Abstract: An air supply unit for an internal combustion engine; the air supply unit is provided a number of butterfly valves and a distributor device, the latter being provided, for each butterfly valve, with a distribution duct capable of placing an internal duct of said butterfly valve in communication with a chamber of the distributor device connected to an intake box by means of a first air duct regulated by a solenoid valve; inside the distributor device, each distribution duct is connected to the intake box by means of a corresponding second air duct regulated by a respective bypass screw and is connected to a corresponding regulation duct opening into an air intake, which is accessible from the outside of the distributor device and is normally closed by an associated removable plug.

Abstract: A method for the direct injection of fuel into an internal combustion engine, wherein a high-pressure pump with a variable flow rate supplies the fuel to a common rail, which in turn supplies the fuel to a series of injectors; the flow rate of the high-pressure pump is controlled by choking each pump stroke by varying the closure time of an intake valve of said high-pressure pump; the mechanical actuation of the high-pressure pump is timed so that each injection interval is located at the beginning of a respective choking action; and each pump stroke is choked by at least an angular interval having a duration no shorter than that of the injection intervals irrespective of the quantity of fuel to be supplied to the common rail in such a way that the injection phase of each injector always takes place when the high-pressure pump is not pumping fuel to the common rail.

Abstract: A method for controlling an electrohydraulic unit for actuating the valves of an endothermic engine, in which the electrohydraulic unit is provided with a hydraulic actuator for opening the respective valve with a pressurized liquid, and a spring that is antagonistic to the hydraulic actuator in order to close the valve, provides for the control of the connection time between the hydraulic actuator and a first branch containing the pressurized liquid as a function of a predetermined time characteristic of the electrohydraulic unit.

Abstract: A fuel injector provided with an injection jet, an injection valve, the latter having a mobile plunger for regulating the flow of fuel through the injection jet, and an electromagnetic actuator, which is capable of displacing the plunger between a closed position and an open position of the injection valve and has a pair of electromagnets, each having a coil, a fixed magnetic armature, and a mobile armature; on the outer surface of a tubular supporting body of the injector, there are produced two annular slots, in each of which there is wound a corresponding coil of an electromagnet.

Abstract: A method for controlling the speed of a torque-controlled internal combustion engine in which the generation of the drive torque is regulated by actuators which are controlled from a control value of the instantaneous torque and by a control value of the predicted torque, the method providing for the calculation of an objective value of the speed, the calculation of an objective value of the torque reserve, the calculation of an objective value of the potential torque on the basis of the objective value of the torque reserve, the generation of the control value of the instantaneous torque by means of a first feedback control loop which uses as input the objective value of the speed, and the generation of the control value of the predicted torque by means of a second feedback control loop which uses as input the objective value of the potential torque.

Abstract: A servo-assisted butterfly valve comprising a valve body, a valve seat formed in the valve body, a butterfly disc adapted to engage the valve seat, a shaft on which the butterfly disc is keyed, an electric motor coupled to the shaft by means of at least one toothed wheel provided with a projection, a spiral return spring adapted to rotate the butterfly disc towards the closed position, and an opposing spring adapted to rotate the butterfly disc towards a limp-home position defined by an abutment body against the action of the return spring; the opposing spring is a flat leaf spring and is mounted on a moving member which is mounted coaxially and idly on the shaft and comprises a projection adapted to engage in abutment against the abutment body, a first end of the opposing spring being free and adapted to come into contact with the projection of the toothed wheel during the rotation of this toothed wheel.

Abstract: A method for detecting misfiring in an internal combustion engine by analysing the angular acceleration of the drive shaft, in which the value of the angular acceleration is estimated at predetermined angular positions of the drive shaft, the absolute value of the angular acceleration is compared with a predetermined threshold value, and the presence of a misfire is detected if the absolute value of the angular acceleration is greater than the predetermined threshold value; when the presence of a misfire is detected, a set of values of the angular acceleration subsequent to the value of the angular acceleration at which the misfire has been detected is filtered to eliminate the oscillation component generated by the misfire with respect to the value of the angular acceleration.

Abstract: An intake manifold for an internal combustion engine having a number of cylinders; for each cylinder, the intake manifold has a respective intake pipe connecting the intake manifold to the cylinder and regulated by an intake valve; and the intake manifold also has an air vessel having, for each intake pipe, a respective hollow body defining an empty chamber, which communicates with the intake pipe by means of a high-speed compensation valve.

Abstract: A fuel injector provided with an injection valve comprising a mobile plunger; an injection jet having a plurality of first through-holes made starting from a chamber arranged downstream from the injection valve; a supporting body having a tubular shape and comprising a supply channel; and a sealing body, in which a valve seat of the injection valve is defined and the injection jet is provided; the sealing body is monolithic and has a disc-shaped plug member passed through by the injection jet, and a guide member, which rises up from the plug member, is tubular in shape, receives within it the plunger and has an external diameter smaller than the internal diameter of the supply channel, so as to define an external annular channel for the fuel; in the lower part of the guide member there are provided a number of second through-holes which open into the valve seat.

Abstract: Method for finding the angular acceleration of a drive shaft of an internal combustion engine by means of a gear wheel integral with said drive shaft; the method making provision to identify, in each complete revolution of the drive shaft, a number of angular measurement lines, to measure the time used by the drive shaft to pass over each angular measurement line using the signal supplied by the gear wheel, to add algebraically, to the time used by the drive shaft to pass over each angular measurement line, a corresponding correction coefficient that takes account of any asymmetries in the gear wheel, and to determine the value of angular acceleration of the drive shaft as a function of the time used by the drive shaft to pass over each angular measurement line; the value of the correction coefficients is determined in the course of an engine fuel cut-off phase.

