Patents by Inventor Tatsuo Kiuchi

Tatsuo Kiuchi 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: 9120480
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle includes a wet clutch device that establishes and interrupts a connection between an engine and an electric motor, and a transmission switchable between a driving range in which driving force can be transmitted to driving wheels and a non-driving range in which transmission of the driving force is interrupted. When a battery temperature is greater than a warm-up determination value while the vehicle is at a standstill with the transmission switched to the non-driving range, the wet clutch device is kept disengaged. When the battery temperature is less than the warm-up determination value, a battery warm-up control unit switches the wet clutch device into engaged state to connect the engine and the electric motor together and vary driving force of the electric motor alternately to a positive side and a negative side so as to repeatedly charge and discharge the battery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2015
    Assignee: Daimler AG
    Inventor: Tatsuo Kiuchi
  • Publication number: 20130253748
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle includes a wet clutch device that establishes and interrupts a connection between an engine and an electric motor, and a transmission switchable between a driving range in which driving force can be transmitted to driving wheels and a non-driving range in which transmission of the driving force is interrupted. When a battery temperature is greater than a warm-up determination value while the vehicle is at a standstill with the transmission switched to the non-driving range, the wet clutch device is kept disengaged. When the battery temperature is less than the warm-up determination value, a battery warm-up control unit switches the wet clutch device into engaged state to connect the engine and the electric motor together and vary driving force of the electric motor alternately to a positive side and a negative side so as to repeatedly charge and discharge the battery.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 28, 2011
    Publication date: September 26, 2013
    Applicant: Daimler AG
    Inventor: Tatsuo Kiuchi
  • Patent number: 8010264
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is arranged such that a driving force of an engine and a driving force of an electric motor can be transmitted to driving wheels through an automatic transmission having a plurality of forward gears. When it is detected that the vehicle is in a predetermined state in which it is difficult for the electric motor to output an upper limit torque predetermined as a generable maximum torque, a vehicle ECU controls the automatic transmission using a gear shift map configured such that the automatic transmission is downshifted earlier in accordance with a change in the operating state of the vehicle and upshifted later in accordance with a change in the operating state of the vehicle in comparison with a gear shift map that is used when it is not detected that the vehicle is in the predetermined state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2011
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation
    Inventors: Makoto Ogata, Tatsuo Kiuchi
  • Patent number: 7823668
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is arranged such that a driving force of an electric motor can be transmitted to driving wheels and that a rotary shaft of the electric motor can be coupled with an output shaft of an engine. The vehicle comprises a starter motor provided separately from the electric motor, an electric power source provided separately from a battery that supplies power to the electric motor, to supply power to the starter motor, and a braking force maintaining device configured to be activated by power from the power source to maintain a braking force on the vehicle. When a request for starting the engine is made, if a specified abnormal condition which makes the starting of the engine by the electric motor impracticable is detected, an ECU causes the engine to be started by the starter motor when the braking force maintaining device is not active.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2010
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation
    Inventors: Makoto Ogata, Tatsuo Kiuchi, Kunio Sakata
  • Patent number: 7810593
    Abstract: In a control system for a hybrid electric vehicle equipped with an engine and an electric motor, when it is judged that the vehicle is in a preset state where torque required in the electric motor is zero, storage-rate retention control is carried out by causing the electric motor to generate minute torque having an absolute value smaller than the torque of the electric motor, which is required for a forced charge or discharge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2010
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation
    Inventor: Tatsuo Kiuchi
  • Patent number: 7498757
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is capable of transmitting driving forces of an engine and an electric motor to driving wheels through an automatic transmission and of releasing mechanical connection between the engine and the transmission by a clutch. A torque control unit switches between deceleration implemented only by the motor and deceleration by the engine and the motor by controlling the clutch based upon magnitude relation between a required deceleration torque and an upper limit deceleration torque generable by the motor. The required torque and the upper limit deceleration torques become equal to each other when the revolution speed of the motor is predetermined revolution speed. The predetermined revolution speed for the required deceleration torque corresponding to a forward gear related to downshift of the transmission differs from revolution speed that falls in the range of revolution speed fluctuation of the motor at the time of the downshift.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2009
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation
    Inventors: Tatsuo Kiuchi, Takashi Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 7477031
