Patents Examined by Willis R. Wolfe
  • Patent number: 8600647
    Abstract: An air-fuel ratio control apparatus includes a catalytic converter disposed at a position downstream of an exhaust gas aggregated portion; a downstream air-fuel ratio sensor disposed in an exhaust passage at a position downstream of the catalytic converter; first feedback amount updating means for updating a first feedback amount to have an output value of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor coincide with a target downstream-side air-fuel ratio based on the output value of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor; and a learning means for updating a leaning value of the first feedback amount in such a manner that the leaning value brings in a steady-state component of the first feedback amount based on the first feedback amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Takayuki Demura
  • Patent number: 8600645
    Abstract: A control system for an engine having at least one manifold, a throttle, and a crank wheel, includes a pressure sensor to measure a pressure in the at least one manifold, a throttle position sensor to measure a position of the throttle of the engine, a revolution sensor to measure a rate of rotation of the crank wheel of the engine, a processor in communication with each of the pressure sensor, the throttle position sensor, and the revolution sensor to receive an input signal, analyze the input signal based upon an instruction set, and generate a control signal in response to analysis of the input signal, wherein the input signal is representative of at least one of the pressure, the throttle position, and the rate of rotation, and an engine system in communication with the processor and responsive to the control signal to control a function thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Assignee: Visteon Global Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas Raymond Culbertson, Eric Bender
  • Patent number: 8589056
    Abstract: To provide a stop control system for an internal combustion engine, which is capable of accurately stopping a piston at a predetermined position while compensating for variation in the stop characteristic of the piston and aging thereof. The stop control system 1 for the engine 3 according the present invention controls a throttle valve 13a toward an open side when an engine speed NE becomes lower than a stop control start rotational speed NEIGOFTH after the engine 3 is stopped (step 42), whereby a final compression stroke rotational speed NEPRSFTGT is controlled to a predetermined reference value NENPFLMTO, to thereby control the stop position of the piston 3d to a predetermined position. Further, the correlation between the stop control start rotational speed NEIGOFTH and the final compression stroke rotational speed NEPRSFTGT is determined (step 5, FIG.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2013
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tomoharu Hozumi, Hiroshi Yatani, Takeshi Aoki, Atsushi Mitsui, Masaaki Nagashima, Kazuhiko Imamura
  • Patent number: 8583350
    Abstract: A microprocessor controlled automated, multi-fuel apparatus to blend hydrogen, bio-fuel and/or natural or propane gases. This novel multi-stage apparatus first converts cooking oils into bio-fuel. The system automatically blends the bio-fuel with at least one of or both hydrogen gas, generated by a self-contained on-board hydrogen electrolyzer, and/or natural or propane gases. This blended “Hyenrich” gaseous fuel drives various processes including, but not limited to, cogeneration systems and electrical generators to produce “green” electricity by utilizing an adaptive and predictive learning algorithms to significantly reduce cost per kilowatt and lessen dependency on the over taxed utility grid, while simultaneously reducing emissions of CO, CO2 and NOx, making the method and apparatus an environmentally-friendly energy device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2013
    Assignee: HyCogen Power, LLC
    Inventors: Christopher Lee Sagar, Eric Michael Maskrey
  • Patent number: 8578912
    Abstract: A method and a device for setting an afterglow temperature in a self-igniting internal combustion engine, the afterglow temperature being reduced in a defined operating state of the internal combustion engine until a modification of an operating parameter as a result of the reduction of the afterglow temperature is required in order to maintain the defined operating state, in particular in order to maintain the injected fuel quantity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2013
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Herbert Schumacher, Christos Hondros
  • Patent number: 8583351
    Abstract: A method of operating a vehicle including an engine is provided. The engine may include at least one cylinder, a boosting device to boost intake air to the at least one cylinder, a fuel tank, a fuel vapor canister to store fuel vapors vented from the fuel tank, and an emission control device to treat exhaust gas from the engine. The boosting device includes a compressor at least partially driven by an electric motor. The method includes during an engine cold start condition, operating the electric motor of the boost device to boost intake air, directing the boosted intake air through the fuel vapor canister to release a fuel vapor stored in the fuel vapor canister, directing the fuel vapor from the fuel vapor canister to the engine, and performing combustion in the at least one cylinder using the fuel vapor during the engine starting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Michael James Uhrich, James Michael Kerns, Gopichandra Surnilla
  • Patent number: 8578904
    Abstract: An engine starting method in a parallel-type hybrid vehicle comprises a motor reverse rotation driving step of applying reverse rotation current to drivingly rotate a motor output shaft in a reverse rotation direction of an engine output shaft whereby an elastic member in a damper is elastically deformed to store an urging force that urges the motor output shaft in a normal rotation direction; an urged normal rotation step of stopping the electrification to release the urging force having been stored at the motor reverse rotation driving step whereby the motor output shaft is rotated in the normal rotation direction; a motor normal rotation driving step of applying normal rotation current to drivingly rotate the motor output shaft in the normal rotation direction; and an engine start igniting step of igniting an engine with the engine output shaft being rotated by the rotation at the motor normal rotation driving step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2013
    Assignee: Aisin Seiki Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Masafumi Sakuma
