JP7561338B2 - On-board emergency power supply device and vehicle equipped with on-board emergency power supply device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an on-board emergency power supply device used in various vehicles and a vehicle equipped with an on-board emergency power supply device.

A conventional vehicle power supply device will be described below. Conventional vehicle power supply devices have the function of forcibly cutting off the power supply from the vehicle propulsion drive battery to the vehicle drive load in the event of an unexpected incident in the vehicle. Here, the means for forcibly cutting off the power supply generally involves a fuse that cuts off continuity by melting, a relay, or the like.

Note that, for example, Patent Document 1 is known as prior art document information related to the invention of this application.

JP 2011-25912 A

However, in conventional vehicle power supply devices, even if the vehicle power supply device performs an operation to forcibly cut off the power supply to a fuse or relay, if an unexpected incident occurs in the vehicle and the vehicle power supply device is damaged, it may not be possible to determine whether the forcible cutoff of the power supply has been completed. This causes a problem in that workers performing rescue operations from outside the vehicle are unable to determine whether the vehicle, and in particular the vehicle propulsion drive battery, is in a safe state.

The present invention aims to make it easy to determine whether the power supply is cut off.

To achieve this objective, the present invention includes an input terminal connected to a vehicle battery, a detection signal receiving unit that receives a current detection signal corresponding to the drive current flowing in a power supply path that connects a vehicle propulsion drive battery and a vehicle drive load, an emergency signal receiving unit capable of receiving an emergency signal, a signal transmitting unit capable of transmitting a cutoff completion signal, a storage element, a discharge circuit capable of discharging the power stored in the storage element, and a control unit that is capable of receiving the current detection signal from the detection signal receiving unit, controlling the operation of the discharge circuit, detecting the emergency signal from the emergency signal receiving unit, and causing the signal transmitting unit to transmit the cutoff completion signal, and is characterized in that the control unit causes the cutoff completion signal to be transmitted if the drive current when the emergency signal is received is smaller than a threshold value.

The present invention makes it easy to determine whether a vehicle is in a safe state, and rescue operations from outside the vehicle can be carried out after correctly recognizing the vehicle's condition.

FIG. 1 is a first circuit block diagram showing a configuration of an on-vehicle emergency power supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a second circuit block diagram showing the configuration of an on-board emergency power supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment)
1 is a circuit block diagram showing the configuration of an on-board emergency power supply device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The on-board emergency power supply device 1 includes an input terminal 2, an output terminal 3, a detection signal receiving unit 4, an emergency signal receiving unit 5, a signal transmitting unit 6, a storage element 7, a discharge circuit 8, and a control unit 9.

The input terminal 2 is connected to the vehicle battery 10. The output terminal 3 is connected to the vehicle load 11. The detection signal receiving unit 4 receives a current detection signal S1 corresponding to the drive current I1 flowing through the power supply path 14 connecting the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 and the vehicle drive load 13. The emergency signal receiving unit 5 is capable of receiving an emergency signal S2. The signal transmitting unit 6 is capable of transmitting a cut-off completion signal S3. The storage element 7 is connected to a discharge circuit 8. The discharge circuit 8 is capable of discharging the power stored in the storage element 7.

The control unit 9 receives the current detection signal S1 input to the detection signal receiving unit 4. The control unit 9 can also execute control of the operation of the discharge circuit 8. Furthermore, the control unit 9 can receive and detect the emergency signal S2 input to the emergency signal receiving unit 5. Furthermore, the control unit 9 can cause the signal transmitting unit 6 to transmit a cutoff completion signal S3.

When the control unit 9 receives the emergency signal S2 through the emergency signal receiving unit 5, if it determines that the drive current I1 corresponding to the current detection signal S1 detected through the detection signal receiving unit 4 is smaller than the drive current threshold Ith, it causes the signal transmitting unit 6 to transmit a cutoff completion signal S3.

With the above configuration and operation, when the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 detects an emergency signal S2 transmitted from the vehicle 15 when the vehicle 15 encounters an unforeseen event such as an accident, it is possible to determine whether the power supply path 14 connecting the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 and the vehicle drive load 13 is in an interrupted state, and to transmit a disconnection completion signal S3 from the signal transmission unit 6. This makes it easy to determine whether the vehicle 15 is in a safe state based on the disconnection completion signal S3, and rescue from outside the vehicle 15 can be carried out after correctly recognizing the vehicle's state.

