Patents by Inventor Lyle E. Kocher

Lyle E. Kocher 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).

  • Publication number: 20240013594
    Abstract: A system is configured to store a relationship data set of a plurality of diagnostic estimators and a plurality of failure modes, each failure mode represents a type of failure that can occur with a sensor or a vehicle component of a vehicle system, each diagnostic estimator is associated with a respective subset of the failure modes, each subset defines a control space within the vehicle system that contains at least one of (i) one or more sensors or (ii) one or more vehicle components. The system is configured to store a healthy diagnostic vector regarding nominal operational parameters of the vehicle system; acquire diagnostic information regarding current operational parameters of the vehicle system to generate an error diagnostic vector; apply the error diagnostic vector to the healthy diagnostic vector to generate a ratio diagnostic vector; and apply the ratio diagnostic vector to generate a value for each failure mode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 21, 2023
    Publication date: January 11, 2024
    Applicant: Cummins Inc.
    Inventors: Jeffrey Diwakar Abraham, Marcela Schmalz de Bernardi, Avra Brahma, Timothy J. Greis, Michael Haas, Gregory H. Henderson, Adam W. Kidd, Lyle E. Kocher, Krithika Mohan, Daniel J. Smith, Christophe Tricaud, Ananth Vemuri, Easwar Yarrabikki
  • Patent number: 11798325
    Abstract: A system includes a controller configured to store a relationship matrix of a plurality of diagnostic estimators and a plurality of failure modes, each failure mode represents a type of failure that can occur with (i) a sensor or (ii) a vehicle component of a vehicle system, each diagnostic estimator is associated with a respective subset of the failure modes, each respective subset defines a control volume within the vehicle system that contains at least one of (i) one or more sensors or (ii) one or more vehicle components; store a healthy diagnostic vector regarding nominal operational parameters of the vehicle system; acquire diagnostic information regarding current operational parameters of the vehicle system to generate an error diagnostic vector; divide the error diagnostic vector by the healthy diagnostic vector to generate a ratio diagnostic vector; multiply the ratio diagnostic vector with the relationship matrix to generate a value for each failure mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2023
    Assignee: Cummins Inc.
    Inventors: Jeffrey Diwakar Abraham, Marcela Schmalz de Bernardi, Avra Brahma, Timothy J. Greis, Michael Haas, Gregory H. Henderson, Adam W. Kidd, Lyle E. Kocher, Krithika Mohan, Daniel J. Smith, Christophe Tricaud, Ananth Vemuri, Easwar Yarrabikki
  • Patent number: 11530659
    Abstract: A system for controlling operations of an engine comprises a plurality of cylinders and a controller operatively coupled to each of the plurality of cylinders. The controller is configured to determine an operating condition of the engine, and in response to determining that the operating condition is suitable for activating less then all cylinders of the plurality of cylinders during a cycle of the engine, determine a first firing pattern, and a second firing pattern different from the first firing pattern for activating the plurality of cylinders of the engine. The controller is configured to activate a first set of cylinders of the plurality of cylinders based on the first firing pattern, and subsequent to activating the first set of cylinders, activate a second set of cylinders of the plurality of cylinders different from the first set of cylinders based on the second firing pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignees: Cummins Inc., Tula Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: J. Steven Kolhouse, Aaron William Beinborn, Lyle E. Kocher
  • Publication number: 20220381166
    Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods are disclosed that during cylinder deactivation, including skipfire, at low engines speeds and low engine loads maintain adequate oil pressure of valvetrain components or hardware required for CDA and/or skipfire operation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2022
    Publication date: December 1, 2022
    Inventors: Govindarajan Kothandaraman, Lyle E. Kocher, David M. Barnes, Scott Robert Bardakjy, J. Steven Kolhouse
  • Publication number: 20220372926
    Abstract: A system and method of controlling operation of an internal combustion engine are provided. The method includes performing a cylinder deactivation operation while running the engine, selecting at least one of the plurality of temperature maintenance actions to increase an exhaust temperature, and performing at least one of the plurality of temperature maintenance actions effective to increase the exhaust temperature. The plurality of temperature maintenance actions may include one or more of a charge air cooler bypass operation, an EGR cooler bypass operation, an aftertreatment system heater operation, a turbocharger bypass operation, a turbocharger geometry adjustment operation, an intake air throttle adjustment operation, and a delayed injection timing operation, or combinations thereof.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 3, 2022
    Publication date: November 24, 2022
    Applicant: Cummins Inc.
