U.S. patent application number 14/320252 was filed with the patent office on 2015-06-18 for cooling system for vehicle and control method therefor.
This patent application is currently assigned to Hyundai Motor Company. The applicant listed for this patent is AJOU UNIVERSITY INDUSTRY COOPERATION FOUNDATION, Hyundai Motor Company. Invention is credited to Min Young Jung, Dae Kwang Kim, Jonghwa Lee, Jun Yong Lee, Jinil Park.
Application Number | 20150167533 14/320252 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 53192706 |
Filed Date | 2015-06-18 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150167533 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lee; Jun Yong ; et
al. |
June 18, 2015 |
COOLING SYSTEM FOR VEHICLE AND CONTROL METHOD THEREFOR
Abstract
Disclosed are a cooling system for a vehicle and a control
method for a cooling system. The cooling system may include an
electric water pump configured to circulate coolant, an active air
flap apparatus configured to actively control an air amount
introduced into an engine room of the vehicle, a radiator
configured to supply the coolant to an engine, a fan configured to
cool the coolant of the radiator, and a control unit configured to
control the electric water pump, the air flap apparatus, and the
fan depending on a driving state and condition of the vehicle, in
which the radiator is directly connected to the electric water pump
without a thermostat or a control value being interposed between
the radiator and the electric water pump.
Inventors: |
Lee; Jun Yong;
(Gwangmyeong-si, KR) ; Kim; Dae Kwang; (Yongin-si,
KR) ; Jung; Min Young; (Suwon-si, KR) ; Lee;
Jonghwa; (Yongin-si, KR) ; Park; Jinil;
(Seongnam-si, KR) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Hyundai Motor Company
AJOU UNIVERSITY INDUSTRY COOPERATION FOUNDATION |
Seoul
Suwon-si |
|
KR
KR |
|
|
Assignee: |
Hyundai Motor Company
Seoul
KR
AJOU UNIVERSITY INDUSTRY COOPERATION FOUNDATION
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
53192706 |
Appl. No.: |
14/320252 |
Filed: |
June 30, 2014 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
123/41.1 ;
701/102 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F01P 3/12 20130101; F01P
7/048 20130101; F01P 7/164 20130101; F01P 7/026 20130101 |
International
Class: |
F01P 3/12 20060101
F01P003/12 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Dec 18, 2013 |
KR |
10-2013-0157987 |
Claims
1. A cooling system for a vehicle, comprising: an electric water
pump configured to circulate a coolant; an air flap apparatus
configured to actively control an air amount introduced into an
engine room of the vehicle; a radiator configured to supply the
coolant to an engine; a fan configured to cool the coolant of the
radiator; and a control unit configured to control the electric
water pump, the air flap apparatus, and the fan depending on a
driving state and condition of the vehicle, wherein the radiator is
directly connected to the electric water pump without a thermostat
or a control value being interposed between the radiator and the
electric water pump.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein: the thermostat and/or the
electronic control valve are removed from the vehicle to which the
cooling system is applied.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein: the control unit receives a
signal associated with the air flap apparatus from an air flap
control unit and receives a signal associated with the engine from
an engine control unit (ECU).
4. The system of claim 3, wherein: the control unit controls the
air flap apparatus to control a cooling air amount passing through
the radiator and controls the electric water pump to control a
coolant flow rate to keep the coolant at a set coolant
temperature.
5. A control method for a cooling system for a vehicle in which an
air flap apparatus is equipped and an electric water pump is
directly connected to a radiator, the control method comprising:
detecting an engine output, an engine speed, a vehicle speed,
and/or a coolant temperature which correspond to a vehicle state;
controlling the air flap apparatus depending on the vehicle state;
controlling the electric water pump depending on the vehicle state;
and controlling a fan for cooling the coolant of the radiator of
the cooling system depending on the vehicle state, wherein the
controlling of the air flap apparatus, the controlling of the
electric water pump, and the controlling of the fan are integrally
combined with each other to keep the coolant at a set
temperature.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the controlling of the air flap
apparatus includes: closing at least one stage of the air flap when
the air flap is in a closing control condition; and opening at
least one stage of the air flap when the air flap is in an opening
control condition.
