Vehicle Cooling Diagnostics Using Thermal Load Indicators
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cooling systems for electric and hybrid vehicles lack the ability to provide detailed and specific performance indicators, often failing to identify issues with individual components within parallel cooling paths, leading to inefficient diagnosis and repair.
Innovation Solution
A cooling system that includes a processing device to analyze coolant and component temperatures, determine system and thermal load statuses, and output specific diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) for individual components, indicating failures or issues with the cooling system or specific components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If existing cooling systems provide only general performance notifications, then the system complexity is reduced and ease of operation is improved, but the diagnostic precision and repair efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the cooling system monitoring into multiple independent evaluation dimensions: coolant system status, thermal load status, and component-level cooling status. Each dimension is assessed separately using specific sensors and processing logic, enabling precise identification of which aspect is malfunctioning without requiring a complex monolithic monitoring system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from single-dimensional general performance notification to multi-dimensional diagnostic assessment by evaluating coolant temperature, component temperature, thermal load conditions, and cooling system component status simultaneously. This dimensional expansion enables precise fault localization while maintaining systematic organization.
2Device complexity
If the system monitors only general coolant temperature, then the measurement system remains simple, but the ability to identify specific component failures is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The temperature monitoring system is segmented into multiple independent sensor channels: coolant temperature sensors positioned at specific locations, individual component temperature sensors for critical electrical components, and thermal load sensors. This segmentation enables reliable failure detection while keeping each sensor channel relatively simple and modular.
Solution Approach 2:
The processing device performs multiple functions using the same sensor infrastructure: it monitors coolant system status, assesses thermal load conditions, evaluates component cooling effectiveness, and generates diagnostic indicators. This multi-functionality increases reliability without proportionally increasing hardware complexity.
3Productivity
If the system provides detailed component-level diagnostic indicators, then diagnostic efficiency is improved, but the system complexity and information processing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The diagnostic output is segmented into distinct indicator types corresponding to specific fault categories: coolant system status indicators, thermal load indicators, and component cooling status indicators. This segmentation improves diagnostic efficiency by directing attention to specific problem areas while keeping the processing logic modular and manageable.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary assessment of multiple status parameters simultaneously before generating diagnostic indicators. By pre-evaluating coolant status, thermal load, and component temperatures in parallel, the system prepares diagnostic information in advance, improving efficiency without requiring complex real-time processing during fault occurrence.
Data Source
AI summary
A cooling system for a vehicle includes a processing device configured to determine a coolant system status based on a coolant temperature and determine whether the coolant system status exceeds a coolant system status threshold. The processing device is also configured to determine a thermal load status of at least one electrical component of the vehicle and determine whether the thermal load status exceeds a thermal load status threshold. The processing device is also configured to output a first cooling performance indicator in response, at least in part, to determining that the coolant system status exceeds the coolant system status threshold and that the thermal load status exceeds the thermal load status threshold, the first cooling performance indicator indicating an issue with the cooling system.