Ignition method with stop switch for internal-combustion engines

• US 20060191518A1
• Filed: 08/11/2005
• Published: 08/31/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Prufrex-Elektro-Apparatebau Inh. Helga Muller Geb. Dutschke
• Original Assignee: Prufrex-Elektro-Apparatebau Inh. Helga Muller Geb. Dutschke
• Inventors: Kiessling, Leo
• Granted Patent: US 7,156,075 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 123/599
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0803 characterised by means for initiating engine start or stop F02N11/0814 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/10 Safety devices F02N11/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F02P 1/086 for generating sparks by discharging a capacitor into a coil circuit
• CPC Class Codes: F02P 11/025 Shortening the ignition when the engine is stopped to prevent damage to the coil F02P3/0556
• CPC Class Codes: F02P 3/0807 Closing the discharge circuit of the storage capacitor with electronic switching means F02P3/0853, F02P3/0876, F02P3/09 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F02P 5/1502 using one central computing unit
• CPC Class Codes: F02P 9/002 Control of spark intensity, intensifying, lengthening, suppression by means of current control in the storage devices F02P3/05, F02P3/09, during starting F02P15/12
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 1/605 Cleaning of contact-making surfaces by relatively high voltage pulses

Abstract

For stopping an internal combustion engine, a stop switch prevents the triggering of the ignition. A controller in the ignition circuit determines the state of the stop switch by evaluating signals on the state of the internal combustion engine, corresponding information data is generated, and a corresponding stop flag is set and/or enabled. Depending on this information, the activation of the ignition switch, that controls ignition spark, is either blocked or enabled by the controller.

Claims

1. An improved ignition method for internal-combustion engines,

wherein an energy storage element (U3, C1) is charged using a magnet generator (P01, P) that induces an alternating charging voltage as a function of the rotational position of the internal-combustion engine,

wherein the energy storage element (U3, C1) is discharged by an ignition switch (U4, S1) activated synchronously with the alternating charging voltage for triggering the ignition (FU, ZK1),

wherein the ignition switch (S1,U4) is activated as a function of the state of the internal-combustion engine, for example, as a function of signals related to its rotational position or rpm, and a preferably programmable and/or microelectronic controller (U8, MC) is used to activate the ignition switch (S1,U4) and

wherein the triggering of the ignition (FU) is prevented or can be prevented by activating a stop switch element (STOP), especially a stop button,

characterized in that

in the controller (U8, MC), the state of the stop switch element (STOP) is determined by means of evaluating signals on the internal-combustion engine state, corresponding information data is generated, and depending on this information, the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4) is blocked or enabled.

2. An ignition method according to claim 1, characterized in that a corresponding stop flag is guided and/or set to the value OFF or ON as a function of the information data.

3. An ignition method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that prevention of ignition by means of the stop switch (STOP), especially the stop button, is performed by hardware devices, preferably independent of the controller (U8,MC).

4. An ignition method according to claim 1, 2, characterized in that an OFF value is assigned to the stop flag or another state variable when the activation of the stop switch element has been identified, and an ON value is assigned to the stop flag when a restart of the motor has been identified or when the motor runs down into the stationary state.

5. A magnetic ignition module for a low-power motor or some other internal-combustion engine driving a magnetic wheel (P,P01) or some other magnet generator, with one or more coils (L1-L4), in which voltages including a charging voltage (V_L1a,V_L1b) for an ignition energy storage element (C1,U3) can be induced by the magnet wheel (P,P01) or the magnet generator, with a controller (MC,U8) sampling the voltages (V_L1a,V_L1b), for activating an ignition switch (S1,U4) discharging the energy storage element (C1,U3) via an ignition transformer (L2,L3), and with a stop switch or stop button or stop switch element—

referred to collectively below as stop switch (STOP)—

which is embodied and arranged for preventing the ignition triggering or build-up,

characterized in that

the controller (MC,U8) is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming to identify the state of the stop switch (STOP) from the changing of signals in the ignition system of the magnetic ignition module and to block or enable the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4) as a function of this state.

6. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5, characterized in that, in the controller (MC,U8), there is a stop flag that can assume the values ON or OFF, and that the controller (MC,U8) is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming such that the stop flag is set and/or guided on the basis of an evaluation of signals on the engine state, with which the state of the stop switch is determined.

7. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the stop flag can be set to the value ON or the value OFF, wherein, in the ON state, the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4) can be enabled and in the OFF state, the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4) is disabled.

8. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the controller is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming such that the stop value first stores the value OFF or is set to this value when the activation of the stop switch (STOP) is determined for more than one motor rotation.

9. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that there are one or more signal lines for transmitting signals to the controller (MC,U8) on the rotational position and rpm of the rotating magnet wheel (P01) of the low-power motor and/or of the low-power motor itself, for transmitting coil voltage signals (V_L1a,V_L1b), which are derived from voltages induced in the coils (L1-L4) by the rotating magnet wheel (P01), and/or that in the controller (MC,U8) there is a detection of rpm and rotational direction.

10. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 9, characterized in that the controller (MC,U8) is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming such that in case of a strong reduction of the amplitude of the coil voltage signals, preferably a reduction by more than 50%, the stop flag is set from an ON value to an OFF value to block the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4).

11. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5, characterized in that the controller (MC,U8) is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming such that after identifying that the low-power motor has fallen below a minimum rpm (n_ON) and/or has fallen below a minimum angular velocity, the stop flag is set from an OFF value to an ON value to enable the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4).

12. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5, characterized in that the controller (MC,U8) is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming such that after identifying the run-down or restart of the low-power motor by the controller (MC,U8) the stop flag is set from an OFF value to an ON value.

13. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5, characterized in that the controller (MC,U8) is embodied in terms of circuitry and/or programming such that, when a limit for the decrease in rpm is not met or when an increase in rpm is identified by the controller, the stop flag is set from an OFF value to an ON value to enable the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4), wherein the value of the limit for the decrease in rpm or the increase in rpm is preferably a function of the rpm and/or is defined by means of a stored table.

14. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5, characterized in that the controller (MC,U8) is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming such that when an rpm reversal, especially oscillation stopping of the motor, is identified by the controller, the stop flag is set from an OFF value to an ON value to enable the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4).

15. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5, characterized in that the controller (MC,U8) is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming such that through the initialization of the controller, caused by a POWER ON RESET function of the controller, the stop flag is set from an OFF value to an ON value for enabling the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4).

16. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5, characterized in that the triggering of the STOP function is controlled by means of the stop switch (STOP), independent of the microcontroller or some other controller (MC,U8), in that the switch output is connected directly to power components and/or high-current components or elements (V_L1a;

U4;

U5) for suppressing the ignition sparking (FU).

17. A magnetic ignition module according to claim 5, characterized in that there is a memory in the controller (MC,U8), for storing the operating state or the value of the state variable or the stop flag (ON/OFF).

18. A magnetic ignition including a magnet generator (P,P01), which induces rpm-dependent alternating voltages and in this way charges an energy storage element (U3,C1), and with a programmable controller (U8,MC) sampling the alternating voltages to activate an ignition switch (U4) discharging the energy storage element (U3,C1) via the primary coil (L2) of an ignition transformer (U2), and with a stop switch element (STOP), for preventing the ignition triggering, characterized in that

in the controller (MC,U8) there is a functional module that is designed to identify and follow the state of the stop switch element (STOP) and which analyzes and updates state information, including one or more flags, on the stop switch element, and the controller (MC,U8) is designed in terms of circuitry and/or programming in order to block or enable the activation of the ignition switch (S1,U4) as a function of the state information.

19. A magnetic ignition according to claim 18, characterized in that the functional module is designed to calculate and/or derive the state information from signal changes in the magnetic ignition module.

20. (canceled)