A control device for an actuator learns a reference position of a shaft when the operation of the engine of a vehicle is not obstructed in a period during which the engine is operating, and performs feedback control by using the reference position learned thereby in such a way that the position of the shaft detected by a position sensor gets close to a target position.

A method and apparatus is provided for regenerating an after-treatment device associated with an exhaust system of an internal combustion engine. A lambda error control provides a lambda error signal based upon a measured lambda value and a predetermined lambda value indicative of rich operation. An after-injection map provides an after-injection preset based upon a speed and a torque of the internal combustion engine. A main injection map provides a torque-making main injection preset based upon the speed of the internal combustion engine and the torque of the internal combustion engine. A controller is configured to provide an after-injection quantity signal based upon the after-injection preset, the lambda error signal and a main injection quantity signal based upon the main injection preset and the lambda error signal such that the measured lambda value is maintained within a regeneration range.

A method of controlling the operation of an air charging system is disclosed. A plurality of output parameters of the air charging system are monitored. An error between each one of the monitored output parameters and a target value thereof is calculated. Each one of the calculated errors is applied to a linear controller that yields a virtual input which is used to calculate a plurality of input parameters for the air charging system. Each one of the input parameters is used to determine the position of a corresponding actuator of the air charging system and operate of the actuators according to the determined position thereof. The inputs parameters are calculated with a non-linear mathematical model of the air charging system configured such that each one of the virtual inputs is in a linear relation with only one of the output parameters.

A method and apparatus is provided for regenerating an after-treatment device associated with an exhaust system of an internal combustion engine. A lambda error control provides a lambda error signal based upon a measured lambda value and a predetermined lambda value indicative of rich operation. An after-injection map provides an after-injection preset based upon a speed and a torque of the internal combustion engine. A main injection map provides a torque-making main injection preset based upon the speed of the internal combustion engine and the torque of the internal combustion engine. A controller is configured to provide an after-injection quantity signal based upon the after-injection preset, the lambda error signal and a main injection quantity signal based upon the main injection preset and the lambda error signal such that the measured lambda value is maintained within a regeneration range.

Advanced combustion modes, such as PCCI, operate near the system stability limits. In PCCI, the combustion event begins without a direct combustion trigger in contrast to traditional spark-ignited gasoline engines and direct-injected diesel engines. The lack of a direct combustion trigger encourages the usage of model-based controls to provide robust control of the combustion phasing. The nonlinear relationships between the control inputs and the combustion system response often limit the effectiveness of traditional, non-model-based controllers. Accurate knowledge of the system states and inputs is helpful for implementation of an effective nonlinear controller. A nonlinear controller is developed and implemented to control the engine combustion timing during diesel PCCI operation by targeting desired values of the in-cylinder oxygen concentration, pressure, and temperature during early fuel injection.

A control device for an actuator learns a reference position of a shaft when the operation of the engine of a vehicle is not obstructed in a period during which the engine is operating, and performs feedback control by using the reference position learned thereby in such a way that the position of the shaft detected by a position sensor gets close to a target position.

A control device for an internal combustion engine includes: a flow path module which is configured for: receiving a specified value for a flow path parameter of a flow path of the internal combustion engine; and determining a control specification for a control element of the flow path depending on the specified value using at least one component characteristic map of at least one component of the flow path.

A control device for an internal combustion engine includes: a flow path module which is configured for: receiving a specified value for a flow path parameter of a flow path of the internal combustion engine; and determining a control specification for a control element of the flow path depending on the specified value using at least one component characteristic map of at least one component of the flow path.