Patent application number | Description | Published |
20110073074 | ENGINE ASSEMBLY INCLUDING CAM COVER MOUNTED FUEL RAIL - An engine assembly may include a cylinder head, a cam cover and a fuel rail assembly. The cylinder head may define intake and exhaust ports and the cam cover may be fixed to the cylinder head. The fuel rail assembly may include a fuel rail, a bracket assembly and a fuel injector. The bracket assembly may be fixed to the fuel rail and may include a fastener and an isolation member. The fastener may be engaged with the cam cover and may secure the fuel rail thereto. The isolation member may be located between the fuel rail and the cam cover to isolate vibration therebetween. The fuel injector may be in communication with the fuel rail and may extend into a combustion chamber defined by the cylinder head at a location between the intake and exhaust ports. | 03-31-2011 |
20110168111 | ENGINE INCLUDING HYDRAULICALLY ACTUATED VALVETRAIN AND METHOD OF VALVE OVERLAP CONTROL - An exhaust valve control method may include displacing an exhaust valve in communication with the combustion chamber of an engine to an open position using a hydraulic exhaust valve actuation system and returning the exhaust valve to a closed position using the hydraulic exhaust valve actuation assembly. During closing, the exhaust valve may be displaced for a first duration from the open position to an intermediate closing position at a first velocity by operating the hydraulic exhaust valve actuation assembly in a first mode. The exhaust valve may be displaced for a second duration greater than the first duration from the intermediate closing position to a fully closed position at a second velocity at least eighty percent less than the first velocity by operating the hydraulic exhaust valve actuation assembly in a second mode. | 07-14-2011 |
20110174269 | ENGINE INCLUDING INTAKE VACUUM MANAGEMENT SYSTEM - An engine assembly may include an engine structure defining a first intake port in communication with a combustion chamber, an intake manifold, a vacuum actuated mechanism, a first intake valve, and a valve actuation assembly. The vacuum actuated mechanism may include a vacuum chamber in communication with the intake manifold. The first intake valve may open and close the first intake port. The valve actuation assembly may be engaged with the first intake valve and may be operated in first and second modes. The first mode may provide a first opening duration of the first intake valve during one of an intake stroke and a compression stroke of a piston located in the combustion chamber. The second mode may provide a second opening duration of the first intake valve that is different than the first opening duration, providing reduced intake manifold pressure. | 07-21-2011 |
20120097121 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING HYDRAULIC PRESSURE IN ELECTRO-HYDRAULIC VALVE ACTUATION SYSTEMS - A control system for an engine includes a first lift control module and a second lift control module. The first lift control module increases lift of M valves of the engine to a predetermined valve lift during a period before disabling or re-enabling N valves of the engine. The second lift control module decreases the lift of the M valves to a desired valve lift during a period after enabling or re-enabling the N valves of the engine, wherein N and M are integers greater than or equal to one. | 04-26-2012 |
20130245913 | CYLINDER PRESSURE BASED PUMP CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS - An engine control system for a vehicle includes a pressure determination module, an adjustment determination module, a target determination module, and a pump control module. The pressure determination module determines a first pressure for a hydraulic fluid provided to fully flexible intake and exhaust valve actuators of an engine. The adjustment determination module determines a pressure adjustment for the first pressure based on a pressure within a cylinder. The target determination module determines a target pressure for the hydraulic fluid based on the first pressure and the pressure adjustment. Based on the target pressure, the pump control module controls a hydraulic fluid pump for an opening timing of an exhaust valve of the cylinder. | 09-19-2013 |
20130332053 | VALVE CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR HOMOGENOUS CHARGE COMPRESSION IGNITION OPERATION - An engine control method for a vehicle includes: determining a crankshaft angle where a predetermined percentage of fuel injected into a cylinder was combusted during homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI) operation of an engine; determining a valve closing timing adjustment for one of an intake valve and an exhaust valve of based on the crankshaft angle; generating a valve closing timing for the one of the intake valve and the exhaust valve of the cylinder based on the valve closing timing adjustment; and closing the one of the intake valve and the exhaust valve of the cylinder based on the valve closing timing. | 12-12-2013 |
