Method of fuel injector management based on cylinder knock detection and vehicle including the same

A fuel injector management system based on cylinder knock detection including:

• an internal combustion engine having a plurality of cylinders, and a plurality of fuel injectors associated with the plurality of cylinders;
• a plurality of sensors;
• and
• a controller having a memory, the controller in communication with the internal combustion engine and the plurality of sensors, wherein the controller is configured to:
• receive an individual cylinder knock count from each of the plurality of cylinders, wherein the plurality of cylinders includes at least a first cylinder and a first fuel injector associated with the first cylinder, and wherein the individual cylinder knock count for the first cylinder is received from a knock sensor during a current cycle;
• determine whether a knock metric is initialized for the first cylinder;
• determine whether the knock metric for the first cylinder during the current cycle deviates from an established baseline knock metric for the first cylinder when it is determined that the knock metric is initialized for the first cylinder;
• determine whether the knock metric for the first cylinder is decreasing with respect to the established baseline knock metric for the first cylinder when it is determined that the knock metric for the first cylinder deviates from the established baseline knock metric for the first cylinder;
• determine whether a fuel system long term memory indicates one of rich, lean or healthy when it is determined that the knock metric for the first cylinder is decreasing with respect to the established baseline knock metric for the first cylinder;
• determine whether a knock adaptation control indicates a reduction of knock for the first cylinder;
• identify the first fuel injector as shifted rich when it is determined that the fuel system long term memory indicates rich, and the knock adaptation control indicated the reduction of knock for the first cylinder;
• provide an alert when a rich residual metric exceeds a rich threshold metric when the first injector is identified as rich;
• determine whether multiple misfires have been registered for the first cylinder, when it is determined that the fuel system memory indicates lean;
• identify the first fuel injector as shifted lean, when it is determined that the fuel system memory indicates lean, multiple misfires have been registered for the first cylinder, and the knock adaptation control indicates the reduction of knock for the first cylinder;
• and
• provide an alert when a lean residual metric exceeds a lean threshold metric when the first injector is identified as lean.

A vehicle having fuel injector management based on cylinder knock detection, the vehicle including:

• an internal combustion engine having a plurality of cylinders, and a plurality of fuel injectors associated with the plurality of cylinders, the internal combustion configured to provide power to the vehicle;
• a plurality of sensors;
• and
• a controller having a memory, the controller in communication with the internal combustion engine and the plurality of sensors, the controller configured to:
• receive an individual cylinder knock count from each of the plurality of cylinders, wherein the plurality of cylinders includes at least a first cylinder and a first fuel injector associated with the first cylinder, and wherein the individual cylinder knock count for the first cylinder is received from a knock sensor during a current cycle;
• determine whether a knock metric is initialized for the first cylinder;
• determine whether the knock metric for the first cylinder during the current cycle deviates from an established baseline knock metric for the first cylinder when it is determined that the knock metric is initialized for the first cylinder;
• determine whether the knock metric for the first cylinder is decreasing with respect to the established baseline knock metric for the first cylinder when it is determined that the knock metric for the first cylinder deviates from the established baseline knock metric for the first cylinder;
• determine whether a fuel system long term memory indicates one of rich, lean or healthy when it is determined that the knock metric for the first cylinder is decreasing with respect to the established baseline knock metric for the first cylinder;
• determine whether a knock adaptation control indicates a reduction of knock for the first cylinder;
• identify the first fuel injector as shifted rich when it is determined that the fuel system long term memory indicates rich, and the knock adaptation control indicates the reduction of knock for the first cylinder;
• provide an alert when a rich residual metric exceeds a rich threshold metric when the first injector is identified as rich;
• determine whether multiple misfires have been registered for the first cylinder, when it is determined that the fuel system memory indicates lean;
• identify the first fuel injector as shifted lean, when it is determined that the fuel system memory indicates lean, multiple misfires have been registered for the first cylinder, and the knock adaptation control indicates the reduction of knock for the first cylinder;
• and
• provide an alert when a lean residual metric exceeds a lean threshold metric when the first injector is identified as lean.