Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Guohui Chen

Werner Willems

Juergen Stief

Helmut Ruhland

Frank Wunderlich

Claudia Katharina Herudek

Leonhard Bartsch

Joerg Kemmerling

Christian Winge Vigild

Moritz Klaus Springer

Ahmed Benmimoun

Harald Stoffels

Jan Linsel

Paul Turner

Claudia Conee

An autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicle and maneuvering method for a vehicle for overcoming an obstacle may include detecting the obstacle in front of and/or behind the motor vehicle by a detection device, moving the motor away from the obstacle to come to a standstill at a defined distance x, wherein the running direction of a wheel is facing towards the obstacle. The method may also include accelerating the motor vehicle toward the obstacle within a power-limiting range of a drive unit of the vehicle. The power-limiting range may be a power-limiting range of an electric motor powering the vehicle.

Motor vehicle and autonomous or semi-autonomous maneuvering around an obstacle

Systems and methods are provided for an engine wherein one group of cylinders is active and a second group of cylinders is switchable, such that under low loads the second group of cylinders is deactivated, and under high loads the second group of cylinders is activated. Following deactivation of the second group of cylinders a throttling element in an intake line for the second group of cylinders is gradually closed. The closing of the throttling element may reduce pumping losses and thus increase engine efficiency.

Internal combustion engine featuring partial shutdown and method for operating an internal combustion engine of this kind

Methods and systems are provided for reducing pumping losses during a partial deactivation. In one example, a method may include applying negative pressure to a deactivated cylinder group to remove gases trapped therein while an activated cylinder group continues to combust.

Methods and system for partial cylinder deactivation

Methods and systems are provided for an internal combustion engine having at least two cylinders configured in such a way that they form two groups, at least one cylinder of a first group being a cylinder which is operational in the event of a partial deactivation of the engine, and at least one cylinder of a second group being formed as a load-dependently switchable cylinder. An inlet-side throttle element is provided with at least one intake line of the switchable cylinder, by means of which the size of the flow cross section of the intake line can be varied, whereby the charge-air flow rate supplied to the deactivated cylinder in the event of a partial deactivation of the engine can be adjusted. Each outlet opening of a load-dependently switchable cylinder is equipped with a partially variable valve drive, with an outlet valve which opens or shuts off the outlet opening.

Partial deactivation of an internal combustion engine

Methods and systems are provided for an injector arrangement for an internal combustion engine. In one example, an injector arrangement may include an actuator positioned between a fuel injector and a cylinder head, with the actuator configured to adjust a position of the fuel injector relative to the cylinder head in order to adjust a protrusion amount of a fuel nozzle tip within a combustion chamber.

Injector arrangement for an internal combustion engine

The system and methods described allow for reduce emissions by using a recirculation device within an engine that connects an air feed line to an exhaust line while cooling the exhaust-gas to form a condensate for further cooling the engine system. In one particular example, a cooling unit is described that cools the exhaust-gas stream flowing there through and collects a condensate out of the exhaust-gas stream for injection back into the air feed line via an injecting device. In this way, an injection of water may be made to reduce NOx emissions during vehicle operations, and the outlay for storage of water on board the vehicle may be eliminated.

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Aachen, Germany

Guohui Chen