Method of controlling gear shift in neutral gear stage in hybrid electric vehicle

Abstract

A method of controlling a gear shifting in a neutral gear stage for shortening a gear shifting time in the neutral gear stage when performing a gear shifting of a hybrid electric vehicle is characterized in that when a shift class of the gear shifting is determined, a hybrid control unit of the vehicle determines a shift gear ratio in the N-stage in a current state by use of a transmission (TM) output speed and a transmission (TM) input speed at a class transition time point, determines an N-stage gear shifting progressing rate by use of the determined N-stage shift gear ratio, sets time points of a start and an end of the gear shifting based on the determined gear shifting progressing rate, and controls the gear shifting speed in the N-stage with reference to a gear shifting target speed and the transmission input speed in a section of the time points of the start and the end of the speed control.

Claims

1. A method of controlling a gear shifting in a neutral gear stage in a hybrid electric vehicle, the method comprising: determining, by a controller of the vehicle, when a current gear stage is a neutral gear stage (N-stage); determining, by the controller, when a gear position is in a drive stage (D-stage) or a rearward drive stage (R-stage) in a response that the current gear state is determined to be the N-stage; determining, by the controller, when a shift class of the gear shifting is a shift class from the N-stage to the D-stage or a shift class from the N-stage to the R-stage in a response that the gear position is determined to be in the D-stage or the R-stage; determining, by the controller, a shift gear ratio in the N-stage in a current state of the vehicle by use of a transmission (TM) output speed and a TM input speed at a class transition time point in a response that the shift class of the gear shifting is determined to be the shift class from the N-stage to the D-stage or the shift class from the N-stage to the R-stage; determining an N-stage gear shifting progressing rate by use of the determined shift gear ratio in the N-stage; setting, by the controller, time points of a start and an end of speed control for setting the time points of the start and the end of the gear shifting based on the determined gear shifting progressing rate; and controlling, by the controller, a speed of the gear shifting in the N-stage with reference to a gear shifting target speed and the TM input speed in a section of the time points of the start and the end of the speed control.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein in the determining, by the controller, the shift gear ratio in the N-stage, the N-stage shift gear ratio is determined based on the following Equation 4
N-Stage Shifting Gear Ratio=((Transmission Input Speed at Transition Time Point of Shifting Class of Gear Shifting from N-Stage To D-Stage or Gear Shifting from N-Stage to R-Stage)/(Transmission Output Speed at Transition Time Point of Shifting Class of Gear Shifting from N-Stage To D-Stage or Gear Shifting from N-Stage to R-Stage))(Equation 4).

3. The method of claim 1, wherein in the determining the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate, the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate is determined based on the following Equation 5
N-Stage Gear Shifting Progressing Rate=(Transmission Input SpeedTransmission Output Speed*N-Stage Gear Ratio)/(Transmission Output Speed*Target Gear Ratio(Transmission Output Speed*N-Stage Gear Ratio)))(Equation 5).

4. The method of claim 1, wherein in the setting the time points of the start and the end of the speed control, the controller is configured to set the time points of the start and the end of the gear shifting as values between 10% and 90% based on the determined gear shifting progressing rate.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein in the controlling the gear shifting speed in the N-stage, the controller is configured to set a speed control gain value by a deviation between the gear shifting target speed and a current gear shifting speed in accordance with the TM input speed and to perform feedback motor torque of a motor in the vehicle.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a gear shifting in a neutral gear stage according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

(2) FIG. 2 is a timing chart of an initial step of an N-stage gear shifting progressing rate by the method of controlling the gear shifting in the neutral gear stage according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

(3) FIG. 3 is a timing chart of a final step of the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate by the method of controlling the gear shifting in the neutral gear stage according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

(4) FIG. 4 is a timing chart of the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate in accordance with an operation mode of a vehicle by the method of controlling the gear shifting in the neutral gear stage according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

(5) It may be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various features illustrative of the basic principles of the present invention. The specific design features of the present invention as included herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particularly intended application and use environment.

(6) In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the several figures of the drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(7) Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the present invention(s) will be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood that the present description is not intended to limit the present invention(s) to those exemplary embodiments. On the other hand, the present invention(s) is/are intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments of the present invention, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

(8) Hereinafter, a configuration of a method of controlling a gear shifting in a neutral gear stage in a hybrid electric vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(9) However, the disclosed drawings are provided as an example for fully transferring the spirit of the present invention to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the drawings disclosed below and may be specified as other aspects.

