Tula Technology, Inc.

Robert Scott Bailey

Louis Joseph Serrano

Allan Joseph Kotwicki

Shikui Kevin Chen

Mohammad R Pirjaberi

Joel D Van Ess

Vijay Srinivasan

Siamak Hashemi

Ram Subramanian

Ying Ren

Yongyan Cao

Geoffrey Routledge

Methods and controllers are described that facilitate the determination of an operational skip fire firing fraction for an engine based at least in part noise levels and/or vehicle vibration levels that are not induced by engine operation. In some embodiments, the firing fraction is determined based at least in part of noise or vibrations associated with road roughness and/or cabin noise levels.

Controller system and method for selecting a firing fraction for a skip fire controlled internal combustion engine based at least on non-drive train levels of noise, vibration and harshness

The present invention relates generally to improving the fuel efficiency of autonomous vehicles by operating either (1) at a first effective engine displacement that takes into account noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) when the vehicle is occupied or (2) at a second effective engine displacement, without concern for occupant NVH, when the vehicle is not occupied. The second effective engine displacement is typically more fuel efficient than the first effective engine displacement, but result in a higher level of NVH compared to the first effective engine displacement.

System and method for improving fuel economy for autonomous driving vehicles

A variety of methods and arrangements for detecting failure of the commanded air induction in an internal combustion engine are described. In some embodiments, the intake manifold pressure is monitored. An air induction event generates a fluctuation in the intake manifold pressure, which is recorded. The signal is processed through a diagnostic filter to help determine whether the actual induction matched the commanded induction. In other embodiments, measured crankshaft acceleration is compared with estimated crankshaft acceleration. If the two quantities differ by a threshold amount an induction fault is detected. The two detection methods may also be combined. The describe approaches are particularly well suited for use in engines operating in a skip fire mode with cylinder deactivation and/or a dynamic firing level modulation mode.

Induction diagnostics for skip fire engines

Induction diagnostics for skip fire engine

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Robert Scott Bailey