# US 11,111,866 B2 · Engine device

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- Number: US 11,111,866 B2
- Document ID: US11111866B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/884,171
- Filed: 2020-05-27
- Published: 2020-09-10
- Granted: 2021-09-07
- Earliest claimed: 2015-09-16
- Assignees: Yanmar Power Technology Co., Ltd.
- Applicants: Yanmar Co., Ltd.
- Inventors: Ryoichi Hagiwara; Kazuteru Toshinaga; Masayoshi Doi; Taishi Murakami; Tatsuro Ohsara; Osamu Yamagishi
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11111866B2

## CPC

- F02D 41/0027: {the fuel being gaseous (non-electrical control F02D19/02)}
- F02D 19/0615: {being initiated by automatic means, e.g. based on engine or vehicle operating conditions}
- F02D 19/0618: {depending on the engine's or vehicle's position, e.g. on/off road or proximity to a harbor}
- F02D 19/0642: {at least one fuel being gaseous, the other fuels being gaseous or liquid at standard conditions}
- F02D 19/0657: {Heavy or light fuel oils; Fuels characterised by their impurities such as sulfur content or differences in grade, e.g. for ships}
- F02D 19/0686: {Injectors}
- F02D 19/105: {operating in a special mode, e.g. in a liquid fuel only mode for starting}
- F02D 29/02: peculiar to engines driving vehicles; peculiar to engines driving variable pitch propellers
- F02D 41/0025: {Controlling engines characterised by use of non-liquid fuels, pluralities of fuels, or non-fuel substances added to the combustible mixtures}
- F02D 41/3047: {said means being a secondary injection of fuel}
- F02D 41/3064: {with special control during transition between modes}
- F02D 41/401: {Controlling injection timing (F02D41/402 takes precedence)}
- B63H 21/14: relating to internal-combustion engines {(of outboard type B63H20/00)}
- F02D 2200/101: Engine speed
- F02D 2200/701: Information about vehicle position, e.g. from navigation system or GPS signal
- Y02T 10/30: Use of alternative fuels, e.g. biofuels
- Y02T 10/40: Engine management systems
- Y02T 70/5218: Less carbon-intensive fuels, e.g. natural gas, biofuels
- F02D: CONTROLLING COMBUSTION ENGINES (vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed B60K31/00; conjoint control of vehicle sub-units of different type or different function, road vehicle drive control systems for purposes other than the control of a single sub-unit B60W)
- B63H: MARINE PROPULSION OR STEERING (propulsion of air-cushion vehicles B60V1/14; specially adapted for submarines, other than nuclear propulsion, B63G; specially adapted for torpedoes F42B19/00)
- Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION

## Abstract

An engine device including an intake manifold configured to supply air into a cylinder; an exhaust manifold configured to output exhaust gas from the cylinder; a gas injector which mixes a gaseous fuel with the air supplied from the intake manifold; and a main fuel injection valve configured to inject a liquid fuel into the cylinder for combustion. At the time of switching from a gas mode in which the gaseous fuel is supplied into the cylinder to a diesel mode in which the liquid fuel is supplied into the cylinder, a supply-start timing of the liquid fuel is delayed relative to a supply-stop timing of the gaseous fuel.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A ship comprising:
an engine; and
an engine control unit (ECU) configured to:
based on the ship being outside a reduced emissions area, perform an engine switching operation to switch operation of the engine from a gas mode to a diesel mode; and
based on the ship being within the reduced emissions area, prohibit the engine switching operation.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The ship of claim 1, wherein the ECU is further configured to:
determine a first location of the ship that is within the reduced emissions area; and
determine a second location of the ship that is outside the reduced emissions area.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The ship of claim 2, wherein the ECU is further configured to:
determine the reduced emissions area based on restricted sea area information map data;
compare the first location to the reduced emissions area to determine whether the first location is within the reduced emissions area; and
compare the second location to the reduced emissions area to determine whether the second location is within the reduced emissions area.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The ship of claim 3, wherein the ECU is further configured to:
determine which mode of a plurality of modes the engine is configured in, the plurality of modes including:
the gas mode in which a gaseous fuel is supplied into a cylinder of the engine; and
the diesel mode in which a liquid fuel is supplied into the cylinder; and
based on the engine being configured in the gas mode, determine whether the ship is within the reduced emissions area.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The ship of claim 4, further comprising:
an intake manifold configured to supply air to the cylinder of the engine;
an exhaust manifold configured to output exhaust gas from the cylinder;
a gas injector configured to mix the gaseous fuel with the air supplied from the intake manifold; and
a main fuel injection valve configured to inject the liquid fuel into the cylinder for combustion.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The ship of claim 1, wherein during the engine switching operation, the ECU is configured to:
stop injection of a gaseous fuel;
calculate a delay period; and
based on expiration of the delay period, start supply of a liquid fuel to the engine.

