Patents by Inventor Masumi Kinugawa

Masumi Kinugawa 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: 9605575
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device includes a reforming device, an obtaining section and a controller. The reforming device mixes fuel, which is a hydrocarbon compound, with air, and reforms the fuel by partially oxidizing the fuel with oxygen in the air. A reformed fuel is supplied into the exhaust passage as the reducing agent. The obtaining section obtains a physical quantity as a property index. The physical quantity has a correlation with property of the fuel that is supplied to the reforming device. The controller controls the reforming device according to the property index obtained by the obtaining section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Shigeto Yahata, Masumi Kinugawa, Yuuki Tarusawa, Keiji Noda, Mao Hosoda
  • Patent number: 9556775
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device is for a fuel combustion system that includes a NOx purifying device with a reducing catalyst arranged in an exhaust passage to purify NOx contained in exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine. The reducing agent supplying device supplies a reducing agent into the exhaust passage at a position upstream of the reducing catalyst. The reducing agent supplying device includes a reforming portion and a reformation suppressing portion. The reforming portion reforms the reducing agent by partially oxidizing the reducing agent. When a temperature of the reducing agent is higher than a first specified temperature that is equal to or higher than an activation temperature of the reducing catalyst, the reformation suppressing portion (i) suppresses the degree of reformation of the reducing agent in comparison with when a temperature of the reducing agent is lower than the first specified temperature, or (ii) stops the reformation of the reducing agent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masumi Kinugawa, Shigeto Yahata, Yuuki Tarusawa, Yusuke Majima, Mao Hosoda
  • Patent number: 9528410
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device includes a reaction container. The reaction container has a reaction chamber therein in which fuel of a hydrocarbon compound is mixed with air and is oxidized with oxygen in air. An equivalent ratio of fuel to air inside the reaction chamber is adjusted to be within a specified equivalent ratio range. A temperature inside the reaction chamber is adjusted to be within a specified temperature range. The specified equivalent ratio range and the specified temperature range are set such that a cool flame reaction, through which fuel inside the reaction chamber is partially oxidized with oxygen in air, is generated. The fuel partially oxidized through the cool flame reaction is used as the reducing agent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2016
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masumi Kinugawa, Shigeto Yahata, Yuuki Tarusawa, Keiji Noda, Mao Hosoda
  • Patent number: 9488082
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device includes a reaction container, an ozone generator, an air pump, an ozone-containing air pipe, a compressed air pipe, a switching device, and a switching controller. The reaction container defines a reaction chamber therein in which a reducing agent is reformed. The ozone generator generates ozone from oxygen in air. The air pump supplies air into the ozone generator. An ozone-containing air flows through the ozone-containing air pipe toward the reaction chamber. A portion of a compressed air flows through the compressed air pipe toward the reaction chamber. The switching device switches between an air pump mode, in which the ozone-containing air is supplied into the reaction chamber, and a supercharging mode, in which the compressed air is supplied into the reaction chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2016
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Shigeto Yahata, Masumi Kinugawa, Yuuki Tarusawa, Mao Hosoda, Yusuke Majima
  • Publication number: 20160084130
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device includes a reaction container, an ozone generator, an air pump, an ozone-containing air pipe, a compressed air pipe, a switching device, and a switching controller. The reaction container defines a reaction chamber therein in which a reducing agent is reformed. The ozone generator generates ozone from oxygen in air. The air pump supplies air into the ozone generator. An ozone-containing air flows through the ozone-containing air pipe toward the reaction chamber. A portion of a compressed air flows through the compressed air pipe toward the reaction chamber. The switching device switches between an air pump mode, in which the ozone-containing air is supplied into the reaction chamber, and a supercharging mode, in which the compressed air is supplied into the reaction chamber.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 17, 2015
    Publication date: March 24, 2016
