Patent Grant
11384968
The invention relates to a method and a control unit for controlling a heat pump system. In addition, the invention relates to a vehicle comprising such a control unit.
Electric vehicles are usually provided with a system for heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC-system), and preferably a heat pump system is used for heating/cooling. In some cases, the heating capacity of such a heat pump system is not sufficient to provide the requisite thermal energy. For example, at a very low ambient temperature, the heating capacity of the heat pump system may not be sufficient for achieving the desired temperature of a passenger compartment of a battery electric vehicle (BEV) or a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV). This problem is usually solved by providing an additional electrical heater. The additional electric heater heats a working fluid and the heat is then transferred to the vehicle cabin via a so-called heater core.
An objective of the invention is to provide a method for controlling a heat pump system by which method the performance of the heat pump system can be improved.
The objective is achieved by a method for controlling a heat pump system, wherein the heat pump system comprising a compressor for compressing a working fluid of the heat pump system and an electric motor for providing an output torque for driving the compressor, comprising the step of recovering heat emitted from the electric motor by heating the working fluid, providing a first control mode and a second control mode for the electric motor, and controlling the electrical motor in a way creating higher heat losses of the electric motor for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode.
The invention is based on the insight that the electric motor driving a compressor of a heat pump system can be controlled in a non-optimal way for meeting a heat demand. For example, at circumstances when the heating capacity of the heat pump system is not sufficient, increasing the heat losses of the electric motor and recovering the heat emitted from the electric motor by heating the working fluid, may result in a higher heat output from the heat pump system (at the same time as the efficiency of the heat pump system is decreased since more electric power is used). In other words, the maximal heating capacity can be increased while the coefficient of performance (COP) of the heat pump system is decreased. This is favorable since an additional heater provided for adding heat only when the ambient temperature is very low can be omitted. This in turn gives a less complicated HVAC-system design at lower cost.
Thus, the “non-optimal” control of the electric motor is related to the efficiency of the electric motor, i.e. the amount of heat losses compared to the output torque provided by the electric motor, whereas the performance of the heat pump system can be improved when the electric motor is run in the second control mode and heat emitted from the electric motor is recovered by heating the working fluid of the heat pump system.
According to one embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled according to the second control mode upon receiving a control signal indicating that a predetermined condition is fulfilled. Hereby, the electric motor can be run with high efficiency according to the first control mode and be switched to the second control mode when there is a need of additional heating of the working fluid of the heat pump system. When no additional heating is requested, the first control mode is preferably used by a default setting where the electric motor is run with highest possible efficiency, for example at or close to the MTPA-line (maximum torque per ampere).
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled according to the second control mode upon receiving said control signal indicating a heating capacity demand on the heat pump system exceeding a threshold value. For example, if the ambient temperature is very low the heating capacity of the heat pump system may not be sufficient to provide the heat required for achieving the desired temperature of a passenger compartment of a vehicle. Then, the electric motor of the compressor can be driven at least temporarily in the second control mode to fulfil the heating capacity demand.
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled according to the second control mode upon receiving said control signal indicating an amount of the working fluid, to be entered into the compressor, being in liquid state exceeding a threshold value. Hereby, the working fluid can be heated by means of the electric motor to achieve vaporization of the working fluid and avoid liquid compression in the compressor of the heat pump system at low ambient temperatures and/or when starting up the system.
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled according to the second control mode upon receiving said control signal indicating a temperature and/or pressure of the working fluid below a threshold value. For example, when starting up the system, the temperature and pressure is a good indication on the occurrence of working fluid being in the liquid state. By a temperature and/or pressure sensor the need of heating the working fluid by means of the electric motor can be indicated.
Thus, the electric motor can be used as a heat source also when the temperature of the working fluid of the heat pump system should be increased for any other reason than a heating capacity demand on the heat pump system.
Another example where the electric motor can be controlled according to the second control mode is at low ambient temperature, where the evaporator of the heat pump system may need to be defrosted. Instead of using any additional heating device during a defrost mode, the temperature of the working fluid can be increased by heat from the electric motor for defrosting the evaporator.
