Ford Motor Company Limited

Charles J DeBiasi

Wesley D Boyer

Zeljko Deljevic

Larry Allen Hardy

Viren B Merchant

John Francis Renehan

James B Maurer

Vikas Tuteja

An enhanced charging system for a motor vehicle includes an alternator, a voltage regulator, and an engine controller. The voltage regulator and engine controller are connected by two circuits. One of the circuits provides the engine controller with a measure of the torque about to be applied to the engine by the alternator. The other circuit allows the engine controller to command the target voltage at which the voltage regulator is to control the alternator. The engine controller determines the target voltage based on intake air temperature, a measure of the temperature of the air at the intake of the engine. The engine controller then modifies the target voltage based on (1) whether the throttle of the engine is near wide-open-throttle; (2) whether the brakes of the vehicle are applied; and (3) whether the alternator is about to apply an increased torque to the engine.

Enhanced vehicle charging system

Methods and apparatus for detecting low impedance short circuits in a secondary winding circuit of a coil of a distributorless ignition system (DIS) by analyzing spark discharge signals on a primary winding of the ignition coil. In one embodiment, the duration times of the spark discharge signals are compared to a threshold spark duration time, with a low impedance short circuit being indicated if the threshold spark duration time is exceeded. In another embodiment, two or more spark dwell signals are applied to the primary of the ignition coil for each spark event of each associated pair of engine cylinders. A first or base time period is determined for the first dwell signal by measuring the time it takes the first dwell signal to produce a preselected current flow in the primary winding. A second time period is then determined by measuring the time it takes the second dwell signal to produce the same preselected current flow in the primary winding. The second time period is then compared to the first time period to determine whether a short circuit exists in the secondary winding circuit. A guard-band time period is subtracted from the first time period to define a minimum duration time for the second time period. If the second time period is equal to or exceeds the minimum duration time, a normal secondary winding circuit is indicated. If the second time period is less than the minimum duration time, a short circuited secondary winding circuit is indicated.

Methods and apparatus for detecting short circuited secondary coil

Spark discharge signals monitored on primary windings of ignition coils of a coil per plug (CPP) ignition system are used to identify which cylinder of a cylinder pair is in compression and which cylinder in a cylinder pair is in exhaust. Once determined, the cylinder pair can be tracked such that the primary windings do not need to be monitored further. In one embodiment of the invention, the duration times of substantially simultaneous spark discharge signals in cylinders of a pair of cylinders are compared to one another. The shorter duration time signal indicates the cylinder in the compression cycle. One cylinder pair may be tested two or more times or one or more additional cylinder pairs may be tested to verify cylinder identification. In a second embodiment of the invention, two or more spark dwell signals are applied to the primary windings of the ignition coils for each spark event of a pair of cylinders. The time periods required for the second dwell signals to produce current flows in the primary windings equal to a predetermined current value is determined for each of the cylinders. The time preiods are then compared to one another with the shorter time period indicating the cylinder in exhaust.

Cylinder identification by spark discharge analysis for internal

This invention includes a method and apparatus for starting an internal combustion engine with a reduced starting time. That is, there is a reduced delay before the first combustion event occurs in the engine. Only a single engine position sensor is used. The method includes injecting fuel into a cylinder before true engine position is determined and applying an ignition pulse to the cylinder and firing the ignition coil after fuel has been injected into the cylinder. Advantageously, injecting fuel for the cylinder is done after determining the engine is turning and determining the engine has a rotational rate below a predetermined parameter.

Fast start fueling for fuel injected spark ignition engine

An open secondary coil of an ignition coil is detected by the use of a reverse current in the primary of the ignition coil to indicate the occurrence of an open secondary coil.

Open secondary detection via reverse circuit sensing

A distributed processing system in an automotive environment achieves enhanced noise immunity and reduces the processing burden and background loop time of the master controller by providing for communication of signals between a master controller and a slave controller by pulse width modulated communication signals. In a preferred embodiment, the communicated signal is a spark advance which is transmitted to an ignition module for implementing spark events in an internal combustion engine. The spark advance pulse width is a linearly decreasing function of spark advance value since increased spark advance is associated with an increase in engine speed. The spark advance is encoded into a pulse width signal according to a method which simplifies decoding of the spark advance information in the ignition module.

Automobile electronic control modules communicating by pulse width

Control of spark timing of an ignition system for an internal combustion engine uses a feedback correction signal which is a function of back EMF generated in the primary winding of an ignition coil in response to current change in the secondary winding of the ignition coil due to spark breakdown.

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Allen Park, MI, United States of America

Charles J DeBiasi