Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Ron Kepner

Cliff Carlson

Chris Teslak

Chuanchi Tang

Robert Scott Lippert

Bob Roethler

Peter Chalk

A system for braking the wheels of a hydraulic hybrid vehicle includes a brake pedal having a range of pedal displacement including a deadband displacement range, an accumulator containing fluid at relatively high pressure, a reservoir containing fluid at lower pressure, a pump/motor having variable volumetric displacement connected to the accumulator and reservoir, and driveably connected to the wheels; a system responsive to brake pedal displacement in the deadband range for placing the pump/motor in a pump state wherein the pump/motor is driven by the wheels and pumps fluid from the reservoir to the accumulator; and a control valve for changing the volumetric displacement of the pump/motor in response to displacement of the brake pedal.

Deadband regenerative braking control for hydraulic hybrid vehicle powertrain

A system for a hydraulically driven vehicle includes a pump producing fluid flow at an outlet, pump-motors having variable flow rates for driving the wheels, a hydraulic rail having a pressure and connecting the pump and the pump-motors, sensors producing signals representing rail pressure, pump-motor speed, pump-motor displacement, and a controller for determining a target hydraulic system parameter, determining, based at least in part on the flow rate of the pump-motor, rail pressure, and a flow rate produced by the engine-pump, a flow rate produced by the engine-pump that is required to produce the target system parameter, and adjusting an engine operating parameter of a cylinder-pump bank such that the demanded magnitude of the system parameter is produced.

Multiple pressure mode operation for hydraulic hybrid vehicle powertrain

A system for transmitting power hydraulically to and from the wheels of a motor vehicle includes an accumulator containing fluid at relatively high pressure, a reservoir containing fluid at lower pressure, and a pump/motor driveably connected to the wheels and having a variable volumetric displacement for pumping fluid between the accumulator and the reservoir. A first circuit connects the inlet to the reservoir and the outlet to the accumulator. A second circuit includes a first path having a low flow rate capacity, a second path having a higher flow rate capacity. A controller switches between pumping operation and motoring operation, opens and closes the first path during motoring operation, and reduces the displacement before switching between pumping operation and motoring operation.

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Ann Arbor, MI, United States of America

Ron Kepner