JPH11268680A - Vehicle with auxiliary power unit and control method therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To automatically detect the state of the operator or the like and the running environment of the vehicle and constantly determine the optimal assist ratio in accordance with the detected state of the operator or the like and the running environment of the vehicle. SOLUTION: The present invention provides a manual driving force detecting element 5 which detects manual driving force transmitted to the vehicle running portion 1 from the manual actuator 2, a first storage element 6 which stores at least the data of the manual driving force detected by the manual driving force detecting element 5, and an auxiliary ratio determining element 7 which determines the auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power actuator 3 relative to the manual actuator 2 based on the manual driving force data stored in the first storage element 6 and the manual driving force data detected by the manual driving force detecting element 5.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit that is driven using human power and auxiliary power of an auxiliary power unit, and a control method therefor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a known driving device such as an electric motor is provided as an auxiliary power device, and the auxiliary power of the auxiliary power device is added to the manual driving force of an operator or a user, and the auxiliary power for traveling and driving is provided. Vehicles with devices are known. Specifically, for example, an auxiliary power generated by driving an electric motor is added to a pedal depressing force (rotational force) generated by an operator depressing a pedal, or a rotational force generated by turning a hand rim, and a wheel is driven. There are a bicycle with an electric motor that rotates and runs, a wheelchair with an electric motor, a luggage carrier and the like. In such a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, it is common to detect a manual driving force and control the electric motor based on the detected manual driving force. That is, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power device, the vehicle is driven by controlling the ratio of the above-described auxiliary power to the detected manual driving force (hereinafter referred to as “auxiliary ratio”). As a conventional vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, there is a vehicle with an electric motor disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-34385. In this conventional vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, the auxiliary ratio is configured to gradually increase as the traveling time elapses. That is, in the vehicle with the conventional auxiliary power device, the electric motor is rotated at a high speed in proportion to the traveling time of the vehicle to increase the ratio of the auxiliary power by the electric motor.

[0003]

In a vehicle with the above-mentioned conventional auxiliary power unit, if the running time becomes long regardless of the condition of the operator, for example, the degree of fatigue of the operator or the running environment of the vehicle. It was configured to simply increase the auxiliary ratio. For this reason, in this conventional vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, the auxiliary ratio may increase more than necessary with the passage of the traveling time, and may become larger than the auxiliary ratio desired by the operator or the like. That is, in the vehicle with the conventional auxiliary power device, it was not possible to optimally travel and drive the vehicle according to the state of the operator or the like and the traveling environment.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and automatically detects the state of an operator or the like and the traveling environment of a vehicle, and detects the state of the detected operator or the like. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle with an auxiliary power device that can always determine an optimal auxiliary ratio according to the traveling environment of the vehicle and can drive and drive the vehicle, and a control method thereof.

[0005]

According to the present invention, there is provided a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, a vehicle running unit for running, a human powered unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle running unit, and an auxiliary power for the vehicle running unit. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device provided with an auxiliary power drive unit that provides the following: at least data of a human power drive force detected by the human power drive unit that detects the human power drive force, A first storage unit,
And an auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power drive unit to the human power drive unit based on the data of the human drive force stored in the first storage unit and the data of the human drive force detected from the human drive force detection unit. Is provided. With this configuration, the state of the operator, such as the degree of fatigue of the operator, can be automatically detected, and the optimum assist ratio can be determined to drive and drive the vehicle.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, a vehicle traveling unit for traveling, a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle traveling unit, and an auxiliary for supplying an auxiliary power to the vehicle traveling unit. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device including a power drive unit, wherein a human-powered driving force detection unit that detects the human-powered driving force, a driving environment detection unit that detects a driving environment, and a driving environment detected from the driving environment detection unit. Based on the data, a human-powered driving force converter that converts the data of the human-powered driving force detected from the human-powered driving force detector into data of the human-powered driving force when traveling in the reference traveling environment, A second storage unit in which the reference value of the manual driving force is stored in advance, and a reference value of the manual driving force stored in the second storage unit;
An auxiliary ratio determining unit that determines an auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power driving unit to the human power driving unit based on the converted data of the manual driving force from the manual driving force conversion unit. With this configuration, the state of the operator, etc.,
And the driving environment can be automatically detected, and the optimum auxiliary ratio can be determined to drive and drive the vehicle.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, a vehicle running unit for running, a human powered unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle running unit, and an auxiliary for providing an auxiliary power to the vehicle running unit. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device including a power drive unit, wherein the travel distance calculation unit calculates the travel distance of the vehicle, and the auxiliary power to the human power drive unit based on the travel distance from the travel distance calculation unit An auxiliary ratio determining unit that determines an auxiliary ratio of the driving unit is provided. With such a configuration, the state of the operator or the like can be automatically detected, and the optimum auxiliary ratio can be determined to drive and drive the vehicle.

