Abstract:
A vehicle generation controlling system for saving fuel includes a battery supplying power to electric components of a vehicle, a generator generating power by using rotational force of an engine and supplying the generated power to the battery and the electric components, and an ECU determining whether generation control is prevented by monitoring vehicle information on the vehicle and operational information on an operation of an electric product of a cooling system among the electric components and controlling the generator to prevent the generation control according to the determination. As a result, the generation control is performed based on whether an electric product of a cooling system is actuated and vehicle information on the vehicle to thereby prevent cooling performance from being deteriorated due to the generation control.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application Number 10-2011-0084497 filed Aug. 24, 2011, the entire contents of which application is incorporated herein for all purposes by this reference. 
       BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention relates to a vehicle generation controlling system and a control method of the same, more particularly, a vehicle generation controlling system controlling a generator for saving fuel and a control method of the same. 
         [0004]    2. Description of Related Art 
         [0005]    A vehicle generation controlling system adopted in a vehicle as one of technologies for improving fuel efficiency performs regenerative generation in a deceleration driving section of the vehicle and uses power acquired therethrough in a non-deceleration section to reduce a load of a generator and improve fuel efficiency. 
         [0006]    However, generation controlling adopted in the vehicle generation controlling system in the related art is generally performed without appropriately considering whether electric components of the vehicle are actuated to influence the performances of various electric components of the vehicle. 
         [0007]    In particular, the cooling performance of an electric product of a cooling system of the vehicle deteriorates when generation voltage is maintained to be low due to the generation controlling adopted in the vehicle generation controlling system in the related art. That is, when the load of the vehicle is large while the vehicle is driven at a low speed, large cooling is required, but the power of the electric product of the cooling system is reduced by performing the generation controlling, and as a result, the temperature of cooling water increases. 
         [0008]    The generation controlling system in the related art is described in Korean Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-2010-0063921. 
         [0009]    The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art. 
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
       [0010]    The present invention has been made in an effort to provide a vehicle generation controlling system and a control method of the same that can solve a problem in that the temperature of cooling water increases by preventing the performance of an electric product of a cooling system from being deteriorated through limiting generation controlling for improving fuel efficiency when large cooling is required for a vehicle. 
         [0011]    Various aspects of the present invention provide for a vehicle generation controlling system for saving fuel, including a battery supplying power to electric components of a vehicle, a generator generating power by using rotational force of an engine and supplying the generated power to the battery and the electric components, and an ECU determining whether generation control is prevented by monitoring vehicle information on the vehicle and operational information on an operation of an electric product of a cooling system among the electric components and controlling the generator to prevent the generation control according to the determination. 
         [0012]    The ECU may determine that the generation control is prevented when judging that the electric product of cooling system is in operation through the operational information and judging that a value of the temperature of cooling water, a value of the opening degree of an accelerator, and a value of a vehicle speed in the vehicle information are larger than a set value of the cooling water temperature, a set value of the accelerator opening degree, and a set value of the vehicle speed, respectively. 
         [0013]    Various aspects of the present invention provide for a control method of a vehicle generation controlling system with an ECU performing generation control for saving fuel by interworking with a battery and a generator connected with electric components of a vehicle, the method including judging, by the ECU, whether an electric product of a cooling system among the electric components is in operation after an engine of the vehicle starts, judging, by the ECU, whether a value of the temperature of cooling water in vehicle information monitored from the outside is larger than a predetermined set value of the cooling water temperature when judging the electric product of the cooling system is in operation, judging, by the ECU, whether a value of the opening degree of an accelerator in the vehicle information is larger than a predetermined set value of the accelerator opening degree when judging that the value of the cooling water temperature is larger than the set value of the cooling water temperature, judging, by the ECU, whether a value of a vehicle speed in the vehicle information is larger than a predetermined set value of the vehicle speed when judging the value of the accelerator opening degree is larger than the set value of the accelerator opening degree, and controlling, by the ECU, the generator to prevent the generation control when judging the value of the vehicle speed is larger than the set value of the vehicle speed. 
