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EP-4737191-A1 - BATTERY ELECTRIC VEHICLE AND CONTROL METHOD

EP4737191A1EP 4737191 A1EP4737191 A1EP 4737191A1EP-4737191-A1

Abstract

A battery electric vehicle includes one or more processors (102) that control an output of an electric motor (2) based on an operated state of a driving operation member (22, 24) and a travel state of the battery electric vehicle and control a gear stage of a transmission (18) in accordance with a shifting schedule. A first shifting schedule is a shifting schedule for when the battery electric vehicle is not in an on-demand mode. While the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode, the one or more processors (102) set a shifting schedule to a second shifting schedule. The second shifting schedule is configured such that a change to the gear stage on a high speed side is restricted compared with the first shifting schedule.

Inventors

  • Fujii, Kazuki

Assignees

  • TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20251017

Claims (14)

  1. A battery electric vehicle comprising: an electric motor (2) as a drive source; a driving operation member (22, 24) configured to be used for driving; a transmission (18) configured to transmit an output of the electric motor (2) to a drive wheel of the battery electric vehicle after changing the output depending on a gear stage; and one or more processors (102) configured to: control the output of the electric motor (2) based on an operated state of the driving operation member (22, 24) and a travel state of the battery electric vehicle; communicate with one or more storage devices (103), the one or more storage devices (103) being configured to manage a plurality of on-demand models modeled after a plurality of virtual mobilities different from one another in driving environment properties in response to driving operation of a driver; while the battery electric vehicle is not in an on-demand mode, control the gear stage of the transmission (18) in accordance with a first shifting schedule; while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode, control the gear stage of the transmission (18) in accordance with a second shifting schedule, the second shifting schedule being configured such that a change to a gear stage on a high speed side is restricted compared with the first shifting schedule, acquire, from the one or more storage devices (103), a target on-demand model corresponding to a target virtual mobility selected from the virtual mobilities, based on the operated state of the driving operation member (22, 24) and the travel state of the battery electric vehicle, calculate, using the target on-demand model, a virtual acceleration of the target virtual mobility in response to driving operation of the driver, and control the output of the electric motor (2) such that an acceleration of the battery electric vehicle becomes the virtual acceleration.
  2. The battery electric vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising the one or more storage devices (103).
  3. The battery electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the second shifting schedule is configured such that a change to the gear stage on the high speed side is not performed as long as the battery electric vehicle is able to maintain a maximum value of a drive force that the battery electric vehicle is able to output at a current vehicle speed of the battery electric vehicle.
  4. The battery electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the second shifting schedule is configured such that the gear stage is set to a gear stage with a highest gear ratio regardless of the operated state of the driving operation member (22, 24) and the travel state of the battery electric vehicle.
  5. The battery electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors (102) are further configured to, while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode: determine whether the battery electric vehicle is in a fuel efficiency-prioritized situation in which prioritizing fuel efficiency is required; and control the gear stage of the transmission (18) in accordance with the first shifting schedule while the battery electric vehicle is in the fuel efficiency-prioritized situation.
  6. The battery electric vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the one or more processors (102) are configured to: while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode, acquire a state of charge of a battery of the battery electric vehicle; and while the state of charge of the battery is equal to or lower than a threshold value, determine that the battery electric vehicle is in the fuel efficiency-prioritized situation.
  7. The battery electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors (102) are further configured to, while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode: determine whether the battery electric vehicle is in a high-speed travel executing situation in which executing high-speed travel is required; and control the gear stage of the transmission (18) in accordance with the first shifting schedule while the battery electric vehicle is in the high-speed travel executing situation.
  8. The battery electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors (102) are further configured to, while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode, control the gear stage of the transmission (18) in accordance with the first shifting schedule instead of the second shifting schedule in a case that the target virtual mobility corresponds to any one of one or more specific mobilities.
  9. The battery electric vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the one or more processors (102) are configured to, while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode: calculate a target drive force of the battery electric vehicle for adapting the acceleration of the battery electric vehicle to the virtual acceleration; and change motor torque output by the electric motor (2) so as to give the target drive force to the battery electric vehicle.
  10. The battery electric vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein: each of the on-demand models has a parameter relating to the driving environment property; and the one or more processors (102) are configured to, while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode, set the parameter of the target on-demand model depending on the target virtual mobility.
  11. The battery electric vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a speaker, wherein the one or more processors (102) are further configured to, while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode: based on the operated state of the driving operation member (22, 24) and the travel state of the battery electric vehicle, generate, using the target on-demand model, a virtual sound that is supposed to be audible to the driver in the target virtual mobility in response to driving operation of the driver; and output the virtual sound from the speaker.