Abstract: A control system with multiprocessor architecture for an internal combustion powertrain is disclosed. The control system has a computing unit capable of executing both basic control functions of the powertrain and ancillary control functions not directly related to the control of the powertrain. The computing unit comprises a main processor, which is dedicated to executing basic functions for controlling the powertrain, at least one auxiliary processor, which is dedicated to executing ancillary control functions, a number of memories, a series of peripheral devices, at least one peripheral bus connection, to which the peripheral devices are connected, and an intelligent main bus connection of the cross-bar bus type to allow the processors to communicate with the memories and with the peripheral bus connection.

Abstract: An electronically controlled butterfly valve comprising a valve body, a valve seat formed in the valve body, a butterfly disc adapted to engage the valve seat, a shaft on which the butterfly disc is keyed, an electric motor coupled to the shaft by means of a gear transmission having a final gear keyed on the shaft, a spiral return spring adapted to rotate the butterfly disc towards the closed position, and an opposing spring adapted to rotate the butterfly disc towards a limp-home position defined by an abutment body against the action of the return spring; the opposing spring is a flat leaf spring and is mounted on a moving member which is mounted coaxially and idly on the shaft and has a projection adapted to engage in abutment against the abutment body, an end of the opposing spring being free and ending in a projection which is disposed so as to be superimposed on the trajectory followed by a member rigid with the final gear.

Abstract: An electrohydraulic unit for actuating the valves of an endothermic engine is provided with a hydraulic actuator for lifting a respective valve by means of a pressurized liquid and a spring antagonistic to the hydraulic actuator in order to close the valve and to discharge the liquid from the hydraulic actuator in the final closure phase of the valve through a discharge branch provided with a calibrated orifice to slow down the expulsion of the liquid and maintain a substantially constant closing velocity of the valve during discharge of the liquid from the hydraulic actuator.

Abstract: A method for controlling a fuel injector provided with an electrically operated electomagnetic actuator in such a manner as to open the injector for a determined injection time; the method providing that the injector be operated with a first current waveform if the injection time is greater than a predetermined threshold value, and that the injector be operated with a second current waveform if the injection time is less than the predetermined threshold value; both the current waveforms have an identical initial portion, during which the current passing through the injector is caused to rise until it reaches a peak value, which is maintained by cyclic switching of the voltage applied to the injector between two different values.

Abstract: Gate for throttle valves composed of a central supporting portion constituted by a thermoplastic material and an edge portion constituted by a thermoplastic elastomeric material belonging to the same chemical family as the thermoplastic material; the gate is produced by means of a coinjection process of the thermoplastic material and the thermoplastic elastomeric material.

Abstract: A servo-assisted butterfly valve comprising a valve body, a valve seat formed in the valve body, a butterfly disc adapted to engage the valve seat, a shaft on which the butterfly disc is keyed, an electric motor coupled to the shaft by means of at least one toothed wheel provided with a projection, a spiral return spring adapted to rotate the butterfly disc towards the closed position, and an opposing spring adapted to rotate the butterfly disc towards a limp-home position defined by an abutment body against the action of the return spring; the opposing spring is a flat leaf spring and is mounted on a moving member which is mounted coaxially and idly on the shaft and comprises a projection adapted to engage in abutment against the abutment body, a first end of the opposing spring being free and adapted to come into contact with the projection of the toothed wheel during the rotation of this toothed wheel.

Abstract: In a fuel pump for an internal combustion engine, a pumping device is adapted to vary the volume of a first chamber containing the fuel and is formed by a second chamber adapted to contain oil, a deformable diaphragm for the leak-tight separation of the chambers from one another, and by a piston mounted to slide within the second chamber and comprising an active end surface bounding this second chamber; the diaphragm being adapted to be deformed to vary the volume of the first chamber under the action of the thrust exerted by the oil contained in the second chamber following an alternating movement of the piston within this second chamber.

Abstract: A ventilation system is described for electrical wiring arrangements of electrical circuits comprising a plurality of electrical connection terminals arranged within an insulating element; the ventilation system comprising a plurality of electrical ventilation cables connected to the respective electrical terminals of the electrical circuit; a plurality of connection chambers each produced in the body of the insulating element in such a manner as to accommodate therein the connection between the electrical ventilation cable and the corresponding terminal while maintaining the connection insulated from the outside; and at least one communication duct between the connection chambers produced in the body of the insulating element and designed so as to permit the passage of air between the connection chambers and through the electrical ventilation cables.

Abstract: A fuel manifold for an internal combustion engine provided with a supply duct which is adapted to distribute the fuel under pressure to the injectors and is made by a first material, and a connection body which internally incorporates the supply duct, is adapted to enable the mechanical connection of the fuel manifold within the engine, is made by a second material different from the first material, and is made by moulding the second material in a mould containing the supply duct.

Abstract: An electromagnetic fuel injector for an internal combustion engine, comprising a main body having a central cylindrical cavity adapted to act as a duct for the fuel, a valve which is disposed to close an end of the central cylindrical cavity and is provided with a moving shutter, an electromagnetic actuator which is provided with a coil, a fixed armature, and a moving armature mechanically connected to the shutter and adapted to be magnetically attracted by the fixed armature against the action of a spring, and a monolithic tubular member which is disposed coaxially within the central cylindrical cavity and houses the fixed armature and the moving armature.