         [0014]    According to various aspects of the present invention, generation control is performed based on whether an electric product of a cooling system is actuated and vehicle information including the temperature of cooling water, an opening degree of an accelerator, and a vehicle speed to thereby prevent cooling performance from being deteriorated due to the generation control. 
         [0015]    The methods and apparatuses of the present invention have other features and advantages which will be apparent from or are set forth in more detail in the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein, and the following Detailed Description, which together serve to explain certain principles of the present invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0016]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an exemplary vehicle generation controlling system according to the present invention. 
           [0017]      FIG. 2  is a functional block diagram exemplary engine control unit (ECU) according to the present invention. 
           [0018]      FIGS. 3A-3E  are graphs showing a result by generation controlling in the related art. 
           [0019]      FIGS. 4A-4E  are graphs showing a result by generation controlling of an exemplary vehicle generation controlling system according to the present invention. 
           [0020]      FIG. 5  is a control procedure diagram of an exemplary vehicle generation controlling system according to the present invention. 
       
    
    
       [0021]    It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various features illustrative of the basic principles of the invention. The specific design features of the present invention as disclosed herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particular intended application and use environment. 
         [0022]    In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the several figures of the drawing. 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0023]    Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the invention(s) will be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments, it will be understood that present description is not intended to limit the invention(s) to those exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the invention(s) is/are intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. 
         [0024]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , a vehicle generation controlling system  1  according to various embodiments includes a battery  10 , a generator  20 , and an ECU  30 . ECU  30  is an abbreviation of an electronic control unit and performs overall control according to various embodiments. 
         [0025]    Battery  10  is connected to generator  20  and various electric loads of the vehicle. Battery  10  is charged by receiving power from generator  20  and transmits battery information such as a state of charge (SOC) and the temperature of the battery to ECU  30 . 
         [0026]    Battery  10  provides power to various electric loads including electric components of cooling system through control by ECU  30 . The electric components of cooling system mean a cooling fan, an electromotive water pump, an electromotive air-conditioner compressor, and the like. 
         [0027]    Generator  20  generates power by using the rotation of an engine and a generation capacity of generator  20  is controlled by control by ECU  30 . Generator  20  makes power generated by control by ECU  30  into constant voltage and outputs the constant voltage to battery  10  and the electric loads. 
         [0028]    ECU  30  controls generator  20  by a generation control logic incorporated in advance by using vehicle information monitored from the engine, generator  20 , battery  10 , and the like and information on whether the electric components of the vehicle are actuated, which is inputted from the outside. 
         [0029]    The vehicle information means the battery temperature that is sensed in battery  10  and transferred to ECU  30 , and a vehicle speed, an opening degree of an accelerator, and the temperature of cooling water regarding a driving state and a traveling state of the vehicle, which is sensed in the engine and transferred to ECU  30 . 
         [0030]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , ECU  30  may be divided into a monitoring module  32  and a generation control preventing module  36  as shown in  FIG. 2 . Herein, the generation control logic associated with various embodiments will be primarily described and a general generation control logic in the related art will not be described. 
         [0031]    Monitoring module  32  monitors the vehicle information transferred from the engine and battery  10  that interwork with ECU  30  and operational information on an operation of the electric product of the cooling system among the electric components of the vehicle, and transfers the monitored information to generation control preventing module  36 . 
         [0032]    Generation control preventing module  36  receives the vehicle information and the operation information that are monitored by monitoring module  32  to determine whether the generation control is prevented and prevent the generation control according to the determination. That is, generation control preventing module  36  controls generator  20  to prevent the generation control. 
         [0033]    Specifically, generation control preventing module  36  judges whether four conditions described below are satisfied by using the monitored vehicle information and operational information to determine whether the generation control is prevented. 
         [0034]    In a first condition, the electric product of the cooling system is in operation while the engine of the vehicle is actuated, in a second condition, a value of the cooling water temperature in the vehicle information is larger than a predetermined set value of cooling water temperature, in a third condition, a value of the accelerator opening degree in the vehicle information is larger than a set value of the accelerator opening degree, and in a fourth condition, a value of the vehicle speed in the collected information is larger than a set value of the vehicle speed. Generation control preventing module  36  may determine the preventing of the generation control when all the four conditions are sequentially satisfied. 
