Patent ID: 7143575

Claim:
A control system for controlling operation of an internal-combustion engine of a motor vehicle, comprising: one or more electronic control devices which affect running of the engine; sensor means for detecting the composition of the exhaust gases of the engine; and an electronic control unit which controls the operation of said electronic devices according to the signals at output from said sensor means, said control system being wherein said sensor means comprise an IR spectrophotometer on board the motor vehicle, wherein the IR spectrophotometer comprises: a light source; a separator element for separating the light beam emitted by the source into the components corresponding to the different wavelengths; sensor means designed to receive the radiation coming from the separator element and to emit at output electrical signals indicating the wavelengths of the radiation received, in which the aforesaid electrostatic micro-shutters are set between said separator element and said sensor means, said sensor means being formed by a single photodiode, said spectrophotometer further comprising an optical element for converging the radiation at output from the electrostatic micro-shutters onto the aforesaid single photodiode, said electrostatic-shutter means being controlled so as to select each time a single wavelength to be analyzed.