7. The method of claim 5, wherein the controlling of the electric
water pump includes: controlling the electric water pump to a set
speed based on an external temperature, the engine output, the
vehicle speed, the coolant temperature, and/or an operation state
of the air flap, when the electric water pump is in an operation
condition.
8. The method of claim 5, wherein the controlling of the fan
includes: controlling the fan to a set speed based on an external
temperature, the engine output, the vehicle speed, the coolant
temperature, and/or operation states of the air flap and the
electric water pump, when the fan is in an operation condition.
9. The method of claim 5, wherein the controlling of the air flap
apparatus includes: controlling opening and/or closing operations
of the air flap based on an external temperature, the engine
output, the vehicle speed, the coolant temperature, and/or
operation states of the electric water pump and the fan, when the
air flap apparatus is in an operation condition.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims priority of Korean Patent
Application Number 10-2013-0157987 filed on Dec. 18, 2013, the
entire contents of which application are incorporated herein for
all purposes by this reference.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a cooling system for a
vehicle and a control method therefor, and more particularly, to a
cooling system for a vehicle and a control method therefor capable
of effectively controlling a cooling amount without a thermostat
and/or a control valve, by controlling an introduced air amount and
a coolant flow rate passing through a radiator by controlling an
air flap apparatus in a vehicle in which the air flap apparatus is
equipped.
[0004] 2. Description of Related Art
[0005] As is generally known, as one of the technologies of
improving fuel efficiency of a vehicle in a car maker, various
researches for cooling a power train system, that is, cooling an
engine system have been conducted.
[0006] Among various researches, research and development of an
electric cooling system configured by replacing a mechanical water
pump with an electric water pump has been frequently made. The
reason of replacing the mechanical water pump with the electric
water pump is as follows.
[0007] That is, the mechanical water pump is operated in proportion
to an engine revolution speed, that is, depending on the engine
revolution speed, and thus is operated regardless of a required
amount for cooling, which leads to a loss of energy in some
sections and exerts a bad influence on fuel efficiency. To prevent
the loss, a cooling system using an electric water pump which may
be operated by an external control has been researched and
developed and applied.
[0008] An example of the existing cooling system using the electric
water pump as described above is illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3.
[0009] Referring to FIG. 1, the cooling system is configured by
simply replacing a mechanical water pump with an electric water
pump 20 in the cooling system using the mechanical water pump. That
is, the electric cooling system illustrated in FIG. 1 uses a
thermostat 30 applied to the mechanical cooling system as it is.
Reference numeral 10 represents an engine, reference numeral 40
represents a radiator, reference numeral 50 represents a heater
core, and reference numeral 60 represents a bypass passage.
[0010] The electric cooling system of FIG. 1 has an advantage in
that a configuration is simple and the number of parts, which are
exchanged at the time of changing the mechanical cooling system to
the electric cooling system, is minimized, but has a disadvantage
in that a function of the electric water pump may not be
sufficiently used.
[0011] Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, these cooling systems are
configured to include the electric water pump 20 and an electronic
control valve 70 which may control a passage.
[0012] In the configuration of FIG. 1, these cooling systems are a
cooling system in which the thermostat is replaced with the
electronic control valve 70 which may control the passage, and may
implement a high temperature control and a fast cooling control and
control the heater core 50 and a flow rate of the bypass passage
60, but have a complicated configuration.
[0013] A factor to complicate the configuration in each cooling
system illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3 is the thermostat and/or the
control valve, but the reason why the thermostat and/or the control
valve are not removed is that the cooling amount is controlled by
the thermostat and/or the control valve.
[0014] Meanwhile, parts for driving the vehicle, such as an engine,
and various heat exchangers such as a radiator, an intercooler, an
evaporator, and a condenser are provided inside an engine room of a
vehicle is provided, and a heat exchange medium such as a
refrigerant flows in the parts and the heat exchange medium inside
the heat exchanger and air outside the heat exchanger exchange heat
to perform cooling or heat generation.
