Method and system for controlling fuel injection timing in an engine for powering a locomotive

A system for controlling fuel injection timing in an engine operable in a selected one of a plurality of engine notch positions, the system comprising;

• a module for determining whether the engine is in a steady state mode of operation;
• a module for determining whether a fuel value indicative of a fuel quantity to be delivered to the engine is within a predetermined fuel value range for the selected one of the plurality of notches;
• and
• a module for setting a predetermined fuel injection timing value that uniquely provides a one-to-one correspondence to the selected one of the plurality of notches upon verification that the fuel value is within the predetermined fuel value range, and, in the event the fuel value is outside the predetermined fuel value range, and/or the engine is not in steady state, setting a fuel injection value from a band of timing values overlapping the selected one of the plurality of notches.

A method for controlling fuel injection timing in an engine operable in a selected one of a plurality of engine notch positions, the method comprising:

• determining whether the engine is in a steady state mode of operation;
• determining whether a fuel value indicative of a fuel quantity to be delivered to the engine is within a predetermined fuel value range for the selected one of the plurality of notches;
• adjusting the fuel value for deviations from an estimated nominal fuel value by:
• providing a module of nominal fuel values based on data collected from other engines corresponding to the engine whose fuel injection timing is being controlled, the nominal fuel values constituting a first set of fuel values relative to a first set of operational and environmental conditions for the engines;
• sensing at least one variable associated with the engine at the time of determining whether the fuel value delivered to the engine is within the predetermined fuel value range, said at least one variable being indicative of a second set of operational and environmental conditions of the engine influencing at least in part fuel values delivered to the engine, the delivered fuel values constituting a second set of fuel values;
• adjusting the respective values of one of the first and second sets of fuel values relative to the other to account for differences between the first and second sets of operational and environmental conditions;
• and
• setting a predetermined fuel injection timing value that uniquely has a one-to-one correspondence to the selected one of the plurality of notches upon verification that the adjusted fuel value is within the predetermined fuel value range and the engine is in steady state.

A system for controlling fuel injection timing in an engine operable in a selected one of a plurality of engine notch positions, the system comprising:

• a module for determining whether the engine is in a steady state mode of operation;
• a module for determining whether a fuel value indicative of a fuel quantity to be delivered to the engine is within a predetermined fuel value range for the selected one of the plurality of notches;
• an adjuster module for adjusting the fuel value for deviations from an estimated nominal fuel value, said adjuster comprising:
• a module of nominal fuel values based on data collected from other engines corresponding to the engine whose fuel injection timing is being controlled, the nominal fuel values constituting a first set of fuel values relative to a first set of operational and environmental conditions for the engines;
• a sensor for sensing at least one variable associated with the engine at the time of determining whether the fuel value delivered to the engine is within the predetermined fuel values, said at least one variable being indicative of a second set of operational and environmental conditions of the engine influencing at least in part fuel values delivered to the engine, the delivered fuel values constituting a second set of fuel values;
• a module for adjusting the respective values of one of the first and second sets of fuel values relative to the other to account for differences between the first and second sets of operational and environmental conditions;
• and
• a module for setting a predetermined fuel injection timing value that uniquely corresponds to the selected one of the plurality of notches upon verification that the fuel value is within the predetermined fuel value range and the engine is in steady state.

An article of manufacture comprising:

• a computer program product comprising a computer-usable medium having a computer-readable code therein for controlling fuel injection timing in an engine operable in a selected one of a plurality of engine notch positions, the computer-readable code in the article of manufacture comprising:
• computer-readable program code for determining whether a fuel value indicative of a fuel quantity to be delivered to the engine is within a predetermined fuel value range for the selected one of the plurality of notches;
• and
• computer-readable code for setting a predetermined fuel injection timing value that uniquely provides a one-to-one correspondence to the selected one of the plurality of notches upon verification that the fuel value is within the predetermined fuel value range and the engine is in the steady state mode of operation.