Method for operating an internal combustion engine and internal combustion engine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9797364-B2
Application number	US-201414777099-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 15, 2014
Priority date	Mar 19, 2013
Publication date	Oct 24, 2017
Grant date	Oct 24, 2017

Abstract

A method for operating a combustion engine is disclosed. In an embodiment, the method includes: generating several sparks to ignite a fuel-air mixture in a combustion chamber by an ignition device of the combustion engine, determining a combustion duration of at least one of the sparks, detecting a deviation of an actual operation from a target operation of the combustion engine at least depending on the combustion duration, compensating for the deviation by implementing at least one measure which influences a combustion of the fuel-air mixture in the combustion chamber, determining the combustion duration of the chronological first of the sparks, allocating the first spark to a first spark type or to a second spark type depending on the combustion duration, and implementing the at least one measure if at least one value which characterizes a frequency of one of the spark types exceeds a threshold value.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for operating a combustion engine, comprising the steps of:
generating a plurality of sparks to ignite a fuel-air mixture in a combustion chamber by an ignition device of the combustion engine;
determining a combustion duration of at least one of the plurality of sparks by a calculating device;
determining the combustion duration of a chronological first spark of the plurality of sparks by the calculating device;
allocating the first spark to a first spark type or to a second spark type depending on the combustion duration of the first spark by the calculating device; and
adjusting operation of the combustion engine by an engine control unit if a value which characterizes a frequency of one of the spark types exceeds a threshold value.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the calculating device is in the ignition device.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein a signal which characterizes the determined combustion duration and/or a signal which characterizes the frequency is provided by the ignition device and is transmitted to a calculating device of the combustion engine which is different from the ignition device.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the threshold value is adjusted variably.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the combustion duration of the first spark is determined by a chronological course of a secondary current of the ignition device.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the combustion duration of the first spark is determined by a chronological course of a primary current of the ignition device.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein as the measure, a quantity of a fuel of the fuel-air mixture introduced into the combustion chamber is changed.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein as the adjusting, an injection time and/or ignition time is changed.

9. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the injection time is changed relative to the ignition time.

10. A combustion engine, comprising:
a combustion chamber having an ignition device to generate a plurality of sparks to ignite a fuel-air mixture in the combustion chamber and having a calculating device, wherein the calculating device is configured to:
determine a combustion duration of at least one of the plurality of sparks;
determine the combustion duration of a chronological first spark of the plurality of sparks; and
allocate the first spark to a first spark type or to a second spark type depending on the combustion duration of the first spark; and

an engine control unit, wherein the engine control unit adjusts operation of the combustion engine if a value which characterizes a frequency of one of the spark types exceeds a threshold value.

11. A method for operating a combustion engine, comprising the steps of:
generating a plurality of sparks to ignite a fuel-air mixture in a combustion chamber by an ignition device of the combustion engine;
determining a combustion duration of a chronological first spark of the plurality of sparks by a calculating device;
allocating the first spark to a first spark type or to a second spark type depending on the combustion duration of the first spark by the calculating device; and
adjusting operation of the combustion engine by an engine control unit if a value which characterizes a frequency of one of the spark types exceeds a threshold value.

12. The method according to claim 11 , wherein the calculating device is in the ignition device.

Assignees

• Daimler Ag

Inventors

• Bertsch Dietmar
• Ott Harald
• Schaupp Uwe

Classifications

• F02D35/021

  using an ionic current sensor · CPC title

• F02D2200/1015

  Engines misfires · CPC title

• F02D41/3023

  a mode being the stratified charge spark-ignited mode · CPC title

• F02P5/00

  Advancing or retarding ignition; Control therefor · CPC title

• F02D41/401

  Controlling injection timing (F02D41/402 takes precedence) · CPC title