Vitesco Technologies Gmbh

Continental Automotive Gmbh

Markus Stutika

Gerd Rösel

Christian Hauser

Harry Schüle

Gerd Roesel

Anatoliy Lyubar

Nikolay Belyaev

Hong Zhang

Frank Denk

In some embodiments, a method includes: setting an actuation time based on a predefined injection quantity; detecting a duration of a resulting closing process; calculating an injection quantity based on the time and the duration; determining the difference of the injection quantity and the predefined quantity; and determining a corrected value of the actuation time based on the difference; and using the corrected value to control further actuation of the fuel injector. The injection quantities and the actuation time are on a characteristic diagram of the relationship between the actuation time, the duration of the closing process, and the injection quantity.

Fuel injector with a solenoid drive

Various embodiments include a method for operating a fuel injector having a hydraulic stop comprising: applying a first current profile to a solenoid drive to inject a predetermined injection quantity; ascertaining a first value of a parameter correlating to a velocity of the armature when reaching the hydraulic stop; determining whether the first value of the parameter is greater than a first threshold value; and if the first value of the parameter is greater than the first threshold value, applying a second current profile to the solenoid drive to carry out a second injection procedure. The second current profile in comparison with the first current profile exerts a lower magnetic force in the direction of the pole piece on the armature.

Operation of a fuel injector with hydraulic stopping

Various embodiments include a method for operating a fuel injector comprising: applying a first current to a solenoid to perform a first injection process and inject a predefined injection quantity; determining a value of a system parameter indicating the relationship between the actual fuel quantity and the predefined quantity; determining, on the basis of the value of the system parameter, whether the actually injected fuel quantity is smaller than the predefined fuel quantity by a predefined amount corresponding to a disparity between a magnetic force exerted on the armature in the direction of the pole piece and an opposite hydraulic force exerted on the armature by fuel; and if it was determined that the quantities differ by enough, applying a second current to the solenoid to perform a second injection; wherein the second current exerts a lower magnetic force on the armature in the direction of the pole piece.

Operation of a fuel injector having a hydraulic stop

A fuel injector for an internal combustion engine of a motor vehicle. The fuel injector including the following: (a) a pole piece, (b) an armature which can be moved along a movement axis, (c) a coil and (d) a permanent magnet, wherein the movable armature has at least one electrically insulating element which is designed to reduce eddy currents in the armature, and wherein the permanent magnet is fitted such that it generates a magnetic field which produces a force which acts on the armature in the direction of the pole piece. The invention also describes a method for ascertaining a position of a movable armature in a fuel injector and also an engine controller.

Fuel injector, method for ascertaining the position of a movable armature, and motor control

The invention provides a device and a method for determining a pressure of a fuel () which is to be injected into a combustion chamber () via a controllable closure element () of a solenoid valve (), wherein the method comprises: generating a current flow (i) through a coil () of the solenoid valve () in order to generate a magnetic field, in order to generate a magnetic force acting on an armature (), which magnetic force shifts the armature () in the direction of the opening of the closure element (), determining a magnitude of a magnetic flux (&#x3a8;) of the magnetic field before or when a first state (I) at which the armature starts to shift the closure element is reached, and determining a magnitude of the pressure on the basis of the determined magnitude of the magnetic flux.

Pressure determination in a fuel injection valve

Various embodiments include a method for operating a fuel injector with a solenoid drive having a hydraulic stop at a predetermined fuel pressure comprising: applying a first current profile to the solenoid including a first holding current value prespecifying the current flowing during a holding phase; determining a resulting first flux; determining a first force based on the first flux corresponding to a hydraulic force exerted on the armature by fuel; determining a deviation between the first force and an optimal force corresponding to the predetermined fuel pressure; determining a second holding current based on the first holding current and the determined deviation; and applying a second current profile to carry out a second injection process using the second holding current value to apply a hydraulic force on the armature by the fuel adapted to the optimal force value.

Operating a fuel injector having a hydraulic stop

A method for determining an injection quantity of a fuel injector determines a first time at which an injection process of the fuel injector starts, a second time at which the injection process of the fuel injector ends, calculates a model on the basis of the first time and the second time, which model represents the position of a nozzle needle of the fuel injector as a function of the time, and calculates the quantity of fuel to inject.

Precise determining of the injection quantity of fuel injectors

A device and a method are provided for determining a stroke of an armature of a magnetic valve which has a coil and the armature is displaceable by magnetic force, including: providing at least one reference data set which includes a magnitude of a current through the coil and a magnitude of the magnetic flux in the case of a known magnitude of the stroke; generating a current flow through the coil of the magnetic valve in order to generate a magnetic field for generating a magnetic force on the armature, which magnetic force displaces the armature in the direction for the opening of a closure element coupled to the armature; determining a magnitude of the magnetic flux when the armature abuts against a driver of the closure element; and determining the magnitude of the stroke based upon the determined magnitude of the magnetic flux and the reference data set.