    Inventors: Aaron William Beinborn, Lyle E. Kocher, J. Steven Kolhouse, Suk-Min Moon, Sriram S. Popuri, Janardhan Kodavasal, Ved Merchant, Kristopher R. Bare, Avra Brahma
  • Patent number: 11459977
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides a piston, comprising: a skirt having an upper body portion; and a crown formed on the upper body portion by an additive manufacturing process, the crown including at least one air gap formed and positioned to reduce heat transfer from combustion to at least one cooling gallery formed in the piston.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignees: CUMMINS INC., SCANIA CV AB
    Inventors: Jordan E. Kelleher, Lyle E. Kocher, Dwight A. Doig, Brett A. Boas
  • Publication number: 20220205401
    Abstract: A system for controlling operations of an engine comprises a plurality of cylinders and a controller operatively coupled to each of the plurality of cylinders. The controller is configured to determine an operating condition of the engine, and in response to determining that the operating condition is suitable for activating less then all cylinders of the plurality of cylinders during a cycle of the engine, determine a first firing pattern, and a second firing pattern different from the first firing pattern for activating the plurality of cylinders of the engine. The controller is configured to activate a first set of cylinders of the plurality of cylinders based on the first firing pattern, and subsequent to activating the first set of cylinders, activate a second set of cylinders of the plurality of cylinders different from the first set of cylinders based on the second firing pattern.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 2, 2020
    Publication date: June 30, 2022
    Applicants: CUMMINS INC., TULA TECHNOLOGY, INC.
    Inventors: J. Steven Kolhouse, Aaron William Beinborn, Lyle E. Kocher
  • Publication number: 20220180673
    Abstract: A system includes a controller configured to store a relationship matrix of a plurality of diagnostic estimators and a plurality of failure modes, each failure mode represents a type of failure that can occur with (i) a sensor or (ii) a vehicle component of a vehicle system, each diagnostic estimator is associated with a respective subset of the failure modes, each respective subset defines a control volume within the vehicle system that contains at least one of (i) one or more sensors or (ii) one or more vehicle components; store a healthy diagnostic vector regarding nominal operational parameters of the vehicle system; acquire diagnostic information regarding current operational parameters of the vehicle system to generate an error diagnostic vector; divide the error diagnostic vector by the healthy diagnostic vector to generate a ratio diagnostic vector; multiply the ratio diagnostic vector with the relationship matrix to generate a value for each failure mode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2020
    Publication date: June 9, 2022
    Inventors: Jeffrey Diwakar Abraham, Marcela Schmalz de Bernardi, Avra Brahma, Timothy J. Greis, Michael Haas, Gregory H. Henderson, Adam W. Kidd, Lyle E. Kocher, Krithika Mohan, Daniel J. Smith, Christophe Tricaud, Ananth Vemuri, Easwar Yarrabikki
  • Patent number: 11313295
    Abstract: Systems, apparatus, and methods are disclosed that include an internal combustion engine having a plurality of cylinders operable to be deactivated while controlling a variable geometry turbocharger in response to the reduced number of active cylinders.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2022
    Assignee: Cummins Inc.
    Inventors: Aaron William Beinborn, Adrian P. Dale, Lyle E. Kocher, J. Steven Kolhouse
  • Publication number: 20220082063
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides a piston, comprising: a skirt having an upper body portion; and a crown formed on the upper body portion by an additive manufacturing process, the crown including at least one air gap formed and positioned to reduce heat transfer from combustion to at least one cooling gallery formed in the piston.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 18, 2021
    Publication date: March 17, 2022
    Inventors: Jordan E. Kelleher, Lyle E. Kocher, Dwight A. Doig, Brett A. Boas
  • Patent number: 11203954
    Abstract: A system includes a valve actuation system, a pre-lubrication pump coupled to a lubrication circuit and configured to provide oil to the valve actuation system, a catalyst for receiving and treating exhaust gasses, and a controller. The controller is configured to identify an engine start request and determine whether the catalyst temperature is below a first threshold value. In response to determining that the catalyst temperature is below the first threshold value, the controller actuates the pre-lubrication pump to direct lubricant to the valve actuation system, controls the valve actuation system to deactivate at least one cylinder of an engine, and, subsequent to deactivating the at least one cylinder of the engine, cranks the engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 21, 2021
    Assignee: Cummins Inc.
    Inventors: J. Steven Kolhouse, Lyle E. Kocher
  • Patent number: 11149681
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides a piston, comprising: a skirt having an upper body portion; and a crown formed on the upper body portion by an additive manufacturing process, the crown including at least one air gap formed and positioned to reduce heat transfer from combustion to at least one cooling gallery formed in the piston.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: Cummins Inc.
