Patents by Inventor Hirofumi Tsuchida

Hirofumi Tsuchida 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).

  • Patent number: 12055108
    Abstract: A control method and a control device for controlling a spark-ignition internal combustion engine that is equipped with a turbocharger and an exhaust gas recirculation device. The operation of the engine is carried out to perform a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio by performing exhaust gas recirculation even in a high-load range including a maximum-output operation point. When the maximum output operation point is required, intake air information such as atmospheric pressure and outside air temperature is used as a basis to calculate intake air density, which is compared with a predetermined density threshold. When the intake density is equal to or less than the density threshold at a high-altitude location or the like, an exhaust gas recirculation rate is set to 0. As a result, the maximum output can be higher than when exhaust gas recirculation is performed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2024
    Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Katsuhito Takahashi, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Mitsuhiro Akagi
  • Publication number: 20240183322
    Abstract: A control method and a control device for controlling a spark-ignition internal combustion engine that is equipped with a turbocharger and an exhaust gas recirculation device. The operation of the engine is carried out to perform a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio by performing exhaust gas recirculation even in a high-load range including a maximum-output operation point. When the maximum output operation point is required, intake air information such as atmospheric pressure and outside air temperature is used as a basis to calculate intake air density, which is compared with a predetermined density threshold. When the intake density is equal to or less than the density threshold at a high-altitude location or the like, an exhaust gas recirculation rate is set to 0. As a result, the maximum output can be higher than when exhaust gas recirculation is performed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 15, 2021
    Publication date: June 6, 2024
    Inventors: Katsuhito TAKAHASHI, Hirofumi TSUCHIDA, Mitsuhiro AKAGI
  • Patent number: 11939928
    Abstract: An EGR valve is provided in an EGR passage circulating a part of an exhaust gas of an exhaust pipe in an intake pipe as an EGR gas, the EGR valve adjusting an EGR gas amount flowing in the EGR passage when an engine is in an EGR region, a differential pressure device is provided in the intake pipe, the differential pressure device adjusting a differential pressure of the EGR valve, a control unit is provided to control the EGR valve and the differential pressure device, and the EGR control method includes switching whether to adjust the EGR gas amount using the EGR valve and the differential pressure device or to adjust the EGR gas amount using the EGR valve only on the basis of an exhaust gas pressure of an inlet portion of the EGR passage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2024
    Assignee: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Daisuke Takaki, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Takayuki Hamamoto
  • Patent number: 11623180
    Abstract: A catalytic converter is provided with: an inlet-side diffuser part; an outlet-side diffuser part; a case including an upstream-side cylindrical part and a downstream-side cylindrical part; an inner liner provided in the upstream-side cylindrical part; a first catalyst retained inside the inner liner; and a second catalyst retained inside the downstream-side cylindrical part. An end face of the second catalyst faces a peripheral surface of the inner liner. An annular flow path is provided between the upstream-side cylindrical part and the inner liner, and the first catalyst is insulated from heat by the annular flow path. A part of exhaust flows into the second catalyst via the annular flow path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2023
    Assignees: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD., RENAULT S. A. S.