Determining a lift of a solenoid valve

A device and a method are provided for controlling a magnetic valve which has a coil and an armature which is displaceable by magnetic force, by means of which armature a closure element is displaceable for the purposes of injecting fuel into a combustion chamber, the method includes the steps of: energizing the coil with a voltage in accordance with a first voltage profile in order to generate a first electrical current through the coil; determining a first profile as a function of a first magnetic flux and the first current; identifying, in the first profile, a first characteristic of at least one first start of displacement at which the armature begins to displace the closure element, generating a second voltage profile and energizing the coil in accordance with the second voltage profile, such that, in a second profile, as a function of a second magnetic flux and a second current, a second characteristic of a second start of displacement is more similar to a reference characteristic than the first characteristic.

Controlling a fuel injection solenoid valve

The present disclosure generally relates to internal combustion engines. The teachings thereof may be embodied in methods for the measuring of a feedback signal generated by the movement dynamics of a fuel injector in operation. A method may include: (a) generating an electrical test pulse; (b) feeding the test pulse into an actuation line connecting the output stage to the injector to an electric drive of the injector; (c) measuring an electrical response pulse generated by the actuation line in response to the test pulse; (d) identifying a characteristic feature of the measured response pulse; (e) transferring the feature to a control and evaluation unit; (f) evaluating the feature; and (g) acquiring the characteristic information item about the measuring channel based on the evaluation of the transferred characteristic feature.

Device and method for controlling a fuel injection valve

A method for detecting the commencement of opening of the nozzle needle of an injector of an injection system. In the detection method, the coil of the solenoid injector has a voltage applied to it which is so low that the armature is moved toward the nozzle needle at such a low speed that the abutment causes a stoppage of the armature movement, without the nozzle needle being opened. In this case, the idle travel is overcome, but no injection process is initiated. The abutment of the armature against the nozzle needle is detected, in the current profile, as the commencement of opening of the nozzle needle.

Method and device for detecting the commencement of opening of a nozzle needle

A method and control system are disclosed for controlling an internal combustion engine having fuel injector(s), a camshaft for actuating inlet and/or outlet valve(s), a valve-train adjusting device for controllable switchover between different valve actuating characteristics, and optionally a camshaft sensor which supplies a camshaft signal representing the camshaft angle, a crankshaft sensor which supplies a crankshaft signal representing the crankshaft angle, and a control unit which controls the fuel injectors to inject predetermined fuel quantities at predetermined injection instants, wherein these stipulations take place as a function of the switching state of the valve-train adjusting device. To obtain information about this switching state, cylinder pressure signal(s) supplied by a cylinder pressure sensor are evaluated with regard to interference signals, and the evaluation result is used in determining the switching state of the valve-train adjusting device for stipulating the fuel quantities to be injected and/or the injection instants.

Method and control unit for controlling an internal combustion engine

A method and a control unit are disclosed for controlling an internal combustion engine having fuel injector(s), a camshaft for actuating inlet and/or outlet valve(s), a valve-train adjusting device for controllably changing the actuating characteristic of at least one valve which is actuated by means of the camshaft, and optionally having a camshaft sensor which supplies a camshaft signal dependent on the camshaft angle, a crankshaft sensor which supplies a crankshaft signal representing the crankshaft angle, and a control unit for controlling the fuel injection and the valve-train adjusting device. In order to obtain information about the current setting of the valve-train adjusting device, at least one cylinder pressure signal supplied by a cylinder pressure sensor for measuring the pressure in an associated cylinder is evaluated with regard to interference signals, and the evaluation result is taken into consideration in the control of the valve-train adjusting device.

A method and a control unit are disclosed for controlling a single-cylinder or multiple-cylinder internal combustion engine having at least one fuel injector per cylinder, at least one camshaft for actuating inlet valves and/or outlet valves, and having a control unit which controls the fuel injectors in such a way that they inject in each case one fuel pre-injection per cylinder during a starting phase of the internal combustion engine. In order to make an improved pre-injection strategy possible during the starting phase, according to the invention at least one cylinder pressure signal which is supplied by a cylinder pressure sensor for measuring the pressure in a cylinder is evaluated with regard to interference signals, and the evaluation result is taken into consideration at least during the starting phase in a determination of the camshaft angle.

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Wuppertal, Germany

Markus Stutika