Patents by Inventor Francesco Alunni
Francesco Alunni has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 9031815Abstract: A method detects a “misfire” condition in an internal-combustion engine including a control unit, a driving shaft and phonic wheel that is splined to the shaft and coupled to a sensor. The method comprises steps of: detecting intensity of a signal generated by passage of teeth of the wheel by the sensor, sampling the signal generated by the passage of the teeth, processing the sampled signal by applying a discrete Fourier transform, representing the sampled signal processed by a virtual phasor that represents in a vector form the signal that has been sampled and processed, determining a corresponding theoretical phasor for the virtual phasor that represents theoretical evolution of the signal that has been sampled and processed over time, comparing the theoretical phasor with the virtual phasor, and determining presence of a “misfire” condition by comparing the theoretical phasor with the virtual phasor that represents the signal that has been sampled and processed.Type: GrantFiled: August 13, 2012Date of Patent: May 12, 2015Assignee: Magneti Marelli S.p.A.Inventors: Canio Rocco Caterini, Francesco Alunni, Luigi De Luca, Stefano Sgatti
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Patent number: 8515647Abstract: A method for controlling the wastegate in a turbocharged internal combustion engine including the steps of: determining, during a design phase, a control law which provides an objective opening of a controlling actuator of the wastegate according to the supercharging pressure; determining an objective supercharging pressure; measuring an actual supercharging pressure; determining a first open loop contribution of an objective position of a controlling actuator of the wastegate by means of the control law and according to the objective supercharging pressure; determining a second closed loop contribution of the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate; and calculating the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate by adding the two contributions.Type: GrantFiled: October 15, 2010Date of Patent: August 20, 2013Assignee: Magneti Marelli S.p.A.Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Francesco Alunni, Stefano Sgatti
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Publication number: 20130191074Abstract: A method detects a “misfire” condition in an internal-combustion engine including a driving shaft and phonic wheel that is splined to the shaft and coupled to a sensor. The method comprises steps of: detecting intensity of a signal generated by passage of teeth of the wheel by the sensor, sampling the signal generated by the passage of the teeth, processing the sampled signal by applying a discrete Fourier transform, representing the sampled signal processed by a virtual phasor that represents in a vector form the signal that has been sampled and processed, determining a corresponding theoretical phasor for the virtual phasor that represents theoretical evolution of the signal that has been sampled and processed over time, comparing the theoretical phasor with the virtual phasor, and determining presence of a “misfire” condition by comparing the theoretical phasor with the virtual phasor that represents the signal that has been sampled and processed.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 13, 2012Publication date: July 25, 2013Inventors: Canio Rocco Caterini, Francesco Alunni, Luigi De Luca, Stefano Sgatti
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Patent number: 8443601Abstract: A method for controlling the wastegate in a turbocharged internal combustion engine including the steps of: determining, during a design phase, a control law which provides an objective opening of a controlling actuator of the wastegate according to the supercharging pressure; determining an objective supercharging pressure; measuring an actual supercharging pressure; determining a first open loop contribution of an objective position of a controlling actuator of the wastegate by means of the control law and according to the objective supercharging pressure; determining a second closed loop contribution of the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate; and calculating the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate by adding the two contributions.Type: GrantFiled: October 15, 2010Date of Patent: May 21, 2013Assignee: Magneti Marelli S.p.A.Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Francesco Alunni, Stefano Sgatti
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Patent number: 8336374Abstract: A method of determining opening of an intake valve of an internal combustion engine, the method including the steps of: determining the time pattern of an intake pressure in an intake manifold of the internal combustion engine, the time pattern of the rotation speed of a drive shaft of the internal combustion engine, or the time pattern of a voltage at the terminals of a battery of the internal combustion engine; determining an intake-frequency component of the intake pressure, the rotation speed, or the voltage; and determining opening of the intake valve as a function of the intake-frequency component of the intake pressure, and also as a function of the intake-frequency component of the rotation speed or voltage.Type: GrantFiled: September 21, 2010Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: Magneti Marelli S.p.A.Inventors: Massimo Zanotti, Fabio Sensi, Marco Panciroli, Andrea Leoni, Francesco Alunni, Filippo Cavanna
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Patent number: 8055436Abstract: A method for controlling the wastegate in a turbocharged internal combustion engine including the steps of: determining, during a design phase, a control law which provides an objective opening of a controlling actuator of the wastegate according to the supercharging pressure; determining an objective supercharging pressure; measuring an actual supercharging pressure; determining a first open loop contribution of an objective position of a controlling actuator of the wastegate by means of the control law and according to the objective supercharging pressure; determining a second closed loop contribution of the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate; and calculating the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate by adding the two contributions.Type: GrantFiled: October 15, 2010Date of Patent: November 8, 2011Assignee: Magneti Marelli S.p.A.Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Francesco Alunni, Stefano Sgatti
