EP1687523A1

EP1687523A1 - Injection unit and injection method for an internal combustion engine

Info

Publication number: EP1687523A1
Application number: EP04819234A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Richard Lang; Gerald Plank
Original assignee: Siemens AG
Current assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH
Priority date: 2003-11-27
Filing date: 2004-11-03
Publication date: 2006-08-09
Anticipated expiration: 2024-11-03
Also published as: CN1886589A; DE502004008927D1; US20070095329A1; DE10355411B3; US7318417B2; JP2007512463A; WO2005052355A1; CN100443713C; JP4404906B2; EP1687523B1

Abstract

The invention relates to an injection unit (10), for an internal combustion engine, comprising a pressure reservoir (12), for storing fuel pumped from a fuel tank (16) and an injector arrangement (20), connected to the pressure reservoir, by means of a pressure line arrangement (18), whereby the injector arrangement (20) has at least one servo injection valve, provided with a control valve, for the release of fuel from a control chamber into a fuel return line (22), leading to the fuel tank (16) and which may be operated by means of a piezoelectric actuator to cause a displacement of a nozzle body in the direction of an injection passage opening, for initiating an injection process by pressure reduction in the control chamber. According to the invention, the fuel return line (22) is provided with a controllable valve (40), which restricts the fuel flow in the fuel return line in the actuated state. It is thus possible to reduce the effects of a of a change of length of the piezoelectric actuator, which exceeds the so-called tolerance gap in the servo injection valve, which are detrimental to the operation of the injection unit.

Description

description

Injection system and injection method for an internal combustion engine

The present invention relates to an injection system and a method for operating an injection system for an internal combustion engine according to the preamble of claim 1 and claim 7.

Such an injection system and such an injection method are known for example from DE 100 15 740 AI. In this prior art comprises a Injektora ^¬ UTHORISATION at least one servo injection valve, which is actuated by means of a piezoelectric actuator to cause an injection passage for initiating an injection process by pressure reduction in a control chamber a movement of a servo-valve-nozzle body (nozzle needle) in the direction of an opening between a nozzle chamber of the servo injection valve and a combustion chamber of the internal combustion engine in question is provided.

A major advantage of using a servo injector actuated by means of a piezoelectric actuator is that with a comparatively small stroke of the piezoelectric actuator, an independent, usually much larger stroke of the nozzle body can be achieved (stroke ratio). In addition, there is the advantage that the movement of the nozzle body for opening and closing the injection passage is driven by the pressure of the fuel, which is already available in the area of the injection valve under comparatively high pressure for the purposes of injection into the combustion chamber. For the control of the A piezoelectric actuator with a comparatively short stroke and comparatively low actuator force is therefore sufficient for the injection valve. A piezoelectric actuator generally has a stack of piezo elements lying one on top of the other, which changes its length rapidly when an electrical voltage is applied, to an extent dependent on the voltage, among other things. A wide variety of suitable piezoelectric ceramics are known, for example as lead zirconate titanate ceramics, and are particularly interesting for use with injection valves because of their high rate of change and their high piezo forces.

However, since the length of the piezoelectric actuator does not only depend on the applied voltage, but is also subject, for example, to manufacturing tolerances and a dependency on the temperature of the actuator, a more or less large gap in the path of action becomes in the design of a servo injector actuated by a piezoelectric actuator Actuator provided for a control valve body, which serves as a tolerance range for undesirable deviations and / or changes in the actuator length.

This so-called tolerance gap in the piezo-actuated injection valve should on the one hand be dimensioned as small as possible in order to maximize the usable stroke of the actuator and on the other hand should be dimensioned as large as possible in order to avoid any change in the length of the valve caused by operation in as many operating states as possible piezoelectric actuator exceeds the tolerance gap and thus already actuates the control valve without actuating the actuator. In the latter respect, for example, ne thermally driven expansion of the piezoelectric ceramic at an increased actuator temperature, as can occur in particular under certain circumstances during operation of the internal combustion engine. Accordingly, the tolerance gap can hardly be dimensioned "optimally" in practice.

