A regenerative braking control method of a vehicle, may include a first operation of determining a driving risk of a road surface on the basis of a status of the road surface while driving; a second operation of determining whether an accelerator pedal is released while driving; a third operation of determining whether a brake pedal is operated while driving; and a fourth operation of performing no regenerative braking when the accelerator pedal is determined as being released, the driving risk of the road surface is determined as being high, and when the brake pedal is determined as not being operated.

A drive-train has an internal combustion engine (1) with an exhaust gas turbocharger, which drives a vehicle wheel (3) by way of a power-branching transmission (2). When there is an increase of the power demanded from the combustion engine (1) but the exhaust gas turbocharger is not yet producing the required charging pressure, an additional motor (4) is always switched into the drive-train in order to deliver torque to the drive-train.

A system includes a rotary electric machine, wiring, a battery that is connected to the rotary electric machine by the wiring harness, and an upper limit value setting section which sets an output upper limit value that is an upper limit of an output command of the rotary electric machine. A control apparatus which controls the rotary electric machine is provided with a temperature acquisition section which acquires the temperature of at least one of the battery and the wiring, an allowable output value calculation section which calculates an allowable output value that is an upper limit allowed for an output command of the rotary electric machine, based on the temperature that is acquired by the temperature acquisition section, and a transmitting section which transmits the allowable output value calculated by the allowable value calculation section to the upper limit value setting section.

When a braking request is made while a SOC recovery switch is turned off, regeneration driving of a rear wheel motor is prohibited. In this case, a front wheel motor, the rear wheel motor, and an oil hydraulic brake device are controlled such that requested braking torque is exerted on a vehicle with regenerative driving of the front wheel motor and without regenerative driving of the rear wheel motor. When the braking request is made while the SOC recovery switch is turned on, the regeneration driving of the rear wheel motor is permitted. In this case, the front wheel motor, the rear wheel motor, and the oil hydraulic brake device are controlled such that the requested braking torque is exerted on the vehicle with regenerative driving of the front wheel motor and the rear wheel motor.

A system for coupling a towing vehicle to a towed vehicle and/or for controlling charging/braking by the towed vehicle. The system may include a coupler coupling to the towing vehicle; and first and second tow bars having first and second ends and a rotational joint situated between the first and second ends, the first and second tow bars coupled to the coupler at the first ends and being non-parallel in at least one plane with the second ends located further apart from each other than the first ends. The rotational joint providing for the first and second tow bars to be positioned in an open and a folded position. The second ends of the first and second tow bars are configured to be coupled to the towed vehicle. For charging, a trip distance and charge of a towed vehicle battery is utilized to determine a charging rate for the trip.

A drive system of a hybrid vehicle including an internal combustion engine, a first and second motor-generators, a mode change mechanism, a valve unit, an oil pump driven by electric power, and a microprocessor. The microprocessor is configured to control the valve unit and driving electric power for the oil pump in drive mode including the EV mode and not including the HV mode, so as to stop to supply the hydraulic oil to the mode change mechanism and drive the oil pump by a first driving electric power when first travel mode is selected, while so as to supply the hydraulic oil of a hydraulic pressure lower than the predetermined hydraulic pressure to the mode change mechanism and drive the oil pump by a second driving electric power greater than the first driving electric power when second travel mode is selected.

A through the road (TTR) hybridization strategy is proposed to facilitate introduction of hybrid electric vehicle technology in a significant portion of current and expected trucking fleets. In some cases, the technologies can be retrofitted onto an existing vehicle (e.g., a trailer, a tractor-trailer configuration, etc.). In some cases, the technologies can be built into new vehicles. In some cases, one vehicle may be built or retrofitted to operate in tandem with another and provide the hybridization benefits contemplated herein. By supplementing motive forces delivered through a primary drivetrain and fuel-fed engine with supplemental torque delivered at one or more electrically-powered drive axles, improvements in overall fuel efficiency and performance may be delivered, typically without significant redesign of existing components and systems that have been proven in the trucking industry.

A power control system may include at least one of batteries, a motor, and a data logic analyzer that can interpret certain variable conditions of a transport, such as a tractor trailer, moving along a road or highway. The data can be used to determine when to apply supplemental power to the wheels of a trailer to reduce fuel usage. One example device may include at least one of a power source affixed to a trailer to capture energy from movement of an axle of the trailer, and a motor powered by the power source to operate and provide movement assistance to the axle.

A control apparatus for a vehicle provided with a motor/generator functioning as a drive power source, and a mechanically operated transmission mechanism which constitutes a part of a power transmitting path between the motor/generator and drive wheels, the control apparatus including a motor/generator control portion configured to implement a regenerative torque control of the motor/generator so as to generate a regenerative torque according to a braking operation by an operator of the vehicle in a decelerating run of the vehicle, and a transmission shifting control portion configured to initiate a shift-down action of the mechanically operated transmission mechanism after a rate of change of the regenerative torque has been held within a predetermined range for at least a predetermined length of time, where a determination to implement the shift-down action is made in the process of the regenerative torque control of the motor/generator according to the braking operation.

A system and method of managing power for an electric motor drive system is provided, where at least two electric motor drives are connected to a common power bus, each of the electric motor drives connected to at least one electric motor. A voltage of the common power bus is monitored, and upon the voltage of the common power bus exceeding a prescribed threshold voltage it is determined which of the at least two electric motor drives is operating in a mode other than a regeneration mode. The electric motor drive operating in a mode other than a regeneration mode is commanded to drive the connected motor into a load to dissipate the regenerated energy.