International Journal of Control and Automation
Vol. 8, No. 9 (2015), pp. 255-264
[Link]
Hybrid Excavator Power System Controller Design Based on
Fuzzy Control
Xie Ya1 and Huang Zhonghua2,3
1
School of Computer and communication, Hunan Institute of Engineering, Hunan
411104
2
School of Mechanical Engineering, Hunan Institute of Engineering, Hunan
411104,
3
The Cooperative Innovation Center of Wind Power Equipment and Energy
Conversion, Hunan Institute of Engineering, Hunan 411104)
1
csu_xieya@[Link], 2,3csu707@[Link]
Abstract
Controller of hybrid excavator power system was designed with control target was to
improve diesel engine fuel efficiency and decrease shaft rotate speed fluctuation.
Controller input parameters were set as hydraulic pump required torque, hydraulic pump
rotate speed and battery SOC. Controller output parameters were set as diesel engine
output torque and motor torque. Diesel engine output torque was obtained according to
its load characteristic curves. Control method of diesel engine throttle based on Fuzzy
control was proposed. Power system working pattern switch rules were introduced.
Simulation model of controller performance based on MATLAB was established.
Controller working performance simulations in mining condition and formation condition
were simulated. Simulation results show that hydraulic pump required torque is provided
by diesel engine and motor in mining condition. Power system required torque is
provided by motor in formation condition. Battery SOC curve is changed according to
designed control rules. Diesel engine shaft rotate speed is almost constant during the
whole working process. Diesel engine fuel consumption rate is constant in mining
condition and is almost zero in formation condition.
Keywords: Hybrid excavator; Power system; Controller design; Fuzzy control
1. Introduction
Energy saving is a practical problem that excavator must to be faced. Traditional
excavator energy saving technology were mainly focus on improving component
performance, such as improving hydraulic system design method and improving power
matching performance between power system and hydraulic system. Peng et al [1] had
investigated local power match harmony technique about engine-pump and pump-load.
The reasons of not harmonizing in power system between engine-pump and pump-load
were analyzed. Power system overall match techniques were proposed and corresponding
realization plan was given. Wu et al [2] had researched hydraulic excavator load power
matching technique, with establishing hydraulic excavator pump control system
mathematics model, power matching control of pump and load in the different working
conditions was realized. Xiao et al [3] had researched hybrid power system parameter
matching technique. The parameters of main components, such as engine, electric motor,
generator and capacitor of power system were matched. Simulation results showed that
power system working efficiency was improved significantly after parameters were
matched. Wang et al [4] put forward a new control strategy based on hybrid technology to
realize excavator global power match. Its control target was to achieve global power
ISSN: 2005-4297 IJCA
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International Journal of Control and Automation
Vol. 8, No. 9 (2015)
match and optimize power sources working point simultaneously. Experimental results
showed that the control strategy could realize the target.
Excavator fuel consumption and emissions could be reduced to some extent with
traditional energy saving method. But energy saving effect was limited. In the face of
increasingly severe energy conservation and emission reduction requirements, excavator
manufacturers need to find new technical solutions.
The worlds first hybrid hydraulic excavator prototype was developed by Japan
Komatsu company in 2004. 7 t hybrid hydraulic excavator was produced by Japan Hitachi
company in 2006. In 2008, Japan Komatsu company developed 20t hybrid hydraulic
excavator to Japanese market. Test results showed that Komatsu company 20t hybrid
hydraulic excavator power system average fuel consumption could be reduced about 25%
compared with traditional excavator, which showed hybrid excavator could save energy
effectively.
Nowadays, hybrid excavator had become an important research object by world main
excavator manufacturing enterprises. Hybrid excavator design involves many key
technologies. Such as power system design technique, excavator boom potential energy
recovery technique and power system control method. Huang et al [5] put forward
excavator hybrid power system units installed power design method, and calculation
equations of power system units installed power were also proposed. Lin et al [6]
had systematical researched hydraulic excavator boom potential energy recovery
technique. An energy recovery system that combines the advantages of an electric
and hydraulic accumulator was proposed and the effects of system dynamic
response were analyzed. Power system controller design technology is one of hybrid
excavator key technologies. It directly affects power system working performance and
energy consumption [7-9].
