A controller for a hybrid vehicle controls an electric motor such that a motor torque is input to a crankshaft in order to compensate for a decrease in an engine torque when a cylinder deactivation control is executed, the decrease resulting from suspension of combustion in one or some of cylinders. The controller calculates an engine torque calculated value using an engine rotation speed, a motor rotation speed, and the motor torque. The controller diagnoses that the cylinder deactivation control is functioning normally when the engine torque calculated value is less than a torque determination value and diagnose that the cylinder deactivation control is not functioning normally when the engine torque calculated value is not less than the torque determination value during the execution of the cylinder deactivation control.

A device for remotely changing the control of power generated by an internal combustion engine of a recreational vehicle driven by a driver controlling an accelerator pedal. The device includes a remote control, sending a signal for modulating the power and/or speed of the engine. The device comprises a system for measuring the position of the accelerator pedal, a system for receiving the signal for modulating the power and/or speed, a system for controlling the intake of gases into the engine, and an electronics module connected to the various systems, establishing rules for controlling the intake control system, depending on the position of the accelerator pedal and the received modulation signal.

The objective is to improve driving feeling at a time of acceleration operation or deceleration operation, by recognizing driver's intention of acceleration or deceleration during straight-ahead running. A driving-assistance control apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a straight-running determination unit that determines whether or not a vehicle is running straight, a head-position detection unit that detects a head position of a driver, a driving-posture determination unit that determines the posture of the driver, based on the head position detected by the head-position detection unit, and a driving-assistance control unit that performs acceleration preparation control for raising a reaction speed for acceleration operation or deceleration preparation control for raising a reaction speed for deceleration operation in accordance with an output of the driving-posture determination unit, when the straight-running determination unit determines that a vehicle is running straight.

Vehicle designers are largely walking away from internal-combustion engines to battery and electric motors. Until infrastructure is developed to support total electrification, hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs) which include both an internal combustion engine and an electric machine are a step toward electrification and higher system fuel efficiency while retaining the expected vehicle range. To obtain even higher system fuel efficiency combustion modes that provide higher efficiency than spark-ignition (SI) operation can be used in HEVs. A problem with such combustion modes is that they cannot be used over as wide an operating range as SI operation and transitions among modes is slow and cumbersome. By having the ICE installed into a HEV be a multi-combustion mode engine and having the EM to coordinate mode switches to be smooth, the high fuel-efficiency of alternative combustion modes can be exploited while providing smooth operation expected by vehicle users.

Engine combustion mode-switching transitions are controlled through a coordination control of an electric machine and a multi-combustion mode engine coupled to each other with a hybrid propulsion system by following predetermined combustion mode-switching strategies and control algorithms.

A method of reducing cold start emissions in a series mode hybrid electric vehicle, including an internal combustion engine with an exhaust duct having a catalyst and a downstream oxygen sensor, an output of the combustion engine being connected to an electric generator with a power output of at least 10 kW that is connected to an electric motor which is coupled to a drive shaft of two or more wheels. The method includes detecting a cold start condition, injecting fuel into the engine such that combustion at a lambda value, λ, is achieved for which λ>1, running the engine at a speed of 1000 rpm or higher, determining if the efficiency of the catalyst reaches a first level, setting λ to about 1 after the predetermined efficiency level of the catalyst has been reached, and reducing the speed to working conditions when the catalyst efficiency reaches a second level.

A hybrid vehicle includes a multi-cylinder engine, an exhaust gas control apparatus, an electric motor, an electricity storage device, and a controller. The controller is configured to control the electric motor so as to cover a driving power shortage resulting from execution of catalyst temperature raising control. The catalyst temperature raising control is control that involves stopping fuel supply to at least one of cylinders of the multi-cylinder engine and enriching air-fuel ratios for the other cylinders than the at least one cylinder.

Provided is a control device for a vehicle, the vehicle including an internal combustion engine, a generator capable of being rotated by the internal combustion engine, a battery that stores power generated by rotation of the generator, and a motor that is supplied with power from the battery and outputs a driving force to a drive wheel, wherein, at a timing at which a requested output, which is requested when the internal combustion engine is operating with the internal combustion engine and the drive wheel not mechanically connected to each other and the internal combustion engine is performing a stoichiometric operation that operates in accordance with a theoretical air-to-fuel ratio, is equal to or greater than a threshold value, the control device starts to increase the number of rotations of the internal combustion engine to the number of rotations set in a rich operation where a ratio of a fuel of the internal combustion engine to oxygen is higher than the theoretical air-to-fuel ratio.

A hybrid vehicle includes a multi-cylinder engine, an exhaust gas control apparatus including a catalyst for removing exhaust gas from the multi-cylinder engine, an electric motor, and a control device configured to execute catalyst temperature increase control for stopping fuel supply to at least one cylinder and making an air-fuel ratio in each of remaining cylinders rich in a case where a temperature increase of a catalyst is requested during a load operation of the multi-cylinder engine, execute control such that an electric motor supplements insufficient drive power due to the execution of the catalyst temperature increase control, and change the air-fuel ratio in at least one of the remaining cylinders to a lean side after a temperature of the exhaust gas control apparatus becomes equal to or higher than a determination threshold value during the execution of the catalyst temperature increase control.

A hybrid vehicle may include: an engine including a plurality of cylinders for generating power required for driving the hybrid vehicle by combustion of fuel; a first motor starting the engine and selectively operating as a generator to generate electrical energy; a second motor generating power required for driving the hybrid vehicle; a clutch provided between the engine and the second motor; and a controller configured for synchronizing a velocity of the second motor and an engine velocity and for coupling the clutch, in a transition section in which the engine moves from a stop state to an optimal operation point area as an operation area of the engine, and gradually decreasing a torque of the second motor and gradually adjusting the number of combusted cylinders among the plurality of combustion chambers to gradually increase the engine torque.