Patent ID: 7528346

Claim:
An internal combustion engine comprising at least one cylinder provided with at least one heating device adapted internally to heat a variable volume combustion chamber of the cylinder and an electronic control unit adapted to drive the heating device so as to vary a temperature of the heating device, the electronic control unit including an estimation device adapted to estimate a temperature (T GS ) of the heating device within the combustion chamber and a control device adapted to drive the heating device as a function of the estimated temperature (T GS ), said estimation device including a first calculation device adapted to calculate a thermal power (P TG ) generated by the heating device, a second calculation device adapted to calculate a thermal power (P TS ) exchanged within the combustion chamber, and a third calculation device adapted to estimate the temperature (T GS ) of the heating device as a function of a difference between the thermal power (P TG ) generated and the thermal power (P TS ) exchanged, the second calculation device including a fourth calculation device adapted to calculate an internal temperature (T COMB ) of the combustion chamber and a fifth calculation device adapted to calculate the thermal power (P TS ) exchanged as a function of the difference between the internal temperature (T COMB ) of the combustion chamber and the estimated temperature (T GS ) of the heating device.