[0015] Therefore, to stably operate various heat exchangers within
the engine room of the vehicle, external air needs to be smoothly
supplied to the inside of the engine room, but when a vehicle is
driven at high speed, a large amount of external air is introduced
into the engine room at high speed, and thus an air resistance is
increased.
[0016] As a result, the fuel efficiency of the vehicle may be
degraded. To solve the above problem, an air flap apparatus, that
is, an active air flap (AAF) apparatus, which may improves fuel
efficiency by introducing a relatively larger amount of air into
the engine room at the time of driving the vehicle at low speed and
introducing a relatively smaller amount of air into the engine room
at the time of driving the vehicle at high speed, has been
used.
[0017] The information disclosed in this Background 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
[0018] The present invention has been made in an effort to provide
a cooling system for a vehicle and a control method therefor
capable of effectively controlling a cooling amount without a
thermostat and/or a control valve and simplifying a configuration
of a cooling system, by controlling an introduced air amount and a
coolant flow rate passing through a radiator by controlling an air
flap apparatus (or active air flap apparatus) in a vehicle in which
the air flap apparatus is equipped.
[0019] Further, the present invention has been made in an effort to
provide a cooling system for a vehicle and a control method
therefor capable of performing an engine warm-up by controlling a
cooling amount using an air flap at the time of cooling.
[0020] Various aspects of the present invention provide a cooling
system for a vehicle, including: an electric water pump configured
to circulate coolant; an active air flap (AAF) apparatus configured
to actively control an air amount introduced into an engine room of
the vehicle; a radiator configured to supply the coolant to an
engine; a fan configured to cool the coolant of the radiator; and a
control unit configured to control the electric water pump, the air
flap apparatus, and the fan depending on a driving state and
condition of the vehicle, in which the radiator is directly
connected to the electric water pump without a thermostat or a
control value being interposed between the radiator and the
electric water pump.
[0021] The control unit may control the active air flap apparatus
to control a cooling air amount passing through the radiator and
control the electric water pump to control a coolant flow rate to
keep the coolant at a set coolant temperature.
[0022] A thermostat and an electronic control valve may be removed
from the vehicle to which the cooling system is applied.
[0023] The control unit may receive a signal associated with the
active air flap apparatus from an active air flap control unit and
receive a signal associated with the engine from an engine control
unit (ECU).
[0024] Various other aspects of the present invention provide a
control method for a cooling system for a vehicle in which an
active air flap apparatus is equipped and an electric water pump is
directly connected to a radiator, the control method comprising:
detecting an engine output, an engine speed, a vehicle speed,
and/or a coolant temperature which correspond to a vehicle state;
controlling the active air flap apparatus depending on the vehicle
state; controlling the electric water pump depending on the vehicle
state; and controlling a fan for cooling the coolant of the
radiator of the cooling system depending on the vehicle state, in
which the controlling of the active air flap apparatus, the
controlling of the electric water pump, and the controlling of the
fan are integrally combined with each other to keep the coolant at
a set temperature.
[0025] The controlling of the active air flap apparatus may
include: closing at least one stage of the air flap when the air
flap is in a closing control condition; and opening at least one
stage of the air flap when the air flap is in an opening control
condition.
[0026] The controlling of the electric water pump may include:
controlling the electric water pump to a set speed based on an
external temperature, the engine output, the vehicle speed, the
coolant temperature, and/or an operation state of the air flap,
when the electric water pump is in an operation condition.
[0027] The controlling of the fan may include: controlling the fan
to a set speed based on an external temperature, the engine output,
the vehicle speed, the coolant temperature, and/or operation states
of the air flap and the electric water pump, when the fan is in an
operation condition.
[0028] The controlling of the air flap apparatus may include:
controlling opening and/or closing operations of the air flap based
on an external temperature, the engine output, the vehicle speed,
the coolant temperature, and/or operation states of the electric
water pump and the fan, when the air flap apparatus is in an
operation condition.
[0029] As described above, according to various aspects of the
present invention, it is possible to effectively control the
cooling amount without the thermostat and/or a control valve by
controlling the introduced air amount and the coolant flow rate
passing through the radiator, by controlling the active air flap
apparatus in the vehicle in which the active air flap apparatus is
equipped. Further, according to various aspects of the present
invention, it is possible to rapidly perform the engine warm-up by
controlling the cooling amount using the air flap at the time of
cooling.