  • Patent number: 8583345
    Abstract: A control chip for providing the basic functionality of a control unit includes a voltage supply having at least two, in particular three, output voltages; at least two, in particular three, sensor power supplies, in particular having 5-V and/or 3.3-V output voltage; at least one driver for bidirectional interfaces; a CAN driver; a follower control; a main relay output stage having a diagnostic function; at least one bidirectional serial interface for controlling the output stages and for communicating with a microcontroller; at least six power output stages, in particular having rated currents of 0.6 A to 3 A; at least one low-level signal output, in particular having a rated current of 50 mA, and four ignition drivers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2013
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Immanuel Krauter, Uwe Guenther, Manfred Kirschner, Beate Leibbrand
  • Patent number: 8577584
    Abstract: A method for operating an internal combustion engine, in which a setpoint torque to be output by the internal combustion engine is restricted to a specifiable torque, in particular in response to an error in the control of the internal combustion engine. An engine speed of the internal combustion engine is determined as a function of at least one performance quantity of the internal combustion engine, and the specifiable torque is modified as a function of the determined engine speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2013
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Robert Gwinner, Gholamabas Esteghlal
  • Patent number: 8573179
    Abstract: When cranking starts by turning on a starter switch 14, the ignition timing is first corrected to a fixed value on a retard side. When an IACV 6 reaches a fully opened position, the ignition timing is corrected to the retard side once, and thereafter corrected to an advance side. The correction to the advance side is performed in accordance with a difference between the number of idling target steps and the current number of steps, and the amount of advance correction is reduced as the difference is reduced. Upon completion of the initialization of the IACV 6, the ignition timing correction amount is then restored to the initial value by increasing the amount of advance by a predetermined amount in a stepwise manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2010
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2013
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yukihiro Asada, Kenichi Machida
  • Patent number: 8577583
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for operating a glow plug with the engine running, wherein an effective voltage is generated from a vehicle electrical system voltage by pulse width modulation, the effective voltage is applied to the glow plug and changed as a function of engine parameters, a target value of the effective voltage that is dependent on the engine parameters and to which the effective voltage is changed is specified, a maximum increment for a change of the actual value of the effective voltage in at least one direction is specified, and a change of the actual value in at least one direction to a target value that deviates from the actual value by more than the maximum increment is carried out in several steps. The invention further relates to a controller which carries out such a method during operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2013
    Assignee: BorgWarner BERU Systems GmbH
    Inventors: Markus Kernwein, Joerg Stoeckle
  • Patent number: 8573182
    Abstract: A method for improving starting of an engine that may be automatically started is provided. In one example, spark timing of an automatically started engine is in advance of spark timing for an operator requested engine start. The approach may reduce vehicle driveline disturbances.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: David Bruce Reiche, Steven Wooldridge, Curtis McGuire, Brad Alan VanDerWege
  • Patent number: 8571784
    Abstract: A method for controlling a fuel injector of a diesel engine having a predefined control time from a control start, in which a setpoint value of a combustion start of a combustion chamber charge of the diesel engine is ascertained. The method is characterized in that an ignition delay between the control start and the combustion start is estimated from performance parameters of the diesel engine using a computing model, and the control start is formed on the basis of the setpoint value of the combustion start and the estimated ignition delay. A control unit controls the sequence of the method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2013
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Stefan Polach, Dara Torkzadeh
  • Patent number: 8567371
    Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods are disclosed for automatically adjusting a speed of an engine in response to the loading on the engine. In particular, an automatic idle system and method can comprise a governor linkage with a first end for connection to the rotatable shaft of an engine governor and a second end for connection to a throttle control of the engine, and an actuator connected to the second end of the governor linkage. The actuator can be movable in response to a load on the engine to move the governor linkage from a base position to an adjusted position. In this arrangement, when the engine is in a low-load state, the governor linkage can be moved toward a throttle-closed position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2013
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Christopher W. Vaughn, Jeffrey A. Wians
  • Patent number: 8561593
    Abstract: A pump and rail assembly includes a plurality of quills that are compressed between quill seats on a pump and an output rail. A rail pressure control valve and a rail pressure sensor are attached to respective ends of the output rail. An inlet throttle valve is attached to a housing of the pump and rail assembly. Depending upon the application, the output rail may supply fuel to a first injection bank that includes a plurality of fuel injectors in a first common rail, and a second fuel injection bank that includes a second common rail and a plurality of fuel injectors. Different engines having different numbers of cylinders may use similar pump and rail assemblies that each include a plurality of quills, a plurality of pumping elements positioned in a pump housing and an output rail. The quills for each of the different engine applications are interchangeable but differ in number. In addition, the pumping elements of each of the different engine applications are also interchangeable but differ in number.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2013
    Assignee: Caterpillar Inc.
