Patent ID: 8622870

Claim:
A power transmission apparatus for a vehicle comprising: a plurality of power split rotors, including at least a first rotor, a second rotor, and a third rotor, which work to rotate in conjunction with each other to split power among a rotary electric machine, an internal combustion engine, and a driven wheel of a vehicle; a power transmission control mechanism working to selectively establish and block transmission of the power between a first rotor that is one of the power split rotors and the internal combustion engine; and a second power transmission control mechanism disposed between the internal combustion engine and the second rotor; wherein the third rotor is connected to the driven wheel of the vehicle; the second rotor is mechanically connected to the third rotor; at the time the internal combustion engine is started, the first power transmission control mechanism permits power to be transmitted therethrough, the second power transmission control mechanism prevents power from being transmitted therethrough, power produced by the rotary electric machine is inputted to the second rotor, the torque of the first rotor is inputted to the internal combustion engine, and the rotational energy of the second rotor is different in sign from the rotational energy of the third rotor; after the internal combustion engine has started, the first power transmission control mechanism prevents power from being transmitted therethrough, the second power transmission control mechanism permits power to be transmitted therethrough, and the torque produced by the internal combustion engine is inputted to the second rotor; and if rotational energy, as outputted from said power split rotors, is defined as being positive in sign, the power split rotors are so disposed that when said power transmission control mechanism establishes transmission of the rotational energy that is positive in sign as the power from the first rotor to the internal combustion engine, ones of said power split rotors other than the first rotor are so linked as to provide output rotational energies which are different in sign from each other.