Patent Publication Number: US-6904890-B2

Title: Start-up control of in-cylinder fuel injection spark ignition internal combustion engine

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   This invention relates to fuel injection control during start-up of a spark ignition internal combustion engine which injects fuel directly into a combustion chamber of a cylinder. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   JP2002-089401A, published by the Japan Patent Office in 2002, discloses a common rail fuel supply device in which fuel that has been pressurized by an electric low pressure pump is increased in pressure by a high pressure fuel pump driven by an internal combustion engine, and accumulated in an accumulator, whereupon the fuel is distributed from the accumulator to a fuel injector in each of a plurality of cylinders. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   To suppress the discharge of unburned fuel, or in other words hydrocarbon (HC), during a cold start in an in-cylinder fuel injection spark ignition engine, compression stroke fuel injection is preferably performed early such that stratified combustion can be performed at an air-fuel ratio in the vicinity of the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio. When stratified combustion is performed, uneven air-fuel mixture is burned, producing so-called after-burning. After-burning accelerates the combustion of unburned fuel, or HC, and as a result, the amount of HC discharge decreases. 
   In the compression stroke, the pressure in the combustion chamber increases greatly. To perform compression stroke fuel injection, the fuel injector has to inject fuel against the increased combustion chamber pressure. 
   When applied to compression stroke fuel injection in an in-cylinder fuel injection spark ignition engine, the prior art prohibits injection until the fuel pressure in the accumulator rises to a predetermined pressure at which compression stroke fuel injection is possible. The high pressure fuel pump according to the prior art is a variable displacement single cylinder plunger pump in which a plunger driving cam is rotated at half the engine rotation speed. The discharge amount from the high pressure fuel pump is determined by the stroke amount of the plunger per revolution of the plunger driving cam and the cranking rotation speed. Hence the speed at which the fuel pressure in the accumulator rises during engine start-up is dependent on the discharge amount from the high pressure fuel pump during engine start-up. At a low cranking rotation speed, the discharge amount from the high pressure fuel pump is small, and hence a large period of time is required for compression stroke fuel injection to become possible. Intake stroke injection must be performed until compression stroke fuel injection becomes possible, and during this time increases in the amount of HC discharge are inevitable. 
   It is therefore an object of this invention to expedite the start timing of compression stroke fuel injection during start-up of an in-cylinder fuel injection spark ignition engine while using the high pressure fuel pump according to the prior art. 
   In order to achieve the above object, this invention provides a start-up fuel injection control device for an in-cylinder fuel injection internal combustion engine which operates on a four-stroke cycle constituted by an intake stroke, a compression stroke, an expansion stroke, and an exhaust stroke and comprises a fuel injector which injects fuel directly into a combustion chamber. The control device controls a fuel injection timing in accordance with a rotation speed of the engine, and a fuel pressure at which fuel is supplied to the fuel injector. 
   The control device comprises a programmable controller programmed to set a target fuel injection amount during start-up which corresponds to an air-fuel ratio in the vicinity of a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio, determine whether or not a compression stroke fuel injection condition has been established on the basis of the target fuel injection amount during start-up, the engine rotation speed, and the fuel pressure, and control the fuel injector to inject fuel during the compression stroke only when the compression stroke fuel injection condition has been established. 
   This invention also provides a start-up fuel injection control method for the in-cylinder fuel injection internal combustion engine described above. 
   The control method controls a fuel injection timing in accordance with a rotation speed of the engine, and a fuel pressure at which fuel is supplied to the fuel injector by setting a target fuel injection amount during start-up which corresponds to an air-fuel ratio in the vicinity of a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio, determining whether or not a compression stroke fuel injection condition has been established on the basis of the target fuel injection amount during start-up, the engine rotation speed, and the fuel pressure, and controlling the fuel injector to inject fuel during the compression stroke only when the compression stroke fuel injection condition has been established. 
   The details as well as other features and advantages of this invention are set forth in the remainder of the specification and are shown in the accompanying drawings. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a start-up fuel injection control device for an in-cylinder fuel injection spark ignition engine according to this invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a flowchart illustrating a routine for setting a compression stroke fuel injection flag, which is executed by a controller according to this invention. 
