JP2001149515A - Motor driven golf cart - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a motor driven golf cart which may be occasionally charged in a source under play by a power generating and charging device mounted on the golf cart. SOLUTION: Whether or not the golf cart is under traveling is decided and if the golf cart is under traveling, the magnitude of discharging current (discharging quantity) is decided. If the discharge current is large, an engine for driving a generator is started (on). When the engine is decided to be started, the magnitude of the discharging current (discharging quantity) is decided, and if the discharging current is small, judgment is made that the charging disquantity is small and that the replenishing charging is no more needed. The engine for driving the generator is then stopped (off).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an electric golf cart for carrying a golf bag or the like at a golf course.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various types of golf carts have been conventionally provided for golf courses. For example, a manually driven type, an electric type, a non-riding type using an engine as a driving force, and a riding type are often used. In addition, unlike other electric vehicles, the electric golf cart runs along a course, but is operated unmanned in a wide area with unstable road conditions, sometimes by remote control operation.

FIG. 1 shows an external side view of a two-seater electric riding golf cart developed by the present applicant. This electric golf cart is an electric drive type with automatic and manual switching means, and can load a golf back at the rear,
At the top there is a roof for sun and rain.

The golf cart 1 covers an upper part of a body frame 4 supported by a pair of left and right front wheels 2 and rear wheels 3 with a front cowl 4a and a rear cowl 4b.
Seat 5a and step 5b seated in front of rear cowl 4b
Is mounted on the front end of a steering shaft 6b protruding above a steering column 6a supported at the front of the seat 5a so that the steering can be operated in a seated position on the seat 5a. It is configured with a wheel 6 attached. A sensor 7 for detecting an induced current of an induction wire 8 buried underground is attached to a front portion of the vehicle body.

The control system of the electric golf cart generally includes a microcomputer of a control box, an operation unit, a steering unit, a sensor unit, a power supply unit, a motor unit, a parking unit, a main brake unit, and the like.

When the electric golf cart having such a configuration is to be operated manually, setting the automatic operation switching lever to "manual" switches to a manual driving mode, in which the operation of the steering wheel (steering) is performed in the same manner as a normal riding cart. By operating the accelerator and the brake, the player can move forward and backward by operating the player himself.

Next, when traveling automatically, the automatic driving mode is set by setting the automatic operation switching lever to "automatic". At that time, an induction current flowing through a loop line buried along the cart road (traveling path) is detected, and steering in left and right traveling directions is performed. Similarly, control information such as speed and stop by the buried magnet array is provided. By reading, the car runs on a cart road while performing automatic control, automatic increase / decrease, and automatic stop. Then, the user can start and stop at an arbitrary place using the remote control or the start / stop button.

Further, in the case of automatic running, when an output from a cart guard antenna of a golf cart in a forward direction or a stop or a running golf cart is detected by a cart guard detecting means, a brake is automatically applied to prevent a collision. If a danger is detected by various safety devices, such as when the vehicle stops over, an emergency stop is performed.

[0009]

These conventional electric golf carts use only a battery as a power source and do not have a self-charging device. In addition, the battery of the golf cart is naturally limited in terms of size and weight, so that the average power supply capacity required for completing one round has some allowance, and it is important to play for a long time or for special running. Although there may be a shortage of power capacity when driving, there is usually no place on the course to charge the battery that is the power source during play, and there is a possibility of getting stuck due to insufficient power capacity. Was. for that reason,
At the end of one round at the golf course, it was necessary to return to the cart house and charge the vehicle at all times in order to continuously supply power from the battery power source and run.

[0010] Also, even if you charge at the cart house,
Normally, a cart house needs to be provided with a station for charging the golf carts one by one, and a large area is required to install stations for all the golf carts owned by the golf course. . In addition, if the total number of carts cannot be stored in the station, the charging cord must be pulled to the cart in the cart house for golf carts outside the station, and other carts are obstructive and troublesome.

In addition, a large-capacity power source is required to charge all carts at one time, and a long time is required to charge the carts in a distributed manner. In addition, a dedicated management staff was required to charge the battery power source, which was a hindrance to the rationalization of golf courses.