In this paper, hybrid excavator power system controller based on fuzzy control method
was researched. Control target of the controller was to improve diesel engine fuel
efficiency and decrease shaft rotate speed fluctuation. Controller structure was introduced
and controller working performance was simulated.
2. Hybrid Power System Structure
Hybrid excavator power system had three kinds of typical structure, which were series,
parallel and hybrid. Wang [10] thought parallel hybrid was more suitable for hybrid
excavator after comparing energy saving effects of series and parallel hybrid, considering
the factors of manufacturing cost, operation performance and component performance.
Huang [11] thought parallel hybrid excavator had advantages in structural layout and
energy consumption.
Parallel hybrid power system structure researched in this paper was shown in Fig.1.
Diesel engine and motor drive hydraulic pump jointly with coaxial connection. Battery
was used for electrical energy storing. Motor could work in driving state and generating
state. Battery supplied power to motor when motor was in driving state. Battery was
charged by motor when motor was in generating state. Diesel engine and motor working
state were real-time controlled by controller according to hydraulic pump required power
and battery SOC (State of Charge).
Diesel engine
Motor
Hydraulic pump
Mechanical connection
Controller
Battery
Electrical connection
Figure 1. Parallel Hybrid Power System Structure
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Parallel hybrid power system working process and working principle were as follows,
diesel engine was started firstly, and diesel engine was set work in high efficiency
working area secondly. Motor supplied the power difference between hydraulic pump
required power and diesel engine output power in order to keep diesel engine worked in
high efficiency working area. Motor was in off state or in charged state according to the
difference between hydraulic pump required power and diesel engine output power when
battery SOC<SOCs (battery predefined allowed minimum SOC). Motor was work in off
state or generating state according to battery SOC when hydraulic pump required power
was less than diesel engine output power. Motor was work in driving state when hydraulic
pump required power was great than diesel engine output power.
3. Hybrid Power System Controller Design
3.1. Controller Structure
Hybrid power system controller control target was to decrease power system shaft
rotate speed fluctuation and improve diesel engine fuel efficiency. Controller structure
design involves input parameters and output parameters. According to parallel hybrid
power system working process and working principle, Parallel hybrid power system
controller structure designed in this paper was shown in Fig.2. There were six modules in
the controller, power preprocessing module, working pattern recognition module, throttle
controller module, diesel engine working curve module, motor controller module and
diesel engine controller module respectively. Power preprocessing module was to obtain
power system average required power. Working pattern recognition module was to
determine motor working state. Throttle controller module was to determine throttle
opening. Diesel engine working curve module was used to determine diesel engine rotate
speed and output torque according to diesel engine throttle opening. Motor controller
module was used to obtain motor output torque. Diesel engine controller module was used
to determine diesel engine working state.
Figure 2. Hybrid Power System Controller Structure
Tp, hydraulic pump output torque; np, hydraulic pump output speed; SOC, battery SOC;
Pp , hydraulic pump average require power; p ,diesel engine throttle opening;
Tm, motor output torque; Te, diesel engine output torque; w, hybrid power system work
pattern
Hybrid power system controller input parameters were set as hydraulic pump required
torque, hydraulic pump rotate speed and battery SOC. Controller output parameters were
set as diesel engine output torque and motor output torque. Diesel engine working state w
was determined by working pattern recognition module according to input parameters and
battery SOC. Load level was determined by diesel engine throttle controller according to
the hydraulic pump required average power and battery SOC. Throttle controller output
parameter was set as throttle opening. Combined with diesel engine load characteristic
curves, diesel engine rotate speed and output torque could be obtained with throttle
opening. Motor rotate speed was equal to diesel engine rotate speed due to motor and
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diesel engine were coaxial connection. Motor torque was the difference between
hydraulic pump required torque and diesel engine output torque.
3.2. Power System Work Pattern
When hybrid power system was working, controller would change power system work
pattern according to hydraulic pump required power, diesel engine output power and
battery SOC. Combined with parallel hybrid power system working process and working
principle, parallel hybrid excavator power system work patterns were defined as follows:
1Motor work pattern. When battery SOC>SOCs and hydraulic pump required
power was low, diesel engine was in no oil injection state and motor was worked alone.
