Electric vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016297499-A1
Application number	US-201615086105-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 31, 2016
Priority date	Apr 7, 2015
Publication date	Oct 13, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

An electric vehicle includes a vehicle body, an electric motor, a wheel, an operator operated by a user to drive the wheel to rotate by power from the electric motor, and a controller that controls the electric motor according to an operation of the operator. The controller includes a plurality of control states including a basic state, a drive-standby state which transitions to and from the basic state, and a driving state which transitions to and from the drive-standby state and causes transmission of power of the electric motor to the wheel. The controller is configured or programmed to transition to the driving state if the operator is operated in the drive-standby state and to transition to the basic state if it is judged in the drive-standby state that a user is not present in the vicinity of the vehicle body for a predetermined time or longer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An electric vehicle comprising:
a vehicle body; an electric motor provided in the vehicle body; a wheel provided in the vehicle body; an operator to be operated by a user to drive the wheel to rotate by power from the electric motor; and a controller that controls the electric motor according to an operation of the operator; wherein the controller includes a plurality of control states including a basic state, a drive-standby state which transitions to and from the basic state, and a driving state which transitions to and from the drive-standby state and causes transmission of the power of the electric motor to the wheel; and the controller is configured or programmed to transition to the driving state when the operator is operated in the drive-standby state, and to transition to the basic state if it is judged in the drive-standby state that a user is not present in a vicinity of the vehicle body for a predetermined time or longer.

2 . The electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured or programmed to transition to the drive-standby state when the operator is operated in the basic state.

3 . The electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured or programmed to maintain the driving state during when the operator is being operated, and to transition to the drive-standby state if a non-operation of the operator is detected in the driving state.

4 . The electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured or programmed to judge, if a non-operation of the operator continues for the predetermined time or longer, that a user is not in the vicinity of the vehicle body for the predetermined time or longer.

5 . The electric vehicle according to claim 1 , further comprising a user detector that detects whether a user is present in the vicinity of the vehicle body; wherein
the controller is configured or programmed to judge, if a state in which the user detector does not detect a user and there is no operation input to the operator continues for the predetermined time or longer, that a user is not in the vicinity of the vehicle body for the predetermined time or longer.

6 . The electric vehicle according to claim 5 , wherein the user detector includes a vehicle speed detector that detects whether the electric vehicle is running.

7 . The electric vehicle according to claim 5 , further comprising a human power drive system that transmits human power input by a user to the wheel; wherein
the user detector includes a human power input detector that detects the input of the human power to the human power drive system.

8 . The electric vehicle according to claim 1 , further comprising an informer that informs the drive-standby state to a user.

9 . The electric vehicle according to claim 8 , wherein the informer includes a display supported on the vehicle body.

10 . The electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the vehicle body is a saddle vehicle body on which a user rides in a straddling manner.

Assignees

• Yamaha Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Ohashi Toru
• Saruwatari Yutaka
• Ozawa Hiroki

Classifications

• B62K2204/00

  Adaptations for driving cycles by electric motor · CPC title

• B60K35/00

  Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles · CPC title

• B62M6/45 Primary

  Control or actuating devices therefor · CPC title

• B62M6/55

  power-driven at crank shafts parts · CPC title

• B62K23/04

  Twist grips · CPC title