Patents by Inventor Taichi Washio

Taichi Washio has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11458946
    Abstract: A clutch is disengaged when a torque condition is satisfied at a predetermined time when a system is stopped as a fuel supply to an engine is stopped from a state where the engine is operating with the clutch being engaged. The torque condition is a condition under which torque acting on an output shaft of the engine is torque in a direction in which an engine speed of the engine is decreased and torque output to a rotary shaft of a motor is torque in a direction in which a motor speed of the motor is decreased.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Taichi Washio, Masayuki Baba, Nobufusa Kobayashi
  • Publication number: 20210221352
    Abstract: A clutch is disengaged when a torque condition is satisfied at a predetermined time when a system is stopped as a fuel supply to an engine is stopped from a state where the engine is operating with the clutch being engaged. The torque condition is a condition under which torque acting on an output shaft of the engine is torque in a direction in which an engine speed of the engine is decreased and torque output to a rotary shaft of a motor is torque in a direction in which a motor speed of the motor is decreased.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2020
    Publication date: July 22, 2021
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Taichi WASHIO, Masayuki BABA, Nobufusa KOBAYASHI
  • Patent number: 10851890
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus including a gear mechanism and a continuously-variable transmission mechanism and defining first and second drive-force transmitting paths. When the continuously-variable transmission mechanism is in a failure state in which an actual gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism is not the highest gear ratio as a target gear ratio, the control apparatus sets the target gear ratio to a transient target gear ratio that is gradually changed toward the highest gear ratio, for causing the actual gear ratio to be gradually changed toward the highest gear ratio. A rate of change of the transient target gear ratio is higher in a state in which a drive force is transmitted through the first drive-force transmitting path by the gear mechanism, than in a state in which the drive force is transmitted through the second drive-force transmitting path by the continuously-variable transmission mechanism.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 1, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kunio Hattori, Taichi Washio, Takuro Shimazu
  • Patent number: 10753463
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus including a gear mechanism and a continuously-variable transmission mechanism provided in respective first and second drive-force transmitting paths. The control apparatus sets a target gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism during a switching control operation that is executed to switch between (i) a first state in which the first drive-force transmitting path is established and (ii) a second state in which the second drive-force transmitting path is established, such that, when drive wheels are not being slipped, the target gear ratio is set to a highest gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism, and such that, when the drive wheels are being slipped, the target gear ratio is set to an actual gear ratio at a point of time at which the drive wheels start being slipped.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi Washio
  • Patent number: 10753471
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus that includes a gear mechanism and a continuously-variable transmission mechanism. The control apparatus determines whether there is a lower-gear-ratio setting request requesting a target gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism to be set to a lower gear ratio that is lower than a highest gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism. When it is determined that there is not a detection accuracy of a rotational speed of an output rotary member of the drive-force transmitting apparatus, the control apparatus sets the target gear ratio to the lower gear ratio if it is determined that there is the lower-gear-ratio setting request, and sets the target gear ratio to the highest gear ratio if it is determined that there is not the lower-gear-ratio setting request.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 3, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi Washio
  • Patent number: 10746295
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a drive-force transmitting apparatus that includes a gear mechanism and a continuously-variable transmission mechanism including primary and secondary pulleys and actuators that apply first and second thrusts to the respective first and second pulleys. When a target gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism is a highest gear ratio in a gear running mode, the control apparatus sets a value of the thrust ratio, which is used when calculating a target value of a secondary thrust, to a value that increases a difference between a lower limit value of the primary thrust and the target value of the secondary thrust, and sets a value of the thrust ratio, which is used when calculating a target value of the primary thrust, to a value that increases a difference between the target value of the secondary thrust and the target value of the primary thrust.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi Washio
  • Patent number: 10731756
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle that including a drive-force transmitting apparatus and a hydraulic control unit. The drive-force transmitting apparatus defines a drive-force transmitting path through which a drive force is to be transmitted by a continuously-variable transmission mechanism when the drive-force transmitting path is established by engagement of an engagement device. An electromagnetic valve of the hydraulic control unit regulates a hydraulic pressure supplied to the electromagnetic valve via a hydraulic passage, such that the regulated hydraulic pressure is supplied toward the engagement device. An accumulator of the hydraulic control unit is connected to the hydraulic passage, so as to store the hydraulic pressure that flows through the hydraulic passage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi Washio
  • Patent number: 10724612