[0030] 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
[0031] FIG. 1 is a block configuration diagram of a cooling system
for a vehicle according to the related art.
[0032] FIG. 2 is a block configuration diagram of a cooling system
for a vehicle according to the related art.
[0033] FIG. 3 is a block configuration diagram of a cooling system
for a vehicle according to the related art.
[0034] FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of an exemplary cooling
system for a vehicle according to the present invention.
[0035] FIG. 5 is a flow chart of an exemplary control method for a
cooling system for a vehicle according to the present
invention.
[0036] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a connection relationship
of an exemplary control method for a cooling system for a vehicle
according to the present invention.
[0037] FIG. 7 is a graph describing the control system for a
vehicle and the control method therefor according to the exemplary
embodiment of the present invention.
[0038] FIG. 8 is a graph describing the control system for a
vehicle and the control method therefor according to the exemplary
embodiment of the present invention.
[0039] FIG. 9 is a graph describing the control system for a
vehicle and the control method therefor according to the exemplary
embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0040] 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.
[0041] In the specification and claims, unless explicitly described
to the contrary, the word "comprise" and variations such as
"comprises" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the
inclusion of stated elements but not the exclusion of any other
elements. Like reference numerals designate like elements
throughout the specification.
[0042] FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of a cooling system for a
vehicle according to various embodiments of the present invention.
The cooling system for a vehicle according to various embodiments
of the present invention is a system which controls an introduced
air amount and a coolant flow rate passing through a radiator by
controlling an air flap apparatus in a vehicle in which the air
flap apparatus is equipped.
[0043] The cooling system for a vehicle according to various
embodiments of the present invention includes: an electric water
pump 120 configured to circulate coolant; an active air flap (AAF)
apparatus 180 configured to actively control an air amount
introduced into an engine room of the vehicle; a radiator 140
configured to supply coolant to an engine 110; a cooling fan 145
configured to cool the coolant of the radiator 140; a heater core
150 configured to heat an interior of the vehicle; and a control
unit 200 configured to control the electric water pump 120, the air
flap apparatus 180, and the fan 145 depending on a driving state
and condition of the vehicle.
[0044] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the radiator 140 is directly
connected to the electric water pump 120, without a thermostat and
a control valve, which are essential constituent elements in the
existing cooling system, being interposed between the radiator 140
and the electric water pump 120. Therefore, the vehicle to which
the exemplary embodiment of the present invention is applied does
not have the thermostat and the electronic control valve.
[0045] The engine 110, the electric water pump 120, the air flap
apparatus 180, the fan 145, and the heater core 150 may each use
the existing apparatuses or similar apparatuses, and therefore the
detailed description thereof will be omitted.
[0046] The control unit 200 receives a signal associated with the
active air flap apparatus 180 from an active air flap (AAF) control
unit 280 and receives a signal associated with the engine 110 from
an engine control unit (ECU) 210, but it should be understood that
the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Even in
a different configuration from the above configuration, the
technical spirit of the present invention may be applied to any
configuration which may substantially receive the signal associated
with the active air flap apparatus 180.
[0047] The control unit 200 controls the active air flap apparatus
180 to control the cooling air amount passing through the radiator
140 and controls the electric water pump 120 to control the coolant
flow rate, thereby keeping the set coolant temperature.
[0048] That is, the control unit 200 includes at least one
microprocessor which is operated by a set program and/or hardware
including the microprocessor, in which the set program may be
configured of a series of commands performing a control method for
a cooling system for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment
of the present invention, which will be described below.
[0049] According to various embodiments of the present invention,
the control unit 200 is configured alone or may be configured to
include the AAF control unit 280 and/or the engine control unit 210
or may be configured to be included in the AAF control unit 280 or
the engine control unit 210, in terms of a design.
[0050] Hereinafter, the control method for a cooling system for a
vehicle according to various embodiments of the present invention
will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying
drawings.
