Hitachi, Ltd.

Nissan Motor Company Limited

Hitachi Car Engineering Co., Ltd.

Nobuo Kurihara

Minoru Ohsuga

Hiroshi Kimura

Yutaka Takaku

Toshio Ishii

Mitsuyo Nishikawa

Junichi Ishii

Masayoshi Kaneyasu

Kouji Kitano

Mitsuo Kayano

Kiyoshi Miura

Mamoru Fujieda

Yoshio Sato

Takeshi Atago

Yasushi Sasaki

Matsuo Amano

Junichi Yamaguchi

Hiroshi Ohnishi

Toshiharu Nogi

Yasuo Morooka

Yoshishige Ohyama

Kazuya Kawano

Shigeyoshi Kawano

Toshihiko Higashi

Yoshitoshi Nagahashi

Toshimichi Minowa

Hiroyuki Yamada

Masatoshi Hoshino

Toshio Hori

Kenji Ikeura

Masaaki Saito

Yasunori Mouri

Minoru Osuga

Atsumi Watanabe

Tadayoshi Saito

Jun'ichi Yamaguchi

Hisanori Miyagaki

Yoshihiro Shimada

Atsushi Yokogawa

Akira Endo

Hiroshi Matsumoto

Hiroshi Kuroiwa

Hiroshi Kuroda

Yutaka Nishimura

Yoshiyuki Yoshida

Shinichi Sakamoto

Sadayasu Ueno

Satoshi Takizawa

Nobuo Sato

Katsunori Oshiage

Seiji Asano

Takanobu Ichihara

Yoshihiko Akagi

Katsuji Marumoto

Masahide Sakamoto

Kiyoshi Horibe

Kunifumi Sawamoto

Takashi Mukaihira

Mitsuhiro Masuda

Shigeru Horikoshi

Masahide Nomura

Tadashi Kurihara

Junichi Makino

Kazuto Kinoshita

Hideharu Takahashi

Kimio Hoshi

Michihiro Iioka

Masafumi Takechi

Shigeyuki Kemma

Kouzou Katougi

Daizo Iba

An automatic transmission control system for an automobile, comprising a vehicle weight estimation unit which estimates a vehicle weight of the automobile a torque estimation unit which estimates an output torque, an acceleration input unit which accepts an acceleration signal; a load estimation unit (110) which estimates a running load from the estimated vehicle weight, the estimated output torque and the accepted acceleration; a memory which stores a plurality of shift schedules therein; and a gear position determination unit (109) which includes the memory, and which selects one of the shift schedules in accordance with the vehicle weight and the estimated running load, so as to determine a gear position of an automatic transmission of the automobile in conformity with the selected shift schedule. An exact shift operation conformed to the vehicle weight and the running load can be performed, and an enhanced fuel consumption can be attained.

Automatic automobile transmission with variable shift pattern controlled in response to estimated running load

An automatic transmission control system for an automobile, comprising a vehicle weight estimation unit which estimates a vehicle weight of the automobile a torque estimation unit which estimates an output torque, an acceleration input unit which accepts an acceleration signal; a load estimation unit () which estimates a running load from the estimated vehicle weight, the estimated output torque and the accepted acceleration; a memory which stores a plurality of shift schedules therein; and a gear position determination unit () which includes the memory, and which selects one of the shift schedules in accordance with the vehicle weight and the estimated running load, so as to determine a gear position of an automatic transmission of the automobile in conformity with the selected shift schedule. An exact shift operation conformed to the vehicle weight and the running load can be performed, and an enhanced fuel consumption can be attained.

Automatic transmission control system for an automobile

In order to prevent a catalyst for an internal combustion engine from decreasing efficiency by deterioration after long time use of the catalyst, the decreased efficiency of the catalyst is determined, and the internal engine is controlled based on results of the determination so as to maintain high efficiency of the catalyst. The catalyst is installed in an exhaust pipe of the engine. Sensors for detecting conditions of exhaust gas both at upstream side and downstream side of the catalyst are provided, respectively. As for the sensor, for example, an oxygen sensor of which output varies stepwise at &lgr;&equals;1, or a sensor of which output varies in proportion to air-fuel ratio can be used. Detected values of the sensors are taken into a control unit, eliminating efficiency and deteriorating degree of the catalyst are estimated by comparison of the detected values, and the engine is controlled so that the eliminating efficiency becomes maximum. In accordance with the present invention, a preferable exhaust gas cleaning characteristics of the catalyst can be maintained because the decreased efficiency of the catalyst is determined exactly and the engine is controlled so as to prevent the catalyst from decreasing efficiency.

Evaluating method for NOx eliminating catalyst, an evaluating apparatus therefor, and an efficiency controlling method therefor

A combustion state is diagnoses by extracting specific rotation period component of a period synchronous with rotation from a combustion state parameter for at least two rotations. The combustion state is judged on the basis of the extracted specific rotation period component. The combustion state parameter may be the engine speed or the output torque of a multiple-cylinder engine which varies according to the combustion state of the engine.