[0008] A control method of a vehicle with an auxiliary power device according to the present invention comprises a vehicle running unit for running, a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle running unit, and an auxiliary for providing an auxiliary power to the vehicle running unit. A method for controlling a vehicle with an auxiliary power device including a power driving unit, wherein a human driving force applied to the vehicle traveling unit is detected by a human driving force detection unit,
Storing the detected data of the manual driving force in the first storage unit, and the data of the previous human driving force stored in the first storage unit; and the current human driving force from the human driving force detection unit. And determining the auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power drive unit to the human power drive unit based on the above data. With this configuration, the state of the operator, such as the degree of fatigue of the operator, can be automatically detected, and the optimum assist ratio can be determined to drive and drive the vehicle.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control method of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, comprising: a vehicle traveling unit for performing traveling; a human-powered driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle traveling unit; A method of controlling a vehicle with an auxiliary power device provided with an auxiliary power drive unit that provides a human-powered driving force applied to the vehicle traveling unit, and a traveling environment by a human-powered driving force detection unit and a traveling environment detection unit, respectively. Detecting, based on the current driving environment data from the driving environment detecting unit, the current human driving force data from the human driving force detecting unit, the human driving force when traveling in the reference driving environment. The step of converting into the data of, and based on the converted data of the human driving force from the human driving force conversion unit and the reference value of the human driving force in the reference traveling environment, And a step of determining an auxiliary ratio of auxiliary power drive unit. With this configuration, the state of the operator and the like and the traveling environment can be automatically detected, and the vehicle can be driven and driven by determining the optimal assist ratio.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a control method of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, comprising: a vehicle traveling unit for traveling; a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle traveling unit; A method of controlling a vehicle with an auxiliary power device including an auxiliary power drive unit that provides a driving power to the human-powered drive unit based on a travel distance from the vehicle and a travel distance from the travel distance calculation unit. A step of determining an auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power drive unit. With such a configuration, the state of the operator or the like can be automatically detected, and the optimum auxiliary ratio can be determined to drive and drive the vehicle.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment showing a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit and a control method thereof according to the present invention will be described.
This will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, as an example of a preferred embodiment of a vehicle with an auxiliary power device according to the present invention, an example will be described in which a bicycle that travels by combining leg power (pedal force) and auxiliary power is configured. Also,
Another example is a wheelchair.

FIG. 1 is a structural view showing a schematic structure of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicle. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vehicle with an auxiliary power device according to the present embodiment includes a vehicle traveling unit 1 for traveling the vehicle, a human-powered driving unit 2 for driving the vehicle traveling unit 1, and an auxiliary vehicle. A power drive unit 3 and a control unit 4 for controlling the auxiliary power drive unit 3 are provided. The vehicle traveling unit 1 includes wheels 1a, 1b for traveling the vehicle in contact with a road surface, and support mechanisms 1c, 1d for rotatably supporting the wheels 1a, 1b, respectively. The vehicle running unit 1 is supplied with the manual driving force from the human driving unit 2 and the auxiliary power from the auxiliary power driving unit 3, whereby the wheels 1a and 1b rotate and the vehicle runs. The human power drive unit 2 includes a pedal 2a for receiving human power such as an operator and a user, and a crank arm 2b, a chain, a one-way clutch, and a resultant force for transmitting the human power to the vehicle traveling unit 1 as human power. A transmission mechanism 2c including a shaft is provided. The auxiliary power drive unit 3 includes a known drive device 3a such as an electric motor and a battery 3b such as a secondary battery constituting a power supply of the drive device 3a, and operates (rotates) based on an instruction signal from the control unit 4. I do. Further, the auxiliary power drive unit 3
Transmits the rotational force as auxiliary power to the vehicle running unit 1 via the transmission mechanism 2c. In addition, the auxiliary power drive unit 3 sequentially outputs information indicating the magnitude of the auxiliary power, such as a current supplied to the drive device 3a, to the control unit 4.

