An engine start system has a rotating electrical machine, a starter motor, an engine ECU and an ISG controller. The rotating electrical machine is connected to an output shaft of an engine. The starter motor drives the engine to be restarted. The engine ECU controls the engine operation. The ISG controller instructs an inverter when the rotating electrical machine performs power running and regenerative power generation. The ISG controller communicates with the engine ECU, and adjusts the operation of the starter motor and the rotating electrical machine. When receiving an engine restart request, the ISG controller drives at least one of the starter motor and the rotating electrical machine so as to restart the engine.

When a first automatic stopping condition is established while a vehicle (1A, 1B) is stationary or a second automatic stopping condition is established during travel, an internal combustion engine (2) of the vehicle is automatically stopped. The first automatic stopping condition is established when a battery voltage or a battery state of charge of a battery (21) equals or exceeds a first threshold, and the second automatic stopping condition is established when the battery voltage or the battery state of charge of the battery (21) equals or exceeds a second threshold. By setting the second threshold to be greater than the first threshold, opportunities for automatically stopping the internal combustion engine (2) are secured while satisfying a power requirement of an electrical load (26, 27) during restarting of the internal combustion engine (2).

A number of variations may include a solenoid assembly comprising: a shaft; a pinion-plunger operatively attached to the shaft and having a first end comprising a plurality of teeth; a plurality of iron cores surrounding at least a portion of the pinion-plunger and the shaft; at least one solenoid coil winding and at least one spool surrounding each of the plurality of iron cores; a stop adjacent a first end of the plurality of iron cores; a guide adjacent a second end of the plurality of iron cores opposite of the stop; a biasing member in operative communication with the first end the pinion-plunger; and wherein the solenoid assembly is constructed and arranged so that when the solenoid assembly is activated the pinion-plunger is magnetically drawn toward the stop.

Systems and methods for improving operation of an engine are presented. In one example, a position of a throttle is adjusted along with other actuators to improve engine starting.

A vehicle control system is provided which is used in a vehicle equipped with an engine as a drive power source and works to establish engagement of a pinion of a starter motor with a ring gear mounted on a rotational axis of the engine and then actuate the starter motor to start the engine. The vehicle control system executes a preset mode to move the pinion to achieve the engagement with the ring gear when the rotation speed of the engine has dropped below a given threshold value. The threshold value is determined as a function of speed of the vehicle, thereby alleviating a driver's perception about unwanted mechanical noise arising from impact the pinion on the ring gear upon the engagement therebetween.

A control device of a vehicle includes: a first gear connected to a crankshaft of an engine; a second gear capable of engaging the first gear; an actuator configure to move the second gear up to a position where the second gear engages the first gear; a motor configured to cause the second gear to rotate; and a controller configured to, when the engine is cranked by driving of the motor in response to elapsing of a predefined period after the actuator is actuated in response to a startup request signal of the engine, adjust a length of the predefined period on the basis of an operating state of a driver and a state of the vehicle at the time of reception of the startup request signal.

The engine starting device for stopping, when an engine automatic stop condition is satisfied, fuel injection to the engine to automatically stop the engine, and for thereafter restarting the engine when an engine restart condition is satisfied, includes: a ring gear coupled to a crankshaft of the engine; a starter motor rotated by a current supply; a pinion gear for transmitting the rotation of the starter motor to the ring gear; a pinion gear moving part for moving the pinion gear toward the ring gear by a current supply, thereby meshing the pinion gear with the ring gear; and a fuel injection control part for restarting the fuel injection so that combustion is generated in a predetermined compression cylinder after the engine restart condition is satisfied and after the pinion gear moving part starts the movement of the pinion gear.

In a system, an engine restating module is capable of executing an engine restart task to crank an automatically stopped engine if an engine restart condition is met. The engine restart task includes energization of a mechanism to thereby shift a pinion to be engaged with a ring gear, and energization of a motor to rotate the pinion. A deenergizing module is capable of deenergizing the motor if an interrupting request that interrupts restart of the automatically stopped engine is generated during execution of the engine restart task. A maintaining module is capable of maintaining energization of the mechanism to engage the pinion with the ring gear even if the interrupting request that interrupts restart of the automatically stopped engine is generated during execution of the engine restart task.

A method for stopping an internal combustion engine, in which an air flow supplied via an air metering device, in particular a throttle valve of the internal combustion engine, is reduced after a stopping request has been ascertained, an undershoot point in time is ascertained, at which an ascertained speed of the internal combustion engine falls below a pre-definable speed threshold value, after the undershoot point in time, the air flow supplied via the air metering device of the internal combustion engine is increased again, the predefinable speed threshold value being selected in such a way that an intake cylinder no longer enters a compression stroke after the increase of the supplied air flow until the internal combustion engine is at a standstill, a degree of opening of the air metering device to increase the supplied air flow being selected as a function of a coasting speed of the internal combustion engine.

A fuel control apparatus for a vehicle, having an electric pump configured to have electric power supplied, to supply fuel from a fuel tank to an injector of an internal combustion engine through a fuel pipe, and a control unit configured to have the internal combustion engine stop automatically when a first predetermined condition is satisfied, and after having the internal combustion engine stop automatically, start automatically when a second predetermined condition is satisfied, includes an operation unit configured, when the control unit has the internal combustion engine stop automatically, to supply electric power from a predetermined electric power supply apparatus to the electric pump, to have the electric pump operate.