Details of the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 are described below using the second circuit block diagram of FIG. 2, which shows the configuration of the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device in an embodiment of the present invention. The vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 is disposed in the body 16 of the vehicle 15. The vehicle body 16 is equipped with the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1, a vehicle battery 10, a vehicle load 11, a vehicle propulsion drive battery 12, and a vehicle drive load 13.

The vehicle battery 10 is a storage battery equivalent to an auxiliary battery, and is capable of outputting a DC voltage of 12V or 24V under normal conditions. The vehicle load 11 is a load driven by the vehicle battery 10, and corresponds to a car navigation system (not shown), lighting devices (not shown), and a motor (not shown) for door locking and unlocking, which are general electrical equipment. In addition, the vehicle battery 10 may supply power for operating a vehicle body control unit 17 that is provided in a vehicle body 16 and controls the entire vehicle 15. The vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 can supply power to the vehicle load 11 that operates to ensure the safety of the vehicle 15 and its passengers, particularly when the vehicle battery 10 fails.

The vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 is a storage battery for supplying power to a vehicle drive load 13 of an electric vehicle or hybrid vehicle, and is capable of outputting a voltage of DC 500V or the like under normal conditions. The vehicle drive load 13 corresponds to an inverter device (not shown) that converts DC power to AC power, or a vehicle propulsion motor (not shown).

A current detection unit 18 is provided in the power supply path 14 that connects the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 and the vehicle drive load 13. A Hall element may be used for the current detection unit 18, and the Hall element may transmit a voltage corresponding to the value of the drive current I1 flowing through the power supply path 14 as a current detection signal S1. Alternatively, a shunt resistor may be used for the current detection unit 18, and a voltage based on the potential difference across the shunt resistor may be transmitted as a current detection signal S1 corresponding to the value of the drive current I1 flowing through the power supply path 14.

The current detection unit 18 may also transmit a cutoff signal S0 to the cutoff unit 19. Alternatively, the current detection control circuit 18A provided in the current detection unit 18 may transmit the cutoff signal S0 to the cutoff unit 19. Here, the cutoff signal S0 is a signal that the current detection control circuit 18A uses to cause the cutoff unit 19 to cut off the power supply line 14. The current detection unit 18 and the cutoff unit 19 are connected in series with the power supply line 14, and the current detection unit 18 may transmit a cutoff signal S0 to cut off the power supply line 14 when the current detection control circuit 18A detects an abnormal current. Here, the current detection signal S1, which is a signal corresponding to the current value flowing through the current detection unit 18, is a different signal from the cutoff signal S0. Alternatively, the vehicle body control unit 17 may transmit a cutoff signal S0 to the cutoff unit 19 to cut off the power supply line 14 based on an abnormality in the vehicle 15. The cutoff unit 19 may be a relay, a pyrotechnic switch, or the like.

The vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 stores the power supplied from the vehicle battery 10 in the storage element 7, and is capable of supplying power to the vehicle load 11 in an emergency. Normally, power is supplied from the vehicle battery 10 to the vehicle load 11 through the normal supply path 20. Power is supplied from the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 to the vehicle load 11 when some unforeseen event occurs, causing damage to the vehicle battery 10 or damage to the normal supply path 20. In other words, when the vehicle battery 10 and the normal supply path 20 are normal, the storage element 7 can be in a storage state using the power of the vehicle battery 10. The storage element 7 can be charged directly from the vehicle battery 10, or the discharge circuit 8 can operate as a charge/discharge circuit with a charging function to convert the power of the vehicle battery 10 to DCDC and charge the storage element 7.

The control unit 9 of the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 is connected to the detection signal receiving unit 4, and when the vehicle 15 is running, the control unit 9 constantly receives the current detection signal S1 transmitted from the current detection unit 18 and detects the drive current I1 flowing through the power supply path 14.

Here, when the control unit 9 receives the emergency signal S2 transmitted from the vehicle 15 through the emergency signal receiving unit 5 when the vehicle 15 detects that it has encountered a collision accident or other abnormal situation, or when a state where a large amount of power may leak or a leak state is detected in the vehicle 15, the control unit 9 performs a comparison between the drive current I1 corresponding to the current detection signal S1 and the drive current threshold Ith. The operation of the control unit 9 is as follows: First, the control unit 9 obtains the value of the drive current I1 from the voltage value of the current detection signal S1. Then, the control unit 9 compares the drive current I1 with the drive current threshold Ith. Then, when the control unit 9 determines that the drive current I1 is smaller than the drive current threshold Ith, the control unit 9 causes the signal transmitting unit 6 to transmit a cutoff completion signal S3. Here, the drive current threshold Ith may be set to a low current value that does not pose a danger to rescue workers. In other words, the cutoff completion signal S3 is transmitted from the control unit 9 when no abnormal current flows through the current detecting unit 18, and the cutoff at the cutoff unit 19 is properly performed.