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle that includes a drive-force transmitting apparatus and a hydraulic control unit. The drive-force transmitting apparatus defines a first transmitting path that is to be established by engagements of a first engagement device and a dog clutch, and a second transmitting path that is to be established by engagement of a second engagement device. When a rate of supply of a working fluid to the hydraulic control unit will be insufficient if at least two of a first engaging operation for engaging the first friction engagement device; a second engaging operation for engaging the second friction engagement device; a third engaging operation for engaging the dog clutch; and a shifting operation for executing a shifting action in a transmission mechanism of the drive-force transmitting apparatus are executed in an overlapped manner, the control apparatus executes these operations in accordance with an order of priority.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi Washio
  • Patent number: 10683001
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus that defines first and second drive-force transmitting paths between input and output rotary members. The second drive-force transmitting path is established by engagement of a second engagement device. The control apparatus includes an operation-state determining portion configured to determine which one of a plurality of states is established as an operation state of the second engagement device, by determining whether a plurality of transition-completion conditions, each of which is required to determine that a transition of the operation state of the second engagement device to a corresponding one of the plurality of states from another of the plurality of states has been completed, are satisfied or not, based on (?) a state of a hydraulic control executed to control a hydraulic pressure supplied to the second engagement device and (?) a rotational speed difference of the second engagement device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi Washio
  • Patent number: 10682910
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle including an engine, drive wheels, a drive-force transmitting apparatus, a hydraulic pressure sensor and a pump. The control apparatus makes a determination as to whether a failure occurs in the hydraulic pressure sensor, based on a detected value of a pulley hydraulic pressure by which a primary pulley or a secondary pulley of a continuously-variable transmission mechanism of the drive-force transmitting apparatus is to be operated. The control apparatus makes the determination until a given length of time elapses from a point of time at which the hydraulic pressure sensor becomes ready to detect the pulley hydraulic pressure after initiation of supply of an electric power to at least the hydraulic pressure sensor in an operation stopped state of the engine. The control apparatus does not make the determination after the given length of time elapses from the above-described point of time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Taichi Washio, Munenori Terada
  • Patent number: 10683931
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a drive-force transmitting apparatus that includes a transmission having primary and secondary pulleys. When a detection accuracy of rotational speed of the primary and secondary pulley is not assured, the control apparatus sets each of (i) a secondary-thrust calculation thrust ratio value used for calculation of a secondary thrust that is to be applied to the secondary pulley and (ii) a primary-thrust calculation thrust ratio value used for calculation of a primary thrust that is to be applied to the primary pulley, such that each of the secondary-thrust calculation thrust ratio value and the primary-thrust calculation thrust ratio value is dependent on a result of a determination as to whether an actual gear ratio of the transmission is the highest gear ratio and a result of a determination as to whether an input torque inputted to the transmission is lower than a given torque value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kunio Hattori, Taichi Washio, Takuro Shimazu
  • Patent number: 10591056
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus that includes a gear mechanism and a continuously-variable transmission mechanism including a primary pulley, a secondary pulley, a transfer element that is looped over the primary and secondary pulleys, and an actuator configured to apply, to the primary pulley, a thrust, based on which the transfer element is to be clamped by the primary pulley. The vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus defines a first drive-force transmitting path for transmitting a drive force through the gear mechanism and a second drive-force transmitting path for transmitting the drive force through the continuously-variable transmission mechanism.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi Washio
  • Patent number: 10571021
    Abstract: In a control device of a vehicle power transmission device, a first meshing clutch has a drive power source side meshing member coupled to a power transmission member, an auxiliary drive wheel side meshing member coupled to the power transmission member, and an actuator engaging or releasing the drive power source side meshing member and the auxiliary drive wheel side meshing member, and when a rotation speed difference between a rotation speed of the drive power source side meshing member and a rotation speed of the auxiliary drive wheel side meshing member is larger than a predefined value at the time when a first meshing clutch is brought into an engaged state, a clamping pressure on a transmission belt is increased as compared to when a rotation speed difference is equal to or less than a predefined value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2020
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Junichi Aoyama, Masayuki Tsujita, Tsutomu Kawanishi, Taichi Washio
  • Publication number: 20190316674
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus including a gear mechanism and a continuously-variable transmission mechanism and defining first and second drive-force transmitting paths. When the continuously-variable transmission mechanism is in a failure state in which an actual gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism is not the highest gear ratio as a target gear ratio, the control apparatus sets the target gear ratio to a transient target gear ratio that is gradually changed toward the highest gear ratio, for causing the actual gear ratio to be gradually changed toward the highest gear ratio. A rate of change of the transient target gear ratio is higher in a state in which a drive force is transmitted through the first drive-force transmitting path by the gear mechanism, than in a state in which the drive force is transmitted through the second drive-force transmitting path by the continuously-variable transmission mechanism.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 4, 2019