  12. The battery electric vehicle according to claim 11, wherein: the virtual mobilities include an engine vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine; and while the target virtual mobility is the engine vehicle, the virtual sound is a pseudo-engine sound that is generated by the internal combustion engine of the target virtual mobility.
  13. A control device (101) mounted on the battery electric vehicle according to claim 1.
  14. A control method of a battery electric vehicle equipped with: an electric motor (2) as a drive source; a driving operation member (22, 24) configured to be used for driving; a transmission (18) configured to transmit an output of the electric motor (2) to a drive wheel of the battery electric vehicle after changing the output depending on a gear stage; and a control device (101), the control method comprising: controlling the output of the electric motor (2) based on an operated state of the driving operation member (22, 24) and a travel state of the battery electric vehicle; communicating with one or more storage devices (103), the one or more storage devices (103) being configured to manage a plurality of on-demand models modeled after a plurality of virtual mobilities different from one another in driving environment properties in response to driving operation of a driver; while the battery electric vehicle is not in an on-demand mode, controlling the gear stage of the transmission (18) in accordance with a first shifting schedule; and while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode, controlling the gear stage of the transmission (18) in accordance with a second shifting schedule, the second shifting schedule being configured such that a change to a gear stage on a high speed side is restricted compared with the first shifting schedule, acquiring, from the one or more storage devices (103), a target on-demand model corresponding to a target virtual mobility selected from the virtual mobilities, based on the operated state of the driving operation member (22, 24) and the travel state of the battery electric vehicle, calculating, using the target on-demand model, a virtual acceleration of the target virtual mobility in response to driving operation of the driver, and controlling the output of the electric motor (2) such that an acceleration of the battery electric vehicle becomes the virtual acceleration.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present disclosure relates to a battery electric vehicle having an electric motor as a drive source, and to a control device and a control method. In particular, the present disclosure relates to a battery electric vehicle equipped with a transmission that transmits an output of an electric motor to a drive wheel after changing the output depending on a gear stage. 2. Description of Related Art An electric motor can be controlled so as to output desired motor torque through control of an applied voltage or a field magnet. A technology has been under consideration that takes advantage of this to reproduce various driving sensations in a battery electric vehicle by appropriately controlling an electric motor of the battery electric vehicle. One of elements that characterize driving sensations is an acceleration sensation in response to a driver's driving operation. The acceleration sensation is an important point when a driver enjoys driving. In particular, preference for an acceleration sensation is different from one driver to another. Drivers sometimes feel like enjoying the acceleration sensations of various mobilities depending on their moods. In view of this, the inventors involved with the present disclosure have been exploring an "on-demand mode" that simulatively reproduces the acceleration sensations of a plurality of virtual mobilities in one battery electric vehicle by using a plurality of models modeled after these virtual mobilities. In the on-demand mode, an electric motor is controlled so as to reproduce, in the battery electric vehicle, an acceleration property of a virtual mobility selected from the virtual mobilities when it is driven. Meanwhile, a battery electric vehicle equipped with a transmission has been hitherto under consideration. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2019-178741 (JP 2019-178741 A) discloses a technology that, concerning a battery electric vehicle equipped with a transmission, improves the driving performance by shortening a gear shifting time. Equipping a battery electric vehicle with a transmission can improve the power performance of the battery electric vehicle. Another literature that indicates the technological level of this technical field is Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2018-191366 (JP 2018-191366 A). SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A case will be considered where a battery electric vehicle equipped with a transmission travels in the on-demand mode. The battery electric vehicle in the on-demand mode is controlled so as to reproduce the acceleration property of a virtual mobility in response to a driver's driving operation. On the other hand, the transmission is controlled in accordance with a predetermined shifting schedule in the battery electric vehicle. Thus, the reproducibility of the acceleration property of the virtual mobility can be impaired due to downshifting of a gear stage that occurs depending on the driver's driving operation. One example is a case where the driver performs kickdown of an accelerator pedal to quickly accelerate the battery electric vehicle while the battery electric vehicle is executing steady travel at between a medium speed and a high speed. The present disclosure provides a technology that can improve the reproducibility of the acceleration property of a virtual mobility in a battery electric vehicle equipped with a transmission and in a control device and a control method. A first aspect of implementation of the present disclosure relates to a battery electric vehicle having an electric motor as a drive source. The battery electric vehicle includes a driving operation member configured to be used for driving, a transmission configured to transmit an output of the electric motor to a drive wheel of the battery electric vehicle after changing the output depending on a gear stage, and one or more processors. The one or more processors are configured to control the output of the electric motor based on an operated state of the driving operation member and a travel state of the battery electric vehicle. The one or more processors are configured to communicate with one or more storage devices. The one or more storage devices are configured to manage a plurality of on-demand models modeled after a plurality of virtual mobilities different from one another in driving environment properties in response to driving operation of a driver. The one or more processors are configured to, while the battery electric vehicle is not in an on-demand mode, control the gear stage of the transmission in accordance with a first shifting schedule. The one or more processors are configured to, while the battery electric vehicle is in the on-demand mode: control the gear stage of the transmission in accordance with a second shifting schedule; acquire, from the one or more storage devices, a target on-demand model corresponding to a target virtua