         [0035]    Generation control preventing module  36  prevents the generation control after a time as long as a set value of a delay time by using a counter without preventing the generation control immediately when the generation control preventing module  36  judges that all the four conditions are satisfied. 
         [0036]    Generation control preventing module  36  performs the generation control to maintain fixed voltage without changing voltage by using the temperature value of the battery collected from battery  10  in the vehicle information. 
         [0037]    Hereinafter, an effect by generation control preventing module  36  will be described by comparing  FIGS. 3 and 4 .  FIG. 3  is a graph showing a result by the generation control in the related art and  FIG. 4  is a graph showing a result by generation controlling of a vehicle generation controlling system according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
         [0038]    Generation control preventing module  36  may decrease the cooling water temperature as shown in the graph shown in  FIG. 4A  unlike the graph shown in  FIG. 3A  when a large load is applied as shown in  FIGS. 3C and 4C  and the electric product of the cooling system operates as shown in  FIGS. 3B and 4B , to a vehicle which is driven at a low speed as shown in  FIGS. 3D and 4D . 
         [0039]    This is because generation control preventing module  36  according to various embodiments prevents the generation control as shown in the graph shown in  FIG. 4E  unlike the graph shown in  FIG. 3E . 
         [0040]    Referring to  FIG. 5 , an operation of a vehicle generation controlling system  1  according to various embodiments of the present invention will be described. An ECU  30  judges whether an electric product of a cooling system among electric components of a vehicle is in operation after an engine is operated (S 510 ) to perform an existing generation control logic when the electric product of cooling system is not operated (S 515 ). 
         [0041]    According to a judgment result in step S 510 , when the electric product of cooling system is operated, ECU  30  judges whether the cooling water temperature is larger than a predetermined set value of cooling water temperature (S 520 ) to perform the existing generation control logic in step S 515  when the cooling water temperature is not larger than the set value of cooling water temperature. 
         [0042]    According to a judgment result in step S 520 , when the cooling water temperature is larger than the set value of cooling water temperature, ECU  30  judges whether an accelerator opening degree is larger than a predetermined set value of the accelerator opening degree (S 530 ) and performs the existing generation control logic in step S 515  when the accelerator opening degree is not larger than the set value of the accelerator opening degree. 
         [0043]    According to a judgment result in step S 530 , when the accelerator opening degree is larger than the set value of the accelerator opening degree, ECU  30  judges whether a vehicle speed is larger than a predetermined set value of the vehicle speed (S 540 ) and performs the existing generation control logic in step S 515  when the vehicle speed is not larger than the set value of the vehicle speed. 
         [0044]    According to a judgment result in step S 540 , when the vehicle speed is larger than the set value of the vehicle speed, ECU  30  judges whether a delay time reaches a predetermined set value of the delay time (S 550 ) and performs the existing generation control logic in step S 515  when the delay time does not reach the set value of the delay time. 
         [0045]    According to a judgment result in step S 550 , ECU  30  prevents the generation control when the delay time reaches the set value of the delay time (S 560 ). In addition, it is judged whether the engine stops (S 570 ) and when the engine does not stop, the process returns to S 510  to continuously perform the control procedure, while when the engine stops, the control procedure ends. 
         [0046]    As a result, vehicle generation controlling system  1  according to various embodiments of the present invention performs the generation control based on whether the electric product of cooling system is actuated and the vehicle information such as the cooling water temperature, the accelerator opening degree, and the vehicle speed to minimize the deterioration of the cooling performance caused due to the generation control. 
         [0047]    Vehicle generation controlling system  1  according to various embodiments can be widely applied to all vehicles including hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles without a limit in addition to general vehicles. 
         [0048]    The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain certain principles of the invention and their practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to make and utilize various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the Claims appended hereto and their equivalents.