Therefore, the present invention always monitors the discharge current and charge current of a power source (battery) as a power source regardless of whether the vehicle is running or stopped, so that the battery is not charged in a golf cart house. In addition to preventing power shortage during play by charging the golf course at any time with a power generation and charging device consisting of a generator and a charging device mounted on the golf cart, power saving and streamlining at the golf course It is an object of the present invention to provide an electric golf cart capable of achieving:

[0013]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electric golf cart, comprising: a power generating device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart; The charging device was provided in the main body of the golf cart.

In this manner, the self-charging is performed at any time during the course of play by the power generating / charging device including the power generating device and the charging device mounted on the golf cart, so that the power supply capacity is insufficient during long-time play or special driving operation. In addition, it is possible to prevent the inability to run, and to omit the large-capacity charging device of the cart house, to improve the space efficiency, and to eliminate the need for dedicated management personnel for charging.

An electric golf cart according to a second aspect of the present invention is provided with a power generating / charging device including a power generating device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart and a charging device in a main body of the golf cart, and running. Regardless of whether the battery is in the middle or in the stopped state, a configuration is provided that includes a device that detects the charged amount or the discharged amount of the battery and starts and stops the power generation device based on the detected value.

In this way, regardless of whether the golf cart is running (including downhills) or stopped, the amount of discharge and charge of the power source (battery), which is the power source, is constantly monitored by the detection circuit. By performing self-charging at any time on the middle course, it is possible to prevent running failure due to lack of power supply capacity during long-time play or special driving operation.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electric golf cart, comprising a power generating / charging device including a power generating device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart and a charging device in a main body of the golf cart. The power generator consists of an engine, a generator, and a controller, and detects the amount of charge or discharge of the battery, whether running or stopped,
A configuration is provided that includes a device that starts and stops the power generation device based on the detected value.

An electric golf cart according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is provided with a power generating / charging device comprising a power generating device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart and a charging device in a main body of the golf cart. The power generator includes a fuel cell, and includes a device that detects the amount of charge or discharge of the battery regardless of whether the vehicle is running or stopped, and starts and stops the power generator based on the detected value. did.

An electric golf cart according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is provided with a power generating / charging device including a power generating device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart and a charging device in a main body of the golf cart, and running. Regardless of whether the vehicle is stopped or not, the amount of charge or discharge of the battery is detected, and in an electric golf cart equipped with a device for starting and stopping the power generation device based on the detected value, the amount of charge is represented by a charge current value. It was configured to detect.

An electric golf cart according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is provided with a power generating / charging device including a power generating device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart and a charging device in a main body of the golf cart, and running. Regardless of whether the battery is in or stopped, in an electric golf cart equipped with a device for detecting the amount of charge or discharge of the battery and starting and stopping the power generation device based on the detected value, the amount of discharge is represented by a discharge current value. It was configured to detect.

In this manner, the current detection circuit constantly monitors the discharge current value and the charge current value of the power source (battery) regardless of whether the golf cart is running (including downhill) or stopped. The current value and the discharge current value can stably detect the state of charge and discharge of the battery against disturbances such as load fluctuations, and can monitor and prevent overcharge of the battery.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, an electric golf cart according to the first to fifth aspects is configured to be a type capable of automatically steering the electric golf cart.

As described above, an electric golf cart of a type that can be automatically steered may be operated unattended by remote control operation. However, the electric golf cart includes a generator and a charging device mounted on the golf cart without driver's monitoring. The battery can be self-charged at any time during the course of play by the power generation / charging device.

An electric golf cart according to an eighth aspect of the present invention is provided with a power generating / charging device including a power generating device and a charging device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart in a main body of the golf cart. The amount of charge or discharge is stored in a memory, and the power generator is controlled based on the value.

Thus, the current detection circuit constantly monitors the discharge current value and the charge current value of the power source (battery) regardless of whether the golf cart is running (including downhill) or stopped. Since the charge current value and the discharge current value thus stored are stored in the memory, the state of charge of the battery can always be ascertained, and the supplementary charge can be reliably performed when the charge time comes.

An electric golf cart according to a ninth aspect of the present invention is provided with a power generating / charging device including a power generating device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart and a charging device in a main body of the golf cart. In an electric golf cart that stores the amount of charge or discharge in the memory and controls the power generation device based on the value, the amount of charge or discharge of the power supply stored in the memory is read when the power supply can be charged or when necessary. It was configured to be a point in time.