The control section 4 stores a manual driving force detecting section 5 for detecting the manual driving force transmitted from the manual driving section 2 to the vehicle running section 1 and data of the manual driving force from the manual driving force detecting section 5. A first storage unit 6 and an auxiliary ratio determining unit 7 that estimates and determines the state of the operator and the like and determines the ratio of the auxiliary power to the detected manual driving force (hereinafter, referred to as “auxiliary ratio”). ing. The human-powered driving force detection unit 5 includes, for example, a known magnetostrictive torque sensor, and detects the human-powered driving force at a predetermined sampling cycle (for example, 1 msec) using the torque sensor. The human-powered driving force detection unit 5
The data of the detected manual driving force is output to the storage unit 6 and the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7. The first storage unit 6 is configured by a RAM or a similar storage element, and stores data of the manual driving force input from the manual driving force detection unit 5. The first storage unit 6 rewrites the manual driving force data input from the manual driving force detection unit 5 for a predetermined time (for example, 10 seconds after the value of the manual driving force first exceeds the predetermined value),
Hold. The auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 determines a predetermined period (for example,
Every 10 sec), the data of the manual driving force from the manual driving force detection unit 5 and the data of the manual driving force stored in the first storage unit 6 are compared. Thereby, the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7
Can automatically estimate and judge the state of the operator or the like, for example, the degree of fatigue, and determine the optimal auxiliary ratio. More specifically, for example, the data of the current manual driving force input from the manual driving force detection unit 5 is stored in the first storage unit 6.
If the data is smaller than the previous manual driving force data stored in the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7, the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 determines that the degree of operator fatigue is increasing, and sets an auxiliary value larger than the current auxiliary ratio. Determine the ratio. As a result, an instruction signal for increasing the auxiliary ratio is output from the control unit 4 to the auxiliary power drive unit 3, and larger auxiliary power is transmitted to the vehicle traveling unit 1, so that fatigue of the operator can be reduced. Become. still,
The above-described sampling cycle, time interval, and cycle are set in the control unit 4 by an input device (not shown) such as a numeric keypad. Further, the input device may be configured to set and input the data of the human-powered driving force desired by the operator into the first storage unit 6.

Next, a control method for a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG.
2 is a flowchart showing an operation of the vehicle with an auxiliary power device shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 3, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment, first, the human-powered driving force detecting unit 5 detects the human-powered driving force transmitted from the human-powered driving unit 2 to the vehicle traveling unit 1 (Step S1). Subsequently, the manual driving force detecting unit 5
Outputs the data of the detected manual driving force to the first storage unit 6 and the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 (Step S2). Next, the assist ratio determination unit 7 compares the data of the current manual driving force input from the manual driving force detection unit 5 with the data of the previous manual driving force stored in the first storage unit 6. Then, it is determined whether or not the data of the current manual driving force is larger than the previous data of the manual driving force (step S3).
If the current data of the manual driving force is larger than the previous data of the manual driving force, the assist ratio determination unit 7 determines that the degree of the operator's fatigue is decreasing, and the assist ratio smaller than the current assist ratio is determined. The ratio is determined (step S4). As a result, an instruction signal for reducing the auxiliary ratio is output from the control unit 4 to the auxiliary power drive unit 3. If the current data of the manual driving force is smaller than the previous data of the manual driving force, the assist ratio determination unit 7 determines that the degree of the operator's fatigue is increasing, and the assist ratio is larger than the current assist ratio. The ratio is determined (step S5). As a result, an instruction signal for increasing the auxiliary ratio is output from the control unit 4 to the auxiliary power drive unit 3.

