AUTOMATIC ENGINE OIL LIFE DETERMINATION WITH A FACTOR FOR OIL QUALITY

• US 20120044065A1
• Filed: 08/18/2010
• Published: 02/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations Incorporated (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Schneider, Eric W., Snider, Matthew J., Olree, Robert M., Johnson, Eric R.
• Granted Patent: US 8,710,973 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/457.4
• CPC Class Codes: F01M 11/12 concerning lubricant level
• CPC Class Codes: F01M 2011/142 by considering speed, e.g. revolutions per minute [RPM]
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 23/00 Indicating or measuring liquid level or level of fluent solid material, e.g. indicating in terms of volume or indicating by means of an alarm

Abstract

A method is provided for determining remaining oil life prior to an oil change in an internal combustion engine that uses a body of oil. The method includes transferring the body of oil to the engine and determining a volume of the transferred body of oil. The method also includes determining quality of the transferred body of oil and determining the remaining oil life based on the determined quality and volume of the body of oil. The method additionally includes activating an oil change indicator when the remaining oil life reaches a predetermined level. A system for determining a number of engine revolutions permitted on a volume of oil is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A method for determining remaining oil life prior to an oil change in an internal combustion engine that uses a body of oil, the method comprising:

transferring the body of oil to the engine;

determining a volume of the transferred body of oil;

determining a quality of the transferred body of oil;

determining the remaining oil life based on the determined quality and volume of the body of oil; and

activating an oil change indicator when the remaining oil life reaches a predetermined level.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising resetting the oil change indicator to represent 100% of oil life remaining following the oil change.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein at least one of said determining a volume of the transferred body of oil, said determining the remaining oil life, and said activating and said resetting the oil change indicator is accomplished via a controller operatively connected to the engine.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the engine includes an oil sump arranged to accept the transferred body of oil, and said determining a volume of the transferred body of oil includes determining a level of the transferred body of oil in the sump.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said determining the remaining oil life includes determining a number of revolutions for each combustion event of the engine, and further includes determining a number of combustion events permitted using the determined volume of oil.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said determining a quality of the transferred body of oil is accomplished via a sensor arranged on the engine.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said determining a quality of the transferred body of oil is accomplished via accessing a look-up table.

8. A system for determining remaining oil life permitted prior to an oil change in an internal combustion engine that uses a body of oil, the system comprising:

an oil sump arranged on the engine to accept the body of oil;

a first sensor arranged on the engine and configured to provide a signal indicative of a volume of the body of oil in the sump;

a device configured to provide a signal indicative of a quality of the body of oil; and

a controller operatively connected to the first sensor and to the device and programmed to determine the permitted remaining oil life based on the volume and the quality of the body of oil in the sump.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising an oil change indicator, wherein the controller is configured to activate the oil change indicator when the remaining oil life reaches a predetermined level.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the oil change indicator is reset to represent 100% of oil life remaining following the oil change.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the controller is programmed with a number of revolutions for each combustion event of the engine, and the controller additionally determines the remaining oil life based on the number of revolutions for each combustion event of the engine.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the signal indicative of a volume of the body of oil is indicative of a level of the body of oil in the sump, and the controller determines the volume based on the level.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the controller is programmed with a number of combustion events permitted per the volume of the body of oil in the sump, and the controller additionally determines the remaining oil life based on the number of combustion events.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the device is a second sensor configured to sense the quality of the body of oil.

15. The system of claim 8, wherein the controller is programmed with a look-up table including a type of oil corresponding to the quality of the body of oil, and the device is an interface port configured for communicating the type of oil to the controller.

16. A method for determining a number of engine revolutions permitted prior to an oil change in an internal combustion engine that uses a body of oil, the method comprising:

transferring the body of oil to the engine;

determining a volume of the transferred body of oil;

determining a quality of the transferred body of oil;

determining the number of engine revolutions based on the determined quality and volume of the body of oil; and

activating an oil change indicator when the number of engine revolutions reaches a predetermined level.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising resetting the oil change indicator to represent 100% of oil life remaining following the oil change.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein at least one of said determining a volume of the transferred body of oil, said determining a number of engine revolutions, and said activating and said resetting the oil change indicator is accomplished via a controller operatively connected to the engine.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the engine includes an oil sump arranged to accept the transferred body of oil, and said determining a volume of the transferred body of oil includes determining a level of the transferred body of oil in the sump.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein said determining a number of engine revolutions includes determining a number of revolutions for each combustion event of the engine, and further includes determining a number of combustion events permitted using the determined volume of oil.