20140039776 | FULLY FLEXIBLE EXHAUST VALVE ACTUATOR CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A system for a vehicle includes a mode control module and a valve control module. The mode control module selectively sets a desired ignition mode for an engine to one of a spark ignition (SI) mode and a homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI) mode. Using a fully flexible valve actuator, the valve actuator module selectively adjusts closing timing of an exhaust valve in response to: the desired ignition mode transitioning from the HCCI mode to the SI mode; and the desired ignition mode transitioning from the SI mode to the HCCI mode. | 02-06-2014 |
20140046571 | CYLINDER TO CYLINDER BALANCING USING FULLY FLEXIBLE VALVE ACTUATION AND CYLINDER PRESSURE FEEDBACK - A control system for an engine includes an valve actuator, a cylinder pressure module, and a valve control module. The valve actuator opens a valve of a cylinder at a first target opening timing during a first combustion cycle of the cylinder. The cylinder pressure module receives a cylinder pressure measured by a cylinder pressure sensor of the cylinder and, at a predetermined crankshaft angle after the valve opens during the first combustion cycle, sets a valve opening pressure equal to the cylinder pressure. The valve control module receives a reference cylinder pressure and generates a second target opening timing for a second combustion cycle of the cylinder based on the valve opening pressure and the reference cylinder pressure. The second combustion cycle is after the first combustion cycle. During the second combustion cycle, the valve actuator opens the valve at the second target opening timing. | 02-13-2014 |
20140212278 | TURBINE HOUSING - A turbine housing comprises an exhaust port flange, a turbine discharge flange, a crossover flange, and a bearing support ring. The exhaust port flange is configured for mechanically coupling the turbine housing to a mating structure providing a source of working fluid. The turbine discharge flange is configured for mechanically coupling the turbine housing to an exhaust system. The crossover flange is configured for mechanically coupling the turbine housing to a crossover duct. The bearing support ring is configured for mechanically supporting a bearing, on which a turbine output shaft is supported. The turbine housing defines an inlet plenum, a turbine shroud, and a discharge vent. The exhaust port flange defines an inlet port configured to provide fluid communication between the inlet plenum and the source of working fluid. The turbine shroud defines a fluid expansion flow path for expansion of the stream of working fluid. | 07-31-2014 |
20140278009 | PHASER CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR BALANCING MEAN EFFECTIVE PRESSURE - An engine control system includes a mean effective pressure (MEP) module, an imbalance module, and a phaser control module. The MEP module determines MEPs for combustion cycles of cylinders, respectively, of an engine. The imbalance module selectively determines whether first and second banks of the cylinders are imbalanced based on the MEPs. When the first and second banks of cylinders are imbalanced, the phaser control module selectively adjusts at least one of: a first phaser of an intake camshaft of the second bank of cylinders; and a second phaser of an exhaust camshaft of the second bank of cylinders. | 09-18-2014 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20100250089 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR GENERATING A DIAGNOSTIC SIGNAL OF AN ENGINE COMPONENT USING AN IN-CYLINDER PRESSURE SENSOR - A method and a control module for diagnosing an engine component function includes a comparison module comparing an in-cylinder pressure signal to a threshold and a fault indication module generating a diagnostic signal for an engine component in response to comparing. | 09-30-2010 |
20100281966 | TWO-STEP OIL CONTROL VALVE DIAGNOSTIC FROM PHASER OIL PRESSURE - A diagnostic system includes a first pressure monitoring module, a second pressure monitoring module, and a fault determination module. The first pressure monitoring module determines low-lift pressures and high-lift pressures in a cam phaser when a first oil control valve (OCV) moves first valve lifters to the low-lift state and the high-lift state, respectively. The second pressure monitoring module determines low-lift pressures and high-lift pressures in the cam phaser when a second OCV moves second valve lifters to the low-lift state and the high-lift state, respectively. The fault determination module diagnoses a fault in one of the first OCV and the second OCV based the low-lift pressures and the high-lift pressures. | 11-11-2010 |
20100282192 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR CONTROLLING A CAM PHASER - A method and control module includes a control hold duty cycle module generating a control hold duty cycle signal and a voltage correction module generating a voltage correction signal. The control module also includes a correction module generating a corrected proportional correction signal based on a proportional correction signal and the voltage correction signal, and generating a corrected integral correction signal based on an integral correction signal and the voltage correction signal. The control module also includes a force determination module controlling a duty cycle to a phaser operator based upon the control hold signal, the corrected proportional correction signal and the corrected integral correction signal. | 11-11-2010 |