As described above, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment, the human-powered driving force detecting unit 5 detects the human-powered driving force transmitted from the human-powered driving unit 2 to the vehicle traveling unit 1, and stores the first data. The data of the human-powered driving force detected by the unit 6 is rewritten and held for a predetermined time. Further, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment, the data of the current manual driving force input from the manual driving force detection unit 5 by the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 and the previous human power stored in the first storage unit 6 It is compared with the driving force data. As a result, the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment can run and drive the vehicle by automatically estimating and determining the state of the operator, determining an optimal auxiliary ratio, and driving the vehicle.

In addition to the above description, the maximum value of the manual driving force at a predetermined traveling time interval is stored in the first storage unit 6, and the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 uses the maximum value as a reference value. A configuration in which the degree of fatigue of the operator is estimated and determined may be used. Further, the degree of fatigue of the operator may be estimated based on the average value or the effective value of the human driving force that changes periodically. Further, the degree of operator fatigue may be estimated based on the average speed of the vehicle and the like. In addition, when it is determined that the degree of fatigue of the operator is reduced, an auxiliary ratio smaller than the current auxiliary ratio is determined and the auxiliary ratio is reduced. However, it is not always necessary to reduce the auxiliary ratio. However, a configuration that maintains the current auxiliary ratio may be used. In addition, when determining the assist ratio, the human-powered driving force is compared with the previous data, but the present invention is not limited to the value of the data and may have a range. For example, the configuration may be such that the auxiliary ratio is not changed if it is within the range of 90 to 110% of the previous data.

<< Second Embodiment >> FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, in a configuration of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, a driving environment detecting unit for detecting a driving environment of the vehicle is provided, and an auxiliary ratio is determined based on the detected data of the manual driving force and the driving environment. The other parts are the same as those shown in the first embodiment, and the duplicate description thereof will be omitted. As shown in FIG. 4, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment, the driving environment detecting unit 8 that detects the traveling environment of the vehicle is input from the manual driving force detecting unit 5 based on the detected data of the traveling environment. A manual driving force conversion unit 9 that converts the data of the manual driving force into data of the manual driving force when the vehicle travels in the reference driving environment, and a reference value of the human driving force in the reference driving environment that is stored in advance. Two storage units 10 are provided in the control unit 14. The traveling environment detection unit 8 includes a known speed sensor for detecting the speed V of the vehicle, and a detection member for detecting the inclination angle θ of the road surface in contact with the vehicle. The detected speed V and the inclination angle θ
Is used to calculate the running resistance d acting on the vehicle. The traveling environment detector 8 determines the speed V, the inclination angle θ, and the traveling resistance d.
Is output to the human-powered driving force converter 9 as the traveling environment of the vehicle. The running resistance d is defined by the inclination angle θ, the dynamic frictional force from the road surface, the air resistance due to wind, and the like.

The human-powered driving force conversion unit 9 converts the human-powered driving force data input from the human-powered driving force detection unit 5 into a human-powered driving force when the vehicle runs in the reference traveling environment, using a predetermined equation of motion of the vehicle. Convert to data (details will be described later). The manual driving force conversion unit 9 outputs the converted data of the manual driving force to the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7. Here, the reference traveling environment refers to a traveling environment when the inclination angle is 0 degree and the vehicle does not receive kinetic frictional force or air resistance from the road surface, that is, when there is no traveling resistance. . The second storage unit 10 is configured by a RAM or a similar storage element, and stores in advance a reference value of the manual driving force in the reference traveling environment.
I remember. The assist ratio determination unit 7 compares the data of the manual driving force from the manual driving force conversion unit 9 with the reference value of the manual driving force in the reference traveling environment stored in the second storage unit 10 in advance. This makes it possible for the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 to automatically estimate and determine the state of the operator or the like and determine the optimal auxiliary ratio. As described above, the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment automatically detects the current human-powered driving force and the driving environment, and based on the data of the human-powered driving force and the driving environment, determines the optimum auxiliary ratio. Is determined, and the vehicle can be driven and driven.