In this manner, the detected charging current value and discharging current value are stored in the memory, so that the state of charge of the battery can be always grasped, and the replenishment charge can be reliably performed at the time of charging. In particular, when the golf cart is stopped, it is not necessary to start the engine in order to detect the charge current value and check the charge amount of the battery, so that no extra noise is generated.

[0028]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention is applicable to either a golf cart that can be manually driven or a golf cart that can be automatically steered. An example applied to a riding golf cart is shown. FIG. 1 is a side view showing the appearance of an electric golf cart according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the internal structure of the same, and FIG. 3 shows the control system configuration.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The exterior side surface of the electric golf cart of FIG. In FIG. 2, a plurality of power supplies (batteries) 11 for the traveling motor 13 and other motors are attached to the body frame 4. The transmission 12 is provided with a traveling motor 13 on the axle of the rear wheel 3.

Another feature of the present invention is that the traveling motor 1 has a novel structure that has not been provided in conventional electric golf carts.
3 and other power source (battery) 1
1 is equipped with a power generating / charging device 10 for charging. Then, a control circuit section 9 for performing overall control is arranged on the vehicle body frame 4.

The control system configuration of the electric golf cart will be described with reference to FIG. The motor unit, which is a power unit, is a traveling motor 1
3, a main brake (MB) motor 14, a parking brake (PB) motor 15, an automatic / manual switching (HM) motor 16, and a steering control (SM) motor 17.

The traveling motor 13 has a motor control unit 18 and a current detection circuit. The main brake motor 14 includes a main brake motor control circuit 1.
9, a current detection circuit and a brake position sensor are arranged. A control unit 20 for the parking brake motor 15 is provided and a current detection circuit is provided. A detection circuit is arranged in the control unit 21 of the automatic / manual switching motor 16. The control unit 22 is provided in the steering control motor 17,
Each motor is controlled by a main CPU (microcomputer) 23.

The power supply (battery) 11 of the power unit is connected to a power system via a current detection circuit 24. Either the charging current or the discharging current of the power supply (battery) 11 is detected by the current detecting circuit 24, and the generator 10 a of the power generating / charging device 10 is controlled by the command of the main CPU 23.
5 is controlling.

The power generating / charging device 10 has a configuration in which a generator 10a is attached to an output shaft of an engine as a power source.
It is composed of a cell motor that starts the engine of the power source and a choke control unit. After converting the AC voltage to the DC voltage from the generator 10a, it is connected to the terminal of the charger 10b. Further, the main CPU 23 is provided with a memory 26 for storing the charging current value and the discharging current value periodically detected by the current detection circuit 24.

The control system of the steering unit has an induction sensor, a torque sensor linked to a steering wheel, and a steering motor (not shown). The torque sensor is arranged as a means for detecting a steering operation amount. .

In the case of manually driving the riding golf cart having such a configuration, when the automatic driving switching lever is set to "manual", a manual driving mode is set, and the handle is operated in the same manner as a normal riding golf cart. As a result, the means for detecting the steering operation amount of the torque sensor responsive to the rotation of the steering wheel to the left or right is activated,
The steering motor is rotated leftward via the main CPU 23. Then, by operating the steering wheel (steering) and operating the accelerator and the brake, the player can perform forward and backward driving by the operation of the player himself.

Next, in the case of automatic steering, when the automatic operation switching lever is set to "automatic", the automatic steering mode is set. At that time, the induction current flowing through the loop line buried along the cart path (running path) is detected as an induction signal by the left and right induction sensors, amplified, detected, and then passed through a differential amplifier to obtain a differential output. Then, an analog input is made to the main CPU 23.

The vehicle runs on a cart while performing automatic control, automatic increase / decrease, and automatic stop according to a command from the main CPU 23. Further, the user can start and stop at an arbitrary place by operating the remote control or the start / stop button. Also, when a danger is detected by various safety devices such as a cart guard detecting means, the emergency stop is performed. In particular, in the case of the cart guard detecting means, since the stop operation is automatically performed, the vehicle is stopped while maintaining a certain distance from the preceding vehicle.

In the above configuration, the electric golf cart according to the present invention is capable of measuring the discharge current value and the charge current value of the power source (battery) 11 as a power source regardless of whether the vehicle is traveling (including downhill) or stopped. The detection circuit 24 constantly monitors the detected charge current value and the detected discharge current value, and periodically stores the detected charge current value and discharge current value in the memory 26. Here, attention is paid to the charge current value and the discharge current value because stable battery charge and discharge states can be detected even with disturbance such as load fluctuation, and overcharging of the battery can be monitored and prevented. It is.