If the tolerance gap can be exceeded due to an increase in the temperature of the actuator and the fuel that is led from the pressure accumulator via a pressure line to the control chamber can be released further via the control valve into the practically unpressurized leakage line (compared to the fuel system pressure in the pressure accumulator), the result is yet another problem. If namely the internal combustion engine is to be started in the "hot state", e.g. B. after a preceding prolonged operation with a subsequent shutdown of the internal combustion engine, so the release of fuel from the control space into the leakage line of the pressure build-up in the pressure accumulator can be considerably more difficult due to or deferrers ^¬ be siege. However, the build-up of a certain minimum system pressure, which is typically a few 100 bar, is necessary in order to realize an injection from the nozzle chamber into the combustion chamber at all.

From DE 199 05 340 02 a method and an arrangement for presetting and dynamic tracking of piezoelectric actuators is known, in which a DC voltage is supplied to the piezo actuator for this purpose, which is optionally superimposed on a pulsed control voltage. This DC voltage component then determines a new rest position of the actuator and can thus be used to adjust the idle stroke and to adjust the idle stroke during operation. From DE 37 42 241 AI a piezo control valve is known which consists of a piezo actuator arranged in a housing and a valve. A hydraulic lash adjuster within the control valve automatically compensates for possible changes in length of the reference system, so that the same stroke on the valve is always guaranteed with the same working stroke of the piezo actuator. The disadvantage of these two approaches to solving the problem explained at the outset is the associated effort in the area of the electronic devices for controlling the injector arrangement or in the area of the injector arrangement itself.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an injection system and an injection method for an internal combustion engine, in which the effects of a change in length of the piezoelectric actuator exceeding the tolerance gap in the servo injection valve are detrimental to the operation of the injection system or the internal combustion engine can be reduced or eliminated.

This object is achieved by an injection system according to claim 1 and a method for operating an injection system according to claim 7. The dependent claims relate to advantageous developments of the invention.

It is essential for the invention that the leakage line in the injection system is provided with a controllable valve which, in a controlled state, inhibits the fuel flow in the leakage line or that the fuel injection flow is selectively inhibited in the leakage line. If the tolerance gap is exceeded by one of the actual piezo— Control independent change in length of the actuator, hereinafter also referred to briefly as "actuator overhang", can be mitigated or even eliminated the negative effects of this situation in a relatively simple manner by the fuel flow inhibition. If there is an actuator overhang and the

If fuel flow in the leakage line is inhibited, this leads to an increase in pressure in the leakage line between the location of the inhibition and the leakage outlet of the servo injection valve. On the one hand, this can prevent the nozzle body from becoming unwanted (without active

Actuation of the actuator) in the direction of an opening of the injection passage, which is particularly important in the operation of the internal combustion engine. On the other hand, the problem of hot starting of the internal combustion engine due to the delayed system pressure build-up (with a temperature-related actuator overhang) can be eliminated, since the pressure increase in the leakage line considerably accelerates the pressure build-up in the pressure accumulator.

Another advantage of the solution according to the invention is that it can also be easily implemented as part of a retrofit, since essentially only a modification of the leakage line arrangement, e.g. B. by installing a further, controllable valve, as well as a comparatively simple modification or addition to the engine control electronics is required, in which in practice already existing sensor systems can be advantageously used to detect operating states of the internal combustion engine and / or the injection system.

With the invention, a steady readiness to drive of a vehicle operated by means of an internal combustion engine can be advantageous, even if the actuator protrudes be ensured in injection valves, wherein this hydraulic solution can be used not only in the starting phase of the internal combustion engine but also during operation, in order to "intercept" a change in length of the actuator due to operation.

Of course, the measures according to the invention can be used in combination with the measures already implemented, such as. B. with the above-mentioned active electrical adjustment or tracking of the actuator idle stroke ("active piezo contraction") or cooling the internal combustion engine.

In one embodiment it is provided that the injector arrangement comprises a plurality of servo injection valves which are connected via the pressure line arrangement to the pressure accumulator which is shared for this plurality of servo injection valves. Such injection systems are known per se as so-called accumulator injection systems, which generally work with very high injection pressures (for example in the range from a few 100 bar to about 1,600 bar). Such systems are known as common rail systems (for diesel engines) and HPDI injection systems (for gasoline engines).

If the injector arrangement comprises a plurality of servo injection valves, as will usually be the case, then each of the plurality of leakage lines could be provided with its own controllable valve for fuel flow inhibition. However, since fuel flow inhibition in the leakage line hardly impairs the proper operation of a servo injector connected to it, in which there is no actuator protrusion, one can Simplification in that the leakage lines of this plurality of servo injectors are brought together and the fuel flow is provided in the merged leakage line part, that is, for. B. the controllable valve is only arranged in this merged leakage line part.