20110056448 | DIAGNOSTIC SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR A TWO-STEP VALVE LIFT MECHANISM - A system includes a pressure signal adjustment module that generates a maximum pressure signal based on a fluid pressure signal from a pressure sensor of a camshaft phaser system of an engine. The pressure signal adjustment module detects a maximum peak value of the fluid pressure signal and maintains the maximum pressure signal at the maximum peak value for a peak and hold period. A diagnostic module detects a fault of the camshaft phaser system based on the maximum pressure signal during the peak and hold period. | 03-10-2011 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20120285142 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING FUEL DELIVERY BASED ON OUTPUT FROM A POST-CATALYST OXYGEN SENSOR DURING CATALYST LIGHT-OFF - A system includes a voltage determination module and a fuel control module. The voltage determination module determines a first output voltage of a first oxygen sensor position upstream from a catalyst in an exhaust system of an engine, and determines a second output voltage from a second oxygen sensor positioned downstream from the catalyst, the first output voltage indicating a first oxygen level of exhaust upstream from the catalyst, the second output voltage indicating a second oxygen level of exhaust downstream from the catalyst. The fuel control module controls a fuel mass injected into the engine based on the first output voltage and the second output voltage when a temperature of the catalyst is greater than a light-off temperature, and controls the fuel mass based on the second output voltage and independent from the first output voltage when the catalyst temperature is less than light-off temperature. | 11-15-2012 |
20130046452 | MULTI-FUEL VEHICLE FUEL CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A method for a multi-fuel vehicle includes: determining a first target amount of fuel to be injected for a combustion event of a combustion chamber of an engine; determining first and second fractions for the combustion event based on at least one of engine speed, engine load, and engine temperature; determining a second target amount of liquid fuel for the combustion event based on the first target amount and the first fraction; determining a third target amount of gaseous fuel for the combustion event based on the first target amount and the second fraction; selectively injecting a liquid fuel directly into the combustion chamber for the combustion event based on the second target amount and using a first fuel injector; and selectively injecting a gaseous fuel into a port of the combustion chamber for the combustion event based on the third target amount and using a second fuel injector. | 02-21-2013 |
20130046453 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING MULTIPLE FUEL SYSTEMS - A system according to the principles of the present disclosure includes a fuel mass module and a fuel control module. The fuel mass module determines a first fuel mass before the first fuel mass is injected into one of a cylinder of an engine and an injection port of the cylinder. The fuel mass module also determines a second fuel mass after injection of the first fuel mass starts. The fuel control module controls a first fuel injector to inject the first fuel mass into the one of the cylinder and the injection port for a combustion event. The fuel control module also controls a second fuel injector to inject the second fuel mass into one of the cylinder and the injection port for the combustion event. The second fuel injector is different from the first fuel injector. | 02-21-2013 |
20130046454 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ADJUSTING FUEL MASS FOR MINIMUM FUEL INJECTOR PULSE WIDTHS IN MULTIPLE FUEL SYSTEM ENGINES - A control system for an engine includes a fuel mass determination module, a mass fraction determination module, and a fuel injector control module. The fuel mass determination module determines a first minimum fuel mass corresponding to a first fuel system of the engine. The mass fraction determination module determines first minimum and maximum mass fractions based on the first minimum fuel mass and a total fuel mass. The fuel injector control module limits a first desired mass fraction based on the first minimum and maximum mass fractions, and controls a first fuel injector of the engine based on the limited first desired mass fraction. | 02-21-2013 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20110054766 | Diagnostic system and method for hydraulically-actuated cam phasers - A diagnostic system for an engine includes a phaser control module that commands a first cam phaser position of a cam phaser of the engine for a first period and a second cam phaser position of the cam phaser for a second period, and a phaser diagnostic module that diagnoses a phaser control error for the cam phaser based on a first pressure of fluid supplied by an oil control valve to the cam phaser measured during the first period, and a second pressure of fluid supplied by the oil control valve to the cam phaser measured during the second period. The first and second pressures are measured on one of an advance-side fluid chamber and a retard-side fluid chamber of the cam phaser. The phaser diagnostic module detects one of a phaser mechanical fault and a phaser hydraulic system fault. A related method is also provided. | 03-03-2011 |
