Provided is a control device for controlling an internal combustion engine including a fuel injection valve, an ignition device, and a variable valve operating device configured to switch between a base opening/closing mode of an intake valve and a continuous valve opening mode. The control device is configured to execute a cold start control at a cold start. The cold start control includes: a startability improvement processing executed in a predetermined number of cycles after the start of cranking; and a combustion start processing executed after this predetermined number of cycles. In the startability improvement processing, the continuous valve opening mode is selected in at least an expansion stroke and an exhaust stroke, and fuel injection is executed without ignition. In the combustion start processing, the base opening/closing mode is selected continuously during one cycle, and ignition is executed.

A method for starting an internal combustion engine comprises the steps of: providing an internal combustion engine having at least one cylinder and a piston supported at a crankshaft for repeated reciprocal movement in the cylinder so as to define a main combustion chamber, the internal combustion engine further having an ignition device arranged in said cylinder with an igniter portion and a fuel injector which are both arranged at a pre-chamber, wherein the pre-chamber has a plurality of orifices for providing fluid communication between said pre-chamber and the main combustion chamber, injecting fuel in the pre-chamber, and igniting the injected fuel in the pre-chamber for pre-heating of the pre-chamber prior to injecting fuel in the main combustion chamber for combusting the injected fuel in the main combustion chamber.

Various embodiments include a method for starting an internal combustion engine comprising: in a first phase after a starting process, setting a throttle valve to a value near to zero so the pressure in the intake tract is lowered below the ambient pressure and injecting a fuel into the intake tract above a rich combustion limit at which the fuel/air mixture would still just be combustible; in a second phase, reducing the fuel mass as a function of the pressure; in a third phase shorter than the second phase, further reducing the fuel mass and increasing the opening of the throttle valve to increase the pressure in the intake tract; and in a fourth phase, increasing the fuel mass as a function of rising pressure in the intake tract.

The application is directed to a diesel engine. If the rack cannot complete a predetermined operation within a predetermined amount of time due to the key switch being held at a start-position, the control unit controls a starter to cause a plunger to perform a preparatory stroke operation, and the stroke operation by the plunger is stopped before the diesel engine starts.

When a crankshaft reversely rotates immediately before a stoppage of an engine, the amount of fuel injection in a cylinder in an expansion stroke is controlled to acquire a target air-fuel ratio in accordance with the amount of air in the cylinder. When the electronic control unit determines that the exhaust valve is opened at the time of reverse rotation, the amount of fuel injection is determined by considering a change in the amount of air due to exchange of gas with an exhaust path.

To simplify a configuration of a plasma generation device that generates plasma by means of an electromagnetic wave using thermal electrons as a trigger. The plasma generation device 30 includes: a thermal electron emission member 14 that emits thermal electrons when heated; a heating device 13 that heats the thermal electron emission member 14 by means of an electromagnetic wave; and an electric field concentration member 61 that concentrates in the vicinity of the thermal electron emission member 14 an electric field of the electromagnetic wave generated by the heating device 13. The plasma generation device 30, while causing the heating device 13 to heat the thermal electron emission member 14, causes the electric field concentration member 61 to concentrate the electric field of the electromagnetic wave in the vicinity of the thermal electron emission member 14, thereby generating plasma in the vicinity of the thermal electron emission member 14.

Disclosed herein is a diesel ISG vehicle, including an engine ECU controlling a rail pressure of a common rail engine system, in which the engine ECU determines a cold start of the engine based on detected cooling water temperature and detected fuel temperature at the time of engine restarting by idle go of the idle stop & go (ISG) and then restarts the engine by a quick rail pressure control mode in which the pressure of the fuel pumped to a common rail is controlled or restarts the engine by a normal rail pressure control mode in which the flow rate and the pressure of the fuel is controlled, thereby improving the fuel efficiency by the ISG restarting which does not increase a driving torque of a high pressure pump, particularly, reducing a fuel injection quantity by reduction in a loss of accessories such as pump and compressor.

One exemplary embodiment is a system comprising a dual-fuel engine structured to selectably combust a first fuel type and a second fuel type, and an electronic control system in operative communication with the dual-fuel engine. The electronic control system is structured to control a transition of the dual-fuel engine from a dual-fuel mode to a single-fuel mode. After initiating the transition from the dual-fuel mode to the single-fuel mode, the control system stops provision of the second fuel type, requires combustion using control parameters configured for the dual-fuel mode until a transition ventilation condition is satisfied, permits non-emergency commanded engine shutdown only if the transition ventilation condition is satisfied.

A hybrid vehicle includes: an engine, a motor configured to drive the vehicle, an air-fuel ratio sensor, and a control unit configured to stop and start the engine according to vehicle required power. The control unit is configured to change a threshold value of the vehicle required power at which the engine is started such that a difference between an air-fuel ratio detected by the air-fuel ratio sensor and a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio decreases in a case where the difference exceeds a predetermined value when the engine is stopped.

Systems and methods for restarting an engine are presented. In one example, fuel is injected to cylinder ports before the engine is stopped such that the injected fuel is not inducted into the cylinders before an engine restart is requested. The method may improve fuel vaporization during engine restarting.