Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Christopher Paul Glugla

Mohannad Hakeem

Gopichandra Surnilla

Rani Kiwan

James Matthew Kindree

John Ottavio Michelini

Amey Y Karnik

Imtiaz Ali

Lyth Alobiedat

Garlan J Huberts

Lee Benjamin McQuinn

Michael Flory

Ross Dykstra Pursifull

Donald James Lewis

Richard E Soltis

Mark Meinhart

Hao Zhang

Joseph Norman Ulrey

John Eric Rollinger

Ralph Wayne Cunningham

Michael James Uhrich

Mrdjan J Jankovic

Davorin David Hrovat

Michael Damian Czekala

Timothy Joseph Clark

Robert Baskins

Jacobus Hendrik Visser

Daniel Lawrence Meyer

In Kwang Yoo

Qiuping Qu

Adithya Pravarun Re Ranga

John M Roth

Woong-chul Yang

David Karl Trumpy

Paul A Baltusis

Emil G Serban

Michael A Mancini

John Joseph Virga

Scott Richard Hughes

Fabian Gadau

William Robert Dutcher

Raymond Host

Jeffrey J Lock

Kenneth Ellison

Ronak Vivek Kashid

Arney Yogesh Karnik

An internal combustion engine system includes a first set of cylinders, a second set of cylinders, exhaust manifolds, and exhaust gas sensors. The first set of cylinders has first and second subsets of cylinders. The second set of cylinders has third and fourth subsets of cylinders. The exhaust manifolds have primary conduits, secondary conduits branching from the primary conduits, and tertiary conduits branching from the secondary conduits. The tertiary conduits associated with each of the secondary conduits are connected to one of the first, second, third, or fourth subsets of cylinders. The exhaust gas sensors are disposed within each of the secondary conduits and are each configured to measure air-to-fuel ratios of one of the first, second, third, or fourth subsets of cylinders.

Vehicle and corresponding internal combustion engine system

Methods and systems are provided for warming vehicle tires prior to a vehicle launch event. In one example, a method may include, in response to an initiation of a burn out event while locking non-driven wheel brakes, adjusting a spinning of driven wheels based on vehicle performance parameters measured during a previous vehicle launch. In this way, a vehicle controller may control the tire warming to increase tire traction while reducing tire wear.

Systems and methods for tire warmup and vehicle launch optimization

Methods and systems are disclosed for operating an engine that includes a knock control system that may determine contributions of individual noise sources to an engine background noise level. The contributions of the individual noise sources may be the basis for establishing the presence or absence of knock in one or more engine cylinders.

Method and system for learning contributions to an engine knock background noise level

Methods and systems are provided for operating a variable displacement engine that includes a knock control system. Engine knock background noise levels determined during all cylinders operating mode may be determined via two filters that are constructed in parallel. Output of the two filters may be the basis for determining the presence or absence of engine knock.

Method and system for determining engine knock background noise levels

Methods and systems are provided for operating a variable displacement engine that includes a knock control system. Engine background noise levels for detecting engine knock may be the basis for determining whether or not the engine is operating in a cylinder deactivation mode. Further, select variable engine displacement modes may be avoided so that engine background noise level changes may be reduced to improve engine knock detection.

Method and system for variable displacement engine knock control

Methods and systems are provided for estimating ethanol content in fuel, water content in fuel, and an age of the fuel in a vehicle engine. In one example, a method may include estimating fuel ethanol content, water content, or fuel age based on fuel rail temperature, and two or more of a resonant frequency (f) of pressure pulsations, a change in fuel rail pressure (&#x3b4;p), and a damping coefficient (&#x3b1;) of pressure pulsations in the fuel rail as estimated after a fuel injection or a pump stroke. One or more engine operating parameters may be adjusted based on the estimated fuel ethanol content, water content, and fuel age.

Fuel composition and aging estimation

Methods and systems are disclosed for operating an engine that includes a knock control system that may determine contributions of individual noise sources to an engine background noise level. The contributions of the individual noise sources may be determined via adjusting timing of a knock window or timing of the individual noise sources.

Method and system for learning contributions of engine knock background noise for a variable displacement engine

Methods and systems are disclosed for operating an engine that includes a knock control system. The methods and system provide for repurposing the engine knock control system to detect and mitigate piston slap. The methods and systems also seek to increase the signal to noise ratio for detecting piston slap.

Method and system for determining piston slap

Systems and methods for operating an internal combustion engine that includes an oxygen sensor are described. In one example, a voltage that is applied to a heating element of an oxygen sensor is integrated to determine a resistance of the heating element. The resistance of the heating element is the basis for adjusting voltage applied to the heating element during subsequent engine starts.

Methods and system for operating an oxygen sensor

Methods and systems are disclosed for operating an engine that includes a knock control system. The method and system may increase opportunities to learn one or more engine knock background noise levels via changing poppet valve timing and/or fuel injection timing. The method and system may also improve knock detection if knock sensor degradation is suspected.

Method and system for engine knock detection

Methods and systems are provided for operating a variable displacement engine that includes a knock control system. Engine knock background noise levels determined during all cylinders operating mode may be applied when one or more cylinders are deactivated to determine the presence or absence of engine knock. Additionally, engine knock background noise levels determined during all cylinders operating mode may be applied when one or more cylinders are reactivated such that the engine operates with all cylinder combusting so that the possibility of indicating knock when knock is not present may be avoided.

Method and system for adjusting engine knock background noise levels

Method and system for applying engine knock windows

Methods and systems are provided for estimating an actual compression ratio of an engine cylinder based on the electric current applied to an actuator of the associated variable compression ratio mechanism. The compression ratio is estimated as a function of both a value and a location, relative to cylinder piston position, of a peak holding current applied by an electric motor on the actuator to maintain the actuator at a commanded compression ratio setting. In this way, the vehicle control system may more accurately infer the current actual compression ratio of each cylinder.

Method for variable compression ratio engine

Methods and systems are provided for a battery supplying power to an exhaust oxygen sensor heater. In one example, a method may include estimating a power delivered to the heater during heating of the sensor and in response to a power delivered from a battery being lower than a threshold, adjusting a battery charging strategy prior to an immediately subsequent engine start.

Systems and methods for oxygen sensor light-off

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Macomb, MI, United States of America

Christopher Paul Glugla