An electrical system of a vehicle includes a first battery, a second battery, a first switch electrically connected in series between the first battery and the second battery, an external connection point, and a second switch electrically connected in series between the second battery and the external connection point. The system and a method of operating the system include determining that the first battery will need assistance to start an engine of the vehicle, opening the second switch in response to a state of charge of the second battery decreasing below a charge threshold, and closing the first switch for the second battery to assist the first battery to crank the engine for starting.

A method of controlling charging of a battery may include making, by a controller, the battery that supplies power to a drive motor start to be charged with a boosted voltage higher than a voltage of a fast charger by controlling a switch connecting the drive motor and the fast charger of a vehicle and a switch of an inverter driving the drive motor, for fast charging of the battery; determining, by the controller, whether a motor position sensor has failure according to an output signal of the motor position sensor which detects a position of the drive motor; engaging, by the controller, an engine clutch that is configured to connect or disconnect the engine of the vehicle and the drive motor, when the controller determines that the motor position sensor has the failure; and maintaining, by the controller, the fast charging for the battery when a rotation of the drive motor stops after the engine clutch is engaged.

A starter assembly includes a housing defining an interior, a rotatable pinion gear wherein the rotatable pinion gear extends exteriorly of the housing and operably coupling to a combustion engine, a torque sensor providing a torque output indicative of a torque experienced by the pinion gear, and a controller module configured operate a starting sequence for the starter assembly.

Upon a request for switching from a first travel mode of traveling with a clutch disengaged and operation of an engine stopped to a second travel mode of traveling with the clutch engaged and the engine operating, a controller for a hybrid vehicle restarts the engine in the following manner. That is, the controller restarts the engine in a first start mode of starting combustion in the engine with the clutch non-fully engaged when a rotation speed of a motor is greater than a determination value and restarts the engine in a second start mode of starting combustion in the engine with the clutch fully engaged when the rotation speed of the motor is less than or equal to the determination value.

A control unit is provided for a vehicle having an internal combustion engine with a shaft, which can be coupled to an electric machine or decoupled from the electric machine. The control unit is designed to couple the electric machine to the internal combustion engine during an engine stop of the internal combustion engine. The control unit causes the electric machine to guide the shaft of the internal combustion engine. The control unit determines that a speed of the guided shaft is equal to or less than a speed threshold value and, in response thereto, decouples the electric machine from the internal combustion engine, such that the internal combustion engine stops without being guided by the electric machine.

An engine including an engine block having a cylinder defining a front of the engine, a blower housing coupled to the engine block and defining a hot half positioned adjacent the front of the engine and a cool half opposite the hot half, and an electric starter system positioned within the blower housing. The electric starting system includes a starter mount assembly coupled to the blower housing, an electric starter motor retained by the starter mount assembly and positioned in the cool half, and a battery mounted to the blower housing and positioned in the cool half. The battery is electrically coupled to the electric starter motor.

In an engine starting system, a first controller activates, in response to a driver's starting request, a first starting device to rotate the rotating shaft of an engine. A second controller is communicably connected to the first controller. The second controller recognizes rotation of the rotor of a second starting device resulting from an activation of the first starting device. The second controller starts a power running operation of the second starting device based on the recognition of the rotation of the rotor. The first controller determines whether the power running operation of the second starting device has been started. The first controller deactivates, when it is determined that the power running operation has been started, the first starting device before a rotational angular position of the rotating shaft of the engine arrives at a compression top dead center of the engine.

In a system for controlling rotation of torque applied to a rotating shaft of an engine of a vehicle that uses the engine as a drive source thereof, a motor is provided. A main controller controls the engine and the motor. The main controller selectably activates the motor that applies first torque to the rotating shaft of the engine, and deactivates the motor. A rotary electric machine includes a rotor connected to the rotating shaft of the engine. A rotation parameter detector measures a rotation parameter associated with rotation of the rotor of the rotary electric machine. A sequence controller performs, in response to an occurrence of a trigger situation, a control sequence that controls, independently of the main controller, the rotary electric machine based on the rotation parameter measured by the rotation parameter detector, thus applying second torque to the rotating shaft of the engine.

A method for estimating the aging of a battery of a motor vehicle with a combustion engine, the vehicle including an electric starter, a temperature sensor for the temperature of the coolant, a speed sensor for the speed of the combustion engine and a computer for managing the drive system of the vehicle. The method includes, each time the combustion engine is started, the steps of the computer determining the value of the speed of the combustion engine and the value of the temperature, if the determined value of the speed is higher than a speed threshold, incrementing a first counter, if the determined value of the speed is lower than the speed threshold, incrementing a second counter, detecting the aging of the battery when the value of the second counter is higher than a predetermined alert threshold.

An interior permanent magnet electric machine includes a stator having a plurality of teeth disposed around a circumference oriented radially towards a center defining slots interposed between each of the teeth, and a conductive winding wrapped around at least one of the teeth of the stator to receive an electrical current. The electric machine also includes a rotor which is rotatable relative to the stator. The rotor defines a plurality of openings configured to hold permanent magnets near an outer portion of the rotor and a number of spokes interposed between mass reduction cutouts located closer to a center of the rotor relative to the permanent magnets. Each of the permanent magnets defines a magnetic pole and each of the spokes is circumferentially aligned with one of the magnetic poles.