Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Vincent A White

Wenbo Wang

Kenneth Paul Dudek

Michael J Lucido

David N Belton

Ian J Mac Ewen

Igor Anilovich

John F Van Gilder

Lan Wang

Brian L Spohn

Daniel P Grenn

Zhong Wang

Jon C Miller

Louis A Avallone

Hossein Javaherian

Timothy E McCarthy

Jun Lu

Miles K Maxey

Ronald Joseph Kubani

Douglas J Moening

Richard H Clutz

Michael S Emmorey

Jonathan J Stec

Yong Xu

Randy L Dufresne

Paul E Treumuth

Randal L DuFresne

A control module for an engine of a vehicle includes a mode determination module that determines whether the vehicle is in a fuel-saving mode based on an acceleration of the vehicle. A diurnal control valve (DCV) control module selectively closes a DCV a predetermined time after at least one of determining that the vehicle is in the fuel-saving mode and determining that the engine is stopped.

Plug-in hybrid EVAP valve management to reduce valve cycling

An engine control system comprises a model pressure determination module and a sensor diagnostic module. The model pressure determination module determines a modeled fuel rail pressure based on a fuel pump flow rate and an engine fuel flow rate. The sensor diagnostic module generates a status of a fuel rail pressure sensor based on a comparison of the modeled fuel rail pressure and a sensed fuel rail pressure sensed by the fuel rail pressure sensor.

Fuel pressure sensor performance diagnostic systems and methods based on hydrostatics in a fuel system

An engine control system comprises a model pressure determination module and a sensor diagnostic module. The model pressure determination module determines a modeled fuel rail pressure based on an injection duration of a fuel injector and a desired fuel mass injected by the fuel injector. The sensor diagnostic module generates a status of a fuel rail pressure sensor based on a comparison of the modeled fuel rail pressure and a sensed fuel rail pressure.

Fuel pressure sensor performance diagnostic systems and methods based on hydrodynamics of injecton

An oxygen sensor circuit comprises an oxygen sensor, a bias voltage module, and a switch module. The bias voltage module communicates with the oxygen sensor and generates a bias voltage. The switch module selectively connects the bias voltage module to the oxygen sensor.

Closed loop control with bias voltage toggle

A diagnostic system for an engine includes an oxygen detection module, a timing module and a control module. The oxygen detection module receives an oxygen signal from an oxygen sensor that detects an oxygen level in an exhaust system of the engine. The oxygen signal has N rich states and M lean states, where N and M are integers greater than or equal to 1. The timing module determines a rich period that the oxygen signal is in at least one of the N rich states and determines a lean period that the oxygen signal is in at least one of the M lean states. The control module detects an asymmetrical error with the oxygen sensor based on a comparison between the rich period and the lean period.

Asymmetrical oxygen sensor diagnostic and degradation compensation systems

A method for detecting emissions from an internal combustion engine generally including determining a reference air/fuel mixture signal based on an engine speed and an airflow into the engine. The method includes determining an actual air/fuel mixture signal from an air/fuel mixture sensor and comparing the reference air/fuel mixture signal to the actual air/fuel mixture signal. The method also includes determining whether an air/fuel imbalance condition occurs based on the comparison and setting a service indicator based on the determination of whether the air/fuel imbalance condition occurred.

Air/fuel imbalance detection system and method

A method of controlling fuel input to an engine of a vehicle. A feedback signal is received from a sensor that senses engine exhaust. A dither signal having the same frequency as the feedback signal is applied to a fuel control signal controlling fuel to the engine. A proportional/integral correction is applied to the fuel control signal based on the frequency.

Apparatus and methods for closed loop fuel control

A method of controlling engine operation in a vehicle in response to a misfire of one of a plurality of engine cylinders fueled through fuel injectors. The vehicle includes a fuel vapor storage canister. The method includes disabling at least one of the fuel injectors, using an open loop to control fuel delivery by the injectors to the cylinders, and disabling purging of the canister. The disabling and using steps are performed while the misfire continues.

Apparatus and methods for protecting a catalytic converter from misfire

A method of generating a metric data set for determining a performance of a catalytic converter includes sampling data from a post catalytic converter oxygen sensor to provide a raw data set and generating a revised data set based on the raw data set. Data within the revised data set is eliminated based on characteristics of data points of the revised data set and the revised data set is filtered to provide the metric data set.

Method for diagnosing catalytic converter performance

An engine catalytic converter misfire protection method and apparatus which controls engine parameters in response to the detection of potentially damaging cylinder misfire. A misfire counter responsive to engine cylinder misfires, counts misfires over a predetermined time period, with the positive changes in the counter output integrated and then compared with a threshold count to determine if the count corresponds to a damaging misfire condition. The apparatus and method simultaneously samples a short term fuel correction signal and compares the short term fuel correction signal with a second threshold. When both thresholds are exceeded substantially at the same time, the apparatus and method shut off fuel to the misfiring cylinder and shuts off the short and long term fuel control. Verification that the proper cylinder has the fuel shut off is made by repeating the control sequence to determine if the fuel has been shut off to the same cylinders.

Engine converter misfire protection method and apparatus

A method for determining the mechanical installation parameters of an oxygen sensor so that it will operate within a predetermined temperature range under all operating conditions of the vehicle by setting the desired exposed area of the sensor element tip (S), taking into account: the recommended maximum operational temperature of the oxygen sensor (T,); the hottest expected temperature of the exhaust gas (T,); the effective heat transfer rate from the exhaust gas to the sensor element tip, and ultimately to the surroundings, ie., the exhaust pipe sidewall which is in contact with the surrounding ambient air (Q/t); the thermal conductivity of the oxygen sensor (k); and an effective thickness, which depends on where the temperature is measured in the oxygen sensor (x), according to a relation: S&equals;(Q*x)/((T,&minus;T,)(t*c*k)). The exposed surface area is then mechanically set, which may include use of a collar concentrically placed around the sensor element tip.

Mechanical method for changing oxygen sensor characteristics

Internal combustion engine air/fuel ratio regulation in which closed-loop air/fuel ratio control responsive to a pre-converter oxygen sensor feedback signal is further regulated in accord with a feedback signal from a post-converter oxygen sensor signal operative under certain engine operating conditions to provide an average actual engine air/fuel ratio signal. A pre-converter oxygen sensor rich/lean threshold is adjusted in accord with the post-converter signal to drive or maintain such post-converter signal within a preferred range corresponding to an average engine air/fuel ratio of stoichiometry.

Internal combustion engine air/fuel ratio regulation

A method for controlling a vehicle engine includes predicting an engine parameter with a controller that determines measures of various engine parameters, determines a prediction set including at least one predicted value of a measurable engine parameter, determines an estimation set including at least one estimated value of the engine parameter and controls the engine in response to the estimated engine parameter.

Motor vehicle engine control method

A method for accurately determining the measure of mass airflow into an internal combustion engine is implemented with a controller that determines measures of various engine parameters, determines a prediction set including at least one predicted value of a measurable engine parameter and at least one predicted value of mass airflow into the engine, determines an estimation set including at least one estimated value of mass airflow into the engine and controls the engine in response to the estimated value of mass airflow.

Software air-flow meter for an internal combustion engine

A method for accurately determining the measure of mass airflow into an internal combustion engine determines measures of various engine parameters and implements the mathematical modeling technique of prediction and estimation.

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Northville, MI, United States of America

Vincent A White