### Claim 7

An apparatus for operating a vehicle, the apparatus comprising:
an engine control unit (ECU) configured to:
determine whether a first location associated with an engine is within a reduced emissions area;
based on the first location being outside the reduced emissions area, enable an engine switching operation to switch an operation state of the engine; and
based on the engine being within the reduced emissions area, prohibit the engine switching operation.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the ECU is further configured to, based on a second location being outside the reduced emissions area, perform the engine switching operation to operate the engine in a second mode.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the ECU is further configured to:
detect an abnormality while the engine is operating in a first mode; and
based on detection of the abnormality, perform the engine switching operation to operate the engine in the second mode.

### Claim 10 (depends on 7)

The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the ECU is further configured to:
determine the first location associated with the engine; and
wherein the engine corresponds to the vehicle, the vehicle comprises a ship.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The apparatus of claim 10, wherein:
the ECU is further configured to:
determine the reduced emissions area based on information map data; and
compare the first location of the engine to the reduced emissions area to determine whether the engine is within the reduced emissions area; and
the reduced emissions area corresponds to restricted sea area in which emission amounts of nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides are restricted.

### Claim 12 (depends on 7)

The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the ECU is further configured to:
switch the operating state of the engine between: a first mode in which a gaseous fuel is supplied into a cylinder of the engine; and
a second mode in which a liquid fuel is supplied into the cylinder.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising:
an intake manifold configured to supply air to the cylinder;
a gas injector configured to mix the gaseous fuel with the air supplied from the intake manifold;
an exhaust manifold configured to output exhaust gas from the cylinder; and
a main fuel injection valve configured to inject the liquid fuel into the cylinder for combustion.

### Claim 14 (depends on 12)

The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the gaseous fuel includes natural gas, and the gaseous fuel is supplied in an air intake stroke in the first mode, and the liquid fuel is supplied in a compressing stroke in the second mode.

### Claim 15 (depends on 7)

The apparatus of claim 7, wherein during the engine switching operation, the ECU is configured to:
stop injection a gaseous fuel;
calculate a delay period; and
based on expiration of the delay period has elapsed, start supply of a liquid fuel.

### Claim 16

A method of operating a vehicle, the method comprising:
determining whether the vehicle is within a reduced emissions area; and
based on a determination that the vehicle is within the reduced emissions area:
configuring an engine to have an operating state corresponding to a first mode in which gaseous fuel is supplied to a cylinder of the engine; and
prohibiting an engine switching operation to switch the operating state of the engine from the first mode to a second mode in which liquid fuel is supplied to the cylinder.

### Claim 17 (depends on 16)

The method of claim 16, further comprising, based on the vehicle being outside the reduced emissions area, enable the engine switching operation to switch the operating state of the engine to the second mode.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The method of claim 17, wherein:
based on the vehicle being outside the reduced emissions area, perform the engine switching operation; and
the vehicle includes a ship.

### Claim 19 (depends on 17)

The method of claim 17, further comprising:
determining a location of the vehicle; and
determining the reduced emissions area based on information map data.

### Claim 20 (depends on 19)

The method of claim 19, further comprising comparing the location of the engine to the reduced emissions area.