Denso Corporation

Eiji Sobue

Yoshihiko Sugawara

Atsushi Hayashida

Satoshi Kouchiyama

Ryoichi Ijima

Daisuke Nomura

Syo Ichihashi

A charge controller for charging a battery of a plug-in vehicle with a plurality of electric power sources includes: a driving route estimation element; an estimated electric power consumption amount calculator; a weather information obtaining element; a sunshine information obtaining element; a solar photovoltaic generation electric power amount calculator; an electric power shortage amount calculator for calculating an electric power shortage amount when the solar photovoltaic generation electric power amount is smaller than an estimated electric power consumption amount; a charge schedule preparation element for preparing a charge schedule, which represents a first charge time for charging the battery with a solar photovoltaic generation system and a second charge time for charging the battery by the electric power shortage amount with another electric power source; and a charge control element for controlling to charge the battery according to the charge schedule.

Charge controller and navigation device for plug-in vehicle

A device for informing to a driver a speed limit set for an own lane included in a multi-lane road is installed in a navigation system mounted on an automotive vehicle. The device includes a road surface camera for taking pictures of the speed limit painted on a road surface and informing devices such as a display panel and/or a speaker. The speed limit set for the own lane is specified based on the pictures taken by the road surface camera, and the specified speed limit is informed to the driver. Speed limits set for neighboring lanes may be also specified, and if they are different from the speed limit set for the own lane, this is informed to the driver together with the speed limits set for the neighboring lanes. It is not required to distinguish the own lane from among other lanes included in the multi-lane road because the speed limit set for the own lane is detected by the camera mounted on the own vehicle.

Speed limit informing device installed in on-board navigation system

Growing community of inventors

Kariya, Japan

Eiji Sobue