Here, a method of converting the data of the manual driving force in the manual driving force conversion section 9 will be specifically described. First, the vehicle is not subjected to the running resistance d without the inclination angle θ.
A conversion method when the vehicle travels on a road surface will be described. In this case, the equation of motion of the vehicle is represented by the following equation (1). In equation (1), the mass of the entire vehicle is m
And the acceleration of the vehicle and the gravitational acceleration are α and g, respectively. Further, in the equation (1), the manual driving force and the assist ratio are represented by Fh and b, respectively.

Mα + mgsinθ = Fh + b × Fh (1)

In equation (1), assuming that the inclination angle θ = 0, the equation of motion of the vehicle in the reference traveling environment is given by the following equation (2).
It is represented by an equation. The expression (1) can be transformed into the following expression (3).

Mα = Fh ′ + b × Fh ′-(2) mα = Fh + b × Fh-mgsin θ-(3)

However, in equation (2), Fh 'indicates a human-powered driving force in the reference traveling environment to be converted. By modifying these equations (2) and (3), the following equation (4) can be obtained.

Fh ′ = Fh−mgsin θ ÷ (1 + b) − (4)

Each parameter on the right side of the above equation (4) is a known value or a value detected by the manual driving force detecting unit 5 and the driving environment detecting unit 8. That is, when the vehicle travels on a road surface having an inclination angle θ without receiving the traveling resistance d,
The human-powered driving force conversion unit 9 is provided with the mass m and the gravitational acceleration g of the entire vehicle, the current auxiliary ratio b from the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7, the human-powered driving force detection unit 5, and the driving environment detection. By substituting the current human-powered driving force Fh and the inclination angle θ detected by the unit 8 into the equation (4), it is possible to convert and calculate the human-powered driving force Fh ′ when traveling in the reference traveling environment. it can.

Next, the vehicle receives the running resistance d and receives the inclination angle θ.
A conversion method when the vehicle travels on a road surface will be described. In this case, the equation of motion of the vehicle is expressed by the following equation (5) using the velocity V.

Mα + dV + mgsinθ = Fh + b × Fh (5)

In equation (5), assuming that the running resistance in the reference running environment is d 'and the inclination angle θ = 0, the equation of motion of the vehicle in the reference running environment is expressed by the following equation (6).
Equation (5) can be transformed into the following equation (7).

Mα + d′ V = Fh ′ + b × Fh ′ --- (6) mα + d′ V = Fh + b × Fh + (d′−d) V−mgsinθ −− (7)

By modifying the equations (6) and (7), the following equation (8) can be obtained.

Fh ′ = Fh + ((d′−d) V−mgsin θ) ÷ (1 + b) − (8)

Here, the running resistance d of the vehicle is given by the following (9)
It can be calculated by using an equation. This equation (9) is a modification of the above equation (5), and when the traveling environment detection unit 8 detects the inclination angle θ, the traveling environment detection unit 8 converts the detected inclination angle θ into (9) The running resistance d at the present time is calculated by substituting into the equation, and the calculated running resistance d is output to the human-powered driving force converter 9 together with the detected inclination angle θ.

