U.S. patent application number 14/553693 was filed with the patent office on 2016-03-24 for apparatus and method for controlling coolant flow of vehicle.
The applicant listed for this patent is HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY, Kia Motors Corporation. Invention is credited to Hyun KIM, Kwang Sik YANG.
Application Number | 20160084144 14/553693 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 54605449 |
Filed Date | 2016-03-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160084144 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
KIM; Hyun ; et al. |
March 24, 2016 |
APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING COOLANT FLOW OF VEHICLE
Abstract
An apparatus for controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle
includes a control valve connected to a plurality of cooling lines
through which a coolant flows and controlling the coolant flow
between the respective coolant lines. A controller is configured to
control the control valve to flow the coolant between the plurality
of cooling lines when a power is applied to the vehicle.
Inventors: |
KIM; Hyun; (Hwaseong-si,
KR) ; YANG; Kwang Sik; (Gunpo-si, KR) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY
Kia Motors Corporation |
Seoul
Seoul |
|
KR
KR |
|
|
Family ID: |
54605449 |
Appl. No.: |
14/553693 |
Filed: |
November 25, 2014 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
123/41.08 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F01P 7/165 20130101;
F01P 7/167 20130101; F01P 2037/02 20130101 |
International
Class: |
F01P 7/16 20060101
F01P007/16; F01P 11/14 20060101 F01P011/14; F01P 3/20 20060101
F01P003/20 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Sep 19, 2014 |
KR |
10-2014-0125006 |
Claims
1. An apparatus for controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle, the
apparatus comprising: a control valve connected to a plurality of
cooling lines through which a coolant flows, the control valve
controlling the coolant flow between the respective coolant lines;
and a controller configured to control the control valve such that
the coolant flows between the plurality of cooling lines when a
power is applied to the vehicle.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller controls the
control valve such that the coolant flows between the plurality of
cooling lines in a key-on state of the vehicle.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller controls the
control valve to be in a completely opened state to connect all of
the plurality of cooling lines to each other.
4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller controls the
control valve to be in a completely opened state to connect all of
the plurality of cooling lines to each other when the power is
applied to the vehicle before an engine runs.
5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the controller releases the
completely opened state of the control valve when the engine
runs.
6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller controls the
control valve to selectively connect the plurality of cooling lines
depending on a temperature of the coolant when an engine runs.
7. A method for controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle, in which
an apparatus for controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle includes:
a control valve connected to a plurality of cooling lines through
which a coolant flows, the control valve controlling the coolant
flow between the respective coolant lines; and a controller
configured to control the control valve such that the coolant flows
between the plurality of cooling lines when a power is applied to
the vehicle, the method comprising: a detecting step of detecting a
power application signal to the vehicle; and an operating step of
controlling the control valve such that the coolant flows between
the plurality of cooling lines when the power is applied to the
vehicle.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein in the detecting step, a key-on
signal of the vehicle is detected.
9. The method of claim 7, wherein in the operating step, the
control valve is controlled to be in a completely opened state to
connect the plurality of cooling lines to each other.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein after the operating step, the
completely opened state of the control valve is released when an
engine runs.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims the benefit of priority to
Korean Patent Application Number 10-2014-0125006 filed on Sep. 19,
2014, the entire contents of which application are incorporated
herein for all purposes by this reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present disclosure relates to an apparatus and a method
for controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle, and more particularly,
to an apparatus and a method for controlling a coolant flow of a
vehicle capable of smoothly filling a coolant.
BACKGROUND
[0003] An internal combustion engine of a vehicle is a core
component of the vehicle, which converts a form of energy by
burning gasoline, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), or the
like. When the engine is running, a high temperature of several
hundreds to several thousands degrees typically occurs. If heat
caused by the high temperature is not effectively controlled, a
piston and a cylinder inside the engine are overheated and fused
with each other, thereby causing serious damage to the engine.
[0004] A coolant circulates in an engine block to reduce the heat.
The coolant circulates through a heater in an interior of the
vehicle and a radiator in a bonnet of the vehicle to thereby cool
the engine and to heat the interior of the vehicle using the heat
of the engine.
[0005] Since the coolant flows into the radiator or the heater only
in a state in which the engine is sufficiently preheated, it
increases a speed of preheating the engine and prevents an
excessive increase in temperature of the engine. A thermostat valve
is provided to open a cooling line connected to the radiator or
heater only in the case in which the coolant exceeds a set
temperature.
[0006] The above-mentioned thermostat valve is provided with a
separate jiggle valve allowing air in the cooling line to flow at
the time of filling the coolant. The air smoothly flows through the
jiggle valve to thereby prevent the coolant from being incompletely
filled at the time of filling the coolant, thereby preventing an
overheating of the engine caused by a lack of the coolant.
