Robert Boschgmbh

Henrik Schittenhelm

Ralf Schmidt

Sabine Roesch

Helmut Marx

Bernhard Kamp

Enno Baars

Lothar Diehl

Thorsten Ochs

Lutz Dorfmueller

Markus Siebert

Katharina Schaenzlin

Alexander Hetznecker

Torsten Handler

Frank Schnell

Johannes Grabis

Detlef Heimann

Rainer Strohmaier

Uwe Glanz

Andy Tiefenbach

Mathias Klenk

Sascha Klett

Harald Guenschel

Ariel Di Miro

Gerd Teike

Christopher Holzknecht

Stefan Rodewald

Henrico Runge

Radoslav Rusanov

Juergen Ruth

Bastian Roetzler

Benjamin Gaertner

Juergen Sindel

Stefan Heinzelmann

Sabine Rösch

Christoph Zimmermann

Harald Koehnlein

Peer Kruse

Anna Karoline Winkler

Andreas Sturm

Simon Genter

Thomas Marc Kammerer

Andreas Schaak

Thorsten Baunach

Bettina Kuhn

Burkhard Michaelis

Olav Harzer

Saskia Koblmiller

Bettina Wendling

Self-diagnosis of a particle sensor may be used for determining a particle content in a gaseous stream. The particle sensor may include at least two interlocking, interdigital electrodes and a heating element. The heating element may be separated from the electrodes by an insulation layer. The particle sensor may be heated in a regeneration phase and a soot load on the particle sensor can thereby be removed. A semiconductive layer may be formed in the insulation layer directly beneath the electrodes by means of external doping or auto-doping. To perform a self-diagnosis, a measurement voltage may be applied at least periodically between the electrodes and a self-diagnostic current may be measured.

Method and device for the self-diagnosis of a particle sensor

A method for operating a particle sensor (). The particle sensor () has at least two inter-digital electrodes () which engage one in the other and to which a sensor voltage U() is applied in order to determine loading of the particle sensor () with soot particles (). A sensor current I() across the electrodes () is measured and evaluated. In order to remove the loading with soot, a heating element () heats the particle sensor () in a regeneration phase. The method characterized in that the sensor current I() is determined, and a shunt diagnosis of the particle sensor () is carried out in accordance with the measured sensor current I().

Method and device for operating a particle sensor

A sensor element for determining a gas component or particles in a measuring gas, having a first and a second measuring electrode, the measuring electrodes being developed as interdigital electrodes having a row of intermeshing branches as well as a main conductor each, to which the branches are connected in an electrically conducting manner; and the branches of the interdigital electrodes being aligned essentially in parallel to a longitudinal axis of the sensor element.

Sensor element of a gas sensor

In a method for detecting a level of contamination of a particle sensor provided with two electrodes situated on an insulator material for generating an electrical field, the insulator material is heated to above a limiting temperature of the insulator material at which the insulator material begins to become conductive. The insulator material is modulated by heating or cooling, the modulation being carried out at a lower temperature and an upper temperature which are each above the limiting temperature. The variation over time of a measuring signal which may be picked up between electrodes is measured during the modulation. The measured variation over time of the measuring signal is compensated using a theoretical variation over time of the measuring signal in a contamination-free state of the particle sensor in order to obtain a variation over time of a differential signal.

Method for detecting a level of contamination of a particle sensor, and particle sensor

The invention relates to a method for diagnosing a particle filter used for filtering particles out of the exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine, wherein a collecting particle sensor is disposed downstream of the particle filter in the direction of flow of the exhaust gas and wherein a measurement for the loading of the particle sensor is determined from an output signal of the particle sensor. Provision is thereby made for the temporal integral of a parameter correlating to the particle emissions of the internal combustion engine to be formed during a measurement cycle, for the measurement for the loading of the particle sensor to be associated with the integral at least one measurement point in time during the measurement cycle and for a defective particle filter to be suggested if the measurement for the loading of the particle sensor is higher than a loading threshold value associated with the integral or if the integral is lower than an integral threshold value associated with the measurement for the loading of the particle sensor. The invention further relates to a device for carrying out the method. The method and the device allow for the diagnosis of the functionality of a particle filter in the exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine during any operating conditions passed through by the internal combustion engine.

Monitoring of a particle limit value in the exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine

The invention relates to a device used to measure exhaust gas having ionised particles in a motor vehicle. The device comprises an ionising device which includes an electrode arrangement and a charge measuring device. The electrode arrangement comprises at least one pair of electrodes including at least one electrode and at least one counter electrode. A dielectric is arranged between the electrode and the counter electrode in order to generate a dielectrically impeded discharge. The invention also relates to a corresponding method.