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled in a way resulting in a higher stator current for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode. Hereby, increased heat losses of the stator of the electric motor can be achieved in the second control mode.
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled in a way creating higher heat losses of stator windings of the electric motor for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode. Hereby, a major difference in heat losses of the electric motor between the first control mode and the second control mode can be achieved.
The heat loss in the windings is increased when the electric current in the windings is increased and maximum heat loss is determined by the maximum current allowed. This in turn is dependent on the conductor wire of the windings and the capacity of the cooling system of the electric motor.
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled with a first stator current angle in the first control mode and with a second stator current angle in the second control mode, for a given output torque of the electric motor, where the second stator current angle requires a higher stator current than the first stator current angle. By using a non-optimal stator current angle, the current needed for maintaining the requisite output torque can be increased. The increased current involves increased heat losses. In other words; by changing the stator current angle, the operation of the electric motor is moved to a less efficient operation point which is situated longer from the most efficient point on the MTPA-line. This is preferably achieved by using a larger stator current angle in the second control mode than in the first control mode.
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled in a way creating higher heat losses of a stator core of the electric motor for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode. In addition or as an alternative to increased heat losses of the stator windings, the second control mode may involve stator core heat losses for transferring heat to the working fluid of the heat pump system as described hereinabove.
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled with a stator current having a substantially sinusoidal periodic waveform in the first control mode, and with a stator current having a non-sinusoidal periodic waveform in the second control mode. Hereby, the heat losses in the second control mode will be increased since the non-sinusoidal waveform is associated with increased stator core heat losses. Accordingly, the stator current has to be increased to maintain the desired output torque of the electric motor.
According to a further embodiment of the method, the electric motor is controlled with the stator current having a substantially square waveform in the second mode. Hereby, it is possible to obtain increased heat losses in the second control mode using a non-complicated control strategy.
According to a further aspect of the invention, a further objective is to provide a control unit for controlling a heat pump system by which control unit the performance of the heat pump system can be improved.
This objective is achieved by a control unit for controlling a heat pump system, wherein the heat pump system comprises a compressor for compressing a working fluid of the heat pump system, an electric motor for providing an output torque for driving the compressor and a means for recovering heat emitted from the electric motor by heating the working fluid, and the control unit is configured to provide a first control mode and a second control mode for the electric motor, and configured to control the electric motor in a way creating higher heat losses of the electric motor for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode.
The advantages of the control unit are similar to the advantages already discussed hereinabove with reference to the different embodiments of the method. Further advantages and advantageous features of the invention are disclosed in the following description and in the dependent claims.
With reference to the appended drawings, below follows a more detailed description of embodiments of the invention cited as examples.
In the drawings:
The heat pump system 1 further comprises an evaporator 6 where the working fluid 3 is heated by heat from the surrounding, a condenser 7 where heat is transferred from the working fluid to the surrounding, and a pressure lowering device 8 such as an expansion valve for lowering the pressure of the working fluid 3.
The operating principle of the heat pump system can be as follows. The working fluid 3 being in gaseous state is pressurized and circulated through the system by the compressor 2. After passing the compressor 2 the hot and highly pressurized working fluid 3 is cooled in the condenser 7, which is a heat exchanger, until the working fluid 3 condenses into a high-pressure liquid having a lower temperature. The condensed working fluid 3 then passes through the pressure-lowering device 8. The low-pressure working fluid then enters the evaporator 6, which is another heat exchanger, where the working fluid 3 absorbs heat and is evaporated. Thereafter, the working fluid 3 returns to the compressor 2 and the cycle is repeated.
As is schematically illustrated in
When the heat pump system 1 is applied on a vehicle, the condenser 7 transfers heat to the passenger compartment and/or to any other component such as batteries of the vehicle. The passenger compartment 16 is schematically indicated in
The working fluid circulating in the heat pump system 1 can be any suitable medium, such as for example R-134a, R-1234YF or R-744.