(10) Furthermore, unless otherwise defined, the terminologies used in the specification of the present invention have the meanings that a person with ordinary skill in the technical field to which an exemplary embodiment of the present invention pertains typically understands, and in the following description and the accompanying drawings, a detailed description of publicly known functions and configurations will be omitted to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the subject matter of the present invention.

(11) First, the terms used in the specification of the present invention will be described below to accurately understand the present invention.

(12) In describing the control method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the term vehicle speed means a value measured by a vehicle speed sensor mounted on a wheel of a vehicle, and the unit of the value of the vehicle speed is Kph.

(13) Furthermore, in describing the control method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the term transmission (TM) output speed means a value measured by a PG-B sensor (transmission output shaft speed sensor) installed in a transmission (TM), and the unit of the value of the TM output speed is rpm.

(14) In the instant case, the correlation between the vehicle speed and the TM output speed is represented by the following Equation 1.

(15) $\begin{array}{cc}\mathrm{TM}\mathrm{Output}\mathrm{Speed}\left(\mathrm{rpm}\right)=\mathrm{Vehicle}\mathrm{Speed}*\frac{10}{36}*\frac{60}{2}*\frac{\mathrm{FGR}}{\mathrm{Dynamic}\mathrm{Radius}}& \left(\mathrm{Equation}1\right)\end{array}$

(16) FGR: Final Gear Ratio

(17) Dynamic Radius: a distance from a center of a wheel to an internal diameter of a tire when a vehicle travels.

(18) Furthermore, in describing the control method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the term transmission (TM) input speed means a measured value of a motor speed by a motor control unit (MCU) in a hybrid electric vehicle of a transmission mounted electric device (TMED) type, and the unit of the value of the TM input speed is rpm.

(19) The correlation between the TM output speed and the TM input speed is represented by the following Equation 2.
TM Input Speed=TM Output Speed*Current Gear Ratio(Equation 2)

(20) Furthermore, in describing the control method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the terms related to the determination of the Neutral gear stage (N-stage) gear shifting progressing rate will be described below.

(21) First, a gear shifting target speed is determined based on the following Equation 3.
Gear shifting Target Speed=TM Output Speed*Gear Ratio in Target Gear Stage(Equation 3)

(22) Furthermore, when the shift gear ratio of the Neutral gear stage (N-stage) is consistently determined at all time points in the N-stage, the shift gear ratio continuously varies, which causes the misdetermination of the gear shifting progressing rate. Therefore, the N-stage shift gear ratio is determined only at a transition time point at which there occurs a shift class of a gear shifting from the N-stage to a D-stage or a gear shifting from the N-stage to an R-stage. Accordingly, the N-stage shift gear ratio is determined by the TM input speed and the TM output speed through the following Equation 4.
N-Stage Shift Gear Ratio=((Transmission Input Speed at Transition Time Point of Shift Class of Gear shifting from N-Stage To D-Stage or Gear shifting from N-Stage to R-Stage)/(Transmission Output Speed at Transition Time Point of Shift Class of Gear shifting from N-Stage To D-Stage or Gear shifting from N-Stage to R-Stage))(Equation 4)

(23) Furthermore, the Neutral gear stage (N-stage) gear shifting progressing rate is determined based on the following Equation 5.
N-Stage Gear shifting Progressing Rate=((Transmission Input SpeedTransmission Output Speed*N-Stage Gear Ratio)/(Transmission Output Speed*Target Gear Ratio(Transmission Output Speed*N-Stage Gear Ratio)))(Equation 5)

(24) Target Gear Ratio: a gear ratio in a target gear stage designated by a transmission control unit (TCU)

(25) Therefore, by use of the above-mentioned Equations, the gear shifting target speed is determined (by Equation 3) and the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate is determined (by Equation 5). Time points of the start and the end of the speed control during the N-stage gear shifting are set based on the determined gear shifting target speed and the determined N-stage gear shifting progressing rate, and the feedback motor torque control is performed based on a deviation between a gear shifting target speed and a current gear shifting speed.

(26) In the instant case, because the performance of the speed control may deteriorate in accordance with viscosity of an automatic transmission fluid (ATF), gains of the feedback motor torque may be differentiated in accordance with a temperature of the automatic transmission fluid.