2Diesel engine work pattern. When hydraulic pump required power was less than
diesel engine output power, motor was off and diesel engine was work alone.
3Motor and diesel engine jointly work pattern. When battery SOC>SOCs and
hydraulic pump required power was great than diesel engine output power, motor and
diesel engine were worked jointly.
4Charged pattern. When battery SOC was approach to SOCs or diesel engine
output power was greater than hydraulic pump required power, battery was charged by
motor with diesel engine spare energy.
5Idle pattern. When hydraulic pump required power was zero and battery SOC
was approach to SOCs, diesel engine was in idle state.
6 Stop pattern. When hydraulic pump required power is zero and battery
SOC>SOCd (battery predefined allowed maximum SOC), diesel engine was in no oil
injection state.
3.3. Diesel Engine Throttle Control Method
Diesel engine throttle control was related with power system load level and battery
SOC. Considering diesel engine throttle control modeling was difficult. Fuzzy control was
used as diesel engine throttle control method. Fuzzy controller with two input variables
and one output variable was used. Fuzzy controller input variables were set as power
system load level and battery SOC. Fuzzy controller output variable was set as diesel
engine throttle opening.
Defining: Pp was hydraulic pump required power, e was diesel engine throttle opening.
According to fuzzy controller design criterions, input and output variables membership
function were defined firstly. Battery SOC was set as 0 ~ 1 according to its physical
characteristics. Namely, 0 means no electricity and 1 means full power. Battery SOC
normal work value was set as 0.5 ~ 0.7. Hydraulic pump required power was set as 0~35
KW according to mini excavator rated power. Mini excavator required power was 25 KW
and 13 KW respectively in mining conditions and formation condition according to
practical experience. Diesel engine throttle openingwas set as 0.6 ~ 1 according to
practical experience. Namely, 0.6 means idle work and 1 means full open.
In this fuzzy controller, input variable and output variable fuzzy sets were set as Low,
Normal and High. Input variable and output variable membership function curves were
shown in Fig.3.
Figure 3. Membership Function Curves
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Vol. 8, No. 9 (2015)
Fuzzy controller control rules were determined with hybrid power system working
process and working principle. Fuzzy control rules were shown in Table.1.
Table 1. Fuzzy Control Rules
L (Low), N(Normal),H(High)
4. Controller Working Performance Simulation
4.1. Simulation Modeling
Hybrid power system controller simulation modeling was based on MATLAB software.
Modular design method was used in controller performance simulation modeling. Hybrid
power system controller simulation model structure was shown in Fig.4. Power
preprocessing module, diesel engine throttle controller module, diesel engine working
pattern recognition module, diesel engine working curve module, motor controller module
and diesel engine controller module were established respectively.
Figure 4. Controller Simulation Model
4.2. Simulation Research
Simulation conditions were as follows, mini excavator hydraulic pump input torque
changing curve in mining condition and formation condition was given, and battery SOC
initial value was set. Simulation results were as follows, battery SOC changing curve in
the whole working process, power system components output torque changing curve in
the whole working process, diesel engine throttle opening curve in the whole working
process, diesel engine rotate speed curve in the whole working process, diesel engine fuel
consumption curve in the whole working process.
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35
30
Pp(kw)
25
20
15
10
0
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Time/(s)
Figure 5. Hydraulic Pump Output Power Curve
5t hydraulic excavator hydraulic pump output power curve in mining condition and
formation condition were shown in Figure 5. It can be seen from Figure 5 that hydraulic
output power is changed dramatically. Maximum output power is almost 35 KW and
minimum output power is almost 2 KW. The former 100 s is mining condition. The next
50s was formation condition. Total working time was 400s. Mining condition and
formation condition were alternative. Battery SOC initial value was set as 0.6.
Excavator power system working process was simulated based on the controller
simulation model. Simulation results were as follows: Hybrid power system components
output torque was shown in Figure 6. Battery SOC changing curve was shown in Figure 7.
Diesel engine throttle opening curve was shown in Fig.8. Diesel engine shaft rotate speed
curve was shown in Figure 9. Diesel engine fuel consumption curve was shown in Figure
10.