20110094465 | TWO-STEP VALVE LIFTER CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A valve lifter control system includes a valve lifter control module and a forced transition determination module. The valve lifter control module determines a desired lift state of a valve lifter based on at least one of engine speed and engine load. The forced transition determination module initiates a forced transition of the valve lifter from the low-lift state to the high-lift state based on manifold vacuum independently of the desired lift state. | 04-28-2011 |
20110106405 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DETECTING OPERATING ERRORS IN A VARIABLE VALVE TIMING ENGINE - A method and control module includes a manifold absolute pressure comparison module that determines a function of the manifold absolute pressure and an average manifold absolute pressure for a plurality of cylinders and that compares the manifold absolute pressure parameter to a manifold absolute pressure threshold. The control module includes a misfire event module that compares the misfire parameter to a misfire threshold. A hardware remedy module performs a valve actuation hardware remedy in response to comparing the manifold absolute pressure and comparing the misfire parameter. | 05-05-2011 |
20110153181 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DIAGNOSING VALVE LIFT MECHANISMS AND OIL CONTROL VALVES OF CAMSHAFT LIFT SYSTEMS - A system for diagnosing a switchable roller finger follower (SRFF) and an oil control valve (OCV) includes a signal monitoring module and a fault detection module. The signal monitoring module receives at least one of an individual cylinder fuel correction (ICFC) signal and an air/fuel ratio imbalance (AFIM) signal when: an engine speed signal is within a predetermined range of speed; an engine load signal is within a predetermined range of load; and a charcoal canister vapor signal is within a predetermined range of flow rate. The fault detection module detects a fault of at least one of a SRFF and an OCV based on an exhaust gas recirculation value and at least one of the ICFC and AFIM signals. The ICFC and AFIM signals are generated based on: an engine position signal; and at least one of an oxygen signal and a wide range air fuel signal. | 06-23-2011 |
20110207579 | GEAR ENGAGEMENT CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD - A control system includes an auto-stop module, an auto-start module, and a starter module. The auto-stop module stops an engine when a brake pedal position is greater than a threshold position and a transmission is in a drive gear. The auto-start module starts the engine when the brake pedal position is less than a minimum position and the engine stop is initiated. When the engine start is initiated and an engine speed is greater than zero, the starter module engages a pinion gear of a starter with a ring gear of an engine by reciprocally actuating the pinion gear N times between a retracted position and an extended position, wherein N is an integer greater than two. | 08-25-2011 |
20120080009 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING FUEL INJECTION TIMING TO DECREASE EMISSIONS DURING TRANSIENT ENGINE OPERATION - A control system for an engine includes an injection timing adjustment module and an injection control module. The injection timing adjustment module generates an adjusted fuel injection timing when a fuel request is received and the engine is operating in a transient state, wherein the adjusted fuel injection timing is based on a base fuel injection timing, an elapsed time since the fuel request, and at least one of a plurality of engine operating parameters. The injection control module controls fuel injection based on the adjusted fuel injection timing for a period, and controls fuel injection based on the base fuel injection timing after the period. | 04-05-2012 |
20120180763 | MULTIPLE FUEL INJECTION SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A desired pulse width module determines a desired length of a single pulse of fuel for a combustion cycle of a cylinder of an engine. A multiple pulses module determines a number of pulses (N) for the combustion cycle, wherein N is an integer greater than 1. A fraction determination module determines N fractional values for the N pulses, respectively. An injector control module generates individual lengths for the N pulses based on the N fractional values, respectively, and based on the desired length. A fuel actuator module opens a fuel injector that injects fuel into the cylinder during the combustion cycle in N pulses having the individual lengths, respectively. | 07-19-2012 |
