Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Yasuhiro Kaya

Kiyoshiro Ueoka

Yoshio Hasegawa

Shunsuke Oyama

Tadashi Nakagawa

Kensuke Kamichi

Koji Yamamoto

Manabu Orihashi

Kentaro Tomo

Junji Tokieda

An exhaust heat recovery system () includes: an exhaust heat exchanger () that is communicated with a catalytic converter () through an exhaust gas pipe (A), and that recovers exhaust heat into a coolant; and heat transfer restriction means () provided between the catalytic converter () and the exhaust heat exchanger (). The heat transfer restriction means () includes a heat insulator () disposed between a first exhaust gas pipe () and a second exhaust gas pipe () that constitute the exhaust gas pipe (A), and. restrains a released heat from the catalytic converter () from reaching the exhaust heat exchanger ().

Exhaust heat recovery system

The drive control of the invention adopted in a hybrid vehicle specifies an operation line L to give a greater torque in a low rotation speed area of an engine with an increase in vehicle speed and controls the operation of the engine according to the specified operation line L. The engine can thus be driven at a higher-efficiency drive point, while the driving-related background noise effectively masks some abnormal noise or muffled noise, which may be caused by the operation of the engine in a low rotation speed-high torque area. This arrangement desirably prevents the driver and the other passenger from feeling odd and uncomfortable due to the abnormal noise or muffled noise and enhances the energy efficiency of the hybrid vehicle.

Hybrid vehicle and control method of hybrid vehicle

In a vehicle, it is determined whether a driver has requested increased driving force based on an accelerator opening degree. If the driver has requested increased driving force, a vehicle speed at the time of the request for increased driving force is derived. Three-dimensional map which corresponds to different vehicle speed and which shows a predetermined relationship of the accelerator opening degree (Acc), the vehicle speed and a required torque are then used to set the required torque. The maps are set such that the required torque increases with respect to the accelerator opening degree when the vehicle speed is low. Further, the maps are set such that when the vehicle speed is high, (i) even if the accelerator opening degree changes a little, the required driving force does not change a large amount, and (ii) the required driving force remains substantially constant when the vehicle speed is in a high speed region. By adopting this configuration, the driver's request is closely correlated with the vehicle speed at the time of the request for increased driving force, and thus the vehicle can be driven with a driving force that accords with the driver's request.

Power output device, control method for the same, and vehicle equipped therewith

In response to a downshift operation (step S) in a moving motor vehicle under an accelerator released state, a torque demand correction value T&#x3b1;(T) is set to give the greater torque variation against the lower speed in a downshifting gear position and against the higher vehicle speed V, until elapse of a preset time period since the downshift operation (step S). A torque demand Tr* to be output to a drive shaft of the motor vehicle is updated by adding the torque demand correction value T&#x3b1;(T) to a previous setting of the torque demand Tr* (step S). A motor is controlled to decelerate the motor vehicle with the updated torque demand Tr*. The torque variation thus attained is equivalent to a temporary torque variation applied to the drive shaft with a variation in rotation speed of an engine in response to a downshift operation in a conventional motor vehicle equipped with a stepped automatic transmission for torque conversion of the output power of the engine. The arrangement of the invention thus enables the driver of the motor vehicle to have the improved gearshift feeling.

Motor vehicle and control method of motor vehicle

A vehicle having a sun gear, a carrier, and a ring gear of a planetary gear mechanism respectively connected to a first motor, an engine, and a drive shaft and second motor. When the combination of measured accelerator opening and measured vehicle speed is in an ordinary acceleration area, the vehicle sets a torque demand to decrease with an increase in measured vehicle speed at a specific reduction rate that ensures substantially constant output power to the drive shaft corresponding to the accelerator opening. When the combination of the measured accelerator opening and the measured vehicle speed is in an acceleration feel improvement area, on the other hand, the vehicle sets the torque demand to an extent of or below a maximum allowable value of the torque demand to decrease with an increase in measured vehicle speed at a lower reduction rate than the specific reduction rate.

Vehicle and control method of the same

A meter display device includes a display panel that can display a plurality of different types of display information on the same position. The display information includes, at the least, first display information related to a hybrid vehicle and second display information related to the hybrid vehicle. The meter display device also includes a meter control unit that performs control such that any one of the plurality of different types of display information are displayed on the display panel.

Method display device, display method for the same, and hybrid vehicle equipped therewith

In response to a coasting drive instruction for measurement of a driving resistance of a hybrid vehicle, the coasting control procedure of the invention prohibits a change of a gear position in a transmission and stops both an engine and a motor MGThe coasting control procedure calculates a canceling torque, which cancels out a torque applied to a ring gear shaft or a drive shaft via a power distribution integration mechanism by generation of an inertia torque accompanied with a rotation speed change of the motor MGThe calculated canceling torque is set to a torque command Tm* of a motor MGand the motor MGis driven and controlled with the torque command Tm*. This arrangement makes the ring gear shaft or the drive shaft completely free and enables accurate measurement of the driving resistance of the hybrid vehicle during such a coasting drive of the hybrid vehicle in a fully non-driving state.

Hybrid vehicle and driving resistance measurement method of hybrid vehicle

In response to an upshift of a gearshift position SP in a sequential gearshift range, the drive control of the invention once lowers the rotation speed Ne of an engine. This variation in rotation speed of the engine enables the driver to have adequate gear change feeling, which is similar to the familiar gear change feeling in a conventional motor vehicle equipped with a stepped automatic transmission. Namely the drive control of the invention effectively prevents the driver from feeling something is wrong.

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Toyota, Japan

Yasuhiro Kaya