       FIG. 3  is a diagram illustrating the characteristic of a map for determining compression stroke fuel injection, which is stored by the controller. 
       FIG. 4  is a flowchart illustrating a fuel injection control routine executed by the controller. 
       FIG. 5  is a diagram illustrating the characteristic of a map of a start-up basic injection pulse width TST, which is stored by the controller. 
       FIG. 6  is a diagram illustrating the characteristic of a fuel pressure correction coefficient MLKINJ stored by the controller. 
       FIG. 7  is a diagram illustrating the characteristic of a rotation speed correction coefficient KNST stored by the controller. 
       FIG. 8  is a diagram illustrating the characteristic of a time correction coefficient KTST stored by the controller. 
   

   DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   Referring to  FIG. 1  of the drawings, an in -cylinder fuel injection spark ignition internal combustion engine  1  for use in a vehicle is constituted by a four-stroke cycle, water-cooled, four-cylinder gasoline engine in which an intake stroke, a compression stroke, an expansion stroke, and an exhaust stroke are repeated in succession. 
   The internal combustion engine  1  comprises four combustion chambers  7 . Air is aspirated into each combustion chamber  7  from an intake manifold  6 . The intake manifold  6  is connected to an intake passage  4  via a collector  5 . The intake passage  4  comprises an electronic throttle  3  which regulates the amount of intake air. The internal combustion engine  1  comprises a fuel injector  8  and a spark plug  9  which face the combustion chamber  7 . High-pressure fuel is supplied to the fuel injector  8  from a high pressure fuel pump  15  through a common rail  16 . The common rail  16  functions as an accumulator for storing the high-pressure fuel discharged by the high pressure fuel pump  15  temporarily while maintaining the pressure thereof. Fuel that is subject to pressurization by the high pressure fuel pump  15  is supplied from a fuel tank through a low pressure pump. The high pressure fuel pump  15  is constituted by a single cylinder plunger pump which is driven by the internal combustion engine  1 . 
   Fuel injected into the combustion chamber  7  by the fuel injector  8  mixes with air aspirated from the intake manifold  6  to form an air-fuel mixture which is burned when the spark plug  9  ignites. Combustion gas is discharged into the atmosphere from an exhaust manifold  10  via a catalytic converter  11 . The catalytic converter is constituted by a three-way catalyst and a nitrogen oxide (NOx) trapping catalyst. 
   It should be noted that an intake valve is provided between the combustion chamber  7  and the intake manifold  6 , and an exhaust valve is provided between the combustion chamber  7  and the exhaust manifold  10 , but since the functions and operations of these valves bear no relation to this invention, they have been omitted from FIG.  1 . 
   A tumble control valve  17  is provided on the intake manifold  6 . When the tumble control valve  17  is closed, tumble, or vertical swirl, is generated by the intake air in the combustion chamber  7 . As a result of the interaction between the tumble and a cavity formed at the crown of the piston, the fuel injected by the fuel injector  8  in the compression stroke mixes with the intake air, thus producing an air-fuel mixture with a high fuel concentration about the spark plug  9  and an air-fuel mixture with a low fuel concentration on the outside thereof. The generation of a stratified air-fuel mixture using this method is known as an air guide system. When the spark plug  9  ignites the stratified air-fuel mixture, so-called stratified combustion is performed. 
   On the other hand, when intake stroke fuel injection is performed with the tumble control valve  17  open, the injected fuel diffuses through the combustion chamber  7  uniformly. When the spark plug  9  ignites the air-fuel mixture in this condition, so-called homogeneous combustion is performed. 
   The fuel injector  8  injects fuel for a period corresponding to the length of the pulse of an injection pulse signal at a timing which corresponds to the output of this signal from an engine controller  21 . The fuel injection amount of the fuel injector  8  is commensurate with the injection period of the fuel injector  8  and the fuel pressure in the common rail  16 . The discharge amount from the high pressure fuel pump  15  is controlled by a signal that is output from the engine controller  21 . 