20120185151 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING FUEL INJECTION TO DECREASE PARTICULATE EMISSIONS DURING TRANSIENT ENGINE OPERATION - A control system for an engine includes a transient operation detection module, an injection determination module, and an injection control module. The transient operation detection module detects whether the engine is operating in a transient state. The injection determination module, based on an elapsed time since a fuel request and at least one of a plurality of engine operating parameters, at least one of (i) increases a number of fuel injections per combustion cycle to N, and (ii) adjusts periods for each of the fuel injections, wherein N is an integer greater than or equal to two. The injection control module controls fuel injection during the transient state based on at least one of (i) N fuel injections per combustion cycle and (ii) the adjusted periods. | 07-19-2012 |
20120185152 | FUEL RAIL PRESSURE CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A fuel control system includes a target rail pressure module. The target rail pressure module determines a target fuel rail pressure of a fuel rail of a direct injection engine. An offset module determines an offset value based on an engine speed of the direct injection engine and at least one of an engine load and an air per cylinder. A modifier module determines a modifier value based on a temperature of the direct injection engine. A rail pressure control module adjusts a current fuel rail pressure of the fuel rail based on the target fuel rail pressure, the offset value and the modifier value. | 07-19-2012 |
20120212190 | METHOD OF OPERATING A THERMOELECTRIC GENERATOR - A method for operating a thermoelectric generator supplying a variable-load component includes commanding the variable-load component to operate at a first output and determining a first load current and a first load voltage to the variable-load component while operating at the commanded first output. The method also includes commanding the variable-load component to operate at a second output and determining a second load current and a second load voltage to the variable-load component while operating at the commanded second output. The method includes calculating a maximum power output of the thermoelectric generator from the determined first load current and voltage and the determined second load current and voltage, and commanding the variable-load component to operate at a third output. The commanded third output is configured to draw the calculated maximum power output from the thermoelectric generator. | 08-23-2012 |
20130297182 | COLD START ENGINE CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A control system includes a starter control module, a mode setting module, a throttle control module, and a fuel control module. The starter control module initiates cranking of a spark ignition direct injection (SIDI) engine in response to user actuation of an ignition switch. The mode setting module sets a mode of operation to a coldstart mode when an engine coolant temperature is less than a predetermined temperature during the cranking. The throttle control module allows a throttle valve to be biased to a predetermined open position when the SIDI engine is off and, in response to the setting of the mode to the coldstart mode, selectively closes the throttle valve relative to the predetermined open position during the cranking. The fuel control module, in response to the setting of the mode to the coldstart mode, disables direct injection of fuel for a first combustion event during the cranking. | 11-07-2013 |
20140074381 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING FUEL INJECTION IN AN ENGINE BASED ON PISTON TEMPERATURE - A system according to the principles of the present disclosure includes a temperature estimation module and a fuel control module. The temperature estimation module estimates a piston temperature associated with a cylinder based on engine operating conditions. The fuel control module controls at least one of injection timing associated with the cylinder, injection pressure associated with a cylinder, injection location associated with a cylinder, and a number of injections per engine cycle associated with the cylinder based on the piston temperature. | 03-13-2014 |
20140278009 | PHASER CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR BALANCING MEAN EFFECTIVE PRESSURE - An engine control system includes a mean effective pressure (MEP) module, an imbalance module, and a phaser control module. The MEP module determines MEPs for combustion cycles of cylinders, respectively, of an engine. The imbalance module selectively determines whether first and second banks of the cylinders are imbalanced based on the MEPs. When the first and second banks of cylinders are imbalanced, the phaser control module selectively adjusts at least one of: a first phaser of an intake camshaft of the second bank of cylinders; and a second phaser of an exhaust camshaft of the second bank of cylinders. | 09-18-2014 |