Ford Motor Company has filed a patent for a scheduled engine block heating system that may be used in future Ford hybrids, Ford Authority has learned.
The patent was filed on October 14th, 2021, published on October 29th, 2024, and assigned serial number 12128768.
The Ford Authority Take
Ford has explored all sorts of ways to make its electric vehicles more efficient – including installing heat pumps as standard equipment on the Ford F-150 Lightning and Ford Mustang Mach-E, all while mulling ideas for heated panels that would keep interiors warm and even an external heating element for EVs. Now, this newly published patent continues to expand those efforts, this time, with an idea for a scheduled engine block heating system that may be used in future Ford hybrids.
In colder climates, engine block heaters are used to warm up engines before they’re started to improve engine performance, as most ICE powerplants tend to perform their best at temperatures that are above freezing. Mostly relegated to the world of diesels, Ford envisions a world in which its future hybrids may also make use of an engine block heater, and in this case, one that could be used to preheat not only the engine block, but also, the vehicle’s battery, too.
If this patent was to come to fruition, it would utilize a controller that would monitor the temperature of the engine block and battery, and if it dips below a certain threshold, it would charge the battery using grid energy until it reaches a certain state of charge. Once an optimum state of charge is reached, the traction battery could be used to power the engine block heater, which would activate only until temperatures reach a targeted state. It’s certainly a potentially useful system, and one that hybrid owners that live in extremely cold climates would appreciate if it does ultimately make it to production.
Comment
In the Fusion Hybrid, the traction battery powers the air conditioning compressor and some engine accessories (there are no belts or pulleys in the hybrid engine bay). Using the traction battery for the engine block heater is just as efficient.