Remote starting system for a vehicle having a diesel engine

• US 5,617,819 A
• Filed: 02/29/1996
• Issued: 04/08/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: DEI Holdings Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Astroflex Incorporated (DEI Holdings Incorporated)
• Inventors: Santerre, Guy, Dery, Norman
• Primary Examiner(s): Dolinar, Andrew M.
• Application Number:
  US08/608,932
• Time in Patent Office: 404 Days
• Field of Search: 123/179.2, 123/179.3, 123/179.4, 290/37 A, 310/68 E, 310/68 B, 324/207.2, 324/179, 324/173, 324/167, 73/119 R
• US Class Current: 123/179.2
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0807 Remote means
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0848 with means for detecting successful engine start, e.g. to stop starter actuation
• CPC Class Codes: F02P 19/02 electric, e.g. layout of circuits of apparatus having glowing plugs
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 3/48 by measuring frequency of generated current or voltage in general G01R23/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 3/487 delivered by rotating magnets
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/343 in operation

Abstract

A system for remotely starting a diesel engine of a vehicle. The system comprises a portable hand-held RF transmitter issuing a command in the form of a binary-coded sequence. A slave controller mounted on-board the vehicle executes the command by energizing the starter motor in order to crank and start-up the diesel engine. The system includes a Hall-effect sensor responsive to the pulsating magnetic field of the diesel engine alternator for generating a signal indicative of the rotational speed of the engine. The slave controller uses this information for detecting when the engine has been successfully started in order to de-energize the starter motor.

Claims

1. A device for detecting the rotational speed of a rotary internal combustion engine driving an alternator having a rotor, comprising a Hall-effect sensor responsive to a pulsating magnetic field produced by the rotor for generating a signal having a period and being indicative of the rotational speed, and a dividing circuit coupled to said Hall-effect sensor for increasing said period.

2. A device as defined in claim 1, comprising an amplifier coupled to said Hall-effect sensor for increasing a magnitude of said signal.

3. A device as defined in claim 2, comprising a filter coupled to said Hall-effect sensor for conditioning said signal in a predetermined manner.

4. A device as defined in claim 3, wherein said filter is a pass-band filter.

5. A device as defined in claim 1, comprising a protective casing enclosing said Hall-effect sensor.

6. A device as defined in claim 5, wherein said protective casing includes a concave wall conforming to an outer surface of the casing of the alternator.

7. A device for use with a diesel engine driving an alternator, said device simulating a tachometer signal reflecting an electrical activity of an ignition system of a spark-induced combustion engine, said device including:

a Hall-effect sensor for mounting to the alternator outside a casing thereof, said Hall-effect sensor being responsive to a pulsating magnetic field produced by a rotor of the alternator for generating a pulse train signal indicative of the rotational speed of the rotor; and

processing means coupled to said Hall-effect sensor for reducing a rate of occurrence of pulses generated by said Hall-effect sensor, whereby individual pulses produced by said processing means simulate cylinder ignition events of the spark-induced combustion engine.

8. A device as defined in claim 7, wherein said processing means includes a dividing circuit for increasing a period of said pulse train signal.

9. A device as defined in claim 8, wherein said dividing circuit increases a period of said pulse train by a factor of about 4.

10. A system for remotely starting rotary engine of a vehicle having a starting motor and an alternator for generating a pulsating magnetic field, which comprises

(i) a portable hand-held transmitter for generating a predetermined RF command signal,

(ii) a controller for mounting in the vehicle, having

(a) a processing unit,

(b) a receiver for sensing said predetermined RF command signal, in response to the detection of said signal said processing unit actuating the starter motor to crank the engine, and

(c) a Hall-effect sensor for detecting the rotary speed of the engine to deactivate the starter motor when the engine has reached a predetermined speed of rotation,

said Hall-effect sensor generating a succession of pulses in response to the pulsating magnetic field of said alternator, said processing unit having means for measuring the lapse of time between successive pulses for deriving data indicative of the speed of rotation of the engine.

11. A system for remotely starting a diesel rather than a spark-ignited internal combustion engine of a vehicle, having an alternator with a rotor, and a starting motor, said system comprising:

a portable hand-held transmitter for generating a predetermined RF command signal;

a slave controller for mounting in the vehicle, and including;

(a) a receiver for sensing said predetermined RF command signal;

(b) a processing unit coupled to said receiver, in response to detection of said predetermined RF command signal, said processing unit actuating the starter motor to crank the engine, and including an input for receiving an engine speed indicating signal, said processing unit being capable of selectively assuming either one of a plurality of engine speed indicating signal processing modes associated with respective internal spark-ignited combustion engines having different number of cylinders;

(c) a device for detecting a rotational speed of the diesel engine, said device being responsive to a pulsating magnetic field produced by the rotor for generating a periodic signal in lieu of the rotational speed of a signal from the ignition circuit of a spark-ignited combustion engine, said device being connected to said input, whereby said periodic signal is accepted by said processing unit as if it were an ignition circuit-derived tachometer signal from a spark-ignited combustion engine, said processing unit in a selected one of said processing modes acting on said periodic signal to derive data correlated to a speed of rotation of the diesel engine, said processing unit being responsive to said data to deactivate the starter motor when the speed of the diesel engine exceeds a preset limit.

12. A system as defined in claim 11, wherein said device for detecting a rotational speed of the diesel engine includes a Hall-effect sensor.

13. A system as defined in claim 12 comprising an electric circuit in an electrical path between said Hall-effect sensor and said processing unit for reducing a rate of occurrence of pulses generated by said Hall-effect sensor in response to magnetic field pulsations produced by the rotor of the alternator of the diesel engine.

14. A system for remotely starting rotary engine of a vehicle having a starting motor and an alternator for generating a pulsating magnetic field, which comprises

(i) a portable hand-held transmitter for generating a predetermined RF command signal,

(ii) a controller for mounting in the vehicle, having

(a) a processing unit,

(b) a receiver for sensing said predetermined RF command signal, in response to the detection of said signal said processing unit actuating the starter motor to crank the engine, and

(c) a Hall-effect sensor for detecting the rotary speed of the engine to deactivate the starter motor when the engine has reached a predetermined speed of rotation,

said Hall-effect sensor generating a succession of pulses in response to the pulsating magnetic field of said alternator, said processing unit having means for deriving data indicative of the speed of rotation of the engine from the succession of pulses.

15. A system as defined in claim 14, further comprising an electric circuit in an electrical path between said Hall-effect sensor and said processing unit for reducing a rate of occurrence of pulses generated by said Hall-effect sensor.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein said means for deriving data comprises means for measuring the lapse of time between successive pulses.