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EP-4741220-A1 - DRIVING CONTROL APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE

EP4741220A1EP 4741220 A1EP4741220 A1EP 4741220A1EP-4741220-A1

Abstract

A method for controlling driving of an electric vehicle using a battery pack (10) including battery cells as a power source in a battery management system (300) may include receiving a first ignition-on signal, activating an emergency driving mode, and discharging the battery pack (10) by setting a discharge voltage of the battery pack (10) in the emergency driving mode to a first discharge voltage that is lower than a normal discharge voltage of a normal driving mode.

Inventors

  • KIM, JAEMYUNG

Assignees

  • SAMSUNG SDI CO., LTD.

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20251105

Claims (15)

  1. A method for controlling an electric vehicle using a battery pack comprising battery cells as a power source, the method comprising: receiving a first ignition-on signal; activating a first discharge voltage mode in response to the first ignition-on signal; setting a discharge voltage of the battery pack in the first discharge voltage mode to a first discharge voltage that is lower than a normal discharge voltage of a normal driving mode; and discharging the battery pack based on the first discharge voltage.
  2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the discharging of the battery pack comprises: connecting the battery pack to an inverter of the electric vehicle; controlling the discharging of the battery pack based on the first discharge voltage; and increasing a cumulative number of operations of the first discharge voltage mode.
  3. The method as claimed in claim 2, further comprising determining whether the cumulative number of the operations of the first discharge voltage mode is less than a first number; wherein the setting a discharge voltage of the battery pack in the first discharge voltage mode comprises: setting the discharge voltage of the battery pack in the first discharge voltage mode to the first discharge voltage when the cumulative number of the operations of the first discharge voltage mode is less than a first number.
  4. The method as claimed in claim 2 or 3, further comprising indicating the battery pack is exhausted when the cumulative number of the operations of the first discharge voltage mode is greater than or equal to a first number.
  5. The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising receiving a second ignition-on signal while the battery pack is not charged after the discharging the battery pack based on the first discharge voltage; activating a second discharge voltage mode based on the second ignition-on signal; setting the discharge voltage of the battery pack in the second discharge mode to a second discharge voltage that is lower than the first discharge voltage; and discharging the battery pack based on the second discharge voltage.
  6. The method as claimed in claim 5, further comprising determining whether a cumulative number of the operations of the first discharge voltage mode is less than a first number; wherein the setting a discharge voltage of the battery pack in the first discharge voltage mode comprises: setting the discharge voltage of the battery pack in the first discharge voltage mode to the first discharge voltage when the cumulative number of the operations of the first discharge voltage mode is less than a first number.
  7. The method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising determining whether a cumulative number of the operations of the second discharge voltage mode is less than a second number; wherein setting the discharge voltage of the battery pack in the second discharge mode comprises: setting the discharge voltage of the battery pack in the second discharge voltage mode to the second discharge voltage when the cumulative number of the operations of the second discharge voltage mode is less than a second number.
  8. The method as claimed in claim 7, wherein the second number is less than the first number.
  9. The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein anodes of the battery cells comprise a mixture of graphite and silicon as an anode active material.
  10. The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein activating a first discharge voltage mode comprises: activating the first discharge voltage mode when a remaining capacity of the battery pack is lower that a predetermined threshold.
  11. An apparatus for controlling driving of an electric vehicle that uses a battery pack comprising battery cells as a power source, the apparatus comprising: a communication circuit configured to receive a first ignition-on signal; and a control circuit configured to activate a first discharge voltage mode in response to the first ignition-on signal and to set a discharge voltage of the battery pack in the first discharge voltage mode to a first discharge voltage that is lower than a normal discharge voltage of a normal driving mode, and to discharge the battery pack based on the first discharge voltage.
  12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the control circuit is configured to determine a cumulative number of operations of the first discharge voltage mode, and to operate in the first discharge voltage mode when the cumulative number of the operations is less than a first number.
  13. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11 or 12, wherein the communication circuit is further configured to receive a second ignition-on signal while the battery pack is not charged after the control circuit discharged the battery pack based on the first discharge voltage; and wherein the control circuit is configured to set the discharge voltage of the battery pack in the second discharge mode to a second discharge voltage that is lower than the first discharge voltage and discharge the battery pack based on the second discharge voltage.
  14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the control circuit is configured to determine whether a cumulative number of the operations of the first discharge voltage mode is less than a first number and set a discharge voltage of the battery pack in the first discharge voltage mode to a first discharge voltage that is lower than a normal discharge voltage when the cumulative number of the operations of the first discharge voltage mode is less than a first number.
  15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the control circuit is configured to determine whether a cumulative number of the operations of the second discharge voltage mode is less than a second number and set the discharge voltage of the battery pack in the second discharge voltage mode to the second discharge voltage when the cumulative number of the operations of the second discharge voltage mode is less than a second number.

