Hybrid vehicle powertrain

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9862262-B2
Application number	US-201514814055-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 30, 2015
Priority date	Jul 30, 2015
Publication date	Jan 9, 2018
Grant date	Jan 9, 2018

Abstract

Methods and systems for delivering powertrain torque of a hybrid vehicle are disclosed. In one example, torque is supplied to vehicle wheels from a piston engine, an electric machine, and a turbine engine via a planetary gear set. The planetary gear set may be configured with at least one sun gear and two ring gears.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A hybrid vehicle powertrain, comprising:
an engine;
an electric machine;
a turbine generator located along an exhaust passage of the engine; and
a planetary gear set mechanically coupled to the engine, the electric machine, and the turbine generator;
where the electric machine is a traction motor, and further comprising a first generator, the first generator mechanically coupled to the planetary gear set.

2. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 1 , where the planetary gear set includes two sun gears and two ring gears.

3. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 1 , where the planetary gear set includes an actual total number of one sun gear and two ring gears.

4. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 1 , further comprising a gear mechanically linking vehicle wheels to a ring gear of the planetary gear set.

5. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 1 , further comprising a second generator, the second generator mechanically coupled to the planetary gear set.

6. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 1 , further comprising a fuel source and an ignition source positioned along the exhaust passage upstream of the turbine generator.

7. A hybrid vehicle powertrain, comprising:
an engine;
an electric machine;
a turbine generator located along an exhaust passage of the engine; and
a planetary gear set mechanically coupled to the engine, the electric machine, and the turbine generator, the planetary gear set including at least one sun gear and two ring gears.

8. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 7 , further comprising a second sun gear.

9. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 7 , where a first of the two ring gears is in direct mechanical contact with a second of the two ring gears.

10. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 7 , where a first of the two ring gears is not in mechanical contact with a second of the two ring gears.

11. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 10 , where the first ring gear is encircled by the second ring gear.

12. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 7 , further comprising a plurality of planetary gears.

13. The hybrid vehicle powertrain of claim 12 , where at least a portion of the plurality of planetary gears is in direct mechanical contact with the two ring gears.

14. A hybrid vehicle powertrain operating method, comprising:
combining torque of an electric machine, a piston engine, and a turbine engine positioned along an exhaust passage of the piston engine in a planetary gear set;
transferring torque from the planetary gear set to vehicle wheels; and
receiving input from a sensor to a controller, and selectively activating one or more of the electric machine, the piston engine, and the turbine engine in response to the input from the sensor, where the electric machine is directly mechanically coupled to a ring gear of the planetary gear set.

15. The hybrid vehicle powertrain operating method of claim 14 , where the piston engine is directly mechanically coupled to planetary gears of the planetary gear set.

16. The hybrid vehicle powertrain operating method of claim 15 , where the turbine engine is directly mechanically coupled to the planetary gears of the planetary gear set.

17. The hybrid vehicle powertrain operating method of claim 16 , further comprising selectively activating and deactivating the electric machine, the piston engine, and the turbine engine responsive to a driver demand torque.

Assignees

• Ford Global Tech Llc

Inventors

• Martin Douglas Raymond
• Miller Kenneth James

Classifications

• B60Y2200/92

  Hybrid vehicles · CPC title

• B60W2720/30

  Wheel torque · CPC title

• F02B63/042

  Rotating electric generators · CPC title

• F02B41/10

  in exhaust turbines (use of exhaust turbines for charging F02B37/00) · CPC title

• B60W2520/10

  Longitudinal speed · CPC title