Industrial Vehicle Engine Control for Seat-Off Steering Restart
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Solution Overview
Problem
Industrial vehicles with power-steering assistance systems face issues where the power-steering actuator cannot be actuated when the driver is temporarily away from the driver seat, as the engine stops when the key switch is turned off.
Innovation Solution
An engine control device with a seating detector, neutral detector, and controllers to stop and restart the engine output based on the driver's presence and the direction operating member's position, ensuring continuous power-steering assistance by controlling fuel supply and hydraulic pump operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the engine is stopped when the driver is away from the driver seat, then safety is improved, but power-steering assistance cannot be actuated
Solution Approach 1:
The engine control system dynamically adjusts its state based on real-time detection of driver presence and direction operating member position. The system transitions between stopped and running states according to operational conditions, making the control strategy flexible rather than fixed. This allows the engine to be stopped when the driver is away for safety, but restarted automatically when needed for power-steering assistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the position of the direction operating member and the driver's presence, using this feedback to determine when to restart the engine. When the neutral detector detects the direction operating member is in neutral position and the seating detector confirms driver presence, the second controller automatically restarts the engine. This closed-loop feedback mechanism ensures the engine is restarted at the appropriate moment to provide power-steering assistance while maintaining safety.
2Loss of energy
If the engine is kept stopped until the key switch is switched ON, then fuel consumption is reduced, but the hydraulic pump cannot supply hydraulic oil to the power-steering actuator
Solution Approach 1:
The system prepares for potential power-steering needs by monitoring the direction operating member position in advance. When the driver returns and the direction operating member is in neutral position, the system is already ready to immediately restart the engine and supply hydraulic oil, eliminating any delay in power-steering assistance availability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the engine's operational state (from stopped to running) based on detected conditions. By using the neutral position of the direction operating member as a trigger parameter, the system determines the optimal moment to restart the engine, balancing fuel consumption with the need for hydraulic oil supply to the power-steering actuator.
3Ease of operation
If the engine is restarted automatically when the driver returns, then power-steering assistance is restored, but the control system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is divided into two independent controllers: the first controller handles engine stopping when the driver is away, and the second controller handles engine restarting when the driver returns and the direction operating member is in neutral. This segmentation simplifies each controller's logic while achieving the overall automatic control function, reducing the complexity burden on any single control unit.
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 power-steering assistance even when the driver is temporarily away from the seat, improving vehicle operability and safety by allowing seamless restarts of the engine and hydraulic pump operation.
Implementation Method 1
Then, the engine rotates by inertia, and the rotation speed of the engine is reduced gradually.
Data Source
AI summary
An engine control device for an industrial vehicle includes a seating detector configured to detect a seating state of a driver relative to a driver seat, a neutral detector configured to detect whether a direction operating member of the industrial vehicle is positioned in a neutral position, a fuel supply member configured to supply a fuel to the engine, a first controller configured to stop an output of a driving force from the engine when the seating detector detects that the driver is away from the driver seat, and a second controller configured to restart the output of the driving force from the engine in case that the seating detector detects that the driver is seated on the driver seat and the neutral detector detects that the direction operating member is positioned in the neutral position, after the first controller stops the output of the driving force from the engine.