# US 11,905,866 B2 · Method of controlling regeneration of PF for vehicle

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- Number: US 11,905,866 B2
- Document ID: US11905866B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/840,466
- Filed: 2022-06-14
- Published: 2023-01-26
- Granted: 2024-02-20
- Earliest claimed: 2021-07-22
- Assignees: Hyundai Motor Company; Kia Corporation
- Applicants: Hyundai Motor Company; Kia Corporation
- Inventors: Jin Ha Kim
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11905866B2

## CPC

- F01N 3/023: using means for regenerating the filters, e.g. by burning trapped particles
- F01N 9/002: {of filter regeneration}
- F01N 9/005: {using models instead of sensors to determine operating characteristics of exhaust systems, e.g. calculating catalyst temperature instead of measuring it directly}
- F01N 11/00: Monitoring or diagnostic devices for exhaust-gas treatment apparatus
- F01N 11/002: {the diagnostic devices measuring or estimating temperature or pressure in, or downstream of the exhaust apparatus}
- F01N 11/007: {the diagnostic devices measuring oxygen or air concentration downstream of the exhaust apparatus}
- G07C 5/04: using counting means or digital clocks
- F01N 2550/00: Monitoring or diagnosing the deterioration of exhaust systems
- F01N 2550/04: Filtering activity of particulate filters
- F01N 2560/05: the means being a particulate sensor
- F01N 2560/08: the means being a pressure sensor
- F01N 2900/10: said parameters being related to the vehicle or its components
- F01N 2900/1402: Exhaust gas composition
- F01N 2900/1406: Exhaust gas pressure
- F01N 2900/1411: Exhaust gas flow rate, e.g. mass flow rate or volumetric flow rate
- F01N 2900/1602: Temperature of exhaust gas apparatus
- F01N 2900/1606: Particle filter loading or soot amount
- Y02T 10/40: Engine management systems
- F01N: GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES (arrangements in connection with gas exhaust of propulsion units in vehicles B60K13/00; combustion-air intake silencers specially adapted for, or arranged on, internal-combustion engines F02M35/00; protecting against, or damping, noise in general G10K11/16)
- G07C: TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
- Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION

## Abstract

A method includes calculating whether a quantity of the PMs accumulated in a PF is at or above a risk level at which damage to the PF is caused when regenerating the PF, calculating a driving condition index by accumulating a weighting factor for a driving condition under which there is a likelihood of causing the damage to the PF, when the amount of accumulated PMs is at or above the risk level; calculating a temperature index in accordance with a temperature of the PF and a PM index in accordance with the quantity of the accumulated PMs when the quantity of the accumulated PMs is at or above the risk level; calculating a degradation condition index considering the driving condition index, the temperature of the PF, and the quantity of accumulated PMs; and changing a regeneration period of the PF according to the degradation condition index.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method of controlling regeneration of a particulate filter (PF) for a vehicle, the method comprising:
determining, by a controller, whether a quantity of particulate matters (PMs) accumulated in the PF is at or above a risk level at which damage to the PF is caused when regenerating the PF, the quantity thereof being in accordance with a sensor-measured value;
calculating, by the controller, a driving condition index by accumulating a weighting factor for a driving condition under which there is a likelihood of causing the damage to the PF, based on an amount of exhaust gas flowing from an engine and a concentration of oxygen in the exhaust gas when the quantity of the accumulated PMs is at or above the risk level at which the damage to the PF is caused;
calculating, by the controller, a temperature index in accordance with a temperature of the PF and a PM index in accordance with the quantity of the accumulated PMs when the quantity of the accumulated PMs is at or above the risk level at which the damage to the PF is caused;
calculating, by the controller, a degradation condition index considering the driving condition index, the temperature of the PF and the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF; and
changing, by the controller, a regeneration period of the PF according to the degradation condition index,
wherein the degradation condition index is adjusted such that, the higher the degradation condition index, the more increased the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PM, and thus the regeneration period of the PF is shortened.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein in the calculating of the driving condition index, a weighting factor for a current driving condition is calculated from a map for a weighting factor in accordance with the amount of the flowing exhaust gas and the concentration of the oxygen, and an operation condition index is calculated by accumulating the weighting factor.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The method of claim 2, wherein the higher the likelihood of causing the damage to the PF is than a predetermined designed target, the greater positive number the weighting factor is set to, and the lower the likelihood of causing the damage to the PF is than the predetermined designed target, the smaller negative number the weighting factor is set to.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The method of claim 3, wherein in the calculating of the driving condition index, the driving condition index is always set to be calculated as zero or greater than the zero.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The method of claim 4,
wherein when the weighting factor is zero or greater than the zero, or when an absolute value of the weighting factor is equal to or lower than a current operation condition index, the weighting factor is added to the operation condition index, and
wherein when the weighting value is a negative number and when the absolute value of the weighting factor is higher than the current operation condition index, the operation condition index is set to zero.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein when the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF is at or above a predetermined first PM reference value, the quantity thereof being in accordance with the sensor-measured value, the controller concludes that the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF is at or above the risk level at which the damage to the PF is caused when regenerating the PF.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The method of claim 6, wherein the determining, the calculating, and the changing are ended when the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF is at or below a second PM reference value which is a value lower than the first PM reference value and is set to a level at which there is no likelihood of causing the damage to the PF when regenerating the PF.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the changing of the regeneration period of the PF includes:
comparing the degradation condition index with a predetermined reference index value;
counting up a number of times of excess when the degradation condition index is higher than the predetermined reference index value; and
adjusting the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF according to the number of times of excess and a predetermined vehicle driving condition to increase the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF after counting up the number of times of excess.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein when the degradation condition index is equal to or lower than the predetermined reference index value, the regeneration period of the PF is prevented from being kept shortened, considering a situation where PF regeneration is normally completed.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein the changing of the regeneration period of the PF further includes:
counting up a number of times of non-excess when the degradation condition index is equal to or lower than the predetermined reference index value and when the PF regeneration is normally completed; and
initializing each of the number of times of excess and the number of times of non-excess to zero when the number of times of non-excess is greater than a predetermined reference number of times after the counting up the number of times of non-excess.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein when the degradation condition index is higher than the predetermined reference index value, the number of times of excess is counted up and the number of times of non-excess is initialized to zero.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein in the calculating of the degradation condition index, the degradation condition index is calculated using a Temperature and Soot (TNS) index in accordance with the temperature of the PF and the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF and the driving condition index.

