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US 7,096,112 B2Granted
Control apparatus for vehicle
AssigneeToyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsYasuhiro Tanaka, Tsutomu Miyazaki
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AssigneeToyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsYasuhiro Tanaka, Tsutomu Miyazaki
Estimating the term…
An engine mounted to a vehicle includes at least one manipulation member used for control of output of the engine. An electronic control unit controls the manipulation member in accordance with the driving condition of the engine. When it is determined that there is an abnormality in the electronic control unit, the amount of air drawn into the engine is fixed to a predetermined value and the amount of manipulation of the manipulation member is restricted. When the rotational speed of the engine becomes higher than the predetermined speed, the electronic control unit determines that there is an abnormality relating to the manipulation of the manipulation member.
A vehicular control apparatus comprising:
A vehicular control apparatus comprising:
A vehicular control apparatus comprising:
A vehicular control apparatus comprising:
A vehicular control apparatus comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.
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From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.
In relation with elements of the transmission: in relation with the gear ratio or shift lever position
Of the electric type: safety-related aspects
Safety or indicating devices for abnormal conditions: relating to the failure of actuators or electrically driven elements
Safety or indicating devices for abnormal conditions: limping Home, i.e. taking specific engine control measures at abnormal conditions
Term ended 13 May 2023 (estimated)
The present invention relates to a vehicular control apparatus that is suitable for an apparatus that executes several engine controls as a fail-safe process to allow a control system to take steps to correct a malfunction when there is an abnormality in a control system of a vehicle.
As electronically controlled vehicle engines become popular, engines and peripheral devices are increasingly controlled by electronic controls using mainly microcomputers.
Examples of such controls are a fuel injection control, which adjusts the injection amount and the injection timing of fuel supplied to cylinders of an engine using fuel injection valves, and an ignition timing control, which adjusts the timing to ignite a mixture of fuel and suction air inside each cylinder using an ignition plug. A system for electrically controlling the opening degree of a throttle valve, which is referred to as an electronic throttle system, is put into a practical use for adjusting the amount of air drawn into the engine. Such a system is also controlled by an electronic control using mainly the microcomputer.
The invention, together with objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description of the presently preferred embodiments together with the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a structure of a system of a vehicular control apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a specific structure of an electronic control unit according to the preferred embodiment;
A vehicular control apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.
At first, the structures of a vehicle engine to which a vehicular control apparatus of the preferred embodiment is applied and peripheral devices are briefly explained with reference to FIG. 1.
In FIG. 1, an engine 1 is, for example, an in-line four-cylinder type four-cycle engine. The engine 1 has an intake air passage 2. An air cleaner, which is not shown, is located at the upstream portion of the intake air passage 2. A throttle valve 10 is located downstream of the air cleaner. The throttle valve 10 is selectively opened and closed by a motor 11. The amount of air supplied to the engine 1 is adjusted in accordance with the opening degree of the throttle valve 10.