[0007] However, since the thermostat valve has some control limit,
an incorporated flow controlling valve replacing the thermostat
valve has been recently used. A multi direction changeover valve
has been introduced, which includes a shielded cylindrical shaped
housing having holes through which a fluid flows and an internal
space in which the fluid flows.
[0008] The holes are formed in row and column along an outer
peripheral surface of the housing to have a plurality of upper
holes and lower holes at upper and lower portions of the outer
peripheral surface. A spool divides the upper holes and the lower
holes by shielding an internal middle portion of the housing and
opens/closes the upper and lower holes while being rotated. A
driving part has a shaft connected to the spool to provide power
for rotating the spool. Therefore, a cooling line connected to the
radiator, a cooling line connected to the engine, and a cooling
line connected to the heater may be respectively connected, thereby
making selectively connecting each line to each other, and an
amount of coolant flowing through each line may be adjusted,
thereby precisely controlling rapid preheating and overheating
preventing functions.
[0009] However, the incorporated flow controlling valve is not
provided with the jiggle valve such as the thermostat valve
according to the related art and is always in a closed state if the
engine is not running, thus preventing the coolant from flowing
through the cooling line. Therefore, in order to fill the coolant,
the engine should be preheated to a set temperature, and otherwise,
it is impossible to continuously flow the coolant.
[0010] The matters described as the related art have been provided
only for assisting in the understanding for the background of the
present disclosure and should not be considered as corresponding to
the related art known to those skilled in the art.
SUMMARY
[0011] An aspect of the present inventive concept provides an
apparatus and a method for controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle
allowing a coolant to be supplemented even when the vehicle does
not run without providing a separate jiggle valve.
[0012] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present
inventive concept, an apparatus for controlling a coolant flow of a
vehicle includes a control valve connected to a plurality of
cooling lines through which a coolant flows and controlling the
coolant flow between the respective coolant lines. A controller is
configured to control the control valve to flow the coolant between
the plurality of cooling lines when a power is applied to the
vehicle.
[0013] The controller may control the control valve to flow the
coolant between the plurality of cooling lines in a key-on state of
the vehicle.
[0014] The controller may control the control valve in a completely
opened state to connect all of the plurality of cooling lines to
each other.
[0015] The controller may control the control valve in a completely
opened state to connect all of the plurality of cooling lines to
each other when the power is applied to the vehicle before an
engine runs.
[0016] The controller may release the completely opened state of
the control valve when the engine runs.
[0017] The controller may control the control valve so that the
plurality of cooling lines are selectively connected depending on a
temperature of the coolant when an engine runs.
[0018] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present
inventive concept, a method for controlling a coolant flow of a
vehicle is provided in which an apparatus for controlling a coolant
flow of a vehicle includes a control valve connected to a plurality
of cooling lines through which a coolant flows and controlling the
coolant flow between the respective coolant lines. A controller is
configured to control the control valve to flow the coolant between
the plurality of cooling lines when a power is applied to the
vehicle. The method includes a detecting step of detecting a power
application signal to the vehicle. An operating step controls the
control valve to flow the coolant between the plurality of cooling
lines when the power is applied to the vehicle.
[0019] In the detecting step, a key-on signal of the vehicle may be
detected.
[0020] In the operating step, the control valve may be controlled
in a completely opened state to connect the plurality of cooling
lines to each other.
[0021] After the operating step, the completely opened state of the
control valve may be released when an engine runs.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0022] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an apparatus for
controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle according to an exemplary
embodiment of the present inventive concept.
[0023] FIG. 2 is a flow chart of a method for controlling a coolant
flow of a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the
present inventive concept.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0024] Hereinafter, an apparatus and a method for controlling a
coolant flow of a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of
the present inventive concept will be described with reference to
the accompanying drawings.
[0025] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an apparatus for
controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle according to an exemplary
embodiment of the present inventive concept. The apparatus for
controlling the coolant flow for the vehicle according to the
exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept includes a
control valve 100 connected to a plurality of cooling lines through
which a coolant flows and controlling the coolant flow between the
respective cooling lines. A controller 500 is configured to control
the control valve 100 so that the coolant may flow between the
plurality of cooling lines when power is supplied to the
vehicle.
[0026] Referring to FIG. 1, the control valve 100 may be
respectively connected to an engine cooling line 210 for cooling an
engine 200, a heater cooling line 310 connected to a heater 300,
and a radiator cooling line 410 connected to a radiator 400. The
control valve 100 may connect or disconnect the respective cooling
lines to or from each other and adjust an amount of coolant
discharged into the respective cooling lines by the controller 500
taking into account of various factors such as a temperature of the
engine, a driving situation, and the like.
