Patent ID: 8171780

Claim:
A method of estimating an emission of at least one exhaust gas component, comprising the steps of: acquiring an exhaust-gas sensor signal of an exhaust-gas sensor that is disposed in an exhaust gas train downstream of at least one first catalytic converter volume and upstream of at least one second catalytic converter volume, determining an estimated value of an intermediate emission for a position of the exhaust-gas sensor in dependence upon the exhaust-gas sensor signal, and acquiring or determining at least one of an oxygen storage capacity of the at least one first catalytic converter volume and a temperature of the at least one second catalytic converter volume, and determining an estimated value of the emission downstream of the at least one second catalytic converter volume in dependence upon the estimated value of the intermediate emission and in dependence upon a correction factor determined from at least one predefined correction characteristic or at least one predefined correction characteristics map for correcting the estimated value of the intermediate emission with regard to an influence of the at least one second catalytic converter volume upon the emission of the at least one exhaust gas component, wherein the at least one predefined correction characteristic or at least one predefined correction characteristics map include predefined relationships for correcting the estimated value of the intermediate emission, and wherein the correction factor is determined from the at least one predefined correction characteristic or at least one predefined correction characteristics map based on the acquired or determined oxygen storage capacity of the at least one first catalytic converter volume or temperature of the at least one second catalytic converter.