    Inventors: Scott F. Shafer, Zhenyu Li
  • Patent number: 8555845
    Abstract: An idle stop controller includes an idle stop mechanism 2 controlling the stop and the restart of an engine 1; a vehicle location detecting section 5 detecting a vehicle location; and a controller 4, when an ETC gate is retrieved within a predetermined region from a vehicle location detected by the vehicle location detecting section, prohibiting the idle stop mechanism from stopping the engine, and when no ETC gate has been detected within the predetermined region, releasing the prohibition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2013
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventor: Kazuhiro Nakata
  • Patent number: 8560213
    Abstract: An exhaust gas recirculation device of an engine (10) of the invention comprises a first exhaust gas recirculation passage (50) for connecting an exhaust passage (40) and an intake passage (30) to each other and introducing into the intake passage an exhaust gas discharged from a combustion chamber (21) to the exhaust passage, and a second exhaust gas recirculation passage (55) for connecting the exhaust passage upstream of a part of the exhaust passage connected to the first exhaust gas recirculation passage and the intake passage downstream of a part of the intake passage connected to the first exhaust gas recirculation passage to each other and introducing into the intake passage the exhaust gas discharged from the combustion chamber to the exhaust passage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2013
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tomomi Onishi, Tomihisa Oda, Bungo Kawaguchi, Masaaki Satou, Satoshi Kobayakawa, Takeru Shirasawa
  • Patent number: 8554445
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for improving fuel usage while addressing knock by adjusting the use of spark retard and direct injection of a knock control fluid based on engine operating conditions and the composition of the injected fluid. One or more engine parameters, such as EGR, VCT, boost, throttle position, and CMCV, are coordinated with the direct injection to reduce torque and EGR transients.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas G. Leone
  • Patent number: 8554446
    Abstract: Provided is a control apparatus, which can successfully suppress that deterioration of combustion is caused in response to inflow of a large amount of blow-by gas to cylinders at the time of a valve return from a valve stop state in an internal combustion engine including a positive crankcase ventilation system and a variable valve operating mechanism that is capable of stopping at least one valve of an intake valve and exhaust valve in a closed state. A valve stop control is performed which stops the intake valve and exhaust valve in a closed state when a fuel cut of the internal combustion engine is executed. A deviation amount ?A/F between a predetermined target air fuel ratio and an actual air fuel ratio detected by an A/F sensor at the time of a valve return is obtained. A correction is performed to decrease a fuel injection amount by a fuel amount equivalent to the deviation amount ?A/F at the time of the subsequent valve returns.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Keisuke Sano, Kazuhiro Wakao, Takashi Nishikiori, Takashi Watanabe
  • Patent number: 8544445
    Abstract: A system and method are disclosed for fabricating and running an engine in two modes. The first mode is an efficiency mode having a high compression ratio and efficiency for low to medium loads. The second mode is a power mode having high power density for higher loads. The system may use a lean mixture in the efficiency mode, which mixture is made richer for more power in the power mode. The system may also use ignition timing to allow the efficiency mode and the high power mode to be at the same mixture.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2013
    Assignee: Pinnacle Engines, Inc.
    Inventors: James M. Cleeves, Nicholas Manov, Michael A. Willcox, Simon David Jackson