Supercharging arrangement with a supercharger and variable-speed drive unit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10519852-B2
Application number	US-201414760310-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 10, 2014
Priority date	Jan 10, 2013
Publication date	Dec 31, 2019
Grant date	Dec 31, 2019

Abstract

A supercharging arrangement for an internal combustion engine is disclosed. The supercharging arrangement comprises a supercharger having a rotational drive input, and a transmission having a rotational drive input to receive drive from an internal combustion engine, and a rotational drive output connected to the input of the supercharger. The transmission includes a variator operatively connected between the input and the output of the transmission, which variator has an output that is driven at an operating ratio from an input. There is a control system that operates to cause an engine to deliver an amount of torque that is indicated by the state of an input to the control system. The control system is further operative to set the operating ratio of the variator.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A supercharging arrangement comprising:
an internal combustion engine including an inlet manifold;
a supercharger having a rotational input and an output in communication with the inlet manifold, wherein the supercharger is configured to supply pressurized air at the output to the inlet manifold;
a variable-speed drive unit having a rotational input configured to receive a rotational speed output from the internal combustion engine during operation of the supercharging arrangement and an output in communication with the rotational input of the supercharger, wherein the variable-speed drive unit has a variator in communication with the rotational input of the variable-speed drive unit and the rotational input of the supercharger and the variator operates according to a specific operating ratio during operation of the supercharging arrangement;
an actuator in communication with the variator; and
a control system in communication with the internal combustion engine and the actuator that is configured to receive instantaneous operational parameters of the internal combustion engine during operation of the supercharging arrangement, wherein the control system is operative to calculate an estimated supercharger air pressure that is representative of the pressurized air at the output of the supercharger during operation of the supercharging arrangement and generate a signal that is output to the actuator to operatively position the actuator such that the variator is controlled to the specific operating ratio, and wherein the generated signal is based, at least in part, on the instantaneous operational parameters of the internal combustion engine that are received by the control system and the calculated estimated supercharger air pressure.

2. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 1 in which the variator is toroidal.

3. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 1 in which the control system is operative to calculate a target value of a control variable.

4. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 1 in which the variator comprises:
an input surface and an output surface, the input and output surfaces being coaxially mounted for rotation about a variator axis, and a first toroidal cavity being defined between the input and output surfaces;
a plurality of rolling elements disposed between and being in driving engagement with the input and the output surfaces at respective contact regions, each of the rolling elements being mounted on a carriage assembly for rotation about a rolling axis, each of the rolling elements being free to pivot about a tilt axis, the tilt axis passing through each of the rolling elements perpendicular to the rolling axis, and intersecting the rolling axis at a roller center, whereby a change in the tilt angle causes a change in the specific operating ratio of the variator being the ratio of rotational speeds of the input and output surfaces.

5. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 4 in which each carriage assembly mounted to one of the roller elements can cause pivotal movement, which pivotal movement is about a pitch axis that results in a change of a pitch angle of the rolling element associated with each carriage assembly, the pitch axis passing through the roller center and through the contact regions; and wherein the variator further comprises a control member operative to cause a respective carriage assembly to undertake the pivotal movement thereby changing the pitch angle, so urging the plurality of rolling elements to pivot about their tilt axes and thereby provide the change in the specific operating ratio of the variator.

6. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 5 in which movement of each carriage assembly of the variator about each pitch axis is caused by one or more components of the variator moving other than in rotation about each pitch axis.

7. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 5 in which the variator further comprises:
a second input surface and a second, facing output surface defining a second toroidal cavity;
a second plurality of rolling elements disposed between the second input and second output surfaces and being in driving engagement with the surfaces, each rolling element being rotatably mounted on its respective carriage assembly and able to tilt about an axis passing through the center of the rolling element in order to change the variator ratio and being mounted for pivotal movement resulting in the rolling element pitching about an axis passing through the center of the rolling element and perpendicular to the rotational axis of the rolling element and also perpendicular to the ratio change axis;
a control member for actuation of the each carriage assembly to pitch the respective rolling element resulting in a change of tilt angle and a change in the specific operating ratio of the variator;
a first reaction member operatively coupled to the plurality of rolling elements in the first cavity and a second reaction member operatively coupled to the second plurality of rolling elements in the second cavity such that the first and second reaction members bear reaction loads arising from the respective rolling elements.

8. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 7 in which the variator further comprises a load-sharing assembly operatively linked to the reaction members of the first and the second toroidal cavities such that reaction torque from the reaction members is balanced.

9. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 1 in which the variator includes a torque sensing arrangement that is operative to reduce the specific operating ratio of the variator when the torque applied by the variator to the supercharger exceeds a threshold.

10. A drivetrain for a vehicle comprising a supercharging arrangement according to claim 1 .

11. The drivetrain according to claim 10 in which the control system operates to cause the variator to operate at the specific operating ratio that causes a control variable of the drivetrain to approach a target value.

12. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 1 in which the control system is operative to adjust the specific operating ratio to ensure that a supercharger speed changes at such a rate that ensures a torque that is applied to an output of the internal combustion engine does not exceed a predetermined limit.

13. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 1 further comprising a step-up gearset coupled in series with the variator, in which the step-up gearset is connected between the variator and the supercharger, wherein the step-up gearset is a traction drive epicyclic gearset, and wherein the epicyclic gearset shares traction fluid with the variator.

14. The supercharging arrangement according to claim 1 in which the supercharger incorporates a centrifugal compressor or a positive displacement compressor.

15. A supercharging arrangement comprising:
an internal combustion engine including an inlet manifold;
a supercharger having a rotational input and an output in communication with the inlet manifold, wherein the supercharger is configured to supply pressurized air at the output to the inlet manifold;
a variable-speed drive unit having a rotational input configured to receive a rotational speed output from the internal combustion engine during operation of the supercharging arrangement and an output in communication with the rotational input of the supercharger, wherein the variable-speed drive unit has a variator in communication with the rotational input of the variable-speed drive unit and the rotational inp

Assignees

• Allison Transm Inc

Inventors

• Shawe James
• Fuller John
• Dutson Brian
• Defreitas Andrew

Classifications

• F16H61/664

  Friction gearings · CPC title

• F16H15/38 Primary

  with two members B having hollow toroid surfaces opposite to each other, the member or members A being adjustably mounted between the surfaces · CPC title

• F02B39/04 Primary

  Mechanical drives; Variable-gear-ratio drives (non-mechanical pump drives having variable gear ratio F02B39/08) · CPC title

• F02B39/12

  Drives characterised by use of couplings or clutches therein (using fluid slip couplings for varying gear ratio F02B39/08) · CPC title

• F02D23/005

  with the supercharger being mechanically driven by the engine (supercharger drives F02B39/00) · CPC title