Torque of pump
Torque of motor
300
Torque of engine
250
Torqur/(N.m)
200
150
100
50
0
-50
-100
-150
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Time/(s)
Figure 6. Component Output Torque Curve
It can be seen from Fig.6 that hydraulic pump maximum required torque is almost 240
Nm. Hydraulic pump average required torque in mining condition is almost 180 Nm.
Hydraulic pump average required torque in formation condition is almost 0 Nm. Diesel
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International Journal of Control and Automation
Vol. 8, No. 9 (2015)
engine output power is almost constant in mining condition. Diesel engine output power
is almost 0 in formation condition. Motor output power is changed frequently in mining
condition. In mining condition, motor output power can be plus or minus depending on
the difference between pump required power and diesel engine output power. Hydraulic
pump average required torque is provided by diesel engine in mining condition. Hydraulic
pump average required torque is provided by motor in formation condition. In mining
condition, motor is switched frequently from driving to generating to supply torque or to
absorb surplus torque.
0.64
0.63
0.62
SOC
0.61
0.6
0.59
0.58
0.57
0.56
0.55
0
50
100
150
200
Time/(s)
250
300
350
400
Figure 7. Battery SOC Changing Curve
It can be seen from Figure 7 that battery is charged in the former 100s although
hydraulic pump required power is great than diesel engine output power. Battery SOC is
decreased from 0.635 to 0.565 from 100s to 150s. In this time, excavator is in formation
condition and hydraulic pump required power is provided by motor. When battery SOC is
near to 0.5, battery will be charged in order to avoid battery over discharge. So, battery
SOC is always in allowed working range during the whole working process.
1
0.95
0.9
Throttle
0.85
0.8
0.75
0.7
0.65
0.6
0
50
100
150
200
Time/(s)
250
300
350
400
Figure 8. Diesel Engine Throttle Opening Curve
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Vol. 8, No. 9 (2015)
It can be seen from Figure 8 that diesel engine throttle opening is changed with
excavator working condition changing. Diesel engine throttle opening is about 0.9 in
mining condition and is 06 in formation condition.
s p e e d / ( r / m i n)
1500
1000
500
0
0
50
100
150
200
Time/(s)
250
300
350
400
Figure 9. Diesel Engine Shaft Rotate Speed Curve
It can be seen from Figure 9 that diesel engine shaft rotate speed is almost constant
during the whole working process, although hydraulic pump required power is changed
obviously. So, the controller can reduce hybrid power system shaft rotate speed
fluctuation.
500
450
400
fule/(g)
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
0
50
100
150
200
Time/(s)
250
300
350
400
Figure 10. Diesel Engine Fuel Consumption Curve
It can be seen from Figure 10 that diesel engine fuel consumption rate is almost 1.5 g/s
in mining condition and is zero in formation condition. Diesel engine fuel consumption
rate is constant in mining condition, which means diesel engine is work in predefined high
efficient area. So, the controller can reduce diesel engine fuel consumption.
5. Conclusions
Parallel hybrid excavator power system controller was designed. Controller input
variables were set as hydraulic pump required torque, hydraulic pump rotate speed and
battery SOC. controller output variables were set as diesel engine output torque and motor
output torque. Simulation results show that the controller can realize coordination control
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Vol. 8, No. 9 (2015)
between diesel engine and motor. Diesel engine shaft rotate speed is almost constant
during the whole working process. Diesel engine can be work in high efficiency area with
this controller.
Acknowledgements
This work was financially supported by Program for New Century Excellent Talents in
University (NCET-11-0968); Project by Hunan Provincial Natural Science Foundation of
China (14JJ5006); Aid program for Science and Technology Innovative Research Team
in Higher Educational Institutions of Hunan Province.
.
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Authors
Xie Ya, she received her B.S degrees in computer science and
technique from Central South University in 2006. She is working as a
research staff in Hunan Institute of Engineering. Her current interest
fields are computer simulation.
Huang Zhonghua, he received his Ph.D degrees in mechatronic
engineering from Central South University in 2006. He is working as
a research staff in Hunan Institute of Engineering. His current interest
fields are hybrid excavator power system design.
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Vol. 8, No. 9 (2015)
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