Then, while the golf cart is running,
When the main CPU 23 determines that the discharge current value has increased and increased in the current detection circuit 24 and the charge amount of the battery has decreased, the engine that drives the generator 10a of the power generation / charging device 10 is started (ON), The battery 24 is charged via the charger 10b. Thereafter, the charge current value is checked by the current detection circuit 24, and when the discharge current value decreases and becomes smaller than a predetermined value, the engine is stopped and the charging operation is terminated. Each time the golf cart starts running in this way, the current detection circuit 24 checks the discharge current value and performs the same charging operation.

If the golf cart is stopped, the engine for driving the generator 10a of the power generator / charger 10 is started,
After the start of the engine is determined, the charging current value is checked by the current detection circuit 24. If the charging current value is equal to or more than a predetermined value, the battery 24 is charged through the generator 10a and the charger 10b, and the charging current equal to or less than the predetermined value Continue the charging operation until it reaches the value. If the current detection circuit 24 checks and determines that the charging current value is equal to or less than a predetermined value, the engine is stopped (OFF) and the golf cart stands by in a stopped state. Next, when running is started again, the discharge current value is checked by the current detection circuit 24.

Further, since the engine of the power generating / charging device 10 generates a certain amount of noise during driving, the noise is generated as much as possible in a place where the golfer during play concentrates his mind (for example, near a tee ground or green). Therefore, by embedding magnet information for indicating the engine start prohibition area in advance on the cart road of the course, when the golf cart enters the section, the information is read and the power generation / charging device Ten charging operations can be locked.

Further, the discharge current value and the charge current value of the power supply (battery) 11 are constantly monitored by the current detection circuit 24, and the detected charge current value and discharge current value are periodically stored in the memory 26. The state of charge of the battery can be grasped irrespective of whether the golf cart is running or stopped. In particular, when the golf cart is stopped, it is not necessary to start the engine in order to detect the charge current value and check the charge amount of the battery, so that no extra noise is generated.

The battery is charged by the power generation / charging device 10.
In addition to the above, some regenerative braking of the traveling motor 13 during braking of the golf cart is performed to some extent. As described above, according to the present invention, the battery 11 can be charged at any time on the course by the power generation / charging device 25 without charging the battery 11 in the cart house of the golf course. In addition, a small fuel cell can be used as the power generation / charging device.

Next, the power generation / charge control of the electric golf cart according to the present invention will be described with reference to the flow of the power generation / charge control sequence shown in FIG. In the figure, by starting the power generation / charging control in step S0, it is determined in step S1 whether the golf cart is running.

If the vehicle is traveling, the process proceeds to step S2, and in step S2, the magnitude of the discharge current (discharge amount) is determined. If the discharge current is small, it is determined that the amount of discharge is small and the supplementary charge is not necessary, and the determination of the magnitude of the discharge current is similarly repeated. If the discharge current is large, it is determined that the discharge amount is large, and the process proceeds to step S3, where the generator driving engine is started (ON).

In step S4, it is determined whether the engine has started. If it did not start (N
In the case of G), the process again proceeds to step S3, and the engine for driving the generator is started (ON). If it is determined that the engine has started, the process proceeds to the next step S5, and the magnitude of the discharge current (discharge amount) is determined.

If the discharge current is large, it is determined that the discharge amount is still large, and the determination of the magnitude of the discharge current is similarly repeated. If the discharge current is small, it is determined that the amount of discharge is small, and no additional charge is necessary any more.
Then, the generator driving engine is stopped (OFF). Then, the process returns to step S1 to repeat the same control operation.

If it is determined in step S1 that the golf cart is stopped, the flow advances to step S7 to call out the periodically updated discharge current (discharge amount) and charge current (charge amount) stored in the memory. , Step S
At 8, it is determined whether the battery is fully charged. If not fully charged, it is determined that charging is necessary, and the process proceeds to the next step S9, where the engine for driving the generator is started (ON).

In step S10, it is determined whether the engine has started. If the engine has not been started (NG), the process proceeds to step S9 again, and the engine for driving the generator is tried to be started (ON). If it is determined that the engine has started, the process proceeds to the next step S11, where the magnitude of the charging current (charging amount) is determined. if,
When the charge current is large, it is determined that the charge amount is still small, and the determination of the magnitude of the discharge current is similarly repeated. If the charging current is small, it is determined that the charging amount is large and the supplementary charging is no longer necessary, and the process proceeds to step S12, and the generator driving engine is stopped (OFF).

