Patent ID: 6951197

Claim:
A method for operating an internal combustion engine including an internal combustion engine for a motor vehicle, the engine having a catalytic converter, the method comprising the steps of: for heating up the catalytic converter, switching over between a homogeneous operating mode with one-time injection of fuel into a combustion chamber of said engine and an operating mode with subdivided injection of fuel at at least two injection time points into said combustion chamber of said engine, wherein, for subdivided injections, both injection time points lie ahead of an ignition of an air/fuel mixture; causing the first injection time point to essentially correspond to the injection time point of the homogeneous operating mode during the switchover operation from the homogeneous operating mode to the operating mode with subdivided injection; causing the second injection of the subdivided injection to at first take place so early that the arising mixture corresponds during operation with subdivided injection approximately to a homogeneous mixture; after the completed switchover, shifting the second injection time point toward late until a pregiven mixture preparation is present; and, for a switchover from the operating mode with the subdivided injection to the homogeneous operating mode, shifting the second injection time point in the opposite direction.