Device and method for measuring exhaust gas with charged particles

A sensor element is provided for gas sensors, in particular to determine particles in gas mixtures, the sensor element including at least one electrochemical measuring element exposed to the gas mixture to be determined, and at least one temperature-measuring element integrated into the sensor element. The temperature-measuring element includes a resistor track, which has an electric resistance of less than 180 Ohm at 0&#xb0; C. The resistor track may thus be produced by thin-foil technology, such as screen printing, for example.

Sensor element for gas sensors and method for operating same

The invention concerns a procedure to ascertain a concentration of sooty particles in an exhaust gas system of an internal combustion engine or a depletion of an emission control system of the internal combustion engine due to the loading of sooty particles, whereby the sooty particle concentration in the exhaust gas system is determined by means of a collecting particle sensor, which emits a sensor signal and whereby the depletion of the emission control system due to the loading of sooty particles is determined from the sooty particle concentration. The task is thereby solved, in that the sensor signal is corrected by means of predetermined corrections with regard to a sensor temperature and/or an exhaust gas temperature and/or a flow velocity of the exhaust gas and/or a voltage applied at the particle sensor. Transverse sensibilities of the particle sensor can thereby be taken into account during the evaluation; and the determination of the accumulated loading of sooty particles and the determination of the sooty particle concentration in the exhaust gas system are improved. In the process, the sensor temperature enters into the correction to the extent that a temperature dependence of the electrical resistance of the loading of sooty particles is determined in a preparation phase and can be taken into account during the evaluation of the sensor signal.

Procedure to acquire a sooty particle concentration in the exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine

A procedure for operating a collecting particle sensor, which is provided with measuring phases, during which particles that are contained in an off-gas stream accumulate on a measuring route, and a device for implementing this procedure are submitted. Protection phases are provided, during which at least one measure for diminishing the accumulation of particles on the measuring route is adopted. The measure according to this invention prevents a decrease of the sensitivity of the particle sensor over a long period of time.

Procedure for operating a collecting particle sensor and device for implementing this procedure

A method is described for controlling the soot deposition on sensors. A sensor element is provided, which includes a first electrode and a second electrode. Different measuring voltages Uand Ucan be applied to the sensor element. During a first time period t, the sensor element is operated at a higher voltage Uuntil a triggering threshold AP of the sensor element is exceeded, while it is operated at a voltage U, which is different from higher voltage U, Ubeing lower than voltage U, during a second time period t.

Method for influencing soot deposits on sensors

A method and a particle sensor for measuring particles, especially soot particles, in which the particles to be detected accumulate in a measuring region of the particle sensor. The particles located in the gas stream or the particles already accumulated in the measuring region are burned by a combustion device, the combustion being controlled via a control signal from a control unit, which is electrically connected to a measuring device, in such a way that the quantity of the particles adhering in the measuring region remains constant. The physical variable of the combustion device, which leads to the controlled combustion of the particles, is drawn upon as the signal amplitude of the particle sensor.

Method, particle sensor and particle sensor system for measuring particles

In a method and an apparatus for the defined regeneration of a sooty surface, in particular a ceramic sensor surface, in which the soot particles adhering to the surface are burned off by a dielectrically hindered discharge by of a discharge device, power of the dielectrically hindered discharge is set such that a higher rate of removal of the soot particles than their rate of deposition on the surface is effected, after the regeneration phase, the remaining soot deposit is detected by a measuring device mounted on the surface, wherein an undefined state of the sensor surface does not occur, and the discharge device and the measuring device may be mounted very compactly on one or two ceramic substrate elements.

Method and apparatus for the defined regeneration of sooty surfaces

A sensor element for gas sensors for determining the concentration of particulates in gas mixtures, in particular soot sensors having at least one first measuring electrode applied to an electrically insulating substrate and at least one second measuring electrode, a voltage being applicable to the first and second measuring electrodes. The first measuring electrode is at least partly covered by a porous material open to diffusion of the particles to be determined.

Sensor element for particle sensors and method for operating the sensor element

A sensor for determining the concentration of particles in gases, in particular of soot particles, has at least one substrate element, and a measuring area between at least one first and one second measuring electrode, the two measuring electrodes being configured so that by applying a voltage between the measuring electrodes, an asymmetric electric field is formed on the measuring area. The sides of the first and second measuring electrodes, facing one another, may not be parallel to one another, for example. Furthermore, at least one measuring electrode may have a structure along the side facing the other measuring electrode or along the finger electrodes.

Resistive particle sensors having measuring electrodes

A sensor element for gas sensors for determining the concentration of particles in gas mixtures, especially soot sensors, having at least one measuring device exposed to the gas to be determined, at least one heating element integrated into the sensor element and at least one temperature measurement element integrated into the sensor element, the heating element being situated within the sensor element spatially between the measuring device and the temperature measurement element.

Sensor element for particle sensors and method for operating same

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Stuttgart, Germany

Henrik Schittenhelm