Patents Examined by Johnny H. Hoang
  • Patent number: 11624344
    Abstract: A fuel supply device is insertable into a fuel tank through an opening formed in an upper wall of the fuel tank in an insertion direction. The fuel supply device includes a flange unit and a pump unit coupled to the flange unit. The pump unit includes a guide member extending in the insertion direction. The guide member is configured to abut on an opening periphery so as to guide the pump unit when the pump unit is inserted into the fuel tank. A guide surface of the guide member includes a concave surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2023
    Assignee: AISAN KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Syuhei Noguchi, Koji Yoshida, Satoshi Ito, Kensuke Niwa
  • Patent number: 11619179
    Abstract: Systems and methods for operating an engine that includes two throttles that are arranged in parallel to deliver air into a single intake manifold are described. In one example, a first throttle and a second throttle are opened according to a value of a variable that changes as a function of a requested engine air flow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Rohit Bhat, Rob Ciarrocchi, Adam J. Richards, Conner Cecott
  • Patent number: 11614055
    Abstract: An isolation valve includes: a housing including a first passage and a second passage; a main valve assembly including a valve disposed in the housing such that a fluid flow between the first passage and the second passage is blocked; a locking assembly disposed in the housing, and including a release element configured to open the valve and a locking element configured to close the valve; and a bobbin assembly configured to be disposed in the housing and to operate the locking assembly, and including a coil; a core disposed inside the coil and including a space therein, the space including a closed end and an opened end; and a plunger configured to move in the space by an electromagnetic force generated by the coil and to contact the locking assembly on the opened end side.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2023
    Assignees: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY, KIA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Bu Yeol Ryu, Hyun Do Jeon, Tac Koon Kim
  • Patent number: 11603808
    Abstract: An engine management system and method may include a control system and method for controlling an internal combustion engine. The internal combustion engine may be a direct-injection engine using a Sonex Controlled Auto-Ignition (“SCAI”) combustion path. The control system and method may utilize fuel injection pressure, timing of start and end of injection, management of turbo airflow, fuel supplied, and other factors to provide reduced emissions and improved performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2023
    Assignee: SONEX RESEARCH, INC
    Inventor: Andrew Pouring
  • Patent number: 11603806
    Abstract: Sensor delivering detection information in the form of a variation of a current, including a sensitive portion adapted to detecting the passage of a mobile target, an electronic module able to control and shape signals coming from the sensitive portion, an embedded intelligence module adapted, inter alia, to receive information from an electronic computer and to process and generate information intended for the electronic computer, characterized in that the sensor includes a random-number generation module able to generate a random number.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2023
    Assignee: VITESCO TECHNOLOGIES GMBH
    Inventors: Jacques Rocher, Yannick Leroy, Benjamin Marconato
  • Patent number: 11598282
    Abstract: An optimum engine configuration is determined, based on a predicted required power, for a seafaring vessel having a plurality of thrust engines. The predicted required power is determined by inputting vessel operational data, environmental data, and voyage data to a required power model. At least some of the vessel operational data and environmental data is received from a plurality of sensors positioned onboard the vessel. The optimum engine configuration is selected from a plurality of candidate engine configurations. Each candidate engine configuration includes a specified number of thrust engines running and a specified power output level of each thrust engine. The optimum engine configuration is selected based on a candidate total predicted fuel consumption of each candidate engine configuration. The candidate total predicted fuel consumption amount is determined as a sum of the engine-specific predicted fuel consumptions determined for each running thrust engine of that candidate engine configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2023
    Assignee: Atlantic Towing Limited
    Inventor: Andrew William Josselyn
  • Patent number: 11598274
    Abstract: An engine intake system includes: a port partition disposed to divide an intake port of a cylinder head into an upper portion and a lower portion; a first intake manifold configured to supply air, which flows from an air cleaner through a charger and an intercooler, to one of the upper portion and the lower portion of the port partition; a second intake manifold configured to supply the air, which flows from the air cleaner while bypassing the charger and the intercooler, to the other of the upper portion and the lower portion of the port partition; and a bypass valve disposed and configured to pass and block the air flowing into the second intake manifold from the air cleaner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2023
    Assignees: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY, KIA CORPORATION
    Inventor: Il Suk Yang
  • Patent number: 11591951