    Inventors: Shigeto YAHATA, Masumi KINUGAWA, Yuuki TARUSAWA, Mao HOSODA, Yusuke MAJIMA
  • Publication number: 20160017780
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device is for a fuel combustion system that includes a NOx purifying device with a reducing catalyst arranged in an exhaust passage to purify NOx. The reducing agent supplying device supplies a reducing agent into the exhaust passage upstream of the reducing catalyst. The reducing agent supplying device includes an air pipe, a vaporizing container, an injector, a heating member and a mixing plate. The air pipe defines an air passage therein. The vaporizing chamber is connected to the air pipe. The vaporizing container defines a vaporizing chamber therein that branches off from the air passage. The injector injects liquid hydrocarbon compound as a reducing agent. The heating member is disposed in the vaporizing chamber. The heating member heats and vaporizes the reducing agent. The mixing plate is connected to the heating member. The mixing plate extends from the vaporizing chamber into the air passage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 16, 2015
    Publication date: January 21, 2016
    Inventors: Masumi KINUGAWA, Shigeto YAHATA, Yuuki TARUSAWA, Yusuke MAJIMA, Mao HOSODA
  • Publication number: 20150369102
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device is for a fuel combustion system that includes a NOx purifying device with a reducing catalyst arranged in an exhaust passage to purify NOx contained in exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine. The reducing agent supplying device supplies a reducing agent into the exhaust passage at a position upstream of the reducing catalyst. The reducing agent supplying device includes a reforming portion and a reformation suppressing portion. The reforming portion reforms the reducing agent by partially oxidizing the reducing agent. When a temperature of the reducing agent is higher than a first specified temperature that is equal to or higher than an activation temperature of the reducing catalyst, the reformation suppressing portion (i) suppresses the degree of reformation of the reducing agent in comparison with when a temperature of the reducing agent is lower than the first specified temperature, or (ii) stops the reformation of the reducing agent.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2015
    Publication date: December 24, 2015
    Inventors: Masumi KINUGAWA, Shigeto YAHATA, Yuuki TARUSAWA, Yusuke MAJIMA, Mao HOSODA
  • Publication number: 20150211402
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device includes a reforming device, an obtaining section and a controller. The reforming device mixes fuel, which is a hydrocarbon compound, with air, and reforms the fuel by partially oxidizing the fuel with oxygen in the air. A reformed fuel is supplied into the exhaust passage as the reducing agent. The obtaining section obtains a physical quantity as a property index. The physical quantity has a correlation with property of the fuel that is supplied to the reforming device. The controller controls the reforming device according to the property index obtained by the obtaining section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 29, 2015
    Publication date: July 30, 2015
    Inventors: Shigeto YAHATA, Masumi KINUGAWA, Yuuki TARUSAWA, Keiji NODA, Mao HOSODA
  • Publication number: 20150211400
    Abstract: A reducing agent supplying device includes a reaction container. The reaction container has a reaction chamber therein in which fuel of a hydrocarbon compound is mixed with air and is oxidized with oxygen in air. An equivalent ratio of fuel to air inside the reaction chamber is adjusted to be within a specified equivalent ratio range. A temperature inside the reaction chamber is adjusted to be within a specified temperature range. The specified equivalent ratio range and the specified temperature range are set such that a cool flame reaction, through which fuel inside the reaction chamber is partially oxidized with oxygen in air, is generated. The fuel partially oxidized through the cool flame reaction is used as the reducing agent.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 29, 2015
    Publication date: July 30, 2015
    Inventors: Masumi KINUGAWA, Shigeto YAHATA, Yuuki TARUSAWA, Keiji NODA, Mao HOSODA
  • Patent number: 9062631
    Abstract: A straight port and a swirl port supply low-oxygen-concentration gas and high-oxygen-concentration gas into a combustion chamber of an engine such that high-level-oxygen-concentration gas and low-level-oxygen-concentration gas are formed from the high-oxygen-concentration gas and the low-oxygen-concentration gas in an adjacent region of the combustion chamber, which is adjacent to a fuel mist injected from an injection hole of a fuel injection valve. The high-level-oxygen-concentration gas is located in a corresponding area of the adjacent region, which is generally opposite from the fuel injection hole, and the low-level-oxygen-concentration gas is located in a remaining area of the adjacent region, which is other than the corresponding area of the adjacent region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2015