   The fuel pressure that is required in the common rail  16  varies according to the engine load and engine rotation speed of the internal combustion engine  1 . When the engine load is constant, a higher fuel pressure is required as the engine rotation speed increases. When the engine rotation speed is constant, a higher fuel pressure is required as the engine load increases. The required fuel pressure varies within a wide range having a minimum value of approximately 0.5 megapascals (MPa) and a maximum value of approximately 11 MPa. 
   If the required fuel pressure is assumed to be a constant value, then variation in the required fuel injection amount must be accommodated by the injection period of the fuel injector  8  alone. In this case, requirements regarding the specifications of the fuel injector  8  become strict. However, the required fuel injection amount can be satisfied by varying the fuel pressure in accordance with the engine load and engine rotation speed without greatly varying the injection period of the fuel injector  8 . 
   The high pressure fuel pump  15  comprises in its interior a return passage which recirculates discharged fuel into the fuel tank, and an electromagnetic control valve which regulates the flow rate of the return passage in accordance with a duty signal. 
   Next, a start-up fuel injection control device of the in-cylinder fuel injection spark ignition internal combustion engine  1  will be described. Start-up of the internal combustion engine  1  is performed similarly to a normal vehicle engine by cranking using a starter motor. 
   The start-up fuel injection control device comprises the engine controller  21  which controls the fuel injection timing and injection amount of the fuel injector  8 , the fuel pressure of the common rail  16  and the opening/closing of the tumble control valve  17  during start-up of the internal combustion engine  1 . As shown in the drawings, the engine controller  21  not only controls fuel injection during start-up, but also controls general operations of the internal combustion engine  1 , including the ignition timing of the spark plug  9  and the opening of the electronic throttle  3 . Here, however, description will be limited to control performed during start-up. 
   The engine controller  21  is constituted by a microcomputer comprising a central processing unit (CPU), read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), and an input/output interface (I/O interface). The engine controller  21  may be constituted by a plurality of microcomputers. 
   As parameters for performing fuel injection control during start-up, detection data from a fuel pressure sensor  22  which detects a fuel pressure Pf in the common rail  16 , a position sensor  23  which outputs a POS signal each time the internal combustion engine  1  rotates by a fixed angle, a phase sensor  24  which outputs a PHASE signal corresponding to the specific stroke position of each combustion chamber  7  of the internal combustion engine  1 , an air flow meter  25  which detects the amount of intake air in the intake passage  4 , and a water temperature sensor  26  which detects a cooling water temperature Tw in the internal combustion engine  1  are input respectively into the engine controller  21  as signals. The PHASE signal output by the phase sensor  24  is also used as a signal indicating the engine rotation speed Ne. 
   On the basis of these signals, the engine controller  21  calculates the width of a start-up fuel injection pulse based on a target air-fuel ratio that is close to the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio during start-up of the internal combustion engine  1 . With the tumble control valve  17  closed, the engine controller  21  outputs a signal corresponding to the start-up fuel injection pulse width to the fuel injector  8  during the compression stroke of each combustion chamber  7 , and thus implements compression stroke fuel injection. The timing of compression stroke fuel injection is determined by the engine controller  21  from the PHASE signal that is output by the phase sensor  24  and the POS signal that is output by the position sensor  23 . 
   The engine controller  21  also increases and decreases the flow rate of the return passage by outputting a duty signal to the electromagnetic control valve of the high pressure fuel pump  15  on the basis of the detected pressure of the fuel pressure sensor  22 , and in so doing feedback-controls the fuel pressure in the common rail  16  to a target pressure. 
   Prior to the execution of compression stroke fuel injection, the engine controller  21  determines whether or not conditions for compression stroke fuel injection have been established on the basis of a predetermined set value of the start-up fuel injection pulse width, the engine rotation speed during cranking, and the fuel pressure in the common rail  16 . 
   Compression stroke fuel injection is executed only after the engine controller  21  determines that the conditions for compression stroke fuel injection have been established. Until the conditions for compression stroke fuel injection are established, the engine controller  21  executes intake stroke fuel injection. 
