Method for detecting a state of a vehicle electric system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018304751-A1
Application number	US-201615779354-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 28, 2016
Priority date	Nov 26, 2015
Publication date	Oct 25, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

Method for detecting a state of an electric system (150) in a motor vehicle, said electric system (150) comprising a generator unit that includes an electric machine (100) with a rotor winding (110) and a stator winding (120) as well as a rectifier (130) which is connected to the electric machine (100) and via which the electric system (150) is connected to the electric machine (100); in said method, a decision about the current state of the electric system (150), especially about the availability of a battery (200) of the electric system, is made in accordance with an excitation current (IE) flowing through the rotor winding (110) of the electric machine (100).

First claim

1 . A method for detecting a state of an electric system ( 150 ) of a motor vehicle, said electric system ( 150 ) comprising a generator unit that includes an electric machine ( 100 ) with a rotor winding ( 110 ) and a stator winding ( 120 ) as well as a rectifier ( 130 ) which is connected to the electric machine ( 100 ) and via which the electric system ( 150 ) is connected to the electric machine ( 100 ); in said method, a decision about the current state of the electric system ( 150 ), especially about the availability of a battery ( 200 ) of the electric system, is made in accordance with an excitation current (IE) flowing through the rotor winding ( 110 ) of the electric machine ( 100 ).

2 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the decision about the current state of the electric system ( 150 ) is made in accordance with the size of an oscillation amplitude (A) of the excitation current (IE).

3 . The method according to claim 2 , wherein the length of a supply line from the rectifier ( 130 ) to the battery ( 200 ) is detected in accordance with the size of the oscillation amplitude (A).

4 . The method according to claim 3 , wherein parameters for controlling the generator unit are selected in accordance with the detected length of the supply line.

5 . The method according to claim 2 , wherein a detection whether a supply line from the rectifier ( 130 ) to the battery ( 200 ) is defective is made in accordance with the size of the oscillation amplitude (A).

6 . Method according to claim 5 , wherein, when the size of the oscillation amplitude (A) sharply increases, a decision is made that the supply line is defective.

7 . The method according to claim 6 , wherein it is detected that the size of the oscillation amplitude (A) sharply increases if the length of a time period (ΔT) between a point in time at which the size of the oscillation amplitude (A) exceeds a second threshold value (A 2 ) and a further point in time at which the size of the oscillation amplitude (A) exceeds a larger third threshold value (A 3 ) is less than a second minimum distance.

8 . The method according to claim 6 , wherein parameters for controlling the generator unit are changed after it has been detected that the supply line is defective.

9 . The method according to claim 2 , wherein a decision is made that a sulfation of the battery ( 200 ) is present when the size of the oscillation amplitude (A) slowly increases.

10 . The method according to claim 8 , wherein it is detected that the size of the oscillation amplitude (A) slowly increases if the length of a time period (ΔT) between a point in time at which the size of the oscillation amplitude (A) exceeds a second threshold value (A 2 ) and a further point in time, at which the size of the oscillation amplitude (A) exceeds a larger third threshold value (A 3 ) is greater than a first minimum distance.

11 . The method according to claim 9 , wherein the battery ( 200 ) is charged in a pulsed manner when it has been detected that sulfation is present.

12 . An arithmetic unit ( 140 ), which is equipped to carry out a method according to claim 1 .

13 . A computer program which induces an arithmetic unit ( 140 ) to carry out the method according to claim 1 if said program is executed on the arithmetic unit ( 140 ).

14 . A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon which induces an arithmetic unit ( 140 ) to carry out the method according to claim 1 if said program is executed on the arithmetic unit ( 140 ).

15 . The arithmetic unit ( 140 ) according to claim 12 , wherein the arithmetic unit ( 140 ) is a generator controller.

Assignees

• Bosch Gmbh Robert

Inventors

• Mueller Manuel
• Riederer Miriam
• Schulz Udo
• Fischer Wolfgang
• Ersek Zoltan

Classifications

• B60R11/02

  for radio sets, television sets, telephones, or the like; Arrangement of controls thereof · CPC title

• H02P9/30

  using semiconductor devices · CPC title

• H02P29/0241

  the fault being an overvoltage · CPC title

• B60L3/0023 Primary

  Detecting, eliminating, remedying or compensating for drive train abnormalities, e.g. failures within the drive train · CPC title

• G01R31/007

  using microprocessors or computers · CPC title