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masumi Kinugawa, Kohei Motoo, Munehisa Horibe
  • Publication number: 20130032123
    Abstract: A straight port and a swirl port supply low-oxygen-concentration gas and high-oxygen-concentration gas into a combustion chamber of an engine such that high-level-oxygen-concentration gas and low-level-oxygen-concentration gas are formed from the high-oxygen-concentration gas and the low-oxygen-concentration gas in an adjacent region of the combustion chamber, which is adjacent to a fuel mist injected from an injection hole of a fuel injection valve. The high-level-oxygen-concentration gas is located in a corresponding area of the adjacent region, which is generally opposite from the fuel injection hole, and the low-level-oxygen-concentration gas is located in a remaining area of the adjacent region, which is other than the corresponding area of the adjacent region.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 31, 2012
    Publication date: February 7, 2013
    Applicant: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masumi Kinugawa, Kohei Motoo, Munehisa Horibe
  • Patent number: 7832202
    Abstract: An exhaust gas purification device senses an air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into a catalyst and performs rich purge control for supplying fuel for reduction to the catalyst. The device calculates a total reducing agent amount consumed for the reduction during the rich purge control based on the air-fuel ratio and a fresh air amount as of the rich purge control. The device sets a specified air-fuel ratio state for controlling the air-fuel ratio in a certain range enabling more precise measurement of the air-fuel ratio than in the rich purge control. The device corrects the total reducing agent amount based on a difference between an injection amount command value as of the rich purge control and the injection amount command value in the specified air-fuel ratio state and the air-fuel ratio sensed in the specified air-fuel ratio state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2010
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Kazuo Kojima, Jun Kawamura, Masumi Kinugawa
  • Patent number: 7614219
    Abstract: An exhaust gas purifying apparatus for an internal combustion engine includes a collector, which collects exhaust particles in exhaust gas. The apparatus computes a pressure-difference-based measured value of a collected amount of the particles based on a pressure difference, and computes a pressure-difference-based estimated value by correcting the measured value. The apparatus computes an operational-state-based estimated value of the collected amount. The apparatus regenerates the collector by burning the exhaust particles when one of the pressure-difference-based estimated value and the operational-state-based estimated value reaches a predetermined value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 1, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 10, 2009
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Kariya, Shigeto Yahata, Tsukasa Kuboshima, Masumi Kinugawa, Kanehito Nakamura
  • Patent number: 7510129
    Abstract: In a fuel injection nozzle including multiple nozzle hole groups each having multiple solitary nozzle holes, a group distance C between two of the nozzle hole groups is 0.8 or more times larger than an in-group hole distance ? in a nozzle hole group. The group distance C is the minimum interval of inter-group intervals that are formed between (i) peripheral boundaries of solitary nozzle holes belonging to a first nozzle hole group and (ii) peripheral boundaries of solitary nozzle holes belonging to a second nozzle hole group adjacent to the first nozzle hole group. The in-group hole distance ? is the minimum of intervals between peripheral boundaries belonging to each nozzle hole group.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2009
    Assignee: DENSO Corporation
    Inventors: Tokuji Kuronita, Satoru Sasaki, Kanehito Nakamura, Masumi Kinugawa
  • Publication number: 20080010977
    Abstract: An exhaust gas purification device senses an air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into a catalyst and performs rich purge control for supplying fuel for reduction to the catalyst. The device calculates a total reducing agent amount consumed for the reduction during the rich purge control based on the air-fuel ratio and a fresh air amount as of the rich purge control. The device sets a specified air-fuel ratio state for controlling the air-fuel ratio in a certain range enabling more precise measurement of the air-fuel ratio than in the rich purge control. The device corrects the total reducing agent amount based on a difference between an injection amount command value as of the rich purge control and the injection amount command value in the specified air-fuel ratio state and the air-fuel ratio sensed in the specified air-fuel ratio state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 11, 2007
