Patents Examined by Willis Wolfe, Jr.
  • Patent number: 8116960
    Abstract: A method for operating a combustion machine, such as an internal combustion engine, has the following steps: provision of a combustion machine for producing thermal energy; operation of the combustion machine, and thereby burning fuel to obtain the thermal energy; detection of the concentration of at least one pollutant, which is produced during the combustion, in the surroundings of the combustion machine; regulation of the operation of the combustion machine, in which a characteristic variable of the combustion machine is set according to the detected concentration in such a way that the emission of the pollutant is reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2012
    Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH
    Inventors: Ulrich Deml, Carsten Götte
  • Patent number: 8112218
    Abstract: A method for reducing a temperature of an engine component is disclosed. In one example, an air-fuel ratio provided to an engine is adjusted to reduce a temperature of an engine component. The approach may be useful for controlling temperature and emissions from a turbocharged engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2012
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Stephen George Russ
  • Patent number: 8108125
    Abstract: Engine surge includes oscillations in engine torque resulting in bucking or jerking motion of a vehicle that may degrade driver experience. The present application relates to increasing reformate entering an example engine cylinder in response to engine surge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas G. Leone
  • Patent number: 8108124
    Abstract: In a method for determining an uncontrolled acceleration of an internal combustion engine, a valve opening cross section is allocated to each load state of the internal combustion engine. In the event that a controller value is outside a limit range, an uncontrolled acceleration of the internal combustion engine is thereby detected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH
    Inventors: Uwe Jung, Janos Radeczky, Michael Wirkowski
  • Patent number: 8104445
    Abstract: A spark plug comprises a spark plug body, which carries two electrodes bordering a spark gap at one end, and exhibits a nut with external thread that can rotate around the spark plug body. A cylinder head exhibits a rotational coding complementary to the rotational coding of the spark plug body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC
    Inventor: Peter Seeger
  • Patent number: 8104456
    Abstract: A system and method are disclosed for providing exhaust-gas recirculation in an internal combustion engine that has an exhaust-gas turbocharger. The exhaust gas to be recirculated is collected from the exhaust line downstream of a turbine of the turbocharger, passed through a condensate separator, and supplied into the intake line upstream of the compressor. The condensate is filtered, collected in a reservoir, and pumped to an injection device coupled to the engine intake at a location downstream of the compressor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Yasser Mohamed sayed Yacoub
  • Patent number: 8108122
    Abstract: A six-cylinder engine includes a stop-cylinder-setting section. The stop-cylinder-setting section sets to-be-stopped cylinders such that cylinders operated in a four-cylinder operation mode (two cylinders stopped) are stopped in a two-cylinder operation mode (four cylinders stopped), and the cylinders operated in the two-cylinder operation mode are stopped in the four-cylinder operation mode. The stop-cylinder-setting section stops operations of intake valves corresponding to stopped cylinders in each operation mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Shuichi Ezaki
  • Patent number: 8100117
    Abstract: An engine having one of a plurality of exhaust valves in each cylinder that may be deactivated is disclosed. In one example, one exhaust valve of each cylinder is deactivated in response to engine speed. The engine may have improved engine torque at low engine speeds and reduced time to torque (e.g., turbo lag).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 16, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2012
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: John Christopher Riegger, Shuya Shark Yamada, Steven Paul Penkevich
  • Patent number: 8103428
    Abstract: A method for operating an engine is disclosed. In one example, the method adjusts a torque limit of the engine in response to an amount of EGR in an engine cylinder. The approach may reduce the possibility of pre-ignition for boosted engines.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2012
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Stephen George Russ, Phil Andrew Fabien
  • Patent number: 8103433
    Abstract: Method to detect a faulty operating condition during a cylinder cutoff of an internal combustion engine with at least two cylinder banks, wherein the internal combustion engine comprises in each case a separate mechanism to determine the Lambda value of the combustion for each cylinder bank. When the Lambda values of the cylinder banks change in opposite directions, a faulty cylinder cutoff is suggested.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2012
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Dirk Hartmann, Georg Mallebrein, Werner Mezger, Andreas Roth, Henri Barbier, Nikolas Poertner, Juergen Rappold, Ingo Fecht
  • Patent number: 8100115
    Abstract: In a method for operating a spark ignition engine, wherein the inlet valves of the spark ignition engine are closed very early or very late, and a combustion air flow which is supplied to the spark ignition engine is compressed by means of a charger, and, under full load operation, the inlet valves are closed either early or late to avoid knocking of the engine, a partial flow of re-circulated exhaust gas is supplied to the combustion air flow supplied to the engine also during full load engine operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2012
    Assignee: Daimler AG
    Inventor: Thomas Koch
  • Patent number: 8099229
    Abstract: An engine control system comprises an engine speed control module and an idle limiting module. The engine speed control module selectively controls an engine based on an idle speed request. The idle limiting module selectively reduces the idle speed request by an amount that is based on a wheel slip value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2012
    Inventor: Steven J. Andrasko