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Publication number: 20110167900Abstract: A method of determining opening of an intake valve of an internal combustion engine, the method including the steps of: determining the time pattern of an intake pressure in an intake manifold of the internal combustion engine, the time pattern of the rotation speed of a drive shaft of the internal combustion engine, or the time pattern of a voltage at the terminals of a battery of the internal combustion engine; determining an intake-frequency component of the intake pressure, the rotation speed, or the voltage; and determining opening of the intake valve as a function of the intake-frequency component of the intake pressure, and also as a function of the intake-frequency component of the rotation speed or voltage.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 21, 2010Publication date: July 14, 2011Applicant: MAGNETI MARELLI S.P.A.Inventors: Massimo Zanotti, Fabio Sensi, Marco Panciroli, Andrea Leoni, Francesco Alunni, Filippo Cavanna
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Publication number: 20110088388Abstract: A method for controlling the wastegate in a turbocharged internal combustion engine including the steps of: determining, during a design phase, a control law which provides an objective opening of a controlling actuator of the wastegate according to the supercharging pressure; determining an objective supercharging pressure; measuring an actual supercharging pressure; determining a first open loop contribution of an objective position of a controlling actuator of the wastegate by means of the control law and according to the objective supercharging pressure; determining a second closed loop contribution of the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate; and calculating the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate by adding the two contributions.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 15, 2010Publication date: April 21, 2011Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Francesco Alunni, Stefano Sgatti
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Publication number: 20110088389Abstract: A method for controlling the wastegate in a turbocharged internal combustion engine including the steps of: determining, during a design phase, a control law which provides an objective opening of a controlling actuator of the wastegate according to the supercharging pressure; determining an objective supercharging pressure; measuring an actual supercharging pressure; determining a first open loop contribution of an objective position of a controlling actuator of the wastegate by means of the control law and according to the objective supercharging pressure; determining a second closed loop contribution of the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate; and calculating the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate by adding the two contributions.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 15, 2010Publication date: April 21, 2011Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Francesco Alunni, Stefano Sgatti
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Publication number: 20110088390Abstract: A method for controlling the wastegate in a turbocharged internal combustion engine including the steps of: determining, during a design phase, a control law which provides an objective opening of a controlling actuator of the wastegate according to the supercharging pressure; determining an objective supercharging pressure; measuring an actual supercharging pressure; determining a first open loop contribution of an objective position of a controlling actuator of the wastegate by means of the control law and according to the objective supercharging pressure; determining a second closed loop contribution of the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate; and calculating the objective position of the controlling actuator of the wastegate by adding the two contributions.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 15, 2010Publication date: April 21, 2011Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Francesco Alunni, Stefano Sgatti
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Patent number: 7801691Abstract: Method of acquisition and processing of an intake pressure signal in an internal combustion engine without an intake manifold; the internal combustion engine having at least one cylinder that receives fresh air through an intake duct, which is controlled by a butterfly valve and is provided with a pressure sensor connected to an electronic control unit. The acquisition and processing method provides for the following steps: measuring, via the pressure sensor, the instantaneous induction pressure at a plurality of different crank angles distributed over an engine cycle; storing, during each engine cycle, the instantaneous induction pressures in a fast acquisition buffer of the electronic control unit; and determining, at the end of each engine cycle, the mean induction pressure in the engine cycle by calculating a mean of the instantaneous induction pressures previously stored in the fast acquisition buffer of the electronic control unit.Type: GrantFiled: July 3, 2008Date of Patent: September 21, 2010Assignee: Magneti Marelli Powertrain S.p.A.Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Loris Lambertini, Francesco Alunni, Matteo Domenico Albertazzi, Marco Montaguti
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Publication number: 20090018783Abstract: Method of acquisition and processing of an intake pressure signal in an internal combustion engine without an intake manifold; the internal combustion engine having at least one cylinder that receives fresh air through an intake duct, which is controlled by a butterfly valve and is provided with a pressure sensor connected to an electronic control unit. The acquisition and processing method provides for the following steps: measuring, via the pressure sensor, the instantaneous induction pressure at a plurality of different crank angles distributed over an engine cycle; storing, during each engine cycle, the instantaneous induction pressures in a fast acquisition buffer of the electronic control unit; and determining, at the end of each engine cycle, the mean induction pressure in the engine cycle by calculating a mean of the instantaneous induction pressures previously stored in the fast acquisition buffer of the electronic control unit.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 3, 2008Publication date: January 15, 2009Applicant: Magneti Marelli Powertrain S.p.A.Inventors: Marco Panciroli, Loris Lambertini, Francesco Alunni, Matteo Domenico Albertazzi, Marco Montaguti