(27) FIG. 1 is a flowchart of the method of controlling the gear shifting in the neutral gear stage in the hybrid electric vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, configurations of respective steps according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail in a summarized manner.

(28) Current Gear State Determination Step (S1)

(29) This step is a step of determining, by the hybrid control unit (HCU) of the vehicle, whether the current gear stage is the N-stage to determine the gear shifting progressing rate in the Neutral gear stage (N-stage).

(30) 2) Gear Position Determination Step (S2)

(31) This step is a step of determining, by the hybrid control unit of the vehicle, whether the gear position is in the D-stage or the Rearward drive stage (R-stage) to determine whether the gear shifting is performed from the N-stage to the Drive stage (D-stage) or the gear shifting is performed from the N-stage to the Rearward drive stage (R-stage) when it is determined in the current gear state determination step S1 that the current gear stage is the N-stage.

(32) 3) Shift Class Determination Step (S3)

(33) This step is a step of determining, by the hybrid control unit, whether the shift class of the gear shifting is the shift class from the N-stage to the D-stage or the shift class from the N-stage to the R-stage when it is determined in the gear position determination step S2 that the gear position is in the D-stage or the R-stage.

(34) 4) N-Stage Shift Gear Ratio Determination Step (S4)

(35) FIG. 2 is a timing chart of an initial step of the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate by the method of controlling the gear shifting in the neutral gear stage according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

(36) Referring to the timing chart in the related art at the left in FIG. 2, in the case of the hybrid electric vehicle in the related art illustrated at the left portion (a), the hybrid control unit (HCU) converges the transmission input stage torque into 0 in the N-stage to determine the shift gear ratio as 0. As a result, because the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate diverges as an infinite value as shown by section A in the timing chart in the related art at the left in FIG. 2, the HCU cannot perform the speed control.

(37) Therefore, the transmission control unit (TCU) performs an actual gear shifting from the N-stage to the D-stage only by controlling a hydraulic gear shifting pressure. However, as described above, if the transmission control unit (TCU) raises the hydraulic pressure to prevent gear shifting shock, the completion of the gear shifting is delayed, which provides the delay of acceleration to a driver.

(38) The gear shifting from the N-stage to the D-stage after the N-stage control when an ABS operates is controlled from the N-stage to the D-stage in a state in which the gear position still remains in the D-stage. Therefore, if the acceleration is performed at the present moment, there is a problem in that torque cannot be transmitted for a significantly long time period.

(39) Therefore, when the steps S1 to S3 are performed and it is determined that the shift class of the gear shifting is the shift class from the N-stage to the D-stage or the shift class from the N-stage to the R-stage, the hybrid control unit determines the shift gear ratio in the N-stage in the current state by use of the TM output speed and the TM input speed at the class transition time point.

(40) The shift gear ratio in the N-stage is determined based on the following Equation 4 described above.
N-Stage Shift Gear Ratio=((Transmission Input Speed at Transition Time Point of Shift Class of Gear Shifting from N-Stage To D-Stage or Gear Shifting from N-Stage to R-Stage)/(Transmission Output Speed at Transition Time Point of Shift Class of Gear Shifting from N-Stage To D-Stage or Gear Shifting from N-Stage to R-Stage))(Equation 4)

(41) In the instant case, the hybrid control unit fixes the determined N-stage shift gear ratio value to the current gear ratio value until the current gear is changed. If the N-stage shift gear ratio value is not fixed to the current gear ratio value and the N-stage shift gear ratio value is consistently determined over time, it is impossible to determine the accurate gear shifting progressing rate.

(42) As described above, when the shift gear ratio is determined at the class transition time point and then the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate to be described below is determined, it may be seen that the gear shifting progressing rate gradually varies as shown in section B in the timing chart according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention at the right portion (b) in FIG. 2, without diverging the gear shifting progressing rate in the related art to the infinite value.

(43) 5) N-Stage Gear Shifting Progressing Rate Determination Step (S5)

(44) The N-stage gear shifting progressing rate is determined by use of the above-determined N-stage current shift gear ratio.