    Inventors: Takayuki Hamamoto, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Daisuke Takaki, Yuta Ishigaki
  • Publication number: 20230056691
    Abstract: A vehicle cooling device includes a first heat exchanger and a second heat exchanger. The first heat exchanger is a water-cooled intercooler that is configured to cool supercharged intake air. The second heat exchanger is a water-cooled EGR gas cooler that is configured to cool EGR gas. The first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger are arranged in series on a cooling water circuit such that cooling water flowing out of the first heat exchanger flows into the second heat exchanger. The second heat exchanger is arranged in a position relatively lower than a height position of the first heat exchanger when the cooling device has been installed in a vehicle. Due to this height difference, the cooling water in the second heat exchanger has high pressure, and boiling of the cooling water is suppressed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 23, 2020
    Publication date: February 23, 2023
    Inventors: Takayuki HAMAMOTO, Hirofumi TSUCHIDA
  • Patent number: 11441497
    Abstract: During a transient period, the opening degree of a throttle valve (throttle opening degree) is varied from a steady-period target throttle opening degree in a region A1 toward a valve closing side by a predetermined amount ?P, and is thereafter controlled so as to become a steady-period target throttle opening degree in the region A1. The transient period is a transient period in which the operation state is shifted from a region B2 in which an air-fuel ratio in a supercharged state becomes a predetermined lean air-fuel ratio to a region A1 in which the air-fuel ratio in a non-supercharged state becomes a predetermined rich air-fuel ratio richer than the lean air-fuel ratio. In this transient period, by reducing the air amount in a cylinder, the combustion torque of an internal combustion engine is suppressed, and consequently; a torque overshoot can be suppressed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2022
    Assignee: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kengo Yonekura, Hirofumi Tsuchida
  • Publication number: 20220274060
    Abstract: A catalytic converter is provided with: an inlet-side diffuser part; an outlet-side diffuser part; a case including an upstream-side cylindrical part and a downstream-side cylindrical part; an inner liner provided in the upstream-side cylindrical part; a first catalyst retained inside the inner liner; and a second catalyst retained inside the downstream-side cylindrical part. An end face of the second catalyst faces a peripheral surface of the inner liner. An annular flow path is provided between the upstream-side cylindrical part and the inner liner, and the first catalyst is insulated from heat by the annular flow path. A part of exhaust flows into the second catalyst via the annular flow path.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 22, 2019
    Publication date: September 1, 2022
    Applicants: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD., RENAULT S.A.S.
    Inventors: Takayuki HAMAMOTO, Hirofumi TSUCHIDA, Daisuke TAKAKI, Yuta ISHIGAKI
  • Publication number: 20220268222
    Abstract: An EGR valve is provided in an EGR passage circulating a part of an exhaust gas of an exhaust pipe in an intake pipe as an EGR gas, the EGR valve adjusting an EGR gas amount flowing in the EGR passage when an engine is in an EGR region, a differential pressure device is provided in the intake pipe, the differential pressure device adjusting a differential pressure of the EGR valve, a control unit is provided to control the EGR valve and the differential pressure device, and the EGR control method includes switching whether to adjust the EGR gas amount using the EGR valve and the differential pressure device or to adjust the EGR gas amount using the EGR valve only on the basis of an exhaust gas pressure of an inlet portion of the EGR passage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 6, 2019
    Publication date: August 25, 2022
    Applicant: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Daisuke TAKAKI, Hirofumi TSUCHIDA, Takayuki HAMAMOTO
  • Patent number: 11378792
    Abstract: The optical system for a microscope includes an illumination lens group G11 and an objective optical system. The objective optical system has an objective lens group G12, a first image forming lens group G13, and a second image forming lens group G14, which are disposed in this order from the object side, and satisfies the following conditional expressions. NAL×2?NAO?NAL×15 . . . (1); 0.01?NAL?0.1 . . . (2); and 25?MO?100 . . . (3), where NAL denotes the numerical aperture of the illumination lens group G11, NAO denotes the numerical aperture of the objective lens group G12, and MO denotes the image-formation magnification of the objective lens group G12.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2022
    Assignee: MIL-KIN INC.
    Inventors: Kiyofumi Kano, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Kazuo Kajitani
  • Publication number: 20210054794
    Abstract: During a transient period, the opening degree of a throttle valve (throttle opening degree) is varied from a steady-period target throttle opening degree in a region A1 toward a valve closing side by a predetermined amount ?P, and is thereafter controlled so as to become a steady-period target throttle opening degree in the region A1. The transient period is a transient period in which the operation state is shifted from a region B2 in which an air-fuel ratio in a supercharged state becomes a predetermined lean air-fuel ratio to a region A1 in which the air-fuel ratio in a non-supercharged state becomes a predetermined rich air-fuel ratio richer than the lean air-fuel ratio. In this transient period, by reducing the air amount in a cylinder, the combustion torque of an internal combustion engine is suppressed, and consequently; a torque overshoot can be suppressed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 23, 2018
    Publication date: February 25, 2021
    Applicant: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kengo YONEKURA, Hirofumi TSUCHIDA
  • Patent number: 10890126
    Abstract: A control method for an internal combustion engine including: setting a target valve opening degree of the first throttle valve in accordance with a load, sensing a valve opening degree of the second throttle valve, judging whether or not the valve opening degree of the second throttle valve is an opening degree on a closing side relative to a predetermined set valve opening degree, and correcting the valve opening degree of the first throttle valve to the opening degree on the closing side relative to the target valve opening degree when it is judged that the valve opening degree of the second throttle valve is the opening degree on the closing side relative to the predetermined set valve opening degree.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2021
    Assignees: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD., RENAULT S. A. S.