D = ((1 + b) Fh−mα−mgsinθ) ÷ V −− (9)

By substituting the running resistance d obtained by the equation (9) into the equation (8), the manual driving force Fh 'can be calculated. That is, when the vehicle travels on the road surface having the inclination angle θ in response to the traveling resistance d, the human-powered driving force converter 9
Are input in advance to the mass m of the entire vehicle, the gravitational acceleration g, the running resistance d 'in the reference running environment, the current assist ratio b from the assist ratio determiner 7, and the human-powered driving force detector 5. The detected current human-powered driving force Fh, the current speed V detected by the traveling environment detecting unit 8, the inclination angle θ,
And, by substituting the running resistance d into the equation (8), it is possible to convert and calculate the human driving force Fh ′ when the vehicle travels in the reference traveling environment. The equation of motion of the vehicle is not limited to the above equations (1) and (5), but may include, for example, only the running resistance d. Further, the configuration in which the running resistance d is obtained by calculation using the equation (9) has been described, but a configuration in which the running resistance d is directly detected using a known detector may be used.

Next, a control method for a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG.
5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle with an auxiliary power device shown in FIG. 4. As shown in FIG. 5, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit of this embodiment, the human driving force detecting unit 5 detects the human driving force transmitted from the human driving unit 2 to the vehicle traveling unit 1, and the driving environment detecting unit 8 Detects the traveling environment (step S6). Subsequently, the human-powered driving force detection unit 5 and the driving environment detection unit 8 output the detected data of the human-powered driving force and the driving environment to the human-powered driving force conversion unit 9 (step S).
7). Next, the human-powered driving force conversion unit 9 converts the data of the human-powered driving force into the data of the human-powered driving force when traveling in the reference driving environment, using the input data of the human driving force and the data of the traveling environment. (Step S8). Subsequently, the manual driving force conversion unit 9 outputs the converted data of the manual driving force to the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 (step S9). Next, the assist ratio determining unit 7 converts the converted human driving force data input from the human driving force converting unit 9 and the reference value of the human driving force in the reference driving environment stored in the second storage unit 10. Then, it is determined whether or not the converted manual driving force data is larger than the reference value (step S10). If the converted manual driving force data is larger than the reference value,
The auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 determines that the degree of fatigue of the operator has decreased, and determines an auxiliary ratio smaller than the current auxiliary ratio (step S11). Thereby, the control unit 4
Outputs an instruction signal to the auxiliary power drive 3 to reduce the auxiliary ratio. When the converted data of the manual driving force is smaller than the reference value, the assist ratio determination unit 7 determines that the degree of the operator's fatigue is increasing, and determines an assist ratio larger than the current assist ratio. (Step S12). As a result, an instruction signal for increasing the auxiliary ratio is output from the control unit 4 to the auxiliary power drive unit 3.

As described above, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment, the human driving force detecting unit 5 detects the human driving force transmitted from the human driving unit 2 to the vehicle traveling unit 1 and the driving environment detecting unit 8 detects the traveling environment of the vehicle. Further, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment, the human-powered driving force converter 9
Converts the input data of the human-powered driving force at the present time into the data of the human-powered driving force when traveling in the reference driving environment, using the input data of the human-powered driving force and the data of the traveling environment. Then, the assist ratio determining unit 7 calculates the converted data of the human driving force input from the human driving force converting unit 9 and the reference value of the human driving force in the reference traveling environment stored in the second storage unit 10. Are compared. Thereby, the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit of the present embodiment automatically estimates and determines not only the state of the operator but also the driving environment, and determines the optimal auxiliary ratio,
The vehicle can be driven and driven. As the reference value of the manual driving force, for example, a maximum value, an average value, and an effective value thereof may be used. Further, the change of the auxiliary ratio may be performed each time, or may be delayed (for example, after the value of the manual driving force becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value).

<< Third Embodiment >> FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to a third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, in the configuration of the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit, a travel distance calculation unit for calculating the travel distance of the vehicle is provided, and the assist ratio is determined based on the calculated travel distance. The other parts are the same as those shown in the first embodiment, and the duplicate description thereof will be omitted. As shown in FIG. 6, the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment has a mileage calculating unit 11 for calculating the mileage of the vehicle.
Is provided in the control unit 24. This traveling distance calculation unit 11
Calculates the travel distance of the vehicle by detecting the speed using, for example, a known speed sensor that detects the speed of the vehicle. The traveling distance calculation unit 11 outputs the calculated traveling distance to the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7. As the mileage increases, the degree of operator fatigue generally increases. For this reason, the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 estimates and determines that the degree of operator fatigue has increased in accordance with the increase in the traveling distance, and selects and determines a large auxiliary ratio. As a result, an instruction signal for increasing the auxiliary ratio is sent from the control unit 4 to the auxiliary power drive unit 3.
, And larger assist power is transmitted to the vehicle traveling unit 1, so that fatigue of the operator can be reduced.