In
The evaporator 70 is suitably a combined evaporator-condenser device that can work as condenser when an evaporator 60 is used for lowering the temperature of the passenger compartment 160 in a cooling mode or AC mode.
In the heating mode, the working fluid 30 is then circulated in a way by-passing the evaporator 60. This can be performed with a first valve 180, a shut off valve for instance, being in an opened state. Further, the working fluid is circulated via a first pressure lowering device 80a arranged in the first circuit 150 between the condenser 140 and the evaporator 70.
For enabling the cooling mode where the evaporator-condenser device 70 is working as a condenser, the working fluid 30 can be circulated in a way by-passing the first pressure lowering device 80a. This can be performed with a second valve 190, a shut off valve for instance, being in an opened state, whereas the first shut off valve 180 is closed for circulating the working fluid via a second pressure lowering device 80b and the evaporator 60.
In the same way as described with reference to
In
Although the first control mode and/or the second control mode would possibly be selected by an operator, in the following example the control mode is automatically selected by means of a control unit on the basis of receiving a control signal.
As schematically illustrated in
The electric motor is controlled according to the second control mode upon receiving a control signal 12 indicating that a predetermined condition is fulfilled. See also
For other predetermined conditions for using the second control mode, the heating capacity of the heat pump system may be fulfilled or not, or even be irrelevant, but still there is a need of increasing the temperature of the working fluid. Such additional heating of the working fluid can be required when starting up the system for avoiding liquid compression in the compressor or for defrosting the evaporator of the heat pump system.
For example, the electric motor can be controlled according to the second control mode upon receiving said control signal indicating an amount of the working fluid, to be entered into the compressor, being in liquid state exceeding a threshold value. Such indication can be provided by said control signal indicating a temperature of the working fluid and/or pressure of the working fluid below a threshold value. In other words; the temperature and/or the pressure of the working fluid can be used for indicating any risk of liquid compression in the compressor. Instead of measuring the temperature of the working fluid, the ambient temperature can be measured, since at least when the system is to be started the relationship between these temperatures is known. Only given as an example, for an ambient temperature below −5° C., the second control mode could be used. Furthermore, only given as an example, for a pressure of the working fluid below 2.5 bar, the second control mode could be used.
In a second step 200, it is checked if such a predetermined condition is fulfilled. If “YES”, i.e. there is such a predetermined condition motivating the second control mode to be applied, then in a third step 300 the control of the electric motor is performed in accordance with the second control mode. Otherwise, if “NO”, the first control mode is applied in the first step 100 until such a predetermined condition is fulfilled.
Provided that the electric motor is controlled in the second control mode, in a fourth step 400, it is checked if the predetermined condition is still fulfilled. If “YES”, the second control mode is applied in the third step 300 until the predetermined condition has ceased, whereas if “NO”, the first control mode is applied in the first step 100 until such a predetermined condition is fulfilled again. In addition, other conditions requiring the first control mode to be applied or the second mode to be ended can be used for overriding any predetermined condition discussed hereinabove and bringing the control strategy back to the first control mode. For example, in case the cooling of the electric motor is not sufficient the second control mode may not be allowed.
In the second control mode, the electric motor is driven to give lower efficiency than in the first control mode, and instead produce more heat for heating the working fluid. In order to increase the heat emitted from the electric motor, the electric motor is suitably controlled in a way resulting in a higher stator current for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode.
The electric motor is preferably controlled in a way creating higher heat losses of stator windings of the electric motor for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode. Since the heat emitted from the stator windings increases with the stator current in square, an increased stator current will have considerably impact on the heat creating capacity.
As already mentioned hereinabove, for controlling the electric motor, vector control is suitably applied. As an example, in
For a given current space vector in the coordinate system, the vector component along the q-axis is the torque producing component of the stator current, whereas the vector component along the d-axis is the magnetic flux linkage component of the stator current.