[0051] FIG. 5 is a flow chart of a control method for a cooling
system for a vehicle according to various embodiments of the
present invention, and FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a
connection relationship of the control method for a cooling system
for a vehicle according to various embodiments of the present
invention.
[0052] As illustrated, the control unit 200 is, for example, keyed
on and thus starts when the vehicle starts to drive, such that the
control unit 200 detects an engine output, an engine speed, a
vehicle speed, a coolant temperature, or the like which correspond
to the vehicle state (S100).
[0053] The control unit 200 may receive the engine output, the
engine speed, the vehicle speed, the coolant temperature, or the
like from the engine control unit 210 and the engine control unit
210 generally detects and uses information and/or data as described
above, and therefore the detailed description thereof will be
omitted.
[0054] When the engine output, the engine speed, the vehicle speed,
the coolant temperature, or the like corresponding to the vehicle
state are received from the engine control unit 210, the control
unit 200 organically performs controlling an active air flap
control (S200), controlling an electric water pump (S300), and
controlling a fan (S400) based on the engine output, the engine
speed, the vehicle speed, the coolant temperature, or the like, as
illustrated in FIG. 6.
[0055] That is, the control unit 200 organically or integrally or
systematically performs controlling the active air flap apparatus
180 depending on the vehicle state (S200); controlling the electric
water pump 120 depending on the vehicle state (S300); and
controlling the fan 145 for cooling the coolant of the radiator 140
of the cooling system depending on the vehicle state (S400),
thereby keeping the temperature of the coolant at the set
temperature.
[0056] Hereinafter, the controlling of the active air flap (S200),
the controlling of the electric water pump (S300), and the
controlling of the fan (S400) will be described in detail.
[0057] First, when the AAF is in an operation condition (S210), the
control unit 200 controls closing and/or opening operation of the
air flap based on the external temperature, the engine output, the
vehicle speed, the coolant temperature, and/or the operation states
of the electric water pump 120 and the fan 145. The operation
condition of the AAF may depend on the existing operation
condition.
[0058] That is, when the air flap is in a closing control condition
(S220), the control unit 200 performs an AAF closing control
(S250), or otherwise determines whether the AAF is in the opening
condition (S230). In step S250, when a stage number of the air flap
is configured in plural, for example, when the air flap is
configured of two stages, that is, an upper stage and a lower
stage, the upper stage control and the lower stage control may be
separately performed.
[0059] In step S230, when the AAF is not in the opening condition,
the control unit 200 performs the AAF opening control (S240). Even
in step S240, the upper stage control and the lower stage control
of the air flap may be separately performed.
[0060] Further, when the electric water pump 120 is in an operation
condition (S310), the control unit 200 controls the electric water
pump 120 at the set speed based on the external temperature, the
engine output, the vehicle speed, the coolant temperature, and/or
the operation states of the air flap apparatus 180 and the fan 145
((S320), (S330), and (S340)). The operation condition of the
electric water pump may depend on the existing operation
condition.
[0061] In addition, when the fan 145 is in an operation condition
(S410), the control unit 200 controls the fan 145 to a set speed
based on the external temperature, the engine output, the vehicle
speed, the coolant temperature, and the operation states of the air
flap apparatus 180 and the electric water pump 120. The operation
condition of the fan may depend on the existing operation
condition.
[0062] That is, when the fan is in a one-stage operation condition
(S420), the control unit 200 controls the speed of the fan 145 at a
one stage (S425), when the fan is in a two-stage operation
condition (S430), controls the speed of the fan 145 at a two stage
(S435), and when the fan is in a non-operation condition, stops the
fan 145 (S445).
[0063] As the result, according to various embodiments of the
present invention, it is possible to effectively control the
cooling amount without the thermostat and/or a control valve and
simplifying the configuration of the cooling system, by controlling
the introduced air amount and the coolant flow rate passing through
the radiator by controlling the active air flap apparatus in the
vehicle in which the active air flap apparatus is equipped.
[0064] For convenience in explanation and accurate definition in
the appended claims, the terms "upper" or "lower", "inside" or
"outside", and etc. are used to describe features of the exemplary
embodiments with reference to the positions of such features as
displayed in the figures.
[0065] 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.
* * * * *