Patents by Inventor Kunitomo Minamitani
Kunitomo Minamitani 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: 8433502Abstract: One example method for an engine having an automatic stopping function in which the engine is automatically stopped when a predetermined engine stopping condition is satisfied, and then the engine is automatically restarted when a predetermined engine restarting condition is satisfied, includes the following: a first step for driving a motor so as to increase an engine rotating speed of the engine up to a predetermined rotating speed and maintain the engine rotating speed, in a case in which a predetermined first condition is satisfied when the engine rotating speed is below the predetermined rotating speed during automatic engine stopping; and a second step for restarting a fuel supply into the engine in a case in which a predetermined second condition is satisfied after the first step is executed.Type: GrantFiled: July 14, 2010Date of Patent: April 30, 2013Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Kunitomo Minamitani, Katsumasa Yoshida, Seiyo Hirano, Akitomo Kume, Hideki Sanai, Kazuya Kotani
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Publication number: 20110029221Abstract: One example method for an engine having an automatic stopping function in which the engine is automatically stopped when a predetermined engine stopping condition is satisfied, and then the engine is automatically restarted when a predetermined engine restarting condition is satisfied, includes the following: a first step for driving a motor so as to increase an engine rotating speed of the engine up to a predetermined rotating speed and maintain the engine rotating speed, in a case in which a predetermined first condition is satisfied when the engine rotating speed is below the predetermined rotating speed during automatic engine stopping; and a second step for restarting a fuel supply into the engine in a case in which a predetermined second condition is satisfied after the first step is executed.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 14, 2010Publication date: February 3, 2011Applicant: MAZDA MOTOR CORPORATIONInventors: Kunitomo MINAMITANI, Katsumasa YOSHIDA, Seiyo HIRANO, Akitomo KUME, Hideki SANAI, Kazuya KOTANI
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Patent number: 5765372Abstract: A lean burn engine adapted to establish a specified air-fuel ratio leaner by predetermined rate than a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio in a range of low engine speeds and low engine loads is provided with an air intake system of a low speed type which provides a high charging efficiency in a range of low engine speeds and an exhaust system capable of eliminating a nitrogen oxide emission in the exhaust even during lean burning.Type: GrantFiled: September 5, 1995Date of Patent: June 16, 1998Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Noriaki Mitobe, Isao Shimizu, Kunitomo Minamitani, Yasuyoshi Hori, Futoshi Nishioka, Tetsushi Hosokai, Kenji Oka, Hideshi Terao, Misao Fujimoto, Masaki Harada
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Patent number: 5572976Abstract: An automobile engine control system estimates a required amount of intake air to be introduced at the end of an intake stroke, based on a change in a factual amount of intake air introduced prior to the end of an intake stroke, and determines a control parameter for controlling engine output based on the required amount of intake air. When the engine operates in a high pulsation range of engine loads, in which pulsation of intake air is at a high level, the determination of the control parameter is based on the required amount of intake air.Type: GrantFiled: January 23, 1995Date of Patent: November 12, 1996Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Kunitomo Minamitani, Yasuyoshi Hori, Hiromi Yoshioka
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Patent number: 5517968Abstract: An engine control system establishes the injection amount of fuel based on a predicted amount of intake air at the end of an intake stroke based on a rate of change in the amounts of intake air between previous and current periods. An ignition time is based on an actual amount of intake air detected after the end of the intake stroke.Type: GrantFiled: March 16, 1994Date of Patent: May 21, 1996Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Yasuyoshi Hori, Kunitomo Minamitani, Futoshi Nishioka
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Patent number: 5471963Abstract: A fuel injection control system for an engine includes fuel injection valves, each of which injects fuel to one cylinder a plurality of times during each cycle. The system has an arithmetic device for calculating a required fuel injection amount based on driving conditions and a trailing side injection capability of a trailing side injection time point, a determination device for comparing the required fuel injection amount with the trailing side injection capability and determining which is greater, and a fuel injection controller for setting a leading side injection time point and a trailing side injection time point and setting a leading side injection amount and a trailing side injection amount.Type: GrantFiled: January 27, 1994Date of Patent: December 5, 1995Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Futoshi Nishioka, Tetsushi Hosokai, Yasuyoshi Hori, Kunitomo Minamitani
