Patent ID: 8430084

Claim:
An ignition device for operating an internal combustion engine, comprising: a spark plug for generating multiple sparks; an ignition coil for supplying an ignition voltage for the spark plug; a control logic unit configured to receive time information regarding a multi-spark phase in order to cyclically charge the ignition coil and correspondingly discharge the ignition coil via the spark plug during the multi-spark phase, wherein: the control logic unit is configured to implement the charging and the discharging of the ignition coil as a function of a current flow in the ignition coil; the control logic is configured to receive time information regarding a single-spark phase prior to the receiving of the time information regarding the multi-spark phase, the start of the single-spark phase indicating the start of the charging of the ignition coil, and the end of the single-spark phase indicating the start of the discharging of the ignition coil; the control logic unit is configured to receive the time information regarding the single spark phase in the form of a first pulse of a control signal during an ignition phase, and to receive the time information regarding the multi-spark phase in the form of a second pulse of the control signal; and a predetermined minimum time period is provided between the first pulse and the second pulse, the minimum time period ensuring that sufficient energy is transmitted into a spark of the single-spark phase.