The emergency signal S2 mentioned above may be transmitted from the vehicle body control unit 17 when the vehicle 15 encounters a collision accident or other abnormal situation. Alternatively, the emergency signal S2 may be a cutoff signal S0 that is transmitted to the cutoff unit 19 to cut off the power supply path 14 when the current detection control circuit 18A detects an abnormal current. Alternatively, the emergency signal S2 may be transmitted by the vehicle body control unit 17 to the control unit 9 in response to the vehicle body control unit 17 receiving the cutoff signal S0 transmitted by the current detection control circuit 18A.

Therefore, the control unit 9 confirms that the drive current I1 has been cut off by instruction from the vehicle body control unit 17 or the current detection control circuit 18A, by the current detection signal S1, which is a signal different from the cut-off signal S0 or the emergency signal S2. The control unit 9 then transmits a cut-off completion signal S3 to the status recognition unit 21 to operate the status recognition unit 21.

The status recognition unit 21 may be an indicator light or display provided in the vehicle 15 and visible to a rescuer from outside the vehicle 15. Alternatively, the status recognition unit 21 may be provided outside the vehicle 15 and may be a terminal device carried by the rescuer that receives the cut-off completion signal S3 as a radio signal.

As a result, when the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 detects an emergency signal S2 transmitted from the vehicle 15 when the vehicle 15 encounters an unforeseen event such as an accident, the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 can determine whether the power supply path 14 connecting the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 and the vehicle drive load 13 is cut off, and can cause the signal transmission unit 6 to transmit a cut-off completion signal S3.

In other words, the emergency signal S2 is sent from the vehicle 15 to the control unit 9 in response to the occurrence of an abnormality in the vehicle 15. The cutoff completion signal S3 is sent from the control unit 9 to the vehicle 15 in response to the successful cutoff between the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 and the vehicle drive load 13. As a result, rescuers and others can easily determine whether the vehicle 15 is in a safe state based on the cutoff completion signal S3, and rescue from outside the vehicle 15 can be carried out after correctly recognizing the vehicle's state.

In addition, the vehicle emergency power supply device 1 can receive and transmit signals and operate the control unit 9 and discharge circuit 8 using the power stored in the storage element 7, so the vehicle emergency power supply device 1 can continue to operate even if the vehicle battery 10 fails due to an accident or other reason involving the vehicle 15. In addition to receiving and transmitting signals as described above, the vehicle emergency power supply device 1 can supply power to the vehicle load 11, which operates to ensure the safety of the vehicle 15 and its passengers in the event of a failure of the vehicle battery 10 or in an emergency. Here, it is preferable to use an electric double layer capacitor or a lithium ion capacitor for the storage element 7, which can supply a large amount of power in a short period of time.

The operation sequence of the control unit 9 described above is as follows: first, when the control unit 9 receives the emergency signal S2, which is transmitted when the vehicle 15 encounters a collision accident or other abnormal situation, through the emergency signal receiving unit 5, the control unit 9 compares the drive current I1 corresponding to the current detection signal S1 with the drive current threshold Ith. Next, when the control unit 9 determines that the drive current I1 is smaller than the drive current threshold Ith, the control unit 9 causes the signal transmitting unit 6 to transmit the cutoff completion signal S3. Here, in order to perform the above-mentioned judgment operation more accurately, it is preferable that the control unit 9 detects the drive current I1 corresponding to the current detection signal S1 at a predetermined time after receiving the emergency signal S2 and compares the drive current I1 with the drive current threshold Ith.

The predetermined time here should be a value longer than the cutoff completion time from when the cutoff signal S0 or emergency signal S2 is issued to the cutoff unit 19 until the cutoff unit 19 completes the cutoff if the cutoff unit 19 operates normally. This allows the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 to detect the emergency signal S2 transmitted from the vehicle 15 when the vehicle 15 encounters an unexpected event such as an accident, and to determine whether the power supply path 14 connecting the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 and the vehicle drive load 13 is in a cutoff state at a time when it should be cut off, and allows the signal transmission unit 6 to transmit a highly reliable cutoff completion signal S3.