Next, a control method for a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG.
7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle with an auxiliary power device shown in FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 7, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit of this embodiment, the traveling distance calculation unit 11 calculates the traveling distance of the vehicle (Step S13). Subsequently, the mileage calculation unit 11 calculates the mileage calculated by the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7.
(Step S14). Next, the auxiliary ratio determination unit 7 determines that the degree of operator fatigue is increasing based on the traveling distance of the vehicle input from the traveling distance calculation unit 11, and the auxiliary ratio that is larger than the current auxiliary ratio. The ratio is determined (step S15). As a result, an instruction signal for increasing the auxiliary ratio is output from the control unit 4 to the auxiliary power drive unit 3.

As described above, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present embodiment, the traveling distance calculating unit 11 calculates the traveling distance of the vehicle, and the auxiliary ratio determining unit 7 increases the auxiliary ratio in accordance with the increase in the traveling distance. doing. As a result, the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit of this embodiment uses a simpler configuration than those of the other embodiments, automatically estimates and determines the state of the operator, and determines the optimal auxiliary ratio. Thus, the vehicle can be driven and driven. In the above description, the configuration in which the auxiliary ratio is increased in accordance with the increase in the traveling distance has been described. However, the configuration may be such that the traveling time is counted and the auxiliary ratio is increased in accordance with the increase in the traveling distance and the traveling time. .

It should be noted that the auxiliary ratio may be determined by appropriately combining the control units of the first to third embodiments. Further, the configuration may be such that the data of the manual driving force detected by the manual driving force detection unit is integrated, and the degree of fatigue of the operator is estimated and determined to determine the assist ratio.

[0041]

As described above, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit and the control method therefor according to the present invention, the human-powered driving force detecting unit detects the human-powered driving force transmitted from the human-powered driving unit to the vehicle running unit, and Is rewritten at predetermined time intervals and held. Further, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit according to the present invention, the auxiliary ratio determining unit determines whether the data of the current manual driving force input from the manual driving force detection unit and the previous manual driving force stored in the first storage unit. Compare with the data. Thereby, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit of the present invention, the degree of operator fatigue is automatically estimated,
By making the determination, the optimum auxiliary ratio can be determined, and the vehicle can be driven and driven. According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit and a control method therefor, wherein the human-powered driving force detecting unit detects the human-powered driving force transmitted from the human-powered driving unit to the vehicle running unit, and the driving environment detecting unit detects the driving environment of the vehicle. Is detected. Further, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit, the human-powered driving force conversion unit uses the input human-powered driving force data and the traveling environment data to convert the inputted current human-powered driving data into the reference driving environment. Is converted into the data of the human-powered driving force in the case of performing.
Then, the assist ratio determining unit compares the converted data of the manual driving force input from the manual driving force conversion unit with the reference value of the manual driving force in the reference traveling environment stored in the second storage unit. ing. As a result, the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit automatically estimates not only the state of the operator but also the driving environment,
The vehicle can be driven and driven by judging and determining the optimal auxiliary ratio. In another aspect of the invention, the mileage calculating unit calculates the mileage of the vehicle, and the assist ratio determining unit increases the assist ratio as the mileage increases. As a result, in the vehicle with the auxiliary power device, the configuration of the control unit can be simplified, and the state of the operator is automatically estimated and determined, and the optimal auxiliary ratio is determined, and the vehicle is driven and driven. be able to.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a structural diagram showing a schematic configuration of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the vehicle with an auxiliary power unit shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle with the auxiliary power unit shown in FIG. 6;