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is arranged such that a driving force of an engine and a driving force of an electric motor can be transmitted to driving wheels through a transmission and that the engine and the transmission can be mechanically connected and disconnected by means of a clutch. When an upper limit decelerating torque generable by the electric motor is equal to or greater than a requested decelerating torque, a vehicle ECU disengages the clutch and controls the electric motor to generate the requested decelerating torque. Meanwhile, when the upper limit decelerating torque is smaller than the requested decelerating torque, the vehicle ECU engages the clutch and controls the engine and the electric motor so that the sum of a decelerating torque generated by the engine and a decelerating torque generated by the electric motor is equal to the requested decelerating torque.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2009
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation
    Inventors: Makoto Ogata, Tatsuo Kiuchi
  • Publication number: 20070219045
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is equipped with an engine output system that makes the engine generate a driving force and outputs the driving force of the engine and a motor output system that makes an electric motor generate a driving force and outputs the driving force of the electric motor, and is capable of transmitting to driving wheels the driving forces outputted from the respective systems. If a failure of the motor output system is not detected, a vehicle ECU sets the gear of an automatic transmission for start-up of the vehicle to a first gear. If the failure is detected, the vehicle ECU sets the gear of the automatic transmission for start-up the vehicle to a second gear that is lower than the first gear.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 19, 2007
    Publication date: September 20, 2007
    Inventors: Makoto Ogata, Tatsuo Kiuchi
  • Publication number: 20070216312
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is arranged such that a driving force of an engine and a driving force of an electric motor can be transmitted to driving wheels through an automatic transmission having a plurality of forward gears. When it is detected that the vehicle is in a predetermined state in which it is difficult for the electric motor to output an upper limit torque predetermined as a generable maximum torque, a vehicle ECU controls the automatic transmission using a gear shift map configured such that the automatic transmission is downshifted earlier in accordance with a change in the operating state of the vehicle and upshifted later in accordance with a change in the operating state of the vehicle in comparison with a gear shift map that is used when it is not detected that the vehicle is in the predetermined state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2007
    Publication date: September 20, 2007
    Inventors: Makoto Ogata, Tatsuo Kiuchi
  • Publication number: 20070215395
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is arranged such that a driving force of an electric motor can be transmitted to driving wheels and that a rotary shaft of the electric motor can be coupled with an output shaft of an engine. The vehicle comprises a starter motor provided separately from the electric motor, an electric power source provided separately from a battery that supplies power to the electric motor, to supply power to the starter motor, and a braking force maintaining device configured to be activated by power from the power source to maintain a braking force on the vehicle. When a request for starting the engine is made, if a specified abnormal condition which makes the starting of the engine by the electric motor impracticable is detected, an ECU causes the engine to be started by the starter motor when the braking force maintaining device is not active.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 20, 2007
    Publication date: September 20, 2007
    Inventors: Makoto Ogata, Tatsuo Kiuchi, Kunio Sakata
  • Publication number: 20070205036
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is arranged such that a driving force of an engine and a driving force of an electric motor can be transmitted to driving wheels through a transmission and that the engine and the transmission can be mechanically connected and disconnected by means of a clutch. When an upper limit decelerating torque generable by the electric motor is equal to or greater than a requested decelerating torque, a vehicle ECU disengages the clutch and controls the electric motor to generate the requested decelerating torque. Meanwhile, when the upper limit decelerating torque is smaller than the requested decelerating torque, the vehicle ECU engages the clutch and controls the engine and the electric motor so that the sum of a decelerating torque generated by the engine and a decelerating torque generated by the electric motor is equal to the requested decelerating torque.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 22, 2007
    Publication date: September 6, 2007
    Inventors: Makoto Ogata, Tatsuo Kiuchi
  • Publication number: 20070205735
    Abstract: A hybrid electric vehicle is capable of transmitting driving forces of an engine and an electric motor to driving wheels through an automatic transmission and of releasing mechanical connection between the engine and the transmission by a clutch. A torque control unit switches between deceleration implemented only by the motor and deceleration by the engine and the motor by controlling the clutch based upon magnitude relation between a required deceleration torque and an upper limit deceleration torque generable by the motor. The required torque and the upper limit deceleration torques become equal to each other when the revolution speed of the motor is predetermined revolution speed. The predetermined revolution speed for the required deceleration torque corresponding to a forward gear related to downshift of the transmission differs from revolution speed that falls in the range of revolution speed fluctuation of the motor at the time of the downshift.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 6, 2007
    Publication date: September 6, 2007
    Inventors: Tatsuo Kiuchi, Takashi Kobayashi
  • Publication number: 20070187161
    Abstract: In a control system for a hybrid electric vehicle equipped with an engine and an electric motor, when it is judged that the vehicle is in a preset state where torque required in the electric motor is zero, storage-rate retention control is carried out by causing the electric motor to generate minute torque having an absolute value smaller than the torque of the electric motor, which is required for a forced charge or discharge.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 15, 2007
    Publication date: August 16, 2007
    Inventor: Tatsuo Kiuchi