Back to results
US 5,629,473 AGranted
Oxygen concentration detection device
AssigneeNippondenso Co., Ltd.
InventorToshifumi Hayami
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Erroneous malfunction determination of an oxygen sensor is avoided by consideration of combustible substance penetrating to an air electrode side of the oxygen sensor. The combustible substance is determined whether it has penetrated to the air electrode of the oxygen sensor. If it is determined so, then it is determined whether the oxygen deficiency has disappeared, and the sensor malfunction determination operation is disabled until the oxygen deficiency at the air electrode is eliminated. At the same time, malfunction determination is also disabled.
Claims11
An oxygen concentration detection device comprising:
- an oxygen sensor equipped with an exhaust gas electrode which makes contact with exhaust gases and an air electrode which makes contact with air in order to detect oxygen concentration;
- malfunctioning detecting means for detecting whether the oxygen sensor is malfunctioning or not based on an oxygen sensor output;
- means for determining whether oxygen deficiency at a side of the air electrode of the oxygen sensor is eliminated or not;
- and
- means for canceling a malfunction detection made by the malfunction detecting means, when the oxygen deficiency at the side of the air electrode of the oxygen sensor determined by the determining means is not eliminated, until the oxygen deficiency is eliminated.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.