After the generator driving engine is stopped, it is determined in step S13 whether the golf cart is running.
If it is determined that the golf cart is stopped, the same determination operation is repeated. If the traveling of the golf cart is started during the determination in step S13, the process proceeds to step S2, and the above-described traveling control mode is repeated.

When it is determined in step S8 whether the battery is fully charged, if it is determined that the battery is fully charged and fully charged, the process proceeds to step S13. If it is determined that the golf cart is stopped, the same process is performed. Is repeated. If the traveling of the golf cart is started during the determination in step S13, the process proceeds to step S2, and the above-described traveling control mode is repeated.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
A description will be given based on FIG. The description of the same configuration as that of the first embodiment is omitted.

In the control diagram of the electric golf cart shown in FIG. 5, unlike the above-described embodiment, the power generation / charging device 10 includes a fuel cell 10c capable of extracting electric power from hydrogen and oxygen, and a fuel cell 10c. It comprises a reformer 10d for extracting from natural gas or the like, and a charger 10b for charging a power supply (battery) 11 with electric power extracted from the fuel cell 10c.

More specifically, the fuel cell 10c will be described. When natural gas or the like and steam are supplied to the reformer 10d, hydrogen is extracted by the function of the reformer 10d and supplied to the fuel cell 10c. Also, the fuel cell 10c
The air is also taken in, and oxygen is supplied from the air. Then, in the fuel cell 10c, a chemical reaction is caused by the hydrogen and oxygen, and electric power is extracted as electric energy. Then, this power is charged to the power supply (battery) 11 by the charger 10b.

Then, the power source (battery) 11 of the power unit
Are connected to a power system via a current detection circuit 24.
Either the charging current or the discharging current of the power supply (battery) 11 is detected by the current detection circuit 24, and the fuel cell 10 c of the power generation / charging device 10 is controlled by the generator control circuit 25 in accordance with a command from the main CPU 23.

As described above, the fuel cell 10c used in this embodiment is a fuel cell that takes in hydrogen and converts it into electric power. However, the present invention is not particularly limited to this, and natural gas or alcohol can be used directly as fuel for power generation. It may be one that uses a hydrogen storage alloy for storing hydrogen.

Next, the fuel cell 10
Control using c will be described with reference to FIG. In this flowchart as well, the description of the same operations as those in FIG. 4 shown in the above-described embodiment will be omitted, and only different portions will be described.

Steps S0 to S2 are the same as those in the above-described embodiment. In step S3, the fuel cell for power generation is started (ON). Specifically, preparations such as raising the temperature so that hydrogen can be taken out from the reformer are performed.

Then, in step S4, it is determined whether or not the power generation is possible, such as whether the temperature of the reformer has risen to a temperature at which hydrogen can be taken out. If power generation is not possible (NG), step S3 is performed again.
And preparations are made until the fuel cell is ready for power generation. If it is determined that the fuel cell can generate power, the process proceeds to the next step S5, where the magnitude of the discharge current (discharge amount) is determined.

If the discharge current is small, it is determined that the amount of discharge is small and the supplementary charge is not necessary any more, and the process proceeds to step S6, in which the power generation of the fuel cell is stopped (OFF).
Then, the process returns to step S1 to repeat the same control operation.

If it is determined in step S1 that the golf cart is stopped, step S7, step S8
If the battery is not fully charged, it is determined that charging is necessary, and the process proceeds to the next step S9, where power generation of the fuel cell is started (ON).

Then, in step S10, it is determined whether or not the power generation is possible, such as whether the temperature of the reformer has risen to a temperature at which hydrogen can be taken out. If the power generation is not possible (NG), step S is performed again.
Preparations are made until the fuel cell reaches a state where the fuel cell can generate power. If it is determined that the fuel cell can generate power, the process proceeds to the next step S11, where the magnitude of the charging current (charging amount) is determined.

If the discharge current is small, it is determined that the amount of discharge is small and the supplementary charge is no longer necessary, and the process proceeds to step S12, in which the power generation of the fuel cell is stopped (OFF).

