# US 2017/0282931 A1 · Hybrid vehicle

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- Number: US 2017/0282931 A1
- Document ID: US20170282931A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 15/467,426
- Filed: 2017-03-23
- Published: 2017-10-05
- Earliest claimed: 2016-03-30
- Assignees: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
- Applicants: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
- Inventors: Shinji ICHIKAWA; Hiroaki TAKEUCHI; Ryuta ISHIDA; Hiroaki ARAKAWA; Shigeki KINOMURA; Keita HASHIMOTO; Akio UOTANI; Kazuyuki KAGAWA; Yusuke KINOSHITA
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20170282931A1

## CPC

- B60L 53/14: Conductive energy transfer
- B60L 50/10: using propulsion power supplied by engine-driven generators, e.g. generators driven by combustion engines
- B60L 58/12: responding to state of charge [SoC]
- B60W 20/00: Control systems specially adapted for hybrid vehicles {(hybrid vehicle design, B60K6/00; electric vehicles B60L)}
- B60W 20/13: in order to stay within battery power input or output limits; in order to prevent overcharging or battery depletion
- B60W 20/15: Control strategies specially adapted for achieving a particular effect
- B60W 40/09: Driving style or behaviour
- B60W 40/12: related to parameters of the vehicle itself {, e.g. tyre models}
- B60K 6/445: Differential gearing distribution type
- B60W 50/14: Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
- B60W 2050/0075: {Automatic parameter input, automatic initialising or calibrating means}
- B60W 2510/242: for electrical energy
- B60W 2510/244: Charge state
- B60W 2530/18: Distance travelled
- B60W 2530/209: Fuel quantity remaining in tank
- B60W 2556/10: Historical data
- Y02T 10/62: Hybrid vehicles
- Y02T 10/70: Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
- Y02T 10/7072: Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
- Y02T 10/84: Data processing systems or methods, management, administration
- Y02T 90/14: Plug-in electric vehicles
- Y10S 903/903: having energy storing means, e.g. battery, capacitor
- B60L: PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (arrangements or mounting of electrical propulsion units or of plural diverse prime-movers for mutual or common propulsion in vehicles B60K1/00, B60K6/20; arrangements or mounting of electrical gearing in vehicles B60K17/12, B60K17/14; preventing wheel slip by reducing power in rail vehicles B61C15/08; dynamo-electric machines H02K; control or regulation of electric motors H02P); SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (electric coupling devices combined with mechanical couplings of vehicles B60D1/64; electric heating for vehicles B60H1/00); ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL (control or regulation of electric motors H02P); MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
- B60W: CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT
- B60K: ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES
- Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION
- Y10S: TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS

## Abstract

A utilization index IDX is calculated based on one or more parameters (the number of times of charging/the number of trips, total battery charger connection time/total vehicle stop time, total EV traveling distance/total HV traveling distance, total EV traveling time/total HV traveling time, total EV traveling distance/total traveling distance, total EV traveling time/total traveling time, total charge amount/total fuel supply quantity) obtained based on a ratio of an EV traveling utilization level to an HV traveling utilization level or a total traveling utilization level, and the utilization index IDX is stored. Since the utilization index IDX is calculated such that as each parameter is larger, utilization of charging of a battery by a battery charger is performed more sufficiently. Accordingly, the utilization index IDX can be used as an index that offers more accurate determination regarding a utilization status of the battery charging.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A hybrid vehicle comprising:
an engine;
a fuel tank configured to supply fuel to the engine;
a motor;
a battery configured to supply electric power to the motor;
a battery charger configured to charge the battery using an external power supply; and
an electronic control unit configured to
i) calculate a utilization index of charging of the battery by the battery charger based on a ratio of an electric traveling utilization level to a hybrid traveling utilization level or a ratio of the electric traveling utilization level to a total traveling utilization level; and
ii) store the calculated utilization index.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The hybrid vehicle according to claim 1, wherein
the electronic control unit is configured to calculate the utilization index based on at least one of
a) a ratio of the number of times that the battery charger charges the battery to the number of trips,
b) a ratio of total time of connecting the battery charger to the external power supply to total vehicle stop time with a system of the vehicle being turned off,
c) a ratio of a total electric traveling distance achieved without involving operation of the engine to a total hybrid traveling distance achieved involving operation of the engine,
d) a ratio of total electric traveling time achieved without involving operation of the engine to total hybrid traveling time achieved involving operation of the engine,
e) a ratio of the total electric traveling distance to a total traveling distance,
f) a ratio of the total electric traveling time to total traveling time,
g) a ratio of an integrated value of energy used to charge the battery by the battery charger to an integrated value of energy consumed for traveling,
h) a ratio of an integrated value of energy consumed in the electric traveling to an integrated value of energy consumed in the hybrid traveling,
i) a ratio of a total charge amount of the battery charged by the battery charger to a total fuel supply quantity to the fuel tank, and
j) a ratio of the total traveling distance to total emission of carbon dioxide.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The hybrid vehicle according to claim 2, wherein
the electronic control unit is configured to calculate the utilization index such that influence of the vehicle utilization status on the utilization index is smaller in a trip with a large traveling distance than in a trip with a small traveling distance, based on at least one of
c) the ratio of the total electric traveling distance to the total hybrid traveling distance,
d) the ratio of the total electric traveling time to the total hybrid traveling time,
e) the ratio of the total electric traveling distance to the total traveling distance,
f) the ratio of the total electric traveling time to the total traveling time, and
i) the ratio of the total charge amount of the battery charged by the battery charger to the total fuel supply quantity to the fuel tank.

### Claim 4 (depends on 2)

The hybrid vehicle according to claim 2, wherein
the electronic control unit is configured to calculate the utilization index such that influence of the vehicle utilization status on the utilization index is smaller in a case where a state of charge of the battery when the system is turned off is large than in a case where the state of charge of the battery when the system is turned off is small, based on at least one of
a) the ratio of the number of times that the battery charger charges the battery to the number of trips, and
b) the ratio of the total time of connecting the battery charger to the external power supply to the total vehicle stop time with a system of the vehicle being turned off.

### Claim 5 (depends on 2)

The hybrid vehicle according to claim 2, wherein
the electronic control unit is configured to
calculate the utilization index based on the ratio of the number of times that the battery charger charges the battery to the number of trips,
without counting the number of times that the battery charger is connected to the external power supply without change in the state of charge of the battery as the number of times that the battery charger charges the battery, and
without counting the number of times of trips without change in the state of charge of the battery as the number of trips.