  • Patent number: 8095298
    Abstract: In a variable valve actuation system of an internal combustion engine employing a variable valve actuator capable of variably adjusting at least intake valve closure timing depending on engine operating conditions, a processor of a control unit is programmed to phase-advance the intake valve closure timing to a predetermined timing value after a piston top dead center position and before a piston bottom dead center position on intake stroke during at least one of an engine starting period and an engine stopping period. The variable valve actuator includes a biasing device by which the intake valve closure timing is permanently biased toward the predetermined timing value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2012
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Makoto Nakamura, Seinosuke Hara
  • Patent number: 8095299
    Abstract: A method for starting a vehicle engine includes determining a throttle angle command output based on a throttle adjustment parameter. The throttle angle command output may be further adjusted based on a learned compensation adder and may be based on a number of vehicle engine starts. A throttle angle corresponding to the throttle angle command output is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 24, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2012
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Douglas Raymond Martin, Khang Thanh Hong, William David Treharne, Tobias John Pallett, Jonathan Andrew Butcher
  • Patent number: 8090519
    Abstract: A control device that is used with an internal combustion engine to improve both the response and controllability of torque generated by the internal combustion engine. The control device calculates an operation amount of an intake actuator in accordance with a demanded air amount. The control device then calculates a torque that is generated when the intake actuator is operated by the calculated operation amount at a predetermined ignition timing setting, and calculates an ignition timing retard amount that is necessary to achieve a demanded torque in accordance with the difference between the calculated torque and the demanded torque. The control device ensures that the demanded torque and a demanded efficiency are both reflected in the demanded air amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2012
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shinichi Soejima, Naoto Kato, Keisuke Kawai
  • Patent number: 8090520
    Abstract: An engine management system for a hybrid vehicle may include a hybrid vehicle controller that selects a power source to be one of an electric propulsion system and a combustion engine. The hybrid vehicle controller may include an engine operation module configured to determine when operation of the combustion engine is required based on a predetermined set of operating parameters associated with the combustion engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2012
    Inventors: Edward D. Tate, Jr., Mark A. Theobald
  • Patent number: 8082900
    Abstract: A method for producing a support plate (1) for valve bodies includes: i) providing a base armature (22) including an even number of portions of pipes (4, 4?); ii) arranging a valve body (5) on portions (19) of the base armature (22) forming temporary reception zones for a valve body (5); iii) mounting the control axis through bearings (7 and 9) and the transverse groove of each valve body (5); iv) molding onto the control axis a bearing support for each valve body (5) and a mounting insert in the corresponding guide bearing (7); v) mounting each valve body (5) on the corresponding bearing support by sliding on the control axis, and vi) inserting mounting inserts in the corresponding guide bearings (7).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2011
    Assignee: Mark IV Systemes Moteurs (SAS)
    Inventors: Laurent Germain, Denis Menin, Richard Komurian
  • Patent number: 8086386
    Abstract: A method for use in generating power in an internal combustion engine from combustion of a fuel admixed with an oxidizing gas and operating cyclically with intentional ignition of a first fuel or with self-ignition of a second fuel which includes changing a volume of a combustion chamber from a fixed minimum volume to a fixed maximum volume wherein the maximum volume is greater than a critical volume. The critical volume includes a volume of the chamber filled with an oxidizing gas at an initial temperature and an initial pressure such that when the temperature is compressed from the critical volume to the minimum volume the gas reaches a maximum temperature and a maximum pressure causing detonation of a first fuel, or the gas exceeds a maximum temperature and a maximum pressure predetermined for self-ignition of a second fuel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2011
    Assignee: AB Engine Incorporated
    Inventor: Alexander Bakharev
  • Patent number: 8082090
    Abstract: A method and device for operation of glow plugs of a Diesel engine in which the type of glow plugs used is determined, by a parameter typical of the glow plugs, for example, the electrical glow plug resistance, being detected and evaluated. The detected values of the parameter typical of the glow plugs are compared with corresponding data for various types of glow plugs stored in the glow controller to determine the type(s) of glow plug(s) in the engine. After identification of the type(s) of glow plug(s), stored sets of parameters, which correspond to the type(s) of glow plug(s) determined, are likewise called upon to control the glow plugs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2011
    Assignee: Beru AG
    Inventors: Markus Kernwein, Andreas Bleil, Olaf Toedter, Helmut Mueller, Odd Peters
  • Patent number: 8082092
    Abstract: A process for controlling an internal combustion engine, in which an actual position of a reciprocating gas valve is detected by a position sensor, a positional deviation is calculated from the actual position and a zero position, a total length change of the reciprocating gas valve is calculated as a function of the temperature of the reciprocating gas valve, a valve clearance of the reciprocating gas valve is determined from the positional deviation and the total length change, and the further operation of the internal combustion engine is determined on the basis of the valve clearance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2011
    Assignee: MTU Friedrichshafen GmbH
    Inventors: Holger Frank, Marc Hehle, Michael Willmann