Systems, methods and apparatus for controlling operation of an engine structured to combust gaseous fuel such as a dual fuel engine, including an estimation of key parameters dependent on natural gas quality, are disclosed. The natural gas quality parameters are estimated from natural gas properties obtained from various sensed parameters associated with the engine.

A control apparatus for an engine includes a control unit. The engine includes a sensor. The control unit determines whether or not an abnormality has occurred in a calculation function of the control unit on the basis of a comparison result between the control required injection amount and the monitoring required injection amount. The control unit determines whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the calculation function of the control unit without using the comparison result when the comparison result is calculated during a predetermined period. The predetermined period is a period of a delay that occurs between updating of one of respective values of the control rotation speed and the monitoring rotation speed and updating of the other value due to a difference between the first timing and the second timing.

A fuel injection feedback system comprises a light source disposed inside a fuel injector, an optical sensor disposed inside the fuel injector, and a computing device electronically connected to the optical sensor. The light source is a device configured to emit light capable of being reflected by cavitation. The light source could be disposed on or within the needle or nozzle of the fuel injector, or at a variety of other locations inside the fuel injector. The optical sensor is configured to detect an intensity of light caused by receiving light reflected from cavitation occurring inside the fuel injector.

An apparatus and method for controlling a fuel injection system of an internal combustion engine is disclosed. Each fuel injector in the system is operated to perform a predetermined injection pattern per engine cycle. A signal representative of a fuel pressure within the fuel rail during the operation of the fuel injectors is sampled. A Fourier analysis of the fuel rail pressure signal is performed to determine one or more harmonic components thereof. The determined harmonic components of the fuel rail pressure signal are used to calculate a dynamic fuel quantity that flows through a fuel injector during an injection pulse of the injection pattern. A fuel quantity actually injected by the fuel injector during the injection pulse as a function of the dynamic fuel quantity is calculated.

A vehicle control device includes a storage device and a processor. The storage device is configured to store relationship prescription data that prescribe a relationship between a state of a vehicle and an action variable that is a variable related to an operation of an electronic device in the vehicle. The processor is configured to calculate a reward corresponding to the operation of the electronic device. The processor is configured to update the relationship prescription data using, as inputs to updated mapping determined in advance, the state of the vehicle that is based on a detection value that is acquired, a value of the action variable that is used to operate the electronic device, and the reward corresponding to the operation of the electronic device when a computation load on the processor is equal to or less than a predetermined load.

Provided is an engine which is provided with an EGR device, wherein: an actual intake/exhaust gas pressure ratio π1 of an intake-gas pressure P1 to an exhaust-gas pressure P2 is calculated from the detected exhaust-gas pressure P2 and the detected intake-gas pressure P1; an estimated intake/exhaust gas pressure ratio π2 of the intake-gas pressure P1 to the exhaust-gas pressure P2 is calculated from an engine rotational frequency N, and a fuel injection amount F; and, in cases when the actual intake/exhaust gas pressure ratio π1 is less than a prescribed value π0, an EGR gas weight Megr is calculated based on the actual intake/exhaust gas pressure ratio π1, and in cases when the actual intake/exhaust gas pressure ratio π1 is equal to or more than the prescribed value π0, the EGR gas weight Megr is calculated based on the estimated intake/exhaust gas pressure ratio π2.

A method is disclosed of controlling operation of a fuel injector in response to measuring a quantity of fuel injected by the fuel injector from a fuel accumulator to an engine cylinder during operation of a fuel pump that delivers fuel to the accumulator, comprising: determining an average pressure of the fuel accumulator during a first time period before a fuel injection event; predicting a mass of fuel delivered to the fuel accumulator during a pumping event (Q.sub.pump); determining an average pressure of the fuel accumulator during a second time period after the fuel injection event; estimating a leakage of fuel; computing the injected fuel quantity by adding the average pressure during the first time period to Q.sub.pump, and subtracting the average pressure during the second time period and the leakage; and using the computed injected fuel quantity to control operation of the fuel injector.

A method of adaptively predicting, during operation of a pump, a mass of fuel pumped by the pump during a pumping event to a fuel accumulator (“Q.sub.pump”) to control operation of the pump is provided, comprising: generating an adaptive model of operation of the pump, including estimating a start of pumping (“SOP”) position of a plunger of the pump, estimating Q.sub.pump, determining a converged value of the estimated SOP position, and determining a converged value of the estimated Q.sub.pump; using the adaptive model to predict Q.sub.pump by inputting to the model the converged value of the estimated SOP position, a measured pressure of fuel in the fuel accumulator and a measured temperature of fuel in the fuel accumulator; and controlling operation of the pump in response to the predicted Q.sub.pump.

This engine includes an EGR device. The engine is provided with: an EGR gas temperature sensor; an EGR valve; an EGR control unit; an EGR valve position detection unit; a diagnosis unit; a first timer; a second timer; and a diagnosis control unit. The diagnosis unit diagnoses whether the EGR gas temperature sensor has failed, on the basis of a detected value from the EGR gas temperature sensor. The first timer, when the EGR valve is open, performs counting in accordance with the passage of time. The second timer, if a count value of the first timer is greater than or equal to a first threshold value set in advance, and if a predetermined condition is satisfied, performs counting in accordance with the passage of time. The diagnosis control unit prohibits diagnosis by the diagnosis unit if a count value of the second timer is less than a second threshold value set in advance, and permits the diagnosis if the count value is greater than or equal to the second threshold value.

A shot variation in injection quantity of a fuel injection device is reduced. A control device according to an aspect of the present invention performs a first current control for a solenoid by a first current waveform by applying a reverse voltage to the solenoid before a mover or a valve collides with a fixed portion, when an injection quantity of a fuel from opening to closing of the valve of the fuel injection device is a set value or more. In addition, the control device performs a second current control for the solenoid by a second current waveform so that a current larger than a holding current holding the mover or the valve in a state of being in contact with the fixed portion flows to the solenoid, until the mover or the valve collides with the fixed portion, when the injection quantity of the fuel from opening to closing of the valve is less than the set value.