    Inventors: Takayuki Hamamoto, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Daisuke Suzuki
  • Patent number: 10883429
    Abstract: An intake control method for an internal combustion engine equipped with a low-pressure EGR system includes setting a target intake pressure, which is a target value of an intake pressure in an intake passage between a negative pressure generating valve and an intake throttle valve, necessary for performing EGR control in a state of an exhaust pressure determined for each operating point, setting a target total opening area, which is a sum of a target opening area of an EGR valve and a target opening area of the negative pressure generating valve, on the basis of the target intake pressure, a target fresh air amount, and a target EGR gas amount, setting a target EGR valve opening area, which is an opening area of the EGR valve for achieving the target EGR gas amount, assuming that the negative pressure generating valve is fully open, and setting a value obtained by subtracting the target EGR valve opening area from the target total opening area to be a target negative pressure generating valve opening area, w
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2021
    Assignees: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD., RENAULT S.A.S.
    Inventors: Kengo Yonekura, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Takayuki Hamamoto
  • Publication number: 20200379228
    Abstract: The optical system for a microscope includes an illumination lens group G11 and an objective optical system. The objective optical system has an objective lens group G12, a first image forming lens group G13, and a second image forming lens group G14, which are disposed in this order from the object side, and satisfies the following conditional expressions. NAL×2?NAO?NAL×15 . . . (1); 0.01?NAL?0.1 . . . (2); and 25?MO100 . . . (3), where NAL denotes the numerical aperture of the illumination lens group G11, NAO denotes the numerical aperture of the objective lens group G12, and MO denotes the image-formation magnification of the objective lens group G12.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 21, 2017
    Publication date: December 3, 2020
    Inventors: Kiyofumi Kano, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Kazuo Kajitani
  • Publication number: 20190353109
    Abstract: A control method for an internal combustion engine including: setting a target valve opening degree of the first throttle valve in accordance with a load, sensing a valve opening degree of the second throttle valve, judging whether or not the valve opening degree of the second throttle valve is an opening degree on a closing side relative to a predetermined set valve opening degree, and correcting the valve opening degree of the first throttle valve to the opening degree on the closing side relative to the target valve opening degree when it is judged that the valve opening degree of the second throttle valve is the opening degree on the closing side relative to the predetermined set valve opening degree.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 16, 2017
    Publication date: November 21, 2019
    Applicants: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD., RENAULT S. A. S.
    Inventors: Takayuki HAMAMOTO, Hirofumi TSUCHIDA, Daisuke SUZUKI
  • Patent number: 10465622
    Abstract: A basic opening (A0) of an EGR control valve (22) is set, based on a current engine operation state. A differential pressure (?P1) across the EGR control valve (22) is calculated, based on an actual exhaust system temperature (T1) sensed by an exhaust temperature sensor (33). A reference differential pressure (?P0) is calculated, which is a differential pressure across the EGR control valve (22) in a steady state corresponding to the current engine operation state. A reference pulsation amplitude (D) is calculated, which is an amplitude of pulsation of the reference differential pressure (?P0). The basic opening (A0) is corrected, based on the differential pressure (?P1), the reference differential pressure (?P0), and the reference pulsation amplitude (D).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2019
    Assignees: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD., RENAULT S.A.S.
