the temperature detection function is lost, then the battery must stop charging and driving to prevent overheating, but this causes operational disruptions and inefficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces power (P) as an intermediary parameter to indirectly monitor battery temperature conditions. Instead of directly detecting temperature, the system uses power calculation from voltage and current sensors to infer thermal states. This intermediary approach allows the system to maintain operational continuity while ensuring battery safety, resolving the contradiction between reliability and productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/physical temperature detection system with an electrical measurement system. By substituting direct temperature sensing with electrical parameter measurement (voltage and current), the system can continue operating even when temperature detection fails, as the electrical sensors remain functional and provide sufficient information to prevent overheating.
2Measurement precision
If direct temperature monitoring is used, then battery overheating can be detected, but the system stops operation when temperature detection fails
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a computational model that copies the temperature monitoring function through electrical parameter measurement. Instead of relying on physical temperature sensors, the system calculates power parameters that represent thermal conditions, allowing the monitoring function to be replicated through electrical measurements that remain operational even when temperature detection fails.
3Reliability
If temperature sensors are relied upon, then accurate temperature detection is possible, but the system becomes vulnerable to sensor failure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the monitoring parameter from temperature to power. By measuring voltage and current to calculate power, the system fundamentally changes the parameter being monitored, thereby avoiding dependency on temperature sensors and their associated failure modes. This parameter transformation provides resilience while maintaining monitoring capability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables continuous battery charging and vehicle driving by preventing excessive temperature rise even when temperature detection fails, ensuring safety and efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a temperature sensor (for example, a temperature sensor 31 to be described later) that detects temperature of the battery
Implementation Method 2
a current sensor (for example, a current sensor 33 to e described later) that detects electrical current of the battery
Implementation Method 3
a voltage sensor (for example, a voltage sensor 32) that detects voltage of the battery
Implementation Method 4
a cooler (for example, an unillustrated water cooling mechanism to be described later) that cools the battery
Implementation Method 5
a cooler (for example, an unillustrated water cooling mechanism to be described later) that cools the battery
Data Source
AI summary
An IPU includes a battery that supplies power to a drive unit of a vehicle, a temperature sensor that detects temperature of the battery, a current sensor that detects electrical current of the battery, a voltage sensor that detects voltage of the battery, contactors that cut off the electrical current flow from the battery and the electrical current flow to the battery, and a battery ECU that, when a temperature detection function by the temperature sensor has been lost, calculates a value of the power of the battery based on a detection result of the electrical current and a detection result of the voltage, and operates the contactors when a calculated value of the power exceeds a predetermined value for a predetermined period of time to cut off the electrical current flow from the battery and the electrical current flow to the battery.