(45) The N-stage gear shifting progressing rate is determined based on the following Equation 5 described above.
N-Stage Gear Shifting Progressing Rate=((Transmission Input SpeedTransmission Output Speed*N-Stage Gear Ratio)/((Transmission Output Speed*Target Gear Ratio(Transmission Output Speed*N-Stage Gear Ratio)))(Equation 5)

(46) The TM output speed and the TM input speed are measured based on sensor values, and the target gear ratio is a gear ratio value of a target gear which is designated by the TCU.

(47) Therefore, as described above, when the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate is determined, the gear shifting progressing rate may be construed as a physical result value of the hydraulic gear shifting pressure of the TCU in the sections at the time point of the start and the end of the speed control of the hybrid control unit (HCU). For example, if the gear shifting progressing rate begins to be raised from 0% in the N-stage without changing external torque, the time point may be considered as the time point at which the hydraulic engagement pressure goes beyond the hydraulic base pressure and begins to affect vehicle inertia.

(48) However, as described above, if the hybrid control unit (HCU) applies the speed control torque after the time point of the start of the actual gear shifting and applies the speed control torque at the time point at which the gear shifting progressing rate reaches 100%, the gear shifting shock may occur in the vehicle at the final time of the gear shifting. Therefore, the speed control may be ended therebefore.

(49) 6) Step of Setting Time Points of Start and End of Speed Control (S6)

(50) When the gear shifting progressing rate is determined in the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate determination step (S5), the hybrid control unit sets the time points of the start and the end of the gear shifting as values between 10% and 90% based on the determined gear shifting progressing rate to prevent the shock at the initial time and the final time.

(51) 7) Step of Controlling Gear Shifting Speed in N-Stage (S7)

(52) This step is a step of controlling the gear shifting speed in the N-stage with reference to the gear shifting target speed and the TM input speed. The hybrid control unit sets a speed control gain value by a deviation between the gear shifting target speed and the current gear shifting speed according to the TM input speed and performs feedback motor torque control.

(53) The gear shifting target speed is determined based on (TM Output Speed*Target Gear Ratio) of Equation 3 described above.

(54) FIG. 3 is a timing chart of a final step of the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate by the method of controlling the gear shifting in the neutral gear stage according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

(55) Referring to the timing chart in the related art shown in part (a) at the left in FIG. 3, because the transmission control unit (TCU) performs the actual gear shifting only by controlling the hydraulic engagement pressure in the related art as described above, the actual gear shifting time (section C: 1.56 seconds) is delayed, and there is a section in which the gear shifting shock occurs at the final time like section D.

(56) However, referring to the timing chart according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention shown in part (b) at the right in FIG. 3, it may be seen that the N-stage speed control is performed in accordance with the determination of the gear shifting progressing rate, such that the actual gear shifting time (section E: 0.91 second) is shortened, and the section in which the gear shifting shock occurs at the final time of the gear shifting, like section D in the related art, is removed.

(57) Next, as an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 4 is a timing chart of the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate in accordance with an operation mode of the vehicle by the method of controlling the gear shifting in the neutral gear stage according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. A method of adjusting a gear shifting property in accordance with the determination of the gear shifting progressing rate will be described with reference to FIG. 4.

(58) First, referring to the timing chart of FIG. 4, it may be seen that when the operation mode of the vehicle is a normal mode, the gear shifting time (section F2) is shorter than the gear shifting time (section F1) in the case of an economical mode (fuel economy operation mode for saving fuel), and the gear shifting time (section F3) in a sports mode is shorter than the gear shifting time (section F2) in the normal mode.

(59) Therefore, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the gear shifting time may be adjusted in accordance with the operation mode of the vehicle based on the determination of the N-stage gear shifting progressing rate according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The gear shifting property in the N-stage may be adjusted such that the shock is somewhat increased but the acceleration delay is decreased in the sports mode, and the shock is decreased but the acceleration is increased in the normal mode.

(60) For convenience in explanation and accurate definition in the appended claims, the terms upper, lower, inner, outer, up, down, upwards, downwards, front, rear, back, inside, outside, inwardly, outwardly, internal, external, inner, outer, forwards, and backwards are used to describe features of the exemplary embodiments with reference to the positions of such features as displayed in the figures. It will be further understood that the term connect or its derivatives refer both to direct and indirect connection.

(61) The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described to explain certain principles of the present invention and their practical application, to enable others skilled in the art to make and utilize various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof. It is intended that the scope of the present invention be defined by the Claims appended hereto and their equivalents.