METHOD FOR OPERATING A VEHICLE

Abstract

A method for operating a vehicle having: an internal combustion engine for driving the vehicle; at least one emission-relevant load; at least one electrical-system battery; and at least one vehicle battery, in which method prior to the start-up of the vehicle, the at least one vehicle battery is charged with electrical energy from the at least one electrical-system battery and, prior to and/or during the start-up of the internal combustion engine, the at least one emission-relevant load is charged with this electrical energy from the vehicle battery.

Claims

1-8. (canceled)

9. A method for operating a vehicle having an internal combustion engine for driving the vehicle, at least one emission-relevant load, at least one vehicle electrical-system battery, and at least one vehicle battery, in which prior to the start-up of the vehicle the at least one vehicle battery is charged with electrical energy from the at least one electrical-system battery, wherein prior to the start-up of the internal combustion engine the at least one emission-relevant load is charged with this electrical energy from the at least one vehicle battery.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein said electrical energy from the at least one vehicle battery is charged into the at least one emission-relevant load at the start-up of the internal combustion engine.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein the at least one emission-relevant load is heated with electrical energy from the at least one traction battery.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein the electrical energy is charged from the at least one electrical-system battery into the at least one traction battery after the vehicle has been parked.

13. The method according to claim 9, wherein the at least one electrical-system battery has an electrical voltage of 12 V and the at least one vehicle battery has an electrical voltage of 48 V.

14. The method according to claim 9, wherein, during an nth journey of the vehicle, it is determined which quantity of electrical energy is required for starting up the at least one emission-relevant load and was last charged from the at least one vehicle battery into the at least one emission-relevant load for this purpose, wherein, when the vehicle is parked after this nth journey, at least this quantity of electrical energy is charged from the at least one electrical-system battery into the at least one vehicle battery in preparation for the next n+1th journey.

15. The method according to claim 9, which is carried out for at least one emission-relevant load which is designed as an exhaust gas purification device.

16. The method according to claim 9, wherein the electrical energy is charged into the at least one emission-relevant load for the start-up of the at least one emission-relevant load.

17. A system for operating a vehicle, wherein the vehicle has an internal combustion engine for driving, at least one emission-relevant load, at least one vehicle electrical-system battery and at least one vehicle battery, the system having at least one control unit which is designed to prompt that prior to the start-up of the vehicle the at least one vehicle battery is charged with electrical energy from the electrical-system battery, wherein prior to the start-up of the internal combustion engine the at least one emission-relevant load is charged with this electrical energy from the at least one vehicle battery.

18. The method according to claim 10, wherein the at least one emission-relevant load is heated with electrical energy from the at least one traction battery.

19. The method according to claim 10, wherein the electrical energy is charged from the at least one electrical-system battery into the at least one traction battery after the vehicle has been parked.

20. The method according to claim 11, wherein the electrical energy is charged from the at least one electrical-system battery into the at least one traction battery after the vehicle has been parked.

21. The method according to claim 10, wherein the at least one electrical-system battery has an electrical voltage of 12 V and the at least one vehicle battery has an electrical voltage of 48 V.

22. The method according to claim 11, wherein the at least one electrical-system battery has an electrical voltage of 12 V and the at least one vehicle battery has an electrical voltage of 48 V.

23. The method according to claim 12, wherein the at least one electrical-system battery has an electrical voltage of 12 V and the at least one vehicle battery has an electrical voltage of 48 V.

24. The method according to claim 10, wherein, during an nth journey of the vehicle, it is determined which quantity of electrical energy is required for starting up the at least one emission-relevant load and was last charged from the at least one vehicle battery into the at least one emission-relevant load for this purpose, wherein, when the vehicle is parked after this nth journey, at least this quantity of electrical energy is charged from the at least one electrical-system battery into the at least one vehicle battery in preparation for the next n+1th journey.

25. The method according to claim 11, wherein, during an nth journey of the vehicle, it is determined which quantity of electrical energy is required for starting up the at least one emission-relevant load and was last charged from the at least one vehicle battery into the at least one emission-relevant load for this purpose, wherein, when the vehicle is parked after this nth journey, at least this quantity of electrical energy is charged from the at least one electrical-system battery into the at least one vehicle battery in preparation for the next n+1th journey.

26. The method according to claim 12, wherein, during an nth journey of the vehicle, it is determined which quantity of electrical energy is required for starting up the at least one emission-relevant load and was last charged from the at least one vehicle battery into the at least one emission-relevant load for this purpose, wherein, when the vehicle is parked after this nth journey, at least this quantity of electrical energy is charged from the at least one electrical-system battery into the at least one vehicle battery in preparation for the next n+1th journey.