A simple actuation of the control valve results when the piezoelectric actuator acts on a valve body of the control valve via a plunger, wherein the tolerance gap can be provided between the actuator and the plunger or between the plunger and the valve body.

The effect of the fuel flow inhibition in the leakage line can be provided to be particularly great by blocking the fuel flow when the controllable valve is activated, i. H. is completely inhibited.

In one embodiment, the injection system further comprises an electronic injection control unit for operating the injector arrangement and for controlling the controllable valve. In this case, the functions of the actual injection control and the control of the controllable valve for fuel flow inhibition are advantageously combined. In this case, operating parameters required in particular for controlling the controllable valve can be used or derived directly from the injection control.

In a preferred embodiment, the controllable valve is controlled as a function of predetermined, in particular measured, operating parameters of the internal combustion engine and / or the injection system. Such operating parameters can in particular the fuel pressure in the pressure accumulator, the force include material pressure in the leakage line, the temperature in a region of the internal combustion engine or the injector arrangement, the speed of the internal combustion engine and its load or its control ("accelerator pedal position") etc. Particularly advantageous operating parameters can also be used, which representative of the condition of individual or al- ^• ler of piezoelectric actuators (z. B. for the temperature and / or rest length), respectively. The latter parameters can be obtained indirectly, for example, from an electronic device for actuating the piezo actuators (motor control device), for example. B. by detecting the electrical capacity of the actuators. Finally, suitable parameters can also be derived from the characteristic of the movement of the nozzle body, which is often recorded anyway (for example for injection quantity control) in response to a piezo control in the operation of the injection system. To capture this characteristic be ^¬ known servo injection valves of the type of interest here are often provided with a .empfindlichen to the position of the nozzle body sensors.

In a preferred embodiment, a plurality of operating parameters, such as those mentioned above, are combined in an electronic evaluation device and control signals for the or the controllable valves for fuel flow inhibition in the leakage line are generated from a previously stored characteristic map and are supplied to these valves for electronic control ,

In a further development of the invention, it is provided that the controllable valve for fuel flow inhibition is actuated when a certain operating parameter state for the fuel flow inhibition is present and according to a predefined (or alternatively according to a time-dependent period of certain operating parameters) is returned to the idle state. This idle state can then, for. B. can be maintained for a fixed predetermined period of time (dead time). With measures of this type, the fuel flow inhibition can be greatly limited in terms of time, so that, in particular, a system that has been retrofitted according to the invention is not significantly impaired in its normal function.

Another development of the invention provides that the fuel flow inhibition is designed in such a way that a predetermined maximum pressure in the leakage line cannot be exceeded. This could be done, for example, by measuring the leakage line pressure and forcing the fuel flow inhibition in the

If the maximum pressure is reached. Alternatively or additionally, however, there is the simple possibility of providing the fuel flow inhibitor (valve) in question with a bypass or "bypass" line arranged in parallel, which opens automatically when the maximum pressure is reached and thus reliably prevents undesired excess pressure in the leakage line. The avoidance of excess pressure in the leakage line serves in particular to protect the injection servo valves in question, the leakage path of which must not be too high a pressure to avoid damage (typically, for example, 3.5 bar).

The invention is explained below on the basis ^of an exemplary ^embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings erläu-. They represent: 1 shows a schematic illustration to explain the tolerance gap in a piezo-actuated servo injector, and

Fig. 2 is a schematic representation of an injection system, in which a plurality of servo injection valves of the type shown in Fig. 1 is used. In Fig. 1, part of a high-pressure injection servo valve for an internal combustion engine is shown schematically in its closed state.

This high-pressure valve has a low-pressure region L which is connected to a leakage line, not shown, and a high-pressure region H which is connected to a pressure accumulator via a pressure line, not shown. These two areas L, H, which are acted upon with different pressure, are separated from one another by a control valve which is formed by a control valve seat S and a control valve body K which is driven against the control valve seat S by the high pressure in the high pressure area H.