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide a pre-combustion chamber assembly, comprising (a) a body, having a cylindrical end portion having a step-wise increase in diameter forming a sealing surface for sealing to an engine; (b) a tip, with a hollow shaft in fluid communication with a combustion region of the tip, where the shaft has a first shaft diameter that allows the shaft to be slid over a portion of the body; (c) a gasket mounted about the body and resting against the sealing surface, wherein the gasket comprises a wire wound washer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2023
    Inventor: Tracy Northington
  • Patent number: 11591979
    Abstract: A method for synchronizing an internal combustion engine includes: a) a first step of acquiring, by the camshaft sensor, signals corresponding to at least five cam edges x; b) a second step of determining the value, from the camshaft signal, of a first, second and third actual ratio; c) a third step of establishing, for each actual value ratio obtained in b), a list of possible cam edges x by comparing the values of the first, second and third actual ratios, respectively, with a tolerance window corresponding to a value of a first, second or third theoretical ratio for a given cam edge x, each weighted by a tolerance factor k; and d) a fourth step of determining the cam edge x seen by the camshaft sensor, the cam edge actually seen by the sensor corresponding to the cam edge x common to the three lists established in c).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2023
    Assignee: VITESCO TECHNOLOGIES GMBH
    Inventors: Stéphane Eloy, Fabien Joseph
  • Patent number: 11585284
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for re-combustion of exhaust in a cylinder of a multi-cylinder engine in order to increase the temperature of the exhaust for enhancing catalytic conversion within the multi-cylinder engine. In one example, a method may include expelling combusted gases from the cylinder into an intake manifold via an intake valve during an exhaust stroke, in order to rebreathe in the combusted gases from the intake manifold via the intake valve in a subsequent intake stroke.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Eric Matthew Kurtz, Jason Brian Martz, Daniel Joseph Styles, Joshua Zachary Fried
  • Patent number: 11585306
    Abstract: An injection control device includes an injector and a detection unit. The injector includes: an injection hole; a movable part; a seat portion; a valve housing; a magnetic field application unit; and a detection sensor. The movable part opens and closes the injection hole by reciprocal movement. The seat portion when seated by the movable part closes the injection hole, and when the movable part lifted therefrom opens the injection hole. The valve housing accommodates the movable part in a reciprocally movable manner. The magnetic field application unit is installed on an outer circumference of the valve housing and applies a magnetic field to the movable part and the valve housing. The detection sensor outputs a detection signal according to a size of a distance between the valve housing and the movable part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2023
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventor: Masashi Inaba
  • Patent number: 11578670
    Abstract: A mass-flow throttle for highly accurate control of the gaseous supplies (fuel and/or air) to the combustion chambers for a large engine in response to instantaneous demand signals from the engine's ECM, especially for large (i.e., 30 liters or greater in size) spark-ignited internal combustion engines fueled by natural gas. With a unitary block assembly and a throttle blade driven by a non-articulated rotary actuator shaft, in combination with tight control circuitry including multiple pressure sensors as well as sensors for temperature and throttle position, the same basic throttle concepts are innovatively suited to be used for both MFG and MFA throttles in industrial applications, to achieve highly accurate mass-flow control even despite pressure fluctuations while operating in non-choked flow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: EControls, LLC
    Inventors: Justin H Sanders, Kennon Guglielmo, Michael T. Hambidge, Timothy J. Westerdale
  • Patent number: 11578649
    Abstract: The disclosure relates to a charging system, which includes a crankshaft chamber, two cylinder chambers, a crankshaft connecting rod mechanism, two pistons, an intake pipe, two draft tubes, and a rotating rod control mechanism. The crankshaft connecting rod mechanism is installed in the crankshaft chamber. Each piston is received in the cylinder chambers and connected with the crankshaft connecting rod mechanism. The intake pipe only communicates with the crankshaft chamber. One end of each draft tube only communicates with the crankshaft chamber and another end only communicates with each cylinder chamber. The check valve is installed in the crankshaft chamber. The rotating rod control mechanism includes a rotating rod and a sealing block fixedly connected and rotating with the rotating rod. The sealing block blocks and seals a joint between the crankshaft chamber and each draft tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Inventor: Chia-Chun Cheng
  • Patent number: 11560051
    Abstract: Fuel isolation systems, apparatuses and methods are described. In some embodiments, a system comprises a fuel tank, a fuel pump, an engine, a firewall, a fuel line from the fuel tank to the engine, a connector coupled inline with the fuel line on a cold side of the fuel line, a valve coupled to the connector, an air feed line coupled to an air source and to the valve. In the event of an engine fire condition, a control unit outputs signaling to turn off the fuel pump and operate the valve to introduce air from the air source into the fuel line. The introduced air provides a siphon break in the fuel line such that the only fuel that can pass the firewall is the remaining fuel in the fuel line downstream of the connector and the introduced air.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2023
    Assignee: GENERAL ATOMICS AERONAUTICAL SYSTEMS, INC.
