Exhaust catalyst management apparatus to be applied to vehicle

An exhaust catalyst management apparatus for a vehicle including an engine, an exhaust system connected to the engine, and a catalyst device disposed in the exhaust system, the exhaust catalyst management apparatus comprising:

• a differential pressure sensor configured to detect a pressure difference between an input pressure of the catalyst device and an output pressure of the catalyst device;
• and
• a vehicle outside sensor configured to detect a parameter external to the vehicle;
• an electronic control unit (ECU) including one or more processors coupled to the differential pressure sensor and the vehicle outside sensor, the ECU configured to execute an output control for removal in which an accumulation state of an exhaust-containing substance in the catalyst device is reduced, the output control for removal including:
• determining the accumulation state based on the detected pressure difference,
• determining when a travel environment is suited to execute the output control for removal based on the detected parameter external to the vehicle, and
• reducing the accumulation state when (i) the vehicle is traveling, (ii) the determined accumulation state is greater than an accumulation threshold value, and (iii) the travel environment is determined to be suited to execute the output control for removal.