Electric traction motor vehicle

A motor vehicle comprising:

• a fuel engine for producing a first mechanical power;
• a generator for converting said first mechanical power into a first electrical power;
• control means operable by a driver of said vehicle to produce a power setting signal representative of a desired power;
• a driving wheel;
• motor means for supplying a second mechanical power to said driving wheel from a second electrical power, said motor means including an electric motor mechanically coupled to said driving wheel and a circuit for controlling said electric motor that is responsive to said power setting signal to regulate the value of said second mechanical power to the value of said desired power;
• and,
• regulating means responsive to said power setting signal to regulate the rotational speed of said fuel engine to the value at which said first mechanical power is at least substantially equal, firstly, to said desired power and, secondly, to a set fraction of the maximum mechanical power of said fuel engine, said regulating means including transfer means electrically coupled to said generator and to said motor means to produce said second electrical power from said first electrical power,
• wherein said regulating means includes means for producing a measurement signal representative of said rotational speed and means for supplying a comparison signal between said measurement signal and said power setting signal,
• wherein said vehicle further comprises a device for supplying fuel to said fuel engine that is responsive to said comparison signal to regulate said first mechanical power to a value greater than that of said set fraction of said maximum mechanical power when said measurement signal is less than said power setting signal, to the value of said set fraction of said maximum mechanical power when said measurement signal is equal to said power setting signal, and to a value less than that of said set fraction of said maximum mechanical power when said measurement signal is greater than said power setting signal,
• and wherein said transfer means is arranged to respond to said comparison signal to reduce the braking torque exerted by said generator on said fuel engine when said measurement signal is less than said power setting signal.

A motor vehicle comprising:

• a fuel engine for producing a first mechanical power;
• a generator for converting said first mechanical power into a first electrical power;
• control means operable by a driver of said vehicle to produce a power setting signal representative of a desired power;
• a driving wheel;
• motor means for supplying a second mechanical power to said driving wheel from a second electrical power, said motor means including an electric motor mechanically coupled to said driving wheel and a circuit for controlling said electric motor that is responsive to said power setting signal to regulate the value of said second mechanical power to the value of said desired power;
• and,
• regulating means responsive to said power setting signal to regulate the rotational speed of said fuel engine to the value at which said first mechanical power is at least substantially equal, firstly, to said desired power and, secondly, to a set fraction of the maximum mechanical power of said fuel engine, said regulating means including transfer means electrically coupled to said generator and to said motor means to produce said second electrical power from said first electrical power,
• wherein said regulating means includes means for producing a measurement signal representative of said rotational speed and means for supplying a comparison signal between said first measurement signal and a second power setting signal;
• wherein said transfer means includes a converter connected between said generator and said control circuit and responsive to said comparison signal for supplying to said control circuit an electric power equal to said first electrical power when said measurement signal is greater than or equal to said second power setting signal and for supplying to said control circuit an electrical power less than said first electrical power when said measurement signal is less than said second power setting signal;
• wherein said vehicle further comprises a rechargeable source of electrical energy arranged to supply to said control circuit an electrical power having a value equal to the difference between said desired power and the electrical power supplied by said converter, and a device for supplying fuel to said fuel engine that is responsive to said comparison signal to regulate said first mechanical power to a value greater than that of said set fraction of said maximum mechanical power when said measurement signal is less than said second power setting signal, to the value of said set fraction of said maximum mechanical power when said measurement signal is equal to said second power setting signal, and to a value less than that of said set fraction of said maximum mechanical power when said measurement signal is greater than said second power setting signal, said source including means for supplying a detection signal representative of the quantity of electrical energy contained in said source;
• and,
• wherein said vehicle further comprises means responsive to said detection signal for producing said second power setting signal with a value equal to the sum of the value of said first power setting signal and of a predetermined value when said quantity of electrical energy becomes less than a first predetermined quantity and with a value equal to the value of said first power setting signal when said quantity of electrical energy becomes greater than a second predetermined quantity.

A motor vehicle comprising:

• a fuel engine for producing a first mechanical power;
• a generator for converting said first mechanical power into a first electrical power;
• control means operable by a driver of said vehicle to produce a power setting signal representative of a desired power;
• a driving wheel;
• motor means for supplying a second mechanical power to said driving wheel from a second electrical power, said motor means including an electric motor mechanically coupled to said driving wheel and a circuit for controlling said electric motor that is responsive to said power setting signal to regulate the value of said second mechanical power to the value of said desired power;
• and,
• regulating means responsive to said power setting signal to regulate the rotational speed of said fuel engine to the value at which said first mechanical power is at least substantially equal, firstly, to said desired power and, secondly, to a set fraction of the maximum mechanical power of said fuel engine, said regulating means including transfer means electrically coupled to said generator and to said motor means to produce said second electrical power from said first electrical power,
• wherein said regulating means includes means for producing a measurement signal representative of said rotational speed and means for supplying a comparison signal between said measurement signal and said power setting signal,
• wherein said transfer means is arranged to respond to said comparison signal to increase the braking torque exerted by said generator on said fuel engine when said measurement signal is greater than said power setting signal and to decrease said braking torque when said measurement signal is less than said power setting signal,
• and wherein said transfer means includes a first regulating element connected across a first terminal and a second terminal of said generator and a second regulating element connected across said first terminal of said generator and a terminal of said control circuit, said first regulating element being responsive to said comparison signal to connect said terminals of said generator when said measurement signal is greater than said power setting signal, and said second regulating element being responsive to said comparison signal to connect said first terminal of said generator and said terminal of said control circuit.