    Publication date: January 17, 2008
    Applicant: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kazuo Kojima, Jun Kawamura, Masumi Kinugawa
  • Patent number: 7243491
    Abstract: A diesel oxidation catalyst is disposed upstream of a diesel particulate filter (a DPF) disposed in an exhaust passage of a diesel engine. An electronic control unit (an ECU) operates a temperature increasing circuit, which performs post-injection, to eliminate particulate matters accumulated in the DPF. The ECU includes a first correcting circuit and a second correcting circuit. The first correcting circuit corrects a manipulated variable of the temperature increasing circuit based on a result of comparison between a target temperature and a temperature of the DPF estimated based on information related to an area upstream of the DPF. The second correcting circuit corrects the manipulated variable of the temperature increasing circuit based on a result of comparison between the target temperature and the temperature of the DPF estimated based on information related to an area downstream of the DPF.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2007
    Assignee: DENSO Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichiro Okugawa, Masumi Kinugawa, Kazuo Kobayashi, Tsukasa Kuboshima
  • Patent number: 7197868
    Abstract: An electronic control unit estimates progress of growth in a particle diameter of an ash accumulated in a diesel particulate filter (a DPF), based on an operating state of an engine. If it is determined that an estimated particle diameter of the ash achieved through the progress of the growth is greater than a predetermined value, regeneration of the DPF is compulsorily performed even when a quantity of particulate matters accumulated in the DPF is lower than a reference value, at which the DPF should be regenerated. Thus, the particulate matters are eliminated through combustion, and the ashes are discharged from the DPF.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2007
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Shigeto Yahata, Makoto Saito, Masumi Kinugawa
  • Publication number: 20070044459
    Abstract: An exhaust gas purifying apparatus for an internal combustion engine includes a collector, which collects exhaust particles in exhaust gas. The apparatus computes a pressure-difference-based measured value of a collected amount of the particles based on a pressure difference, and computes a pressure-difference-based estimated value by correcting the measured value. The apparatus computes an operational-state-based estimated value of the collected amount. The apparatus regenerates the collector by burning the exhaust particles when one of the pressure-difference-based estimated value and the operational-state-based estimated value reaches a predetermined value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 1, 2006
    Publication date: March 1, 2007
    Applicant: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Kariya, Shigeto Yahata, Tsukasa Kuboshima, Masumi Kinugawa, Kanehito Nakamura
  • Patent number: 7174706
    Abstract: An exhaust emission control system for an internal combustion engine is located on a vehicle and provided with a particulate filter to accumulate particulate matters in an exhaust gas of the engine. The system has a pressure difference detector, an exhaust flow rate detector, a regeneration controller and a detection accuracy increaser. The pressure difference detector detects a differential pressure in the particulate filter. The exhaust flow rate detector detects an exhaust flow rate of the engine. The regeneration controller determines to regenerate the particulate filter based on the differential pressure and the exhaust flow rate. The detection accuracy increaser increases a detection accuracy of the differential pressure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2007
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Tsukasa Kuboshima, Masumi Kinugawa
  • Patent number: 7152392
    Abstract: A diesel particulate filter (DPF) having an oxidation catalyst is disposed between exhaust pipes of an internal combustion engine. An exhaust gas temperature sensor senses outlet gas temperature of the DPF. An engine control unit (ECU) calculates estimated central temperature of the DPF from an output of the exhaust gas temperature sensor with the use of an inverse transfer function of a change in the outlet gas temperature with respect to a change in temperature of the DPF. Based on the estimated temperature, the ECU performs excessive temperature increase prevention control or regeneration control of the DPF. The transfer function is simply expressed with first-order lag and dead time. A time constant of the first-order lag and the dead time are set in accordance with an exhaust gas flow rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2006
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Tsukasa Kuboshima, Shinichiro Okugawa, Masumi Kinugawa, Kiyonori Sekiguchi