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 vehicle traveling unit 2 human power driving unit 3 auxiliary power driving unit 4, 14, 24 control unit 5 human power driving force detection unit 6 first storage unit 7 auxiliary ratio determination unit 8 running environment detection unit 9 human power driving force conversion unit 10 th 2 storage unit 11 Running distance calculation unit

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yasuo Enomoto 1006 Kazuma Kadoma, Osaka Prefecture Inside Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device, comprising: a vehicle traveling unit for traveling, a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle traveling unit, and an auxiliary power driving unit for supplying an auxiliary power to the vehicle traveling unit. A human-powered driving force detection unit that detects the human-powered driving force, a first storage unit that stores at least data of the human-powered driving force detected from the human-powered driving force detection unit, and a first storage unit. An auxiliary ratio determining unit that determines an auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power driving unit to the human power driving unit based on the stored data of the manual driving force and the data of the human driving force detected from the human driving force detecting unit. A vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, comprising: 2. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device, comprising: a vehicle traveling unit for traveling; a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle traveling unit; and an auxiliary power driving unit for supplying an auxiliary power to the vehicle traveling unit. A human-powered driving force detection unit that detects the human-powered driving force, a driving environment detection unit that detects a driving environment, based on data of the driving environment detected from the driving environment detection unit, the human-powered driving force detection unit A human-powered driving force converting unit that converts the data of the human-powered driving force detected from the data into the data of the human-powered driving force when traveling in the reference traveling environment, and stores the reference value of the human-powered driving force in the reference traveling environment in advance. 2 based on the reference value of the human-powered driving force stored in the second storage unit and the data of the human-powered driving force after the conversion from the human-powered driving force conversion unit. Auxiliary power drive Assisting power apparatus with a vehicle, characterized by comprising an auxiliary ratio determining unit that determines an auxiliary ratio. 3. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device, comprising: a vehicle traveling unit for traveling; a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle traveling unit; and an auxiliary power driving unit for applying an auxiliary power to the vehicle traveling unit. A travel distance calculation unit that calculates a travel distance of the vehicle, and an auxiliary ratio determination that determines an auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power drive unit to the human power drive unit based on a travel distance from the travel distance calculation unit. A vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, comprising: a vehicle. 4. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device, comprising: a vehicle traveling unit for traveling; a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle traveling unit; and an auxiliary power driving unit for applying an auxiliary power to the vehicle traveling unit. Detecting a human-powered driving force applied to the vehicle traveling unit by a human-powered driving force detection unit; storing data of the detected human-powered driving force in a first storage unit; Based on the data of the previous manual driving force stored in the first storage unit and the current data of the manual driving force from the manual driving force detection unit, the auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power driving unit to the human driving unit is calculated. A method for controlling a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit, comprising a step of determining. 5. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device, comprising: a vehicle traveling unit for performing traveling; a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle traveling unit; and an auxiliary power driving unit for supplying an auxiliary power to the vehicle traveling unit. Controlling the human-powered driving force applied to the vehicle traveling unit and the traveling environment by a human-powered driving force detection unit and a traveling environment detection unit, respectively, and the current traveling from the traveling environment detection unit Based on the environmental data, the step of converting the data of the current manual driving force from the manual driving force detection unit to the data of the manual driving force when traveling in the reference traveling environment, and the manual driving force conversion unit. The auxiliary power drive unit comprising: determining an auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power drive unit to the human power drive unit based on the data of the human drive force after the conversion and the reference value of the human drive force in the reference traveling environment. Method of controlling the apparatus with a vehicle. 6. A vehicle with an auxiliary power device, comprising: a vehicle running unit for running, a human power driving unit for applying a manual driving force to the vehicle running unit, and an auxiliary power driving unit for applying an auxiliary power to the vehicle running unit. Calculating the travel distance of the vehicle, and determining an auxiliary ratio of the auxiliary power drive unit to the human power drive unit based on the travel distance from the travel distance calculation unit. A method for controlling a vehicle with an auxiliary power unit.