After stopping the fuel cell for power generation, step S1
It is determined in step 3 whether the golf cart is running, and if it is determined that the golf cart is stopped, the same determination operation is repeated. If the traveling of the golf cart is started during the determination in step S13, the process proceeds to step S2, and the above-described traveling control mode is repeated.

As described above, since the charging device for charging the power supply (battery) with the fuel cell is configured, it is possible to provide an environment-friendly power supply that emits no exhaust gas.

In the second embodiment, the fuel cell is used only as a charging device for a power supply (battery). However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the fuel cell is used as a power supply to generate power until the temperature rises. The power supply (battery) may be used only when it cannot be performed, and the power supply may be switched to the fuel cell after the fuel cell can generate power. With such a configuration, a battery that needs to be charged, such as a lead battery, is not used much, and the fuel cell is mainly used. Therefore, there is an effect that the necessity of maintenance is reduced and the usability is improved.

[0068]

As described above, the golf cart of the present invention self-charges the power source (battery) at any time during the course of play by the power generating / charging device including the power generating device and the charging device mounted on the golf cart. In this way, it is possible to prevent running failure due to shortage of power capacity during long-time play or special driving operation, and it is possible to omit the large-capacity charging device of the cart house, improve space efficiency and manage dedicated charge for charging Personnel can be made unnecessary.

Further, regardless of whether the golf cart is running (including downhill) or stopped, the amount of discharge and charge of the power source (battery) as a power source is constantly monitored by the detection circuit. By performing self-charging at any time on the middle course, it is possible to prevent running failure due to lack of power supply capacity during long-time play or special driving operation. In particular, when the amount of discharge and the amount of charge are detected by the charge current value and the discharge current value, the battery charge can be stabilized with respect to disturbance such as load fluctuation,
The discharge state can be detected, and overcharging of the battery can be monitored and prevented.

The current detection circuit constantly monitors the discharge current value and the charge current value of the power source (battery) regardless of whether the golf cart is running (including downhill) or stopped. Since the charge current value and the discharge current value thus stored are stored in the memory, the state of charge of the battery can always be ascertained, and the supplementary charge can be reliably performed when the charge time comes. When the golf cart is stopped, it is not necessary to start the engine in order to detect the charge current value and check the charge amount of the battery, so that no extra noise is generated.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external side view of an electric golf cart.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the electric golf cart.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a control system of the electric golf cart according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an embodiment of a power generation / charge control sequence according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a control system configuration diagram of an electric golf cart according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an embodiment of a power generation / charge control sequence according to the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electric golf cart 2, 3 Front and rear wheels 4 Body frame 5 Riding part 6 Steering wheel 7 Induction sensor 8 Induction line 9 Control circuit part 10 Power generation / charging device 11 Power supply (battery) 12 Mission 13 Traveling motor 14-17 Each part Control motor 18 Motor control unit 19 Main brake motor control circuit unit 20 Parking brake motor control unit 21 Automatic / manual switching motor control unit 22 Steering control motor control unit 23 Main CPU (microcomputer) 24 Current detection circuit 25 Power generation / charging device 26 Generator control circuit

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Takeya Matsushita 2-5-5 Keihanhondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yasushi Otani 2-chome Keihanhondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka No.5-5 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 3D035 AA01 AA05 BA02

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. An electric golf cart having a power generation / charging device including a power generation device and a charging device for charging a battery power source of the electric golf cart, the main body of the golf cart. 2. A device for detecting a charge amount or a discharge amount of a battery irrespective of whether the vehicle is running or stopped, and starting and stopping the power generation device based on the detected value. 2. The electric golf cart according to 1. 3. The electric golf cart according to claim 1, wherein the power generation device includes an engine, a generator, and a control device. 4. The electric golf cart according to claim 1, wherein the power generation device includes a fuel cell. 5. The electric golf cart according to claim 2, wherein the charge amount is detected by a charge current value. 6. The electric golf cart according to claim 2, wherein the amount of discharge is detected by a discharge current value. 7. The electric golf cart according to claim 1, wherein the golf cart is of a type that can be automatically steered. 8. The electric golf cart according to claim 1, wherein a charge amount or a discharge amount of the power supply is stored in a memory, and the power generation device is controlled based on the value. 9. The electric golf cart according to claim 8, wherein the reading of the charge amount or the discharge amount of the power supply stored in the memory is performed when the power supply can be charged or when necessary.