    Inventors: Jason B. Newlin, Brett C. Bonner, Graham Feasey
  • Patent number: 11555464
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an injector for injecting fuel, comprising an injector housing, a movable nozzle needle which is arranged in the injector housing and has a nozzle needle tip, a nozzle needle seat for receiving the nozzle needle tip, and a mechanical switch which upon contact of the nozzle needle tip with the nozzle needle seat assumes a closed state and upon interruption of the contact assumes an open state, wherein the injector is provided with an input line and an output line for actuating a movement of the nozzle needle, and the switch includes a first terminal and a second terminal. The injector is characterized in that the first terminal of the switch is connected to the input line and the second terminal of the switch is connected to the injector housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2023
    Assignee: LIEBHERR-COMPONENTS DEGGENDORF GMBH
    Inventors: Norbert Schöfbänker, Richard Pirkl, Lorand D'Ouvenou
  • Patent number: 11555462
    Abstract: To provide a controller and a control method for internal combustion engine which can calculate the shaft torque in unburning with good accuracy in all the operating condition in which calculation is required, using the shaft torque in unburning which was set in the specific operating condition, and can improve estimation accuracy of the parameter relevant to the combustion state. A controller for internal combustion engine calculates a specific shaft torque in unburning with reference to a specific unburning condition data; calculates specific and current generated torques of unburning assumption using the physical model equation; calculates a current shaft torque in unburning based on the specific shaft torque in unburning, and the specific and current generated torques of unburning assumption; and calculates an increment of gas pressure torque by burning based on the current shaft torque in unburning and the actual shaft torque in burning condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2023
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Yuhei Matsushima, Tatsuhiko Takahashi, Junichi Inoue, Toshikatsu Saito, Kazuhiro Tokuyama, Kazuyo Kako
  • Patent number: 11555440
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for boosted engines. In one example, a method for a boosted engine method may include storing compressed air in a reservoir for supply to the engine during increased engine load operating conditions and replenishing the air in response to pressure dropping below a nominal threshold; and increasing the pressure beyond the nominal threshold in response to increased temperature of the stored air in the reservoir even when operating conditions include decreased engine load, and purging the increased temperature stored air to bring pressure back down toward the nominal threshold. In one example, increasing pressure to the reservoir may include supplying compressed air from an air suspension system. In one example, increasing pressure to the reservoir may include supplying compressed air from an air compressor separate from an engine turbocharger compressor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Jagjit Romana, Kyle Ebner, Chris P. Roxin, Oliver Martinovski, Jacquita McKinney
  • Patent number: 11549452
    Abstract: A method to control the combustion of an internal combustion engine, which comprises determining a combustion model, which provides a spark advance depending on an objective value of the rate of water to be injected, on the rotation speed, on the intake efficiency and on an open-loop contribution of a combustion index; calculating a first closed-loop contribution of the spark advance depending on the combustion index; calculating a second closed-loop contribution of the spark advance depending on a quantity indicating the knocking energy; and calculating the objective value of the spark advance angle to be operated through the sum of the spark advance value provided by the combustion model and of the first closed-loop contribution or, alternatively, of the second closed-loop contribution.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2023
    Assignee: MARELLI EUROPE S.P.A.
    Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Matteo De Cesare, Riccardo Lanzoni, Antonio Zito, Nicolò Cavina
  • Patent number: 11536228
    Abstract: Fuel reform apparatus includes: internal combustion engine including injector and configured so that compression-ignition combustion is carried out in combustion chamber; reform unit interposed in fuel supply path from fuel tank to injector and including reformer reforming fuel stored in fuel tank by oxidation reaction; and controller including CPU and memory. Controller performs: estimating progress level of oxidation reaction in reformer; and controlling operation of reform unit based on progress level of oxidation reaction estimated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2022
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Kohtaro Hashimoto, Tomohide Kudo
  • Patent number: 11536235
    Abstract: A throttle body assembly for a combustion engine includes a throttle body having a pressure chamber including a supply of liquid fuel, and a throttle bore with an inlet through which air is received. A throttle valve is carried by the throttle body with a valve head movable relative to the throttle bore. A metering valve is coupled to the throttle body, and has a valve element that is movable between open and closed positions. A boost venturi is located in the throttle bore and has an inner passage that is open at both ends to the throttle bore. The boost venturi has an opening through which fuel flows into the inner passage when the valve element is in the open position, wherein fuel flows from the pressure chamber to the metering valve under the force of gravity or under a pressure of less than 6 psi.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2022
    Assignee: Walbro LLC
    Inventors: Gary J. Burns, Andreas D. M. Dixon, Eric G. Zbytowski, Albert L. Sayers, Justin T. Dolane, David L. Speirs, William E. Galka, Duried F. Rabban, Bradley J. Roche