An electrical drive machine for a vehicle includes a brake apparatus and a gear-selection apparatus, such that the electrical machine is designed as a current-powered synchronous machine. The vehicle includes a control unit which is associated with the current-powered synchronous machine, wherein the control unit sets a field current of the rotor based on a gear-selection position set at the gear-selection apparatus and based on a position of a brake pedal of the brake apparatus.

To control the degradation of the emission performance when starting an engine on a vehicle equipped with an engine for driving a generator, the vehicle comprises a generator, an engine, and a catalyst device, a control unit (PCU) that is configured to execute a power generating operation mode after executing an initial mode to activate the catalyst device by operating an electric heater (EHC) when the generator starts power generation by starting the engine, a connecting passage (EGR passage) that connects mutually an intake passage and an exhaust passage, and an adjusting valve (a throttle valve, an exhaust shutter valve, and an EGR valve) for adjusting a flow rate of the gas in the connecting passage. The control unit performs motoring of the engine in the reverse rotation direction by the generator in the initial mode.

A vehicular control apparatus that includes a switched reluctance motor and an electronic control unit is provided. The switched reluctance motor has a rotor and a stator and is mounted as a travel drive source in a vehicle. The electronic control unit executes current control of the switched reluctance motor. The electronic control unit executes first current control for causing the rotor to rotate in a reverse direction from a rotational direction in which the vehicle is started in the case where the vehicle is not started even when the switched reluctance motor outputs maximum torque within an allowable range, and executes control for causing the rotor to rotate in the rotational direction in which the vehicle is started after the rotor rotates in the reverse direction by the first current control to a rotation position at which torque for enabling a start of the vehicle can be output.

A torque control apparatus and method for a drive motor is provided. The torque control method includes determining whether an input request torque is a rising torque or a falling torque. In addition, a controller is configured to select one of a rising rate map and a falling rate map based on a result of the judgment on the input request torque. Further, the controller is configured to adjust a rising rate of the rising torque using the rising rate map or a falling rate of the falling torque using the falling rate map.

An electrical system includes an engine, a motor-generator and a starter mechanism, and engine systems also include the engine. The electrical system includes a first energy storage device having a first voltage level and a second energy storage device having a second voltage level less than the first voltage level. The electrical system further includes a controller configured to control the motor-generator, the starter mechanism and first and second switching devices. Current from at least one of the first and second energy storage devices is delivered to the motor-generator when at least one of the first switching device is in a first closed state and the second switching device is in a second closed state such that the motor-generator transfers torque to the starter mechanism and the starter mechanism uses the torque to start the engine.

A control circuit for electric regenerative power take-off includes: instant voltage and current sensors for connecting to power connection of a synchronous generator for capturing a triphasic voltage and a triphasic current, respectively; voltage-based and current-based direct-quadrature (DQ) transform calculators outputting an equivalent two phase DQ tensor of a three vector triphasic voltage of the captured voltage and an equivalent two phase DQ tensor of a three vector triphasic current of the captured current, respectively; a current-based DQ controller outputting desired active-power and reactive-power voltages for the power controller; a phase-locked loop (PLL) for defining the operation angle of the power converter; processor switching between 1.sup.st and 2.sup.nd operation stages in order to engage or disengage the power converter from the synchronous generator, and to synchronize the PLL with the captured voltage using Q output from either the voltage-based DQ transform calculator or the current-based DQ controller.

A method for operating an electric vehicle has the steps of: determining if at least one of a speed of the vehicle and a speed of an electric motor of the vehicle is zero; in response to the at least one of the speed being zero, determining if a reverse actuator is actuated; in response to the reverse actuator being actuated, starting a timer, then determining if the reverse actuator has been actuated without interruption for a predetermined amount of time; in response to the reverse actuator having been actuated without interruption for the predetermined amount of time, changing an operation mode of the electric motor from one of a forward mode and a reverse mode to another of the forward mode and the reverse mode. An electric snowmobile and other methods for operating an electric vehicle are disclosed.

A method of operating a power inverter for an electric machine includes selecting an inverter switching technique; determining a frequency range for inverter switching; determining a direct current (DC) voltage range for inverter switching; determining an optimal switching map including an inverter switching technique and frequency selection for each value of torque-speed on a torque-speed curve; and controlling switches included in the power inverter using the optimal switching map.

A method for operating a hybrid electric vehicle having a variable voltage converter (VVC) includes commanding a first voltage across a VVC in response to a signal requesting a VVC test, continuously monitoring a first VVC voltage difference over a first calibratable time period, and generating a diagnostic signal if the first voltage difference exceeds a first calibratable threshold for the duration of a first calibratable time period. The method further includes, in response to the first voltage difference dropping below the first calibratable threshold, commanding a second voltage across the VVC, continuously monitoring a second VVC voltage difference over a second calibratable time period, generating a diagnostic signal if the second voltage difference exceeds a second calibratable threshold for the duration of a second calibratable time period, and signaling a test pass in response to the second voltage difference dropping below the second calibratable threshold.

An angular acceleration monitor may monitor whether or not an angular acceleration of a wheel detected by an angular acceleration detector is equal to or smaller than an acceptable angular acceleration (W) that is calculated with the following formula: W=k1RTt/m/r.sup.2 where k1 is a constant, Tt is a total drive torque that is a sum of drive torques of all motor units that drive wheels of the vehicle, m is vehicle mass, r is tire radius, and R is reduction ratio of a reducer unit interposed between the motor unit and the wheel. A slip-responsive controller causes, if it is determined that the acceptable angular acceleration is exceeded, a motor controller to reduce a drive torque of the motor unit(s).