   Referring to  FIG. 2 , a routine for setting a compression stroke fuel injection flag, which is executed by the engine controller  21  in order to perform this determination, will be described. This routine is executed at intervals of ten milliseconds during the time period from the switching on of a key switch provided in the vehicle to the completion of start-up of the internal combustion engine  1 . The completion of start-up of the internal combustion engine  1  is determined when the engine rotation speed Ne exceeds a predetermined complete combustion determining speed. 
   In a step S 1 , the engine controller  21  reads the engine rotation speed Ne, the fuel pressure Pf in the common rail  16 , and the cooling water temperature Tw to calculate the start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST. The start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST corresponds to the target fuel injection amount in the claims. 
   The start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST is a value obtained according to the following equation (1). TIST is calculated in units of milliseconds (ms).
 
 TIST=TST·MKINJ·KNST·KTST   (1)
 
   where, TST=start-up basic fuel injection pulse width (ms),
         MKINJ=fuel pressure correction coefficient,   KNST=engine rotation speed correction coefficient, and   KTST=time correction coefficient.       

   The start-up basic fuel injection pulse width TST is determined by the engine controller  21  from the cooling water temperature Tw by referring to a map having the characteristic shown in  FIG. 5 , which is stored in the ROM in advance. The start-up basic fuel injection pulse width TST is a fuel injection pulse width at which an air-fuel ratio in the vicinity of the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio is obtained in relation to a reference cranking rotation speed and a reference cranking time. According to the map, the start-up basic fuel injection pulse width TST increases as the cooling water temperature Tw decreases. 
   The fuel pressure correction coefficient MKINJ is determined by the engine controller  21  from the fuel pressure Pf by referring to a map having the characteristic shown in  FIG. 6 , which is stored in the ROM in advance. The fuel pressure correction coefficient MKINJ is a correction coefficient corresponding to the difference between the fuel pressure Pf and a reference fuel pressure Pf 0  shown in the diagram. According to the map, when the fuel pressure Pf is equal to the reference fuel pressure Pf 0 , the fuel pressure correction coefficient MKINJ is one, and as the fuel pressure Pf exceeds the reference fuel pressure Pf 0 , the fuel pressure correction coefficient MKINJ decreases. 
   The engine rotation speed correction coefficient KNST is determined by the engine controller  21  from the engine rotation speed Ne by referring to a map having the characteristic shown in  FIG. 7 , which is stored in the ROM in advance. The engine rotation speed correction coefficient KNST is a correction coefficient corresponding to the difference between the engine rotation speed Ne and the reference cranking rotation speed. According to the map, when the engine rotation speed Ne is equal to or less than a reference cranking rotation speed Ne 0  shown in the diagram, the engine rotation speed correction coefficient KNST is one, and as the engine rotation speed Ne exceeds the reference cranking rotation speed Ne 0 , the engine rotation speed correction coefficient KNST decreases. 
   The time correction coefficient KTST is determined by the engine controller  21  from the cranking time by referring to a map having the characteristic shown in  FIG. 8 , which is stored in the ROM in advance. The time correction coefficient KTST is a correction coefficient corresponding to the difference between the cranking time, or in other words the elapsed time from the beginning of cranking, and a reference cranking time. According to the map, when the cranking time is equal to or less than the reference cranking time, the time correction coefficient KTST is one, and as the cranking time exceeds the reference cranking time, the time correction coefficient KTST decreases. The cranking time is measured by a timer function of the engine controller  21 . 
   Next, in a step S 2 , the engine controller  21  determines whether or not the conditions for permitting compression stroke fuel injection have been established from the engine rotation speed Ne, the fuel pressure Pf in the common rail  16 , and the start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST by referring to a map having the characteristic shown in  FIG. 3 , which is stored in the ROM in advance. 
   Referring to the map in  FIG. 3 , the required fuel pressure in the common rail  16  is defined according to the engine rotation speed Ne and the start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST. For example, it is assumed that the detected fuel pressure Pf is 1 MPa. If, at this time, a point determined from the engine rotation speed Ne and the start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST is positioned on the underside of the 1 MPa fuel pressure line, as shown by the X mark in the diagram, then the required compression stroke fuel injection can be performed at a lower fuel pressure than 1 MPa. 
   In this case, the engine controller  21  determines that the conditions for permitting compression stroke fuel injection have been established. 