For each given torque line, an operation point requiring a minimum stator current can be found. This operation point gives—or at least comes very close to—the best motor efficiency for that given torque. The operation points requiring a minimum current for the respective torque are indicated in
The circle 600 indicated with dotted lines in
Another representation in a stationary coordinate system is shown as an example in
In a similar way as in
Hereby considerably more heat is created while keeping the torque constant. During shorter times, also stator currents above rated current (>1 p.u.) may be used. Thus, the electric motor is preferably controlled with a first stator current angle in the first control mode and with a second stator current angle in the second control mode, for a given output torque of the electric motor, where the second stator current angle requires a higher stator current than the first stator current angle.
Different electric motors will have different performance and characteristics. Thus, the control of the electric motor has to be adapted accordingly. In many cases, the stator current Is2 used in the second control mode is preferably in the range 1.1-10 times the stator current Is1 in the first control mode, preferably 1.2-8 times Is1, and often Is2 is 1.5-2 times Is1.
In the second control mode, both an increased and decreased stator current angle relative to the stator current angle in the first control mode can be used.
Suitably, the second stator current angle deviate from the first stator current angle by at least ±10 degrees, preferably at least ±15 degrees, and often the difference between the stator current angle Theta2 in the second control mode and the stator current angle Theta1 in the first control mode is within the range 15-50 degrees.
In other words; when operating the electric motor in a way using a second stator current angle that is larger than the first stator current angle, for a stator current angle Theta1 in the first control mode, a stator current angle Theta2 in the second control mode can be in the range 1.1-2 times Theta1, preferably Theta2 is 1.2-1.8 times Theta1.
As an alternative, or in addition to a control strategy giving heat losses of the stator windings, the electric motor can be controlled in a way creating higher heat losses of a stator core of the electric motor for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode. This can be performed by controlling the electric motor with a stator current having a substantially sinusoidal periodic waveform in the first control mode, and with a stator current having a non-sinusoidal periodic waveform in the second control mode. The electric motor is preferably controlled with the stator current having a substantially square waveform in the second mode.
As schematically illustrated in
As also described with reference to the method, the control unit is configured to provide a first control mode and a second control mode for the electric motor, and configured to control the electric motor in a way creating higher heat losses of the electric motor for a given output torque of the electric motor in the second control mode than in the first control mode.
The control unit 11 is suitably configured to control the electric motor according to the second control mode upon receiving a control signal 12 indicating that a predetermined condition is fulfilled. Such a control signal can be based on one or more input signals 13a, 13b, 13c from sensors and any calculations required. In
It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings; rather, the skilled person will recognize that many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17179286 | Jul 2017 | EP | regional |
This application is a continuation of International Patent Application No. PCT/CN2018/086728, filed May 14, 2018, which claims the benefit of European Patent Application No. 17179286.4, filed Jul. 3, 2017, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20080072619 | Nojima | Mar 2008 | A1 |
| 20120031079 | Spicer | Feb 2012 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1365430 | Aug 2002 | CN |
| 101022215 | Aug 2007 | CN |
| 103430433 | Dec 2013 | CN |
| 104596171 | Dec 2014 | CN |
| 104596171 | May 2015 | CN |
| 104654527 | May 2015 | CN |
| 106059155 | Oct 2016 | CN |
| 102013225450 | Mar 2015 | DE |
| 0345850 | Feb 1991 | JP |
| 2016077093 | May 2016 | JP |
| 2014151375 | Sep 2014 | WO |
| 2014200476 | Dec 2014 | WO |
| 2016029528 | Mar 2016 | WO |
| 2016170578 | Oct 2016 | WO |
| Entry |
|---|
| Translation of CN 104596171A. |
| International Search Report and Written Opinion from corresponding International Patent Application No. PCT/CN2018/086728, dated Jul. 27, 2018, 11 pages. |
| Extended European Search Report from corresponding European Patent Application No. 17179286.4, dated Dec. 4, 2017, pages. |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20200116399 A1 | Apr 2020 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/CN2018/086728 | May 2018 | US |
| Child | 16706299 | US |
