Denso Corporation

Nippondenso Co., Ltd.

Takamasa Oguri

Mikiyasu Matsuoka

Yuji Yamada

Takao Mishima

Kenichi Ono

Akira Ito

Akihiro Mizutani

Toshio Nishimura

Hiroshi Kondo

Hirokazu Tsuji

Yoshiyasu Futamura

Tokutada Takahashi

Hirotaka Kunibe

Kazutoshi Ito

Yoshihiro Kitagawa

Kazuyuki Okuda

Masaki Saijoh

Masato Yano

Kouji Morishita

Shoukichi Hosoe

Takaaki Baba

An Osensor has a sensor element, which includes a solid electrolyte layer and a pair of electrodes. The solid electrolyte layer is held between the electrodes. The electrodes include an atmosphere side electrode, which becomes a positive side at a time of outputting an electromotive force from the sensor element, and an exhaust side electrode, which becomes a negative side at the time of outputting the electromotive force from the sensor element. A resistor is provided in an electric path that connects between the atmosphere side electrode and a ground. When the sensor element generates the electromotive force, the resistor conducts an electric current, which is generated while using the electromotive force as an electric power source, to induce a change in an output characteristic of the Osensor.

Gas sensor control apparatus

An Osensor has a sensor element, which includes a solid electrolyte layer and a pair of electrodes. The solid electrolyte layer is held between the electrodes, which includes an atmosphere side electrode and an exhaust side electrode. A constant current circuit is installed in an electric path, which connects between the atmosphere side electrode and a ground, to induce a flow of a predetermined constant electric current between the electrodes through the solid electrolyte layer. When the sensor element generates an electromotive force, the constant current circuit conducts an electric current, which is generated while using the electromotive force of the sensor element as an electric power source, to induce the flow of the predetermined constant electric current between the electrodes in an electromotive force range, which is equal to or larger than an electromotive force of the sensor element generated at a stoichiometric air-to-fuel ratio.

An Osensor has a sensor element, which includes a solid electrolyte layer and a pair of electrodes. The solid electrolyte layer is held between the electrodes, which includes an atmosphere side electrode and an exhaust side electrode. A constant current circuit is installed in an electric path, which connects between the atmosphere side electrode and a ground, to induce a flow of a predetermined constant electric current between the electrodes through the solid electrolyte layer. A voltage circuit is installed in an electric path, which connects between the exhaust side electrode and a ground, to increase an electric potential of the exhaust side electrode by a predetermined amount relative to an electric potential at an output side of the constant current circuit, from which the electric current flows out of the constant current circuit.

A control device for controlling an oxygen concentration sensor includes: a voltage sweeping unit for applying a voltage to the sensor for a time interval during an impedance detection process; a pre-sweeping voltage memory for storing a terminal voltage of the sensor as an initial terminal voltage just before applying the voltage; an impedance detection unit for detecting an element impedance; a voltage returning unit for returning the terminal voltage to the initial terminal voltage after a predetermined time interval has elapsed; a monitoring unit for monitoring the terminal voltage after the voltage returning unit starts returning the terminal voltage; a determination unit for determining whether a monitored terminal voltage of the sensor reaches a stored terminal voltage in the memory; and a stop unit for stopping a returning operation of the voltage returning unit when the monitored terminal voltage reaches the stored terminal voltage.

Control device for oxygen concentration sensor

A first judgment circuit and a second judgment circuit are adapted to set a judging signal high when a judgment data sent from a microprocessor indicates failure. The high level judging signal triggers a forced idle command connected to a motor driver, to be high level whereby the motor is forcibly suspended. Subsequently, when a reset command is accidentally transmitted by the microprocessor due to an unexpected fault, a first judging signal from the first judgment circuit is reset to low level. However, a second judging signal from the second judgment circuit remains high level. As a result, the forced idle command stays high level.

Electronic control unit for controlling electrically driven loads in enhanced fail safe manner

An ECU includes a microcomputer that has an integrated flash memory. An initial writing flag is set in the microcomputer before an initial writing to the flash memory. The microcomputer enters into a writing mode when the flag determines permission of data writing. When the data-writing to the flash memory is completed, the flag is cleared.

Electronic control device

A heat dissipation structure includes a heat-producing electronic component on a substrate, a thermally conductive case, and grease. The electronic component and the substrate are housed in the case. The grease is provided between the case and the electronic component or the substrate for transmitting heat produced by the electronic component to the case. The case has contact surfaces that contact with the grease. The contact surfaces have free energy equal to or higher than 20 mN/m and roughness equal to or larger than 1.0 &#x3bc;m.

Heat dissipation structure

A backup RAM for storing pieces of diagnosis data regardless of the cut-off of an electric power is provided in a portion of a RAM. In cases where the detection of an unusual condition by a throttle sensor or a water temperature sensor is judged by a CPU in a current processing routine, a first checking value indicating that the backup RAM is in a renewing period is stored in a checking region of the backup RAM, and pieces of previous diagnosis data stored in a data access region of the backup RAM in a previous processing routine are copied to a temporary refuge region of the backup RAM. Thereafter, pieces of updated diagnosis data obtained in the current processing routine are stored one by one in the data access region in place of the previous diagnosis data, and a second checking value indicating that the backup RAM is in a renewal finishing period is stored in the checking region. In cases where the first checking data is stored in the checking region when the electric power cut off is again supplied, the previous diagnosis data stored in the temporary refuge region are returned to the data access region and are read out according to a request from a diagnosis checker.

Growing community of inventors

Toyoake, Japan

Takamasa Oguri