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Patent number: 5191865Abstract: An engine idle control system for a vehicle causes the engine speed to converge on a target idling speed by feedback control when the engine idles. Whether the engine is revolving by itself or is being driven by the vehicle is detected, and the engine speed is controlled by a proportional feedback control on the basis of the difference between the actual engine speed and the target idling speed when the engine is being driven by the vehicle, and is controlled by a control at least a part of which is an integral feedback control when the engine is revolving by itself.Type: GrantFiled: September 23, 1991Date of Patent: March 9, 1993Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Kunitomo Minamitani, Hiromo Yoshioka, Shigeaki Kakizaki
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Patent number: 5081973Abstract: An idling speed control system for an engine controls the amount of intake air during idling according to external load acting on the engine and feedback-controls the ignition timing by the use of a predetermined control variable so that the engine speed during idling converges on a target idling speed. The predetermined control variable is changed according to the amount of intake air charged to the engine.Type: GrantFiled: November 29, 1990Date of Patent: January 21, 1992Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventor: Kunitomo Minamitani
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Patent number: 5080071Abstract: In a fuel control system for an internal combustion engine, fuel is injected in a quantity the direct delivery part of which provides a desired quantity of fuel to be actually fed to the engine together with the drawn part of the intake-manifold wetting fuel. The quantity of the intake-manifold wetting fuel on the basis of which the quantity of the drawn part is calculated is calculated on the basis of the quantity of the adhering part of the fuel which was injected by the preceding injection and the quantity of the residual part of the preceding intake-manifold wetting fuel.Type: GrantFiled: June 19, 1990Date of Patent: January 14, 1992Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Kunitomo Minamitani, Tetsuro Takaba, Terufumi Yamashita, Yuji Sato
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Patent number: 4987876Abstract: A multi-cylinder internal combustion engine is provided with a fuel injection system, which includes a plurality of fuel injection nozzles securely mounted in independent intake passages communicating with combustion chambers of respective cylinders, an air-flow sensor for detecting the amount of intake air to be led into each combustion chamber, a crank angle sensor and a cylinder discrimination sensor for detecting the present stroke timing of each cylinder, a speed sensor for detecting the engine speed and a control unit for outputting a signal to the fuel injection nozzles so that a predetermined amount of fuel may be injected to each cylinder at a predetermined timing on the basis of values detected by the respective sensors. The control unit calculates the injection timing of fuel to be injected into each cylinder so that the injection start timing may be altered in compliance with driving conditions of the engine.Type: GrantFiled: July 10, 1989Date of Patent: January 29, 1991Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Kunitomo Minamitani, Tetsuro Takaba, Terufumi Yamashita, Toshihide Nishikawa
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Patent number: 4703735Abstract: The plurality of cylinders of a multicylinder engine are divided into first group cylinders and second group cylinders, and first and second exhaust sensors are provided to respectively detect the air-fuel ratios of the intake mixtures fed to the first group cylinders and second group cylinders. The air-fuel ratio for the first group cylinders is controlled in a closed loop by a first integration signal generated based on the output of the first exhaust sensor and the air-fuel ratio for the second group cylinders is controlled in a closed loop by a second integration signal generated based on the output of the second exhaust sensor. One of the first and second integration signals is corrected so that the air-fuel ratios for the first group cylinders and second group cylinders are increased and reduced in phases reverse to each other.Type: GrantFiled: May 24, 1985Date of Patent: November 3, 1987Assignee: Mazda Motor CorporationInventors: Kunitomo Minamitani, Masahiro Izuo, Yuji Nakao, Toshihide Nishikawa, Hiroyuki Kawaguchi