An engine control apparatus includes an ignition control section and an injection control section. When the partial compression ignition combustion is carried out, the ignition control section causes an ignition plug to carry out: main ignition in which a spark is generated in a late period of a compression stroke or an initial period of a expansion stroke to initiate the SI combustion; and preceding ignition in which the spark is generated at earlier timing than the main ignition. Also, when the partial compression ignition combustion is carried out, the injection control section causes the injector to inject fuel at such timing that the fuel exists in a cylinder at an earlier time point than the preceding ignition. The energy of the preceding ignition is set to be higher when fuel concentration specified by a fuel concentration specification section is low than when the fuel concentration is high.

An engine apparatus includes an ignition control section and an injection control section. When the partial compression ignition combustion is carried out, the ignition control section causes an ignition plug to carry out: main ignition in which a spark is generated in a late period of a compression stroke or an initial period of an expansion stroke to initiate the SI combustion; and preceding ignition in which the spark is generated at earlier timing than the main ignition. Also, when the partial compression ignition combustion is carried out, the injection control section causes the injector to inject fuel at such timing that the fuel exists in a cylinder at an earlier time point than the preceding ignition. Energy of the preceding ignition is set to be lower when a swirl flow is gentle than when the swirl flow is intense.

An internal combustion engine includes a combustion chamber with a cylinder head, a cylinder, and a piston. The internal combustion engine also includes at least one intake valve and at least one exhaust valve that are connected to the combustion chamber, a fuel injector that injects fuel into the combustion chamber, at least two ignition devices arranged in the combustion chamber, and control means that control the valves, the injector, and the ignition means. The control means operate the engine according to different combustion modes including a controlled ignition combustion mode, a compression ignition combustion mode, and an assisted compression ignition combustion mode. The control means activate the ignition means in the assisted compression ignition combustion mode.

A control apparatus for a compression-ignition type engine is applied to an engine capable of carrying out partial compression ignition combustion in which an air-fuel mixture is subjected to CI combustion by self-ignition. The control apparatus creates a lean A/F environment where an air-fuel ratio as a ratio between air and fuel in a cylinder exceeds 20 and is lower than 35, or a lean G/F environment where a gas air-fuel ratio as a ratio between entire gas and the fuel in the cylinder exceeds 18 and is lower than 50 and the air-fuel ratio substantially matches a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio. Prior to planned timing of the CI combustion, in the lean A/F environment or the lean G/F environment, the control apparatus causes an ignition plug to generate a spark and to generate a high-temperature portion.

A fuel injection control device for an engine is provided. A swirl generator generates a swirl flow inside a combustion chamber. A fuel injector with multiple nozzle holes injects fuel into the combustion chamber, and forms a lean mixture gas inside the combustion chamber. A spark plug ignites the lean mixture gas to cause a portion of the mixture gas to start combustion accompanied by flame propagation, and then combusts by self-ignition. The fuel injector has first and second nozzle holes, and a first atomized fuel spray injected from the first nozzle hole and a second atomized fuel spray injected from the second nozzle hole separate from each other by the swirl flow. The fuel injector performs the fuel injection in an intake stroke, and retards a start timing of the injection when an engine load is high compared to that when the load is low.

The present invention relates to a gas intake pipe (2) for a cylinder of a thermal engine. The pipe comprises means for diverting the gas so as to generate a tumble type aerodynamic motion of the gas within the cylinder. The diversion means comprise at least a “ramp” shape (6) on the lower profile (12) of the pipe and a concave zone on the upper profile (10) of intake pipe (2).

A method of controlling an engine is provided, the method including the steps of injecting main fuel by a fuel injector during an intake stroke or a compression stroke, providing a mixture gas containing fuel and air inside a cylinder, applying by an ignition device a high voltage between electrodes of a spark plug at a timing when the mixture gas is not ignited, detecting a parameter related to a current value of an electric-discharge channel generated between the electrodes, determining whether the detected parameter is within a range between a first threshold and a second threshold to determine a flowing state of a vortex inside the cylinder, injecting supplemental fuel by the fuel injector after the main fuel injection when the parameter is determined to be outside the range, and igniting the mixture gas by the ignition device using the spark plug after the supplemental fuel injection.

An internal combustion engine, comprising a super-charging, which is designed to compress the charge air into the charge air pipe, with overpressure up to 2.8 BAR, a throttle valve, which operation is to provide a sufficient amount of charge air into the main combustion chamber, while together throttling an overpressure of the charge air from the charge air pipe to achieve a pressure reduction and thus a temperature reduction of the charge air in the intake port up to −20° C. (−4° F.), a cylinder head, which is equipped with a swirl chamber, per main combustion chamber, the size of which is 8% to 15% of the compression volume, whereby the formation of the fuel/air mixture occurs only in this swirl chamber, whereby in combination with the subcooling of the charge air in the intake port, reduces fuel consumption.

The present invention relates to a gas intake pipe (2) for a cylinder of a thermal engine. The pipe comprises means for diverting the gas so as to generate a tumble type aerodynamic motion of the gas within the cylinder. The diversion means comprise at least a “ramp” shape (6) on the lower profile (12) of the pipe and a concave zone on the upper profile (10) of intake pipe (2).

A structure of a combustion chamber for an engine includes a crown surface of a piston, a combustion chamber ceiling surface, an injector and an ignition plug provided on the combustion chamber ceiling surface, and an intake opening and an exhaust opening opened in the combustion chamber ceiling surface. A side where the intake opening is opened is defined as an intake port side, and a side where the exhaust opening is opened is defined as an exhaust port side. An ignition portion of the ignition plug is disposed on the intake port side. The ignition plug is ignited at a timing after the piston passes a compression top dead center. The injector is disposed on the center portion, and is configured to inject fuel toward the exhaust port side. A cavity is provided on the crown surface. A reverse squish flow generation portion is provided in the combustion chamber.