   If, on the other hand, the point determined from the engine rotation speed Ne and start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST is positioned on the upper side of the 1 MPa fuel pressure line, this indicates that the required compression stroke fuel injection cannot be performed at a fuel pressure of 1MPa. In this case, the engine controller  21  determines that the conditions permitting compression stroke fuel injection have not been established. 
   Here, for ease of explanation, only a few fuel pressure lines are illustrated, but in a real map, the fuel pressure lines would be set in more detail, thus enabling a greater degree of determination precision. 
   When the engine controller  21  determines that the conditions permitting compression stroke fuel injection have been established, the compression stroke fuel injection flag is set to unity in a step S 3 . 
   When the engine controller  21  determines that the conditions permitting compression stroke fuel injection have not been established, the compression stroke fuel injection flag is set to zero in a step S 4 . 
   Following the processing of the step S 3  or the step S 4 , the engine controller  21  ends the routine. 
   Next, referring to  FIG. 4 , a fuel injection control routine executed during start-up of the internal combustion engine  1  by the engine controller  21  will be described. This routine is executed at intervals of ten milliseconds from the beginning of cranking to the completion of start-up of the internal combustion engine  1 . The beginning of cranking is determined when the engine rotation speed Ne changes from zero to a value other than zero. 
   First, in a step S 11 , the engine controller  21  determines whether or not the compression stroke fuel injection flag is at unity. 
   When the compression stroke fuel injection flag is at zero, the engine controller  21  selects intake stroke fuel injection in a step S 12 . Simultaneously, the tumble control valve  17  is closed such that stratified combustion is performed in the combustion chamber  7 . 
   When the compression stroke fuel injection flag is at unity, the engine controller  21  selects compression stroke fuel injection in a step S 13 . Simultaneously, the tumble control valve  17  is opened such that homogeneous combustion is performed in the combustion chamber  7 . 
   In either case, the start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST calculated in the routine in  FIG. 2  is applied as the fuel injection amount. It should be noted that since the fuel injection timing and the routine execution timing differ, fuel injection is not actually performed in the steps S 12  and S 13 . The timing of the fuel injection selected in the steps S 12  and S 13  is applied to fuel injection directly after execution of the routine. 
   Stratified combustion is performed in the internal combustion engine  1  at times other than during start-up, for example during a normal operation. Accordingly, the fuel pressure Pf in the common rail  16  must be raised to 5 MPa-7 MPa, as shown in  FIG. 3 , to enable compression stroke fuel injection in all of the stratified combustion regions. 
   When limited to start-up, however, the fuel pressure Pf required for compression stroke fuel injection is no more than approximately 2 MPa. Moreover, according to this invention, the compression stroke fuel injection flag is set by comparing the required fuel pressure to the fuel pressure Pf detected by the fuel pressure sensor  22  on the basis of the engine rotation speed Ne and the start-up fuel injection pulse width TIST, as shown by the X mark in the diagram, and hence the fuel pressure that is deemed to be required during the start-up time period is held within a range of 1 MPa-2 MPa. 
   Hence, in comparison with the prior art, opportunities for applying compression stroke fuel injection during start-up of the internal combustion engine  1  increase greatly, as a result of which the amount of discharged hydrocarbon (HC) during start-up can be reduced. During a cold start, unburned fuel tends to be discharged as HC, but according to this invention, the opportunities for performing stratified combustion by means of compression stroke fuel injection during start-up increase, and hence the amount of HC discharge during a cold start can be reduced. 
   The contents of Tokugan 2003-193447, with a filing date of Jul. 8, 2003 in Japan, are hereby incorporated by reference. 
   Although the invention has been described above by reference to certain embodiments of the invention, the invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. Modifications and variations of the embodiments described above will occur to those skilled in the art, within the scope of the claims. 
   For example, in the embodiment described above, the engine rotation speed Ne, fuel pressure Pf, and cooling water temperature Tw are detected respectively using sensors, but this invention is not dependent on these parameter obtaining means, and may be applied to any start-up fuel injection control device and start-up fuel injection control method which perform the claimed control using obtained parameters. 
   The embodiments of this invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows: