Patents by Inventor Seiji Bito
Seiji Bito 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).
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Patent number: 9809224Abstract: A battery charge/discharge control apparatus for controlling charge/discharge of a battery in a vehicle as defined herein, includes: a battery control portion which is provided for controlling charge/discharge of the battery; a vehicle control portion which controls the inverter and the engine and controls the charge/discharge of the battery based on information from the battery control portion; a failure determination portion which determines whether there is a failure in the battery control portion or not; and an inverter driving state detection portion which detects a driving state of the inverter; wherein: the vehicle control portion controls the charge/discharge of the battery based on the driving state of the inverter detected by the inverter driving state detection portion when the failure determination portion determines that there is a failure in the battery control portion.Type: GrantFiled: April 8, 2014Date of Patent: November 7, 2017Assignee: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji Bito
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Patent number: 9343785Abstract: A vehicular battery cooling device in which a rear seat is disposed on the upper surface of a rear floor panel, a battery pack is disposed on the upper surface of the rear floor panel at the rear of the rear seat, and an air intake duct extending from the battery pack to the vehicle front is installed between the cushion part of the rear seat and the rear floor panel. A concave part extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction is formed in the lower surface of the cushion part in the central portion in the vehicle width direction, an opening is formed at the front end of the air intake duct, and the air intake duct is formed so as to have a strength capable of supporting the weight of a passenger and is brought into contact with the lower surface of the cushion part.Type: GrantFiled: August 28, 2012Date of Patent: May 17, 2016Assignee: Suzuki Motor CorporationInventor: Seiji Bito
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Patent number: 9221345Abstract: A battery charging device for a motor vehicle capable of enabling the charging of a low voltage battery by a high voltage battery, without using a transformer such as a DC/DC converter, is disclosed. A battery pack 30 has a plurality of battery modules 31 having an output equivalent to a lead battery 5, a parallel circuit 39 for connecting the plurality of battery modules 31 in parallel, and a series circuit 34 for connecting the plurality of battery modules 31 in series, and the lead battery 5 is connected to the parallel circuit 39 in parallel with the plurality of battery modules 31.Type: GrantFiled: December 4, 2013Date of Patent: December 29, 2015Assignee: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji Bito
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Patent number: 9140227Abstract: A control device for a vehicle including an engine stop and start device includes a battery and a vehicle speed detecting unit and includes a battery current detecting unit, a battery temperature detecting unit, a deceleration state detecting unit, a fuel supply stop unit, an average charging current calculating unit, and an SOC estimating unit. The control device calculates, with the average charging current calculating unit, an average of a battery current in a predetermined time from detection of a stop of fuel supply to an engine in a deceleration state of the vehicle. The control device permits a stop of the engine when an SOC calculated by the SOC estimating unit is larger than a predetermined value.Type: GrantFiled: July 19, 2012Date of Patent: September 22, 2015Assignee: Suzuki Motor CorporationInventor: Seiji Bito
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Patent number: 9014895Abstract: A control system for an electric vehicle equipped with a driving electric motor which is actuated by electric power, as supplied from a vehicle-driving battery, to drive a wheel of an electric vehicle, a power generating motor which is actuated by an engine to provide electric power to the vehicle-driving battery, and an air conditioner which works to regulate temperature in a cabin of the electric vehicle. The control system controls the engine so as to keep an output therefrom constant in response to an air condition request. The control system also keeps the output from the engine constant to actuate the power generating motor for charging the vehicle-driving battery when an amount of charge in the vehicle-driving battery is determined to be lower than or equal to a given threshold value, and the electric vehicle is determined to be at a stop.Type: GrantFiled: May 21, 2013Date of Patent: April 21, 2015Assignee: Suzuki Motor CorporationInventors: Hidenori Suzuki, Seiji Bito
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Publication number: 20140309824Abstract: A battery charge/discharge control apparatus for controlling charge/discharge of a battery in a vehicle as defined herein, includes: a battery control portion which is provided for controlling charge/discharge of the battery; a vehicle control portion which controls the inverter and the engine and controls the charge/discharge of the battery based on information from the battery control portion; a failure determination portion which determines whether there is a failure in the battery control portion or not; and an inverter driving state detection portion which detects a driving state of the inverter; wherein: the vehicle control portion controls the charge/discharge of the battery based on the driving state of the inverter detected by the inverter driving state detection portion when the failure determination portion determines that there is a failure in the battery control portion.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 8, 2014Publication date: October 16, 2014Applicant: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji BITO
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Publication number: 20140184142Abstract: A battery charging device for a motor vehicle capable of enabling the charging of a low voltage battery by a high voltage battery, without using a transformer such as a DC/DC converter, is disclosed. A battery pack 30 has a plurality of battery modules 31 having an output equivalent to a lead battery 5, a parallel circuit 39 for connecting the plurality of battery modules 31 in parallel, and a series circuit 34 for connecting the plurality of battery modules 31 in series, and the lead battery 5 is connected to the parallel circuit 39 in parallel with the plurality of battery modules 31.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 4, 2013Publication date: July 3, 2014Applicant: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji BITO