    Inventors: Jordan E. Kelleher, Lyle E. Kocher, Dwight A. Doig, Brett A. Boas
  • Publication number: 20210189981
    Abstract: Systems, apparatus, and methods are disclosed that include an internal combustion engine having a plurality of cylinders operable to be deactivated while controlling a variable geometry turbocharger in response to the reduced number of active cylinders.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 8, 2021
    Publication date: June 24, 2021
    Inventors: Aaron William Beinborn, Adrian P. Dale, Lyle E. Kocher, J. Steven Kolhouse
  • Patent number: 10975786
    Abstract: Systems, apparatus, and methods are disclosed that include an internal combustion engine having a plurality of cylinders operable to be deactivated while controlling a variable geometry turbocharger in response to the reduced number of active cylinders.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: Cummins Inc.
    Inventors: Aaron William Beinborn, Adrian P. Dale, Lyle E. Kocher, J. Steven Kolhouse
  • Publication number: 20210025298
    Abstract: A system includes a valve actuation system, a pre-lubrication pump coupled to a lubrication circuit and configured to provide oil to the valve actuation system, a catalyst for receiving and treating exhaust gasses, and a controller. The controller is configured to identify an engine start request and determine whether the catalyst temperature is below a first threshold value. In response to determining that the catalyst temperature is below the first threshold value, the controller actuates the pre-lubrication pump to direct lubricant to the valve actuation system, controls the valve actuation system to deactivate at least one cylinder of an engine, and, subsequent to deactivating the at least one cylinder of the engine, cranks the engine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 13, 2020
    Publication date: January 28, 2021
    Applicant: CUMMINS INC.
    Inventors: J. Steven Kolhouse, Lyle E. Kocher
  • Publication number: 20200340424
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides a piston, comprising: a skirt having an upper body portion; and a crown formed on the upper body portion by an additive manufacturing process, the crown including at least one air gap formed and positioned to reduce heat transfer from combustion to at least one cooling gallery formed in the piston.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 28, 2018
    Publication date: October 29, 2020
    Inventors: Jordan E. Kelleher, Lyle E. Kocher, Dwight A. Doig, Brett A. Boas
  • Publication number: 20200149487
    Abstract: Systems, apparatus, and methods are disclosed that include an internal combustion engine having a plurality of cylinders operable to be deactivated while controlling a variable geometry turbocharger in response to the reduced number of active cylinders.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 9, 2019
    Publication date: May 14, 2020
    Inventors: Aaron William Beinborn, Adrian P. Dale, Lyle E. Kocher, J. Steven Kolhouse
  • Patent number: 10094306
    Abstract: Advanced combustion modes, such as PCCI, operate near the system stability limits. In PCCI, the combustion event begins without a direct combustion trigger in contrast to traditional spark-ignited gasoline engines and direct-injected diesel engines. The lack of a direct combustion trigger encourages the usage of model-based controls to provide robust control of the combustion phasing. The nonlinear relationships between the control inputs and the combustion system response often limit the effectiveness of traditional, non-model-based controllers. Accurate knowledge of the system states and inputs is helpful for implementation of an effective nonlinear controller. A nonlinear controller is developed and implemented to control the engine combustion timing during diesel PCCI operation by targeting desired values of the in-cylinder oxygen concentration, pressure, and temperature during early fuel injection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 9, 2018
    Assignee: Purdue Research Foundation
    Inventors: Gregory M. Shaver, Lyle E. Kocher, Carrie Hall, Daniel Van Alstine, Mark Magee
  • Publication number: 20170175614
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides a method comprising adjusting at least one of an air-to-fuel ratio and an ignition spark characteristic of a first cylinder of an engine to produce an exhaust gas comprising a predetermined quantity of hydrogen; and providing the exhaust gas from the first cylinder to a second cylinder of the engine, wherein the exhaust gas comprising the hydrogen ignites a first fuel type in response to a compression event.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 20, 2016
    Publication date: June 22, 2017
    Inventors: Steven J. Kolhouse, Lyle E. Kocher, Samuel C. Geckler
  • Publication number: 20150330326
    Abstract: Advanced combustion modes, such as PCCI, operate near the system stability limits. In PCCI, the combustion event begins without a direct combustion trigger in contrast to traditional spark-ignited gasoline engines and direct-injected diesel engines. The lack of a direct combustion trigger encourages the usage of model-based controls to provide robust control of the combustion phasing. The nonlinear relationships between the control inputs and the combustion system response often limit the effectiveness of traditional, non-model-based controllers. Accurate knowledge of the system states and inputs is helpful for implementation of an effective nonlinear controller. A nonlinear controller is developed and implemented to control the engine combustion timing during diesel PCCI operation by targeting desired values of the in-cylinder oxygen concentration, pressure, and temperature during early fuel injection.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 12, 2013
    Publication date: November 19, 2015
    Inventors: Gregory M. Shaver, Lyle E. Kocher, Carrie Hall, Daniel Van Alstine, Mark Magee