The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 25, 1994
Filed:
Mar. 15, 1993
Thomas S Gee, Canton, MI (US);
Thomas A Schubert, Novi, MI (US);
Paul F Smith, Dearborn Heights, MI (US);
Carl W Squire, Taylor, MI (US);
Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (US);
Abstract
Functionality of the exhaust gas oxygen sensor is determined by continually monitoring the exhaust gas oxygen sensor voltage to determine both a peak rich voltage and peak lean voltage. Based on the information after some predetermined time period, a system determines whether rich air/fuel ratio excursions are required and lean air/fuel ratio excursions are required. If a rich air/fuel excursion is required, then there is a command to decrease the air/fuel ratio to make it rich until the peak rich voltage is greater than a predetermined threshold voltage. Analogously, if a lean excursion is required, then there is a command to have a lean air/fuel ratio excursion done until the peak lean voltage is less than a predetermined threshold. If a time out happened before the peak rich voltage was greater than the rich threshold or the peak lean voltage was less than the lean threshold, then there is a determination that there is a malfunction detected on the sensor/circuit.