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:
Sep. 24, 2002
Filed:
Aug. 16, 2001
Applicant:
Inventors:
Daniel V. Orzel, Westland, MI (US);
Michele T. Reichenbach, Troy, MI (US);
Timothy Joseph Clark, Livonia, MI (US);
William Najib Mansur, Sterling Heights, MI (US);
Assignee:
Ford Global Technologies, Inc, Dearborn, MI (US);
Attorney:
Primary Examiner:
Assistant Examiner:
Int. Cl.
CPC ...
F01N 3/00 ;
U.S. Cl.
CPC ...
F01N 3/00 ;
Abstract
A method for determining deterioration of an exhaust gas sensor coupled downstream of an emission control device by monitoring the sensor's response to a change in an air-fuel ratio is presented. In particular, the sensor is monitored for a predetermined time period following a switch from lean to rich operation and a ratio of a maximum and minimum value is determined. The ratio is then compared to a threshold value to evaluate sensor performance. This method achieves improved emission control and fuel economy.