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Publication number: 20130332016Abstract: A control system for an electric vehicle equipped with a driving electric motor which is actuated by electric power, as supplied from a vehicle-driving battery, to drive a wheel of an electric vehicle, a power generating motor which is actuated by an engine to provide electric power to the vehicle-driving battery, and an air conditioner which works to regulate temperature in a cabin of the electric vehicle. The control system controls the engine so as to keep an output therefrom constant in response to an air condition request. The control system also keeps the output from the engine constant to actuate the power generating motor for charging the vehicle-driving battery when an amount of charge in the vehicle-driving battery is determined to be lower than or equal to a given threshold value, and the electric vehicle is determined to be at a stop.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 21, 2013Publication date: December 12, 2013Applicant: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventors: Hidenori SUZUKI, Seiji BITO
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Publication number: 20130268151Abstract: A cooling fan control device for use in a vehicle in which a drive battery and an engine, both serving as drive energy sources, and an air conditioner of the vehicle are mounted, and in which a cooling fan for cooling the drive battery is provided, is disclosed. Cooling fan control means, which includes first drive condition determination means, second drive condition determination means, third drive condition determination means, and fourth drive condition determination means, compares the largest drive amount among drive amounts of a cooling fan which are respectively obtained by the second drive condition determination means, the third drive condition determination means, and the fourth drive condition determination means, with a drive amount of the cooling fan which is obtained by the first drive condition determination means, and drives the cooling fan in correspondence with the smaller drive amount of the cooling fan.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 13, 2013Publication date: October 10, 2013Applicant: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji Bito
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Publication number: 20130140886Abstract: A control system for a parallel battery connection circuit has a plurality of secondary battery packs connected in parallel to each other, in which small batteries are combined and provided substantially equivalently to each other. The control system performs abnormality detection by detecting and comparing states of the secondary battery packs. The control system has state detecting circuits and a control circuit. The state detecting circuits detect currents or temperatures and are provided respectively in the secondary battery packs. The control circuit performs current limitation based on a magnitude of deviation between a deviation in either of a comparison of currents detected corresponding to the secondary battery packs by the state detecting circuits or a comparison of temperatures detected corresponding to the secondary battery packs by the state detecting circuits, and a predetermined judgment value.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 27, 2011Publication date: June 6, 2013Applicant: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji Bito
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Publication number: 20130092348Abstract: The present invention provides a vehicular battery cooling device in which a rear seat is disposed on the upper surface of a rear floor panel. A battery pack is disposed on the upper surface of the rear floor panel at the rear of the rear seat, and an air intake duct extending from the battery pack to the vehicle front is installed between the cushion part of the rear seat and the rear floor panel. A concave part extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction is formed in the lower surface of the cushion part in the central portion in the vehicle width direction, an opening is formed at the front end of the air intake duct, and the air intake duct is formed so as to have a strength capable of supporting the weight of a passenger and is brought into contact with the lower surface of the cushion part.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 28, 2012Publication date: April 18, 2013Applicant: Suzuki Motor CorporationInventor: Seiji BITO
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Publication number: 20130085657Abstract: A control device for a vehicle including an engine stop and start device includes a battery and a vehicle speed detecting unit and includes a battery current detecting unit, a battery temperature detecting unit, a deceleration state detecting unit, a fuel supply stop unit, an average charging current calculating unit, and an SOC estimating unit. The control device calculates, with the average charging current calculating unit, an average of a battery current in a predetermined time from detection of a stop of fuel supply to an engine in a deceleration state of the vehicle. The control device permits a stop of the engine when an SOC calculated by the SOC estimating unit is larger than a predetermined value.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 19, 2012Publication date: April 4, 2013Applicant: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji Bito
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Publication number: 20130060497Abstract: A battery state monitoring device includes a battery pack including at least one battery cell, and a measuring circuit that measures a state of the battery cell, the measuring circuit including temperature measuring means for measuring a temperature of the battery cell, current measuring means for measuring a current flowing through the battery cell, and voltage measuring means for measuring a voltage of the battery cell, and including a calculation circuit in parallel, wherein the battery state monitoring device calculates a predetermined voltage corresponding to a predetermined state of charge of the battery cell, based on the temperature and the current of the battery cell, using a predetermined operational expression including a temperature quadratic exponential function and a temperature linear function, and compares the voltage of the battery cell with the predetermined voltage calculated using the operational expression to determine the predetermined state of charge of the battery cell.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 1, 2012Publication date: March 7, 2013Applicant: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji Bito