The high-pressure area H forms a control chamber (not shown) or is connected to such a control chamber, in which the pressure prevailing there acts on the rear (upper) end of an axially movably mounted and guided nozzle body (nozzle needle), around a front (lower) end to push this nozzle body against an injection nozzle valve seat (not shown) and thus to close injection passages leading to a combustion chamber of the internal combustion engine. Although the front end of the nozzle body is located in a nozzle space that is also under high pressure, the nozzle body in the rest state shown is nevertheless pushed downward to close the injection passages, since the force pushing the nozzle body downward is greater than that at the lower end due to a relatively large cross-sectional area of the nozzle body at its upper end

Force acting at the end of the nozzle body. To initiate a

Injection process is the pressure in the control room or in the

High-pressure region H is reduced in the manner described below in order to cause the nozzle body to move in the direction of an opening of the injection passage.

The pressure is reduced in the high-pressure region H by controlled opening of the control valve formed by the valve seat S and the valve body K by means of a piezoelectric actuator P, which is surrounded by a housing G in the low-pressure region L and is provided with electrical connections A for its control. By applying a voltage to the connections A of the actuator P, the actuator length can be extended in the direction of the arrow VR (preferred polarization of the piezoelectric ceramic) in order to act on the valve body K via a plunger T. A tolerance gap d is provided between the actuator P and the plunger T, which serves as a safety distance for thermal changes in length of the piezo-ceramic and typically, for. B. has a dimension between 3 and 5 microns. Now step on the piezoelectric actuator P, z. B. due to adverse environmental influences, changes in length that go beyond the dimension of this gap d, the actuator P presses in the idle state via the tappet T on the valve body K, which ultimately leads to a leakage of fuel from the high pressure region H leads into the low pressure area L and the leakage line connected to it. During operation of the internal combustion engine, this "actuator overhang" means an opening tendency for the servo injector, even if this is not actively controlled electrically via the connections A. In the event of a hot start of the internal combustion engine, this means that the pressure build-up in the pressure accumulator cannot be built up or cannot be built up quickly to an extent that is necessary for the start of fuel injection.

However, these problems are avoided by the construction of an injection system described below with reference to FIG. 2, in which the hydraulic pressure in the low-pressure region L is temporarily increased, in particular when such an actuator projection is detected.

2 shows an injection system 10 for an internal combustion engine (not shown), comprising a pressure accumulator 12 for storing fuel conveyed from a fuel tank 16 into the pressure accumulator 12 by means of a high-pressure pump 14, and an injector arrangement 20 connected to the pressure accumulator 12 via a pressure line arrangement 18 Injecting the fuel into the internal combustion engine. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the injector arrangement 20 consists of four servo injection valves, which are supplied with fuel via four separate pressure lines 18 from the pressure accumulator 12 provided for this purpose.

Each of the servo injection valves is of the type explained with reference to FIG. 1 and has a control chamber and a nozzle chamber, both of which are supplied with fuel from the pressure accumulator 12 via the respective pressure line, this fuel being supplied by the high-pressure pump 14, high system pressure. Servo injection valves of this type are well known to the person skilled in the art, so that a further explanation is not necessary here. As already described with reference to FIG. 1, an injection process is initiated in each case by reducing the pressure in the control chamber of the respective servo injector, which for this purpose is provided with a piezoelectrically operated control valve for releasing fuel from the control chamber into a leakage line 22.

In Fig. 2 you can also see two fuel filters 24 and 26 for coarse and fine filtering of the fuel, which has a

Prefeed pump is fed 28 to an input of the high pressure pump 14, a high pressure line 30 ter to promote un ^¬ system pressurized fuel from the high pressure pump 14 into the accumulator 12, a high pressure sensor 32 to the measure- ment of the pressure in the pressure accumulator 12, from the high pressure pump 14 outgoing fuel return line 34 for the removal of excess fuel from the pump 14 to the leakage line 22 and thus further back into the fuel tank 16, and an electronic engine control unit ECU with a series of input connections 36 and a series of output connections 38, by means of which operating parameters are known in a manner known per se of the internal combustion engine and the injection system are detected and evaluated via the input connections 36 and signals are generated at the output connections 38 with which the electrical and electronic components of the

Systems are controlled, e.g. B. the components 28, 14, 20 shown.

