Patent ID: 8843299

Claim:
A control apparatus for controlling a starter used to start an engine mounted on a vehicle, the starter generating a torque for starting the engine and having a first gear outputting the generated torque, the engine having a second gear to receive the torque, the first gear mechanically engaging with the second gear to start the engine, the control apparatus comprising: a trigger circuit adapted to output a trigger signal in response to a start request; a detection circuit adapted to detect an overall state of the starter which comprises an electrical state and a mechanical state of the starter while the starter is powered on; and a controller including first means configured to power on the starter in response to the trigger signal outputted by the trigger circuit, and second means configured to power off the starter when the controller detects that a predetermined condition of the starter is satisfied based on the overall state of the starter, wherein the predetermined condition is that the first gear is rotated the second gear while the starter is powered on, and the detection circuit is configured to detect a torque of the first gear as the mechanical state of the starter, the torque of the first gear being transmitted to the second gear, and the controller detects the predetermined condition when the torque has a predetermined value or less.