    Inventors: Kengo Yonekura, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Takayuki Hamamoto
  • Publication number: 20190331035
    Abstract: An intake control method for an internal combustion engine equipped with a low-pressure EGR system includes setting a target intake pressure, which is a target value of an intake pressure in an intake passage between a negative pressure generating valve and an intake throttle valve, necessary for performing EGR control in a state of an exhaust pressure determined for each operating point, setting a target total opening area, which is a sum of a target opening area of an EGR valve and a target opening area of the negative pressure generating valve, on the basis of the target intake pressure, a target fresh air amount, and a target EGR gas amount, setting a target EGR valve opening area, which is an opening area of the EGR valve for achieving the target EGR gas amount, assuming that the negative pressure generating valve is fully open, and setting a value obtained by subtracting the target EGR valve opening area from the target total opening area to be a target negative pressure generating valve opening area, w
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 1, 2017
    Publication date: October 31, 2019
    Applicants: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD., RENAULT S.A.S.
    Inventors: Kengo YONEKURA, Hirofumi TSUCHIDA, Takayuki HAMAMOTO
  • Publication number: 20190234328
    Abstract: A basic opening (A0) of an EGR control valve (22) is set, based on a current engine operation state. A differential pressure (?P1) across the EGR control valve (22) is calculated, based on an actual exhaust system temperature (T1) sensed by an exhaust temperature sensor (33). A reference differential pressure (?P0) is calculated, which is a differential pressure across the EGR control valve (22) in a steady state corresponding to the current engine operation state. A reference pulsation amplitude (D) is calculated, which is an amplitude of pulsation of the reference differential pressure (?P0). The basic opening (A0) is corrected, based on the differential pressure (?P1), the reference differential pressure (?P0), and the reference pulsation amplitude (D).
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 7, 2016
    Publication date: August 1, 2019
    Applicants: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD., RENAULT S. A. S.
    Inventors: Kengo YONEKURA, Hirofumi TSUCHIDA, Takayuki HAMAMOTO
  • Patent number: 10100759
    Abstract: An exhaust gas recirculation control device controls an exhaust gas recirculation device that includes an exhaust gas recirculation passage adapted to circulate a portion of exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine from an exhaust passage downstream of a turbine of a turbo supercharger along an exhaust flow to an intake passage upstream of a compressor of the turbo supercharger along an intake flow and downstream of an air flow meter along the intake flow, and a recirculation control valve adapted to adjust an amount of exhaust gas circulated to the intake passage. Furthermore, the exhaust gas recirculation control device includes recirculation ratio setting means adapted to set a lower target recirculation ratio for a smaller intake air amount of the internal combustion engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2018
    Assignee: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Daisuke Takaki, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Kazuhiko Sugawara
  • Patent number: 9970368
    Abstract: An EGR control device includes an estimate EGR ratio calculating portion adapted to calculate an estimate EGR ratio from a fresh air flow amount at a joining portion with the EGR passage of an intake passage and an EGR gas amount passing through the EGR valve, and a joining portion EGR ratio estimating portion adapted to correct an estimate EGR ratio on the basis of a gaseous state inside the introduction passage when the EGR valve switches from a closed state to an open state, to calculate a joining portion EGR ratio being a proportion of an EGR gas amount with respect to fresh air in the joining portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2018
    Assignee: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Daisuke Takaki, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Kazuhiko Sugawara, Kenji Suzuki, Takayuki Sui
  • Patent number: 9964055
    Abstract: In a case where a driving state is switched from a high load to a low load in a non-turbo charge region and an external EGR is stopped, at a timing T01 at which an EGR control valve (21) is closed, a valve overlap quantity between an intake valve and an exhaust valve is, as a low load transient time provisional value, controlled in a direction such that the valve overlap between the intake and exhaust valves is once contracted. Then, a target value of the valve overlap quantity between the intake and exhaust valves at a timing T21 preceded by a response time ?t of the variably operated valve mechanism (28) from a timing T31 at which the opening angle of the EGR control valve (21) is modified from the low load transient time provisional value to the target value at the time of the low load.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2018
    Assignee: NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Mitsuhiro Akagi, Hirofumi Tsuchida, Ayumi Komiya