Other

Ford Motor Company Limited

William P Richardson

Paul Daniel Borisuk

Debojit Barua

Lawrence W Evers

Marvin D Wells

Kyle Lee Edwards

Michael P Blanz

Yong Shu

Jeremy J Worm

Randall B Fischer

Richard T White

An engine control system for protecting a turbocharger of an internal combustion engine from an overspeed condition occurring as a result of a failure of the turbocharger wastegate device. In one embodiment of the invention, sensors provide signals for engine speed, ambient pressure and boost pressure between the turbocharger and the engine intake. Correction factors are added to the boost pressure and ambient pressure signals, and a turbocharger pressure ratio is calculated from these signals. A reduced fueling table maps turbocharger pressure ratio and engine speed to reduced fueling signal values. An engine control computer utilizes a nominal fueling table that maps engine speed and boost pressure to nominal fueling signal values. The control computer also includes a decision module that selects the lesser of the nominal fueling signal values and the reduced fueling signal values and provides the selected value to the engine fueling system. In the event of a wastegate failure, the turbocharger wheelspeed will increase, followed by an increase in boost pressure. However, not all boost pressure increases are detrimental to the turbocharger (i.e., lead to excessive speed), so the present invention evaluates the turbocharger pressure ratio to determine when an excessive speed condition exists. If such a condition exists, the engine control computer selects the lesser fueling signal value from the reduced fueling table to decrease fueling to the engine, and ultimately to decrease the engine speed and load. The decreased engine speed and load reduces the exhaust gas mass flow rate, which reduces the turbocharger rotational speed to an acceptable level.

System and method for protecting a turbocharger in the event of a

A method for improving the atomization quality from a fluid injector includes the steps of inducing a first vortex turbulence in the fluid flowing past a first protrusion in a supply orifice having a flow axis therein, guiding the fluid through a turbulence cavity and then out through a first metering orifice having another protrusion positioned downstream from the first protrusion by a distance y measured generally parallel to the flow axis and by a distance x measured generally perpendicular to the flow axis. The droplet size of the fluid exiting from the metering orifice is reduced by sizing the x and y dimensions to position the first vortex turbulence within the turbulence cavity operatively adjacent to and upstream from the first metering orifice. In a preferred embodiment, the ratio of x/y is greater than 0.5 and less than 5. A fuel injector nozzle practicing this process is also provided.

Method and structure for optimizing atomization quality of a low

Growing community of inventors

Columbus, IN, United States of America

William P Richardson