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Controller and control method for an internal combustion engine using an engine-mounted accelerometer

  • US 6,273,064 B1
  • Filed: 01/13/2000
  • Issued: 08/14/2001
  • Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2000
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A control system for an internal combustion engine having a cylinder block with multiple cylinders, a piston in each cylinder and defining therewith an air/fuel combustion chamber, a crankshaft rotatably driven by the pistons, an air/fuel intake valve and a combustion gas exhaust valve for each combustion chamber;

  • a rotary camshaft connected to each valve whereby the valves are activated between open and closed states, the camshaft being connected to the crankshaft with a defined speed ratio;

    an accelerometer vibration sensor secured to the cylinder block whereby engine block vibrations created by combustion are sensed, the energy of the vibrations creating a vibration signal related functionally to combustion energy;

    a crankshaft position sensor for the crankshaft, the crankshaft position sensor supplying a crankshaft position signal;

    a camshaft position sensor for the camshaft whereby a given camshaft position corresponds to a defined intake and exhaust valve state for each cylinder;

    an electronic engine controller comprising a microprocessor in electrical communication with said sensors, said microprocessor having an integrator for integrating the vibration signal and a processing unit for computing the combustion energy level and identifying the combustion chamber corresponding to the vibration signal;

    said microprocessor having memory portions containing a known relationship between accelerometer vibration sensor signals and combustion energy when combustion is stable;

    said processor unit of the microprocessor calculating the combustion energy as a function of sensor data from the sensors and comparing it with memory data to detect combustion instability.

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