    Publication date: October 17, 2019
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kunio HATTORI, Taichi WASHIO, Takuro SHIMAZU
  • Patent number: 10443713
    Abstract: An upshift target turbine rotational speed and a target primary rotational speed are calculated based on a target input shaft rotational speed restricted in a range of an upper limit guard value to a lower limit guard value. Thus, the difference between the upshift target turbine rotational speed and the target primary rotational speed is suitably decreased. When a torque transmission path is switched from a second transmission path to a first transmission path, the difference between an actual turbine rotational speed at a switching start time point and the actual turbine rotational speed at a switching completion time point is reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2019
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi Washio
  • Publication number: 20190270381
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle including an engine, drive wheels, a drive-force transmitting apparatus, a hydraulic pressure sensor and a pump. The control apparatus makes a determination as to whether a failure occurs in the hydraulic pressure sensor, based on a detected value of a pulley hydraulic pressure by which a primary pulley or a secondary pulley of a continuously-variable transmission mechanism of the drive-force transmitting apparatus is to be operated. The control apparatus makes the determination until a given length of time elapses from a point of time at which the hydraulic pressure sensor becomes ready to detect the pulley hydraulic pressure after initiation of supply of an electric power to at least the hydraulic pressure sensor in an operation stopped state of the engine. The control apparatus does not make the determination after the given length of time elapses from the above-described point of time.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 5, 2019
    Publication date: September 5, 2019
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Taichi WASHIO, Munenori TERADA
  • Publication number: 20190249756
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle that includes a drive-force transmitting apparatus and a hydraulic control unit. The drive-force transmitting apparatus defines a first transmitting path that is to be established by engagements of a first engagement device and a dog clutch, and a second transmitting path that is to be established by engagement of a second engagement device. When a rate of supply of a working fluid to the hydraulic control unit will be insufficient if at least two of a first engaging operation for engaging the first friction engagement device; a second engaging operation for engaging the second friction engagement device; a third engaging operation for engaging the dog clutch; and a shifting operation for executing a shifting action in a transmission mechanism of the drive-force transmitting apparatus are executed in an overlapped manner, the control apparatus executes these operations in accordance with an order of priority.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2019
    Publication date: August 15, 2019
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi WASHIO
  • Publication number: 20190242475
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle that including a drive-force transmitting apparatus and a hydraulic control unit. The drive-force transmitting apparatus defines a drive-force transmitting path through which a drive force is to be transmitted by a continuously-variable transmission mechanism when the drive-force transmitting path is established by engagement of an engagement device. An electromagnetic valve of the hydraulic control unit regulates a hydraulic pressure supplied to the electromagnetic valve via a hydraulic passage, such that the regulated hydraulic pressure is supplied toward the engagement device. An accumulator of the hydraulic control unit is connected to the hydraulic passage, so as to store the hydraulic pressure that flows through the hydraulic passage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 5, 2019
    Publication date: August 8, 2019
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi WASHIO
  • Publication number: 20190241172
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus that defines first and second drive-force transmitting paths between input and output rotary members. The second drive-force transmitting path is established by engagement of a second engagement device. The control apparatus includes an operation-state determining portion configured to determine which one of a plurality of states is established as an operation state of the second engagement device, by determining whether a plurality of transition-completion conditions, each of which is required to determine that a transition of the operation state of the second engagement device to a corresponding one of the plurality of states from another of the plurality of states has been completed, are satisfied or not, based on (?) a state of a hydraulic control executed to control a hydraulic pressure supplied to the second engagement device and (?) a rotational speed difference of the second engagement device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 15, 2019
    Publication date: August 8, 2019
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi WASHIO
  • Publication number: 20190234515
    Abstract: A control apparatus for a vehicle drive-force transmitting apparatus that includes a gear mechanism and a continuously-variable transmission mechanism. The control apparatus determines whether there is a lower-gear-ratio setting request requesting a target gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism to be set to a lower gear ratio that is lower than a highest gear ratio of the continuously-variable transmission mechanism. When it is determined that there is not a detection accuracy of a rotational speed of an output rotary member of the drive-force transmitting apparatus, the control apparatus sets the target gear ratio to the lower gear ratio if it is determined that there is the lower-gear-ratio setting request, and sets the target gear ratio to the highest gear ratio if it is determined that there is not the lower-gear-ratio setting request.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 3, 2019
    Publication date: August 1, 2019
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Taichi WASHIO