[0027] The controller 500 may respectively control the coolant flow
by classifying it into stop, warm-up, temperature control, cooling
modes, and the like. The controller 500 is configured to block both
inlet and outlet of the respective cooling lines to stop the
coolant flow in the stop mode, and uses heat of the engine to
perform a rapid warm-up while performing an oil warm-up in the
engine cooling line 210 or discharging only a necessary flow amount
to the heater cooling line 310 in the warm-up mode. In addition,
the controller 500 optimally controls a temperature of the coolant
of the engine 200 to a target value while gradually increasing the
flow amount discharged from the engine cooling line 210 to the
radiator cooling line 410 in the temperature control mode. In
addition, if the temperature of the coolant is increased to a set
value or more, the controller 500 maximally increases the flow
amount discharged to the radiator 400, thereby preventing an
overheating of the engine 200.
[0028] The control valve 100 may include a rotary motor (not shown)
controlled by the controller 500 and a rotating fluid passage part
(not shown) connecting or blocking the respective cooling lines
according to a rotation of the rotary motor, or may include an
independent motor for each inlet or outlet of each cooling line to
allow the flow to be controlled by the controller 500. The
connection between the plurality of cooling lines may be controlled
by a plurality of rotating fluid passage parts (not shown). The
control valve 100 according to various exemplary embodiments may be
configured.
[0029] The controller 500 may control the control valve 100 so that
the coolant may flow between the plurality of cooling lines when
the power is supplied to the vehicle, that is, when the vehicle is
in a key-on state. In this case, the controller 500 may control the
control valve 100 in a completely opened state so that all of the
plurality of cooling lines are connected to each other.
[0030] Since the coolant may flow through all cooling lines even
when the vehicle is not running, air may flow in the cooling lines
as if a jiggle valve of a thermostat is provided, and thus, the
coolant may be filled. In addition, since the engine needs not to
be preheated until the control valve 100 is completely opened, time
and cost loss due to unnecessary preheating may be removed.
[0031] The key-on state may be a state in which power is applied to
electronic units of the vehicle to run the electronic units, and
may be a previous step in which a key is inserted and rotated. The
control valve 100 may be operated in an ACC step supplying power to
only accessory electronic units such W as clock, and the like in a
key-off state. In addition, when the vehicle is in a run
preparation state, for example, when a driver having a smart key
approaches the vehicle at a predetermined distance and the vehicle
becomes a run enable state, the controller 500 may control the
control valve 100 to be completely opened.
[0032] The controller 500 may control the control valve 100 so that
the plurality of cooling lines are selectively connected depending
on the temperature of the coolant at the time of running the engine
200. That is, the controller 500 may completely open the control
valve 100 while the engine 200 is running and selectively connects
the cooling lines or adjusts the flow amount of the coolant
according to the stop/warm-up/temperature control/cooling modes as
described above.
[0033] In other words, the controller 500 controls the control
valve 100 to completely open so that all of the plurality of
cooling lines are connected to each other when power is applied to
the vehicle before running the engine 200.
[0034] In addition, a temperature sensor (not shown) configured to
detect the temperature of the coolant is further provided, such
that the controller 500 may obtain temperature information.
[0035] The apparatus for controlling the coolant flow for the
vehicle according to the exemplary embodiment of the present
inventive concept described above may be operated according to a
method for controlling a coolant flow of a vehicle as shown in FIG.
2.
[0036] FIG. 2 is a flow chart of a method for controlling a coolant
flow of a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the
present inventive concept. The method for controlling the coolant
flow for the vehicle according to the exemplary embodiment of the
present inventive concept includes a detecting step (S100) of
detecting a power application signal to the vehicle. An operating
step (S120) controls the control valve 100 so that the coolant may
flow between a plurality of cooling lines at the time of applying
power to the vehicle.
[0037] In the detecting step (S100), a key-on signal of the vehicle
may be detected, and if it is determined that the vehicle is in a
key-on state (S110), the control valve 100 may be controlled to be
in a completely opened state so that the plurality of cooling lines
are connected to each other in the operating step (S120). If the
engine is in a run state (130), the completely opened state of the
control valve is released, and the cooling lines may be selectively
connected or a flow amount of the coolant may be adjusted according
to a plurality of modes which are preset, for example,
stop/warm-up/temperature control/cooling modes (S140). A detailed
description for the respective steps is as above.
[0038] According to the present disclosure, in the apparatus and
the method for controlling the coolant flow for the vehicle having
the above-mentioned structure, since the separate jiggle valve
needs not to be provided to circulate air, it is possible to reduce
production cost.
[0039] In addition, since the coolant is smoothly filled, it is
possible to prevent damage of the engine due to limited filling of
the coolant.
[0040] Although the present inventive concept is shown and
described in connection with the specific embodiments, it is
apparent to those skilled in the art that the modifications and
variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope
of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
* * * * *