Description

BACKGROUND 1. Field This disclosure relates to a driving control apparatus and method for an electric vehicle. 2. Description of the Related Art Electric vehicles use electric motors to drive. The electric vehicles use battery packs, which are high-voltage power sources, to drive the electric motors. The battery pack is a device that stores electric energy to supply the electric power suitable for an electric vehicle. The battery pack of an electric vehicle is controlled to prevent the battery pack from being completely discharged because the performance of the battery pack will continuously deteriorate if the battery pack is completely discharged. However, a situation may occur where the voltage of the battery pack of an electric vehicle is discharged to the discharge end voltage. In this case, the battery pack may be charged using a dedicated battery charger, but there is no solution if there is no dedicated battery charger. SUMMARY At least one or more embodiments provide a driving control apparatus and method for an electric vehicle capable of controlling driving of the electric vehicle in an emergency mode in which driving of the electric vehicle becomes difficult due to a battery pack being discharged toward a discharge end voltage. According to one or more embodiments, a method for controlling an electric vehicle using a battery pack including battery cells as a power source in a battery management system includes receiving a first ignition-on signal, activating a first discharge voltage mode (which may be termed an emergency driving mode), and discharging the battery pack by setting a discharge voltage of the battery pack in the emergency driving mode to a first discharge voltage that is lower than a normal discharge voltage of a normal driving mode. The discharging of the battery pack may include connecting the battery pack to an inverter of the electric vehicle, controlling the discharging of the battery pack based on the first discharge voltage, and increasing a cumulative number of operations of the emergency driving mode. The method may further include determining whether the cumulative number of the operations of the emergency driving mode is less than a first number. The method may further include indicating the battery pack is exhausted when the cumulative number of the operations of the emergency driving mode is greater than or equal to a first number. The discharging of the battery pack may include controlling the discharging of the battery pack in a first discharge voltage mode in which the discharge voltage includes the first discharge voltage, and controlling the discharging of the battery pack in a second discharge voltage mode in which the discharge voltage includes a second discharge voltage that is lower than the first discharge voltage. The controlling the discharge of the battery pack in the second discharge voltage mode may include determining a second ignition-on signal is received while the battery pack is not charged. The controlling the discharge of the battery pack in the first discharge voltage mode may include determining whether a cumulative number of operations of the first discharge voltage mode is less than a first number, wherein the controlling the discharge of the battery pack in the second discharge voltage mode includes determining whether a cumulative number of operations of the second discharge voltage mode is less than a second number. The second number may be less than the first number. Anodes of the battery cells may include a mixture of graphite and silicon as an anode active material. The method may further include operating in the emergency driving mode when a remaining capacity of the battery pack is low. For example where the remaining capacity is below a threshold value. According to one or more other embodiments, an apparatus for controlling driving of an electric vehicle, which uses a battery pack including battery cells as a power source, includes, a communication circuit configured to receive a first ignition-on signal, and a control circuit configured to determine an emergency driving mode is activated in response to the first ignition-on signal, to connect the battery pack to an inverter of the electric vehicle in the emergency driving mode, to set a discharge voltage of the battery pack to be lower than a normal discharge voltage of a normal driving mode, and to discharge the battery pack. The control circuit may be configured to determine a cumulative number of operations of the emergency driving mode, and to operate in the emergency driving mode when the cumulative number of the operations is less than a first number. The emergency driving mode may include a first discharge voltage mode in which the discharge voltage includes a first discharge voltage that is lower than the normal discharge voltage, and a second discharge voltage mode in which the discharge voltage includes a second discharge voltage that is lower than the first discharge volta