Cooling water control apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016102601-A1
Application number	US-201314787363-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 30, 2013
Priority date	Apr 30, 2013
Publication date	Apr 14, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A cooling water control apparatus is a cooling water control apparatus for controlling a cooling apparatus having a first pipe which circulates cooling water through an engine; a second pipe which circulates the cooling water not through the engine; and a switching valve whose state is changed between opened and closed states, and has: a detecting device which detects first temperature of the cooling water in a pipe portion of the first pipe between the engine and the switching valve; and a determining device which determines that there is failure of the switching valve whose state is the closed state, if required period from the output of the command for changing the state of the switching valve from the opened state to the closed state until the first temperature reaches predetermined temperature is larger than predetermined target period.

First claim

1 . A cooling water control apparatus for controlling a cooling apparatus,
the cooling apparatus being provided with:
(i) a first pipe which circulates a cooling water and which passes through an inside of an engine;
(ii) a second pipe which circulates the cooling water and which does not pass through the inside of the engine; and
(iii) a switching valve which is disposed at a downstream side of the engine, a state of the switching valve being changed between an opened state and a closed state in accordance with a command, the opened state allowing a first flow amount of cooling water to flow from the first pipe to the second pipe, the closed state allowing a second flow amount of cooling water to flow from the first pipe to the second pipe, the second flow amount being less than the first flow amount,
the cooling water control apparatus comprising a controller, the controller being programmed to: detect a first temperature of the cooling water in a pipe portion of the first pipe, the pipe portion being located between the engine and the switching valve; and determine that there is a failure of the switching valve whose state is the closed state, if a required period which is required from the output of the command for changing the state of the switching valve from the opened state to the closed state until the first temperature reaches a temperature for the determination which is higher than the first temperature is larger than a period for the determination, the switching valve being provided with:
(i) a valve portion which opens a passage between the first and second pipes such that the first flow amount of the cooling water flows from the first pipe to the second pipe when the state of the switching valve is the opened state and which closes the passage between the first and second pipes when the state of the switching valve is the closed state; and
(ii) a micro flowing portion which allows the second flow amount of the cooling water to flow from the first pipe to the second pipe when the state of the switching valve is the closed state,
the controller being programmed to determine that there is a failure of the micro flowing portion, if the required time is larger than the period for the determination.

2 . The cooling water control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
The controller is programmed to determine whether or not there is the failure of the switching valve whose state is the closed state on the basis of whether or not the required time is larger than the period for the determination, when a predetermined time does not lapse after the engine starts to operate, The controller is programmed to determine whether or not there is the failure of the switching valve whose state is the closed state on the basis of a difference between the first temperature and a second temperature of the cooling water in the second pipe, when the predetermined time lapses after the engine starts to operate.

3 . The cooling water control apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein
The controller is programmed to determine that there is the failure of the switching valve whose state is the closed state, if the difference is larger than a predetermined threshold value.

4 . (canceled)

Assignees

• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Hosokawa Yohei
• Amano Takashi
• Ito Satoru
• Hayakawa Kojiro

Classifications

• G01K13/02

  for measuring temperature of moving fluids or granular materials capable of flow · CPC title

• G01M15/042

  by monitoring a single specific parameter not covered by groups G01M15/06 - G01M15/12 · CPC title

• F01P2007/146

  using valves · CPC title

• F01P3/20

  Cooling circuits not specific to a single part of engine or machine (F01P3/22 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F01P11/16 Primary

  concerning coolant temperature (F01P11/20 takes precedence) · CPC title