Patent ID: 8720193

Claim:
A catalyst heating system comprising: a first electronic circuit configured to monitor a first temperature of a non-electrically heated catalyst (EHC) of a catalyst assembly in an exhaust system of an engine, wherein the EHC is actively heated by supplying an electrical current to the EHC; a second electronic circuit configured to select a non-EHC radiant heating mode and generate a mode signal based on the first temperature, wherein the non-EHC is not supplied an electrical current and is passively or radiantly heated by the EHC; a third electronic circuit configured to increase a temperature of an EHC of the catalyst assembly to an elevated temperature that is greater than a stabilization temperature based on the mode signal, wherein the stabilization temperature is greater than a catalyst light off temperature; a fourth electronic circuit configured to compare the first temperature to a catalyst light off temperature and generate a first comparison signal, wherein the second electronic circuit is configured to select the EHC radiant heating mode when the first comparison signal indicates that the first temperature is less than the catalyst light off temperature; and a fifth electronic circuit configured to compare a second temperature of the non-EHC to a start temperature and generate a second comparison signal, wherein the start temperature is a minimum temperature requested for the non-EHC before starting the engine, and wherein the second electronic circuit is configured to select the EHC stabilization mode when the second comparison signal indicates that the second temperature is greater than the start temperature.