The above describes a configuration in which the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 transmits a cut-off completion signal S3 if the current from the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 has been cut off when the vehicle 15 encounters an unforeseen event such as an accident. On the other hand, the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 may also be configured to transmit an incomplete cut-off signal S4 if the current from the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 has not been cut off when the vehicle 15 encounters an unforeseen event such as an accident.

In this case, the operation is as follows. When the control unit 9 receives the emergency signal S2, which is transmitted when the vehicle 15 encounters a collision accident or other abnormal situation, through the emergency signal receiving unit 5, the control unit 9 compares the drive current I1 corresponding to the current detection signal S1 with the drive current threshold Ith. In the operation of the control unit 9, the control unit 9 first obtains the value of the drive current I1 from the voltage value of the current detection signal S1. Then, the control unit 9 compares the drive current I1 with the drive current threshold Ith. Then, when the control unit 9 determines that the drive current I1 is equal to or greater than the drive current threshold Ith, the control unit 9 causes the signal transmitting unit 6 to transmit the incomplete cutoff signal S4. Here, the drive current threshold Ith may be set to a current value that may pose a danger to rescue workers. In other words, the control unit 9 transmits the incomplete cutoff signal S4 when an abnormal current flows through the current detecting unit 18, which corresponds to a state in which the cutoff at the cutoff unit 19 is not properly performed.

In other words, the emergency signal S2 is sent from the vehicle 15 to the control unit 9 in response to the occurrence of an abnormality in the vehicle 15. The incomplete cutoff signal S4 is sent from the control unit 9 to the vehicle 15 in response to the disconnection between the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 and the vehicle drive load 13 not being performed normally. In this way, when the vehicle 15 encounters an unexpected event such as an accident and detects the emergency signal S2 sent from the vehicle 15, the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 1 can determine whether the power supply path 14 connecting the vehicle propulsion drive battery 12 and the vehicle drive load 13 is in a cutoff state, and can cause the signal sending unit 6 to send the incomplete cutoff signal S4. As a result, rescuers and the like can easily determine whether the vehicle 15 is in a safe state based on the incomplete cutoff signal S4, and rescue from outside the vehicle 15 can be performed after correctly recognizing the state of the vehicle.

In the embodiment described above, the shutoff signal S0, the current detection signal S1, the emergency signal S2, the shutoff complete signal S3, and the shutoff incomplete signal S4 may be either analog signals or coded signals. Also, although these are described as transmission and reception, they may be referred to as output and input.

In addition, although the detection signal receiving unit 4, the emergency signal receiving unit 5, and the signal transmitting unit 6 are described as separate elements provided in the vehicle emergency power supply device 1, the detection signal receiving unit 4, the emergency signal receiving unit 5, and the signal transmitting unit 6 may be provided in the control unit 9.

The vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device and the vehicle equipped with the vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device of the present invention have the effect of making it possible to easily determine whether the vehicle is in a safe state or not, and are useful in various types of vehicles.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Vehicle-mounted emergency power supply device 2 Input terminal 3 Output terminal 4 Detection signal receiving unit 5 Emergency signal receiving unit 6 Signal transmitting unit 7 Storage element 8 Discharge circuit 9 Control unit 10 Vehicle battery 11 Vehicle load 12 Vehicle propulsion drive battery 13 Vehicle drive load 14 Power supply path 15 Vehicle 16 Vehicle body 17 Vehicle body control unit 18 Current detection unit 18A Current detection control circuit 19 Interrupting unit 20 Normal supply path 21 State recognition unit

Claims (6)

an input terminal connected to a vehicle battery;
a detection signal receiving unit for receiving a current detection signal corresponding to a drive current flowing through a power supply line connecting a vehicle propulsion drive battery and a vehicle drive load;
an emergency signal receiving unit capable of receiving an emergency signal;
A signal transmitting unit capable of transmitting a cutoff completion signal;
A storage element;
A discharge circuit capable of discharging the power stored in the storage element;
a control unit that is capable of receiving the current detection signal from the detection signal receiving unit, controlling an operation of the discharge circuit, detecting the emergency signal from the emergency signal receiving unit, and causing the signal transmitting unit to transmit the cut-off completion signal;
Equipped with
The control unit transmits the cutoff completion signal when the drive current is smaller than a threshold value after a predetermined time from when the emergency signal is received ,
The predetermined time is a value longer than a cutoff completion time required for a cutoff unit provided in the power supply path to complete cutoff.
Automotive emergency power supply. the emergency signal is transmitted from a vehicle in response to an occurrence of an abnormality in the vehicle in which the vehicle emergency power supply device is mounted,
the disconnection completion signal is transmitted to the vehicle in response to a normal disconnection between the vehicle propulsion drive battery and the vehicle drive load;
2. The vehicle emergency power supply device according to claim 1. The car body and
A vehicle battery;
Vehicle load and
A vehicle propulsion drive battery;
A vehicle driving load;
A vehicle control unit capable of detecting an abnormality in the vehicle and transmitting an emergency signal when an abnormality is detected;
a current detection unit provided on a path from the vehicle propulsion drive battery to the vehicle drive load;
an on-board emergency power supply device having an input terminal connected to the vehicle battery, an output terminal connected to the vehicle load, a detection signal receiving unit that receives a current detection signal generated from the current detection unit, an emergency signal receiving unit capable of receiving the emergency signal, a signal transmitting unit that can transmit a cut-off completion signal, a power storage element, a discharge circuit that can discharge power stored in the power storage element, and a control unit that is capable of receiving the current detection signal from the detection signal receiving unit, controlling an operation of the discharge circuit, detecting the emergency signal from the emergency signal receiving unit, and causing the signal transmitting unit to transmit the cut-off completion signal;
Equipped with
the control unit transmits the cutoff completion signal when a drive current corresponding to the current detection signal after a predetermined time has elapsed since receipt of the emergency signal is smaller than a threshold value ;
The predetermined time is a value longer than a disconnection completion time required for a disconnection unit provided in a path from the vehicle propulsion drive battery to the vehicle drive load to complete disconnection.
vehicle. The car body and
A vehicle battery;
Vehicle load and
A vehicle propulsion drive battery;
A vehicle driving load;
a breaker provided on a path from the vehicle propulsion drive battery to the vehicle drive load;
a current detection unit connected in series to the interruption unit and configured to generate an interruption signal for interrupting the interruption unit when an abnormal current is detected;
an on-board emergency power supply device having an input terminal connected to the vehicle battery, an output terminal connected to the vehicle load, a detection signal receiving unit that receives a current detection signal generated from the current detection unit, an emergency signal receiving unit capable of receiving the cutoff signal, a signal transmitting unit that is capable of transmitting a cutoff completion signal, a power storage element, a discharge circuit that is capable of discharging power stored in the power storage element, and a control unit that is capable of receiving the current detection signal from the detection signal receiving unit, controlling an operation of the discharge circuit, detecting the cutoff signal from the emergency signal receiving unit, and causing the signal transmitting unit to transmit the cutoff completion signal;
Equipped with
the control unit transmits the cut-off completion signal when a drive current corresponding to the current detection signal after a predetermined time from when the cut-off signal is received is smaller than a threshold value ;
The predetermined time is a value longer than a disconnection completion time required for the disconnection unit to complete disconnection.
vehicle. an input terminal connected to a vehicle battery;
a detection signal receiving unit for receiving a current detection signal corresponding to a drive current flowing through a power supply line connecting a vehicle propulsion drive battery and a vehicle drive load;
an emergency signal receiving unit capable of receiving an emergency signal;
a signal transmitting unit capable of transmitting a cutoff incomplete signal;
A storage element;
A discharge circuit capable of discharging the power stored in the storage element;
a control unit that is capable of receiving the current detection signal from the detection signal receiving unit, controlling an operation of the discharge circuit, detecting the emergency signal from the emergency signal receiving unit, and causing the signal transmitting unit to transmit the cut-off incomplete signal;
Equipped with
The control unit is
When the drive current is equal to or greater than a threshold value after a predetermined time from when the emergency signal is received, the cutoff incomplete signal is transmitted.
The predetermined time is a value longer than a cutoff completion time required for a cutoff unit provided in the power supply path to complete cutoff.
Automotive emergency power supply. the emergency signal is transmitted from a vehicle in response to an occurrence of an abnormality in the vehicle in which the vehicle emergency power supply device is mounted,
the disconnection incomplete signal is transmitted to the vehicle in response to a disconnection between the vehicle propulsion drive battery and the vehicle drive load not being normally performed;
6. An on-board emergency power supply device according to claim 5 .