27. The method according to claim 13, wherein, during an nth journey of the vehicle, it is determined which quantity of electrical energy is required for starting up the at least one emission-relevant load and was last charged from the at least one vehicle battery into the at least one emission-relevant load for this purpose, wherein, when the vehicle is parked after this nth journey, at least this quantity of electrical energy is charged from the at least one electrical-system battery into the at least one vehicle battery in preparation for the next n+1th journey.

28. The method according to claim 10, which is carried out for at least one emission-relevant load which is designed as an exhaust gas purification device.

Description

[0037] The invention is illustrated schematically by means of embodiments in the drawing and is described schematically and in detail with reference to the drawing.

[0038] FIG. 1 shows in schematic representation an example of a vehicle for which an embodiment of the method according to the invention is carried out.

[0039] FIG. 1 shows in schematic representation an example of a vehicle 2, in the embodiment of the method according to the invention in different operating conditions A, B and C. This vehicle 2 comprises as components an electric machine 4, a control unit 6, an electrical-system battery 8 as a first battery with a voltage of 12 volts, a vehicle battery 10 as a second battery with a voltage of 48 volts, an internal combustion engine 12 and an exhaust gas purification device 14 as an example of an emission-relevant load of the vehicle 2.

[0040] It is further provided that the electric machine 4 and the internal combustion engine 12 are both provided as drive units of the vehicle 2, wherein it is possible to drive or move the vehicle 2 either with the electric machine 4 or with the internal combustion engine 12. Therefore, the vehicle 2 shown here is also designed and/or to be designated as a hybrid vehicle.

[0041] In the first operating condition A provided here, it is a matter of an nth journey of the vehicle 2, where n is an integer, wherein it is provided here that functions of the vehicle 2 during the journey are also controlled by the control unit 6 independently of the embodiment of the method presented here.

[0042] During the nth travel of the vehicle 2, which is configured here as a hybrid vehicle, in the first operating condition A, it is possible, on the one hand, for the vehicle 2 to be driven by the internal combustion engine 12. In this case, a fuel, for example a hydrocarbon compound, is burned within the combustion engine 12. In the process, the combustion engine 12 converts chemical energy from the fuel into mechanical energy and transfers it to wheels of the vehicle 2. When the hydrocarbon compound is burned, exhaust gases are produced, but these are purified by the exhaust gas device 14.

[0043] On the other hand, the vehicle 2 can alternatively be driven by the electric machine 4, in which case electrical energy stored in the vehicle battery 10 is provided to the electric machine 4 for this purpose (arrow 16). This electrical energy is converted by the electric machine 4, if it is operated as an electric motor, into mechanical energy and transferred to wheels of the vehicle 2.

[0044] If the vehicle 2 is driven by the internal combustion engine 12 during travel, however, it is necessary that the exhaust gas device 14 has at least one operating temperature intended for this purpose in order to clean the exhaust gases.

[0045] For this purpose, in the presented embodiment of the method, it is provided that the exhaust device 14 is set and/or prepared for a future subsequent n+1th journey. Such preparation and or adjustment is carried out here after the nth journey, when the electric machine 4, the internal combustion engine 14 and the vehicle 2 are switched off. Thereby, in the context of the method, a further operating condition B is provided after the vehicle 2 has been parked. In this case, electrical energy is transferred from the electrical-system battery 8 to the vehicle battery 10, and this electrical energy remains stored in the vehicle battery 10 during a standstill of the vehicle in the vehicle battery 10.

[0046] In the embodiment of the method, in a third operating condition C, it is provided that the vehicle 2 is restarted after the standstill that follows the parking of the vehicle 2 in the operating condition B. In this case, the electrical energy that has previously been transferred from the electrical-system battery 8 to the vehicle battery 10 continues to be transferred from the vehicle battery 10 to the exhaust gas purification device 14 when the vehicle 2 is started and before a start, for example an initial start, of the internal combustion engine 12 (arrow 20). The exhaust gas purification device 14 is warmed up or heated with this electrical energy, whereby the exhaust gas purification device 14 is ramped up and reaches at least the operating temperature intended for the exhaust gas purification device 14 even before a start of the internal combustion engine 12. Thus, the vehicle 2 and the exhaust gas purification device 14 are prepared for the subsequent further n+1th journey (renewed operating condition A), which follows the start of the vehicle 2, the ramping up of the exhaust gas purification device 20 and the start of the internal combustion engine 10 (operating condition A). Here, it is provided that the control unit 6 or a corresponding control unit as part of an embodiment of a system according to the invention is designed to control the method.

REFERENCE NUMBERS

[0047] A,B,C Operating condition [0048] 2 Vehicle [0049] 4 Electric machine [0050] 6 Control unit [0051] 8 Electrical-system battery [0052] 10 Vehicle battery [0053] 12 Combustion engine [0054] 14 Exhaust gas purification device [0055] 16, 18, 20 Arrow