A proactive heating system for a vehicle, which is used to increase the temperature of an exhaust catalyst prior to ignition of an engine to reduce emissions. The proactive heating system is part of an exhaust system for a vehicle, and includes an electrically heated catalyst and an air pump, which are activated prior to engine ignition, to increase the temperature of a three-way catalyst such that the three-way catalyst is at the desired target threshold temperature, or light-off temperature, prior to engine ignition, eliminating the delay in emissions treatment after cold-start of the engine. The proactive heating system addresses the high level of untreated emissions emitted from an internal combustion engine before the catalytic emissions system reaches the light-off temperature. The proactive heating system provides heating of a catalyst to light-off temperature without combusting hydrocarbon fuel, which leads to engine out emissions.

A vehicle control apparatus includes: a VSA-ECU and an ESB-ECU that perform braking control to apply a braking torque in response to a brake operation by a driver of a host vehicle, and also perform brake holding control to hold the braking torque even when the brake operation is cancelled; and an engine control unit that performs idling stop control to stop driving of an engine that is a drive source of the host vehicle when a stop condition is satisfied, including that a vehicle speed of the host vehicle enters a predetermined low vehicle speed region, and also performs restart control to restart the engine when a predetermined restart condition is satisfied. The engine control unit prohibits execution of the idling stop control during execution of the brake holding control.

The invention relates to a method for operating a power generating device having a combustion engine, in particular a gas motor or a gas turbine, and an energy accumulator. The combustion engine and the energy accumulator are electrically coupled together. The combustion engine can be operated in accordance with a first estimated value and in accordance with a second estimated value.

A method of controlling a hybrid vehicle includes commanding a first electric machine to provide a compensating torque. The compensating torque is based on a calculated cylinder pressure. The calculated cylinder pressure is calculated using a dynamic model. The model has an initializing input of engine crank position and real-time inputs of measured speed of the first electric machine and measured speed of the second electric machine.

Methods and systems are provided for diagnostics of a cylinder valve actuation mechanism in a variable displacement engine (VDE). In one example, during an engine-off condition, the engine may be rotated unfueled, via a starter motor, and a reference exhaust air flow may be estimated. One or more deactivatable engine cylinders may then be deactivated and degradation of the cylinder valve actuation mechanism may be indicated based on a difference between the exhaust air flow following the cylinder deactivation and the reference exhaust air flow.

A method of implementing start-stop in an internal combustion engine, the engine having exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) from at least one dedicated EGR (D-EGR) cylinder. For stopping the engine, the camshaft is locked, and a hydraulic cam phaser is used to cushion the engine inertia. The engine is stopped such that one of the D-EGR cylinders is in top-dead center position. For starting the engine, that D-EGR cylinder is fuel-injected, and exhaust bleed-off performed if necessary.

Methods and systems are provided for de-icing a charge-air cooler of a boosted engine system when the engine is turned off. In one example, a method may include recirculating air through a bypass passage including an activated electric supercharger and the CAC. The air is warmed by compression and thaws ice accumulated in the CAC.

An internal combustion engine-based system includes an internal combustion engine. The internal combustion engine-based system includes an engine interrupt connected to the engine. The engine interrupt is configured to selectively stop the operation of the engine. The internal combustion engine-based system includes a controller in communication with the engine interrupt. The internal combustion engine-based system includes a carbon monoxide detector in communication with the controller. The controller uses the engine interrupt to stop the operation of the engine when the carbon monoxide detector provides the controller with signals that are representative of a carbon monoxide level proximate the internal combustion engine that together form a trend of building carbon monoxide amounts over a set time interval.

A controller for an internal combustion engine includes a fuel introduction process of introducing an air-fuel mixture containing fuel injected by a fuel injection valve into an exhaust passage without burning the air-fuel mixture in a cylinder. The fuel introduction processor is configured to perform, during the execution of the fuel introduction process, a determination process of determining whether afterfire, in which the air-fuel mixture burns at an upstream side of a three-way catalyst device in the exhaust passage, has occurred and a stopping process of stopping the fuel introduction process when determining in the determination process that the afterfire has occurred.

A controller configured to control a hybrid vehicle includes a catalyst temperature increase control unit configured to execute a catalyst temperature increase control of increasing a temperature of a three-way catalyst device, a motoring control of rotating a crankshaft of an internal combustion engine with power of a motor in a state in which combustion of the internal combustion engine is stopped, and a fuel introduction process of introducing unburned air-fuel mixture into an exhaust passage by performing fuel injection in the internal combustion engine during the execution of the motoring control.