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Patent number: 8242737Abstract: In a motor-driven vehicle using power stored in a secondary battery as a source of motive power in which part of vehicle braking is achieved by regenerative braking by generating electrical energy absorbed by charging the secondary battery, the state of charge of the secondary battery is adjusted during charging so that, when charging is completed, the state of charge of the battery will be such that it is still capable of receiving energy generated during regenerative braking. During charging, after the battery has been charged to a target charge level, and battery temperature has subsequently changed, a state where the battery is still capable of receiving energy generated during regenerative braking can be achieved by slightly discharging the battery depending on the temperature of the battery. Such slight discharge of the battery can be obtained by powering an electric heater (22) in an engine cooling water circuit or operating a generator (7) as a motor for motoring the vehicle engine (8).Type: GrantFiled: July 30, 2010Date of Patent: August 14, 2012Assignee: Suzuki Motor CorporationInventor: Seiji Bito
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Publication number: 20110031937Abstract: In a motor-driven vehicle using power stored in a secondary battery as a source of motive power in which part of vehicle braking is achieved by regenerative braking by generating electrical energy absorbed by charging the secondary battery, the state of charge of the secondary battery is adjusted during charging so that, when charging is completed, the state of charge of the battery will be such that it is still capable of receiving energy generated during regenerative braking. During charging, after the battery has been charged to a target charge level, and battery temperature has subsequently changed, a state where the battery is still capable of receiving energy generated during regenerative braking can be achieved by slightly discharging the battery depending on the temperature of the battery. Such slight discharge of the battery can be obtained by powering an electric heater (22) in an engine cooling water circuit or operating a generator (7) as a motor for motoring the vehicle engine (8).Type: ApplicationFiled: July 30, 2010Publication date: February 10, 2011Applicant: SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATIONInventor: Seiji Bito
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Patent number: 7763378Abstract: A cylindrical battery includes an electrode plate assembly, a positive electrode collector welded to a projecting portion of a core material for a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode collector having a plurality of projections at its lower surface. The negative electrode collector is also welded to a projecting portion of a core material for a negative electrode plate at its upper surface. The cylindrical battery further includes a metal case for accommodating the electrode plate assembly. The projections of the negative electrode collector are welded to an inner bottom surface of the metal case. The projections of the negative electrode collector are arranged at a plurality of locations in a region between a portion opposed to a hollow cylindrical portion of the electrode plate assembly and a peripheral portion.Type: GrantFiled: August 23, 2004Date of Patent: July 27, 2010Assignee: Panasonic CorporationInventors: Seiji Bito, Satoshi Yoneyama, Masahiko Kato
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Publication number: 20070020518Abstract: A cylindrical battery includes: an electrode plate assembly (5); a positive electrode collector (10) welded to a projecting portion of a core material for a positive electrode of the electrode plate assembly (5); a negative electrode collector (11) that includes a plurality of projections (12) at its lower surface and is welded to a projecting portion of a core material for a negative electrode of the electrode plate assembly (5) at its upper surface; a metal case (7) for accommodating the electrode plate assembly (5) to which the positive and negative electrode collectors (10, 11) are jointed, so as to arrange the negative electrode collector (11) down, the projections (12) of the negative electrode collector (11) being welded to an inner bottom surface of the metal case (7); an electrolyte poured into the metal case (7); and a sealing member (9), electrically insulated from the metal case (7), for sealing a top of the metal case (7), wherein the projections (12) of the negative electrode collector (11) areType: ApplicationFiled: August 23, 2004Publication date: January 25, 2007Applicant: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., LtdInventors: Seiji Bito, Satoshi Yoneyama, Masahiko Kato
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Patent number: 6791299Abstract: A method for activating a secondary battery is provided that enables sufficient activation of a secondary battery in a short time. A secondary battery is activated with a varying current, e.g., pulse current, in which current values in a charge direction and a discharge direction are repeated alternately in a cycle ranging from 1 to 30 seconds.Type: GrantFiled: March 29, 2002Date of Patent: September 14, 2004Assignees: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Yusai Murakami, Tadao Kimura, Seiji Bito
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Patent number: 6501250Abstract: A device and method of input/output control capable of exhibiting the battery performance by nature by rapidly raising the temperature of the secondary battery by the regeneration at a low temperature. A temperature rise controller controls the temperature rise of the battery pack based on the battery temperature, thereby determining a central value of the state-of-charge control in the range of the state of charge. A battery input/output controller voluntarily controls the state of charge based on the central value of the state-of-charge control from the temperature rise controller and the state of charge at the point of time from the state-of-charge operator, and controls charge and discharge based on the charge and discharge request from the outside to the battery pack.Type: GrantFiled: April 5, 2001Date of Patent: December 31, 2002Assignees: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Seiji Bito, Yusai Murakami, Toshiaki Nakanishi, Kiwamu Inui, Kunio Kanamaru, Tadao Kimura, Masayoshi Iwase, Katsuhiko Yamaguchi
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Patent number: 6465988Abstract: A device and a method are provided in which memory effects can be cancelled by controlling charging and discharging of a secondary battery during driving of a vehicle. When a memory effect determinator determines that the discharging memory effect has occurred, based on at least one of the following determinations: whether a time of charging/discharging of a secondary battery has reached a predetermined time; whether a charging/discharging amount in the secondary battery has reached a predetermined amount; and whether a voltage per cell has reached a voltage V1 at a lower-limit state of charge in a range of capacity actually used, a discharging controller discharges the secondary battery until the voltage per cell reaches a voltage V3 that is higher than 1.0 V and is lower than the voltage V1 at the lower-limit state of charge.Type: GrantFiled: April 20, 2001Date of Patent: October 15, 2002Assignees: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Shinichiro Ito, Yusai Murakami, Seiji Bito, Tadao Kimura