### Claim 13

A vehicle of controlling regeneration of a particulate filter (PF), the vehicle comprising:
an engine;
the PF connected to the engine, wherein exhaust gas ejected from the engine passes through the PF;
a sensor mounted in the PF; and
a controller to determine a quantity of the particulate matters (PMs) accumulated in the PF,
wherein the controller is configured for:
determining whether the quantity of PMs accumulated in the PF is at or above a risk level at which damage to the PF is caused when regenerating the PF, the quantity thereof being in accordance with a sensor-measured value;
calculating a driving condition index by accumulating a weighting factor for a driving condition under which there is a likelihood of causing the damage to the PF, based on an amount of exhaust gas flowing from the engine and a concentration of oxygen in the exhaust gas when the quantity of the accumulated PMs is at or above the risk level at which the damage to the PF is caused;
calculating a temperature index in accordance with a temperature of the PF and a PM index in accordance with the quantity of the accumulated PMs when the quantity of the accumulated PMs is at or above the risk level at which the damage to the PF is caused;
calculating a degradation condition index considering the driving condition index, the temperature of the PF and the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF; and
changing a regeneration period of the PF according to the degradation condition index,
wherein the degradation condition index is adjusted such that, the higher the degradation condition index, the more increased the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PM, and thus the regeneration period of the PF is shortened.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The vehicle of claim 13, wherein in the calculating of the driving condition index, a weighting factor for a current driving condition is determined from a map for a weighting factor in accordance with the amount of the flowing exhaust gas and the concentration of the oxygen, and an operation condition index is determined by accumulating the weighting factor.

### Claim 15 (depends on 13)

The vehicle of claim 13, wherein when the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF is at or above a predetermined first PM reference value, the quantity thereof being in accordance with the sensor-measured value, the controller concludes that the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF is at or above the risk level at which the damage to the PF is caused when regenerating the PF.

### Claim 16 (depends on 13)

The vehicle of claim 13, wherein the changing of the regeneration period the PF includes:
comparing the degradation condition index with a predetermined reference index value;
counting up a number of times of excess when the degradation condition index is higher than the predetermined reference index value; and
adjusting the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF according to the number of times of excess and a predetermined vehicle driving condition to increase the quantity of the PMs accumulated in the PF after counting up the number of times of excess.