Method of Operating a Vehicle Equipped With a Pneumatic Booster System
First Claim
1. A method of operating a vehicle equipped with a pneumatic booster system, said pneumatic booster system being configured to inject compressed air into an intake of an engine of the vehicle during a pneumatic boost event and configured to adjust at least two of compressed air injection rate, duration and timing of at least two air injection pulses within said pneumatic boost event, the method comprising the acts of:
- determining a position and a direction of movement of the vehicle;
determining from the position and direction of movement of the vehicle an anticipated upcoming vehicle route;
determining, based on the anticipated upcoming vehicle route, whether to initiate compressed air injection to facilitate the vehicle'"'"'s traverse of the anticipated upcoming vehicle route;
determining, based on the anticipated upcoming vehicle route, a compressed air injection pattern to alter a target engine torque output to correspond to a route terrain of the anticipated upcoming vehicle route as the vehicle traverses the route terrain;
initiating the pneumatic boost event to inject compressed air into the engine using the determined compressed air injection pattern;
monitoring at least one operating parameter of the vehicle;
determining whether the at least one operating parameter is within a predetermined range; and
adjusting at least one at least one of air injection rate, duration and timing of the compressed air injection pattern as the vehicle traverses the route terrain based the determination of whether the at least one operating parameter is within the predetermined range to maintain the at least one operating parameter within the predetermined range.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus and method for improving vehicle performance by application of pneumatic boost to vehicle engines, including diesel engines having at least one turbocharger supplying air to the engine, in a manner which increases engine torque output while minimizing the potential for exceed various operating limits to the maximum practicable extent. The vehicle'"'"'s pneumatic booster system controller implements strategies for shaping the rate of the air injection during a boost event, tailoring the air injection to obtain maximum engine torque output while respecting the operating limits, by controlling the timing, duration, quantity and/or injection pattern during a boost event to achieve a refined distribution of compressed air injection over the course of the boost event to provide desired engine torque output and fuel efficiency while minimizing the potential for exceeding a wide variety of operation limits, regulatory, engineering and passenger comfort limits.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. A method of operating a vehicle equipped with a pneumatic booster system, said pneumatic booster system being configured to inject compressed air into an intake of an engine of the vehicle during a pneumatic boost event and configured to adjust at least two of compressed air injection rate, duration and timing of at least two air injection pulses within said pneumatic boost event, the method comprising the acts of:
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determining a position and a direction of movement of the vehicle; determining from the position and direction of movement of the vehicle an anticipated upcoming vehicle route; determining, based on the anticipated upcoming vehicle route, whether to initiate compressed air injection to facilitate the vehicle'"'"'s traverse of the anticipated upcoming vehicle route; determining, based on the anticipated upcoming vehicle route, a compressed air injection pattern to alter a target engine torque output to correspond to a route terrain of the anticipated upcoming vehicle route as the vehicle traverses the route terrain; initiating the pneumatic boost event to inject compressed air into the engine using the determined compressed air injection pattern; monitoring at least one operating parameter of the vehicle; determining whether the at least one operating parameter is within a predetermined range; and adjusting at least one at least one of air injection rate, duration and timing of the compressed air injection pattern as the vehicle traverses the route terrain based the determination of whether the at least one operating parameter is within the predetermined range to maintain the at least one operating parameter within the predetermined range. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A system for increasing vehicle performance using pneumatic boosting, comprising:
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an engine having an intake, an exhaust and an exhaust gas recirculation passage for recirculation of a portion of exhaust gases from the engine from the exhaust to the intake; an air control device located in the intake, the air control device including; an intake block-off element located in an intake passage of the air control device, the intake block-off element being arranged to move at least between open and closed positions to selectively block or allow air flow through the air control device toward the engine, at least one compressed air injection passage open to the intake on an engine side of the intake block-off element, the compressed air passage having at least one compressed air flow control valve arranged to modulate compressed air flow provided to the air control device into the intake, and a passage open to the intake on the engine side of the intake block-off element through which exhaust gases passing through the exhaust gas recirculation passage are introduced into the intake; a compressed air source arranged to provide compressed air flow to the air control device; a pneumatic booster injection controller; and a vehicle position and direction determination system, wherein the pneumatic booster controller is programmed to control a pneumatic boost event based on at least one monitored operating parameter of the vehicle by coordinating the operation of the at least one compressed air flow control valve and the intake block-off element to supply compressed air to the engine via the intake, the pneumatic booster controller is programmed to control the at least one compressed air flow control valve to provide the compressed air injection by adjusting at least two of compressed air injection rate, duration and timing of at least two air injection pulses during said pneumatic boost event, the pneumatic booster controller is programmed to initiate the compressed air injection based on a determination of a position and a direction of movement of the vehicle based on information from the vehicle position and direction determination system, a determination of an anticipated upcoming vehicle route from the position and direction of movement of the vehicle, a determination, based on the anticipated upcoming vehicle route, whether to initiate compressed air injection to facilitate the vehicle'"'"'s traverse of the anticipated upcoming vehicle route, wherein the compressed air injection is based on a compressed air injection pattern defined to alter a target engine torque output to correspond to route terrain of the anticipated upcoming vehicle route as the vehicle traverses the route terrain, and the pneumatic booster controller is programmed to adjust the compressed air injection pattern based on at least one monitored operating parameter of the vehicle to maintain the at least one operating parameter within the predetermined range. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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Specification