Patents by Inventor Lawrence E. Schmidt

Lawrence E. Schmidt 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).

  • Engine timing apparatus and method of operating same
    Patent number: 5860406
    Abstract: An apparatus for determining the timing of an internal combustion engine having a crankshaft, a camshaft, and a plurality of cylinders each having an electronically controlled fuel injector is disclosed. A crankshaft sensing device monitors the rotation of the engine crankshaft and responsively produces a crankshaft pulsetrain. Additionally, a camshaft sensing device monitors the rotation of the engine camshaft and responsively produces a camshaft pulsetrain. An engine control receives the crankshaft and camshaft pulsetrains, and responsively determines the period of each pulse, determines the rotational position of the crankshaft and camshaft, and produces an inject signal relative to one of the crankshaft and camshaft pulsetrains to the fuel injector in order to initiate fuel injection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 1996
    Date of Patent: January 19, 1999
    Assignee: Caterpillar Inc.
    Inventors: Lawrence E. Schmidt, Wendell D. Stahl, Paul M. Young