In addition, the engine control unit ECU controls a leakage control valve 40 arranged in the combined course of the leakage line 22, with which, depending on the detected operating parameters and by means of a suitably designed map, the fuel return flow from the individual injector Ren the injector assembly 20 can be blocked in the fuel tank 16 via the leakage line 22. Using known methods, the engine control unit ECU detects any actuator protrusion that may occur in one of the injectors by evaluating the measured operating parameters. In this case, it causes the leakage control valve 40 to be briefly activated for a short-term blocking of the fuel return flow, e.g. B. for a predetermined period of time of a few seconds. It is thus possible both to accelerate the pressure build-up in the pressure accumulator 12, which tends to be delayed in the case of an actuator protrusion, when the internal combustion engine starts hot, and to intercept the internal combustion engine when the actuator protrusion occurs during operation, and thus to maintain proper operation.

Claims

claims

1. Injection system for an internal combustion engine, comprising - a pressure accumulator (12) for storing fuel delivered by means of a high pressure pump (14) from a fuel tank (16) into the pressure accumulator, and

- An injector arrangement (20) connected to the pressure accumulator (12) via a pressure line arrangement (18) for injecting the fuel into the internal combustion engine, the injector arrangement (20) comprising at least one servo injection valve, in which both a nozzle space is provided via a pressure line and a control chamber is supplied with fuel from the pressure accumulator (12) and in which a nozzle body for opening and closing an injection passage leading from the nozzle chamber to a combustion chamber is movably guided and the nozzle body at its end facing the injection passage is the pressure of the fuel in the nozzle chamber and at its opposite end is exposed to the pressure of the fuel in the control chamber, the servo injection valve being provided with a control valve for releasing fuel from the control chamber into a leakage line (22) leading to the fuel tank (16), which is operated by means of a piezoelectric actuator is actuated to z Ur initiation of an injection process by reducing the pressure in the control chamber to cause a movement of the nozzle body in the direction of an opening of the injection passage, characterized in that the leakage line (22) is provided with a controllable valve (40) which blocks the fuel flow in the leakage line (22) in a controlled state, the valve (40) depending on predetermined operating parameters of the internal combustion engine and / or the injection system is activated and is only brought into an idle state again after a predeterminable period of time.

2. Injection system according to claim 1, wherein the injector arrangement (20) comprises a plurality of servo injection valves which are connected via the pressure line arrangement (18) to the pressure accumulator (12) shared for this plurality of servo injection valves.

3. Injection system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the injector arrangement (20) comprises a plurality of servo injection valves, the leakage lines (22) of which are merged, the merged leakage line part being provided with the controllable valve (40).

4. Injection system according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the predetermined operating parameters include the presence or absence of an actuator protrusion on the servo injection valve.

5. Injection system according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the idle state of the valve (40) is forcibly maintained after a control for a fixed predetermined further period.

6. Injection system according to one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising an electronic injection control unit (ECU) for operating the injector arrangement (20) and for controlling the controllable valve (40).

Method for operating an injection system (10) for an internal combustion engine, the injection system comprising:

- a pressure accumulator (12) for storing fuel conveyed from a fuel tank into the pressure accumulator by means of a high-pressure pump, and

an injector arrangement (20) connected to the pressure accumulator (12) via a pressure line arrangement (18) for injecting the fuel into the internal combustion engine,

wherein the injector arrangement comprises at least one servo injection valve in which both a nozzle chamber and a control chamber are supplied with fuel from the pressure accumulator via a pressure line and in which a nozzle body for opening and closing an injection passage leading from the nozzle chamber to a combustion chamber is movably guided and the nozzle body is exposed to the pressure of the fuel in the nozzle chamber at its end facing the injection passage and to the pressure of the fuel in the control chamber at its opposite end,

wherein the servo injector with a control valve for releasing fuel from the control chamber into a

Fuel tank leading leakage line is provided,

the method comprising the step of actuating the control includes a piezoelectric actuator to initiate an injection process. Reduction in pressure in the control chamber to cause a movement of the nozzle body in the direction of an opening of the injection passage, characterized by a blocking of the fuel flow in the leakage line (22) which is provided depending on predetermined operating parameters of the internal combustion engine and / or the injection system and which is only lifted again after a predetermined period of time has elapsed becomes.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the predetermined operating parameters include the presence or absence of an actuator protrusion on the servo injector.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the lifting of the blocking is forcibly maintained for a predetermined predetermined period of time.