Combustion state diagnosing system and combustion state diagnosing method for diagnosing engine and recording medium

The object of this invention is that a suction device for an internal combustion engine is to be compact. The suction device comprising a casing having an air inlet and a plurality of outlets, a filter in the casing for filtering air from said air inlet, a collection chamber in the casing for receiving air from the filter, at least one throttle valve in the casing for controlling the flow of air from said filter to said collection chamber, and a plurality of suction pipes. According to the present invention, the suction device can be made compact to thereby effectively use an engine room of an automobile.

Suction device for internal combustion engine

A diagnosis apparatus for diagnosing a catalytic converter of a motor vehicle as to whether the catalyst suffers deterioration by estimating a temperature of the catalyst or that of the exhaust gas in the vicinity of the catalyst on the basis of a plurality of engine parameters to thereby decide deterioration of the catalyst by using as an index the estimated temperature. Diagnosing method and apparatus capable of diagnosing deterioration of the catalyst with a high reliability are realized.

Method and apparatus for diagnosing engine exhaust gas purification system

A combustion control device for an internal combustion engine, establishes an optimum combustion condition by detecting the combustion pressure in the cylinder and controlling the exhaust gas reflux rate, the ignition timing and the fuel injection timing or the injection rate at the intake stroke in order to improve the fuel economy and the quality of the exhaust gas in the engine. The device is provided with an in-cylinder pressure detector for detecting the in-cylinder pressure in connection with the combustion in the engine, and apparatus for estimating the heat generation rate with respect to the angle of the crank shaft of the cylinder according to the output from the in-cylinder pressure detection means, the ignition timing and the fuel injection timing control the control variables such as EGR control parameters related to the combustion so that the in-cylinder combustion state pattern obtained by the heat generation rate estimation apparatus may be reshaped into a predefined waveform pattern.

Engine combustion control device

There is disclosed a leakage diagnosis of an evaporative system in an internal combustion engine, and more particularly there is disclosed an evaporative system in which a more accurate leakage diagnosis can be effected using a change in the pressure in the evaporative system, and such a diagnosis method is also disclosed. The evaporative system includes a gauge line having a gauge valve, which gauge line branches off from an evaporative gas line or an evaporative gas purge line, and communicates with a point upstream of an engine throttle valve or with the ambient atmosphere, a pressure sensor for detecting the pressure in the evaporative system, and a purge valve. A leakage diagnosis of this system is effected based on detected values of the pressure sensor obtained by opening and closing the purge valve and the gauge valve. Therefore, accurate results of the diagnosis can be obtained.

Evaporative system and method of diagnosing same

An air intake arrangement for an internal combustion engine comprising: a main air intake conduit leading to a gas intake valve ( ) for respective engine cylinders ( ) and including a main air intake passage ( ), a main collector chamber ( ) and independent branching air intake passages ( ) for the respective engine cylinders ( ) connected in series; a throttle valve ( ) disposed in the main intake air passage ( ) for controlling the flow rate of air passing therethrough; an auxiliary air intake passage ( [object Object]

Air intake arrangement for internal combustion engine

A diagnosis apparatus for diagnosing a catalystic converter of a motor vehicle as to whether the catalyst suffers deterioration by estimating a temperature of the catalyst or that of the exhaust gas in the vicinity of the catalyst on the basis of a plurality of engine parameters to thereby decide deterioration of the catalyst by using as an index the estimated temperature. The apparatus includes a unit for estimating the temperature of the catalyst in a steady state by making use of an engine speed and an engine load which represent typical parameters employed in fuel injection control of the engine. The steady-state temperature facility is realized by storing the engine speeds and the engine loads obtained experimentally in the steady state operation of the engine in the form of a two-dimensional data map. A unit for correcting the estimated temperature of the catalyst in the transient state is provided for correcting the catalyst temperature determined by the steady-state catalyst temperature estimating unit to thereby ensure correct estimation of the catalyst temperature even in the course of operation of the motor vehicle. In the transient temperature estimating unit, non-linear characteristics are each described by combining a plurality of linear characteristics. A unit for estimating the temperature of the catalyst on the basis of the value determined by the steady-state temperature estimating unit and the transient-state temperature estimating unit is provided to decide deterioration of the catalyst.

Method and apparatus for diagnosing engine exhaust gas purification

The object of this invention is that a suction devise for an internal combustion engine is to be compact. The suction devise comprising a casing having an air inlet and a plurality of outlets, a filter in the casing for filtering air from said air inlet, a collection chamber in the casing for receiving air from the filter, at least one throttle valve in the casing for controlling the flow of air from said filter to said collection chamber, and a plurality of suction pipes. According to the present invention, the suction device can be made compact to thereby effectively use an engine room of an automobile.

It is an object to improve the opening control resolving power in the case where the opening/closing of a throttle valve is controlled by a motor driven actuator. An additional control signal for finely vibrating the throttle valve is given to the actuator in a specific period until the opening of the throttle valve approaches its target value. Consequently, the throttle valve vibrates finely only as occasion demands. Accordingly, in spite of the fact that the opening of the throttle valve can be controlled with finer control resolving power than ordinary control resolving power, good response can be obtained as a whole.

Throttle valve control apparatus

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Hitachioota, Japan

Nobuo Kurihara