JP2006329022A - Intake control device for internal combustion engine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To minimize decrease in output along with suppression of knocking in acceleration and thereby to improve acceleration feel, in an intake control device having a lift variable mechanism provided in an intake-side valve system to change a lift amount of an intake valve depending on operational status of an engine. <P>SOLUTION: A lift characteristic of an intake valve is changed so that a lift amount becomes larger toward a high-load side or a high-rotating-speed side, basically, and a valve-opening period is extended to retard valve closing timing by means of the lift variable mechanism. In an engine low-engine-speed area, the intake valve does not get to the maximum lift amount even in full-load. However, a filling efficiency of the intake may be deteriorated if the lift amount is increased. Therefore, a target value of a basic lift amount control is shifted to the high-rotating-speed side when the knocking is determined to increase the lift amount, so that the filling efficiency is instantaneously deteriorated to suppress the knocking. Then, increase in output along with increase in engine speed provides good acceleration feel. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an intake control device for an engine in which the lift amount of an intake valve is changed according to the operating state of the engine, and particularly belongs to the field of control technology for coping with knocking.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-260260, there has been known an engine valve system that is provided with a variable lift mechanism that continuously changes the lift amount and opening / closing timing of an intake valve. In this device, the operation of the eccentric cam of the intake side camshaft is transmitted to the swing cam via a link, and the intake valve is opened and closed by this swing cam. Then, by changing the position of the fulcrum of the link, the swing locus of the swing cam is made variable so that the lift amount of the intake valve is continuously changed.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 5 and the like of the same document, in the above-described variable lift mechanism, the valve opening period increases with the increase in the lift amount of the intake valve, and the closing timing thereof is retarded. . Such a variable lift mechanism is normally controlled so that the lift amount increases as the load is higher or the rotation speed is higher, depending on the operating state of the engine.

On the other hand, in the engine having a variable mechanism in the valve system as described above, when knocking occurs during acceleration operation, the lift amount of the intake valve is decreased or the opening / closing timing of the intake / exhaust valve is changed. Thus, a technique of suppressing knocking by reducing the effective compression ratio of the cylinder or increasing the residual gas amount is also known (see, for example, Patent Document 2).
JP 2004-301058 A JP 2004-052677 A

  However, in an engine having a variable lift mechanism such as the former conventional example (Patent Document 1), when the lift amount of the intake valve is increased in accordance with the increase in load and rotation speed due to the acceleration operation, If it is reduced temporarily, knocking can be suppressed by this, but after that, it takes extra time to increase the lift amount again, and the increase in engine rotation is slowed accordingly. This will impair acceleration feeling.

  The present invention has been made in view of such points, and an object of the present invention is to provide an intake control device that changes the lift characteristics of the intake valve in accordance with the operating state of the engine. An object of the present invention is to obtain a good acceleration feeling while suppressing knocking while minimizing a decrease in output accompanying this.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, the inventor of the present application has decided that the engine having the variable lift mechanism as in the former conventional example (Patent Document 1) is likely to cause knocking, that is, for example, in a low rotation range. When full load is reached, the intake valve is not at maximum lift even at full load, so it can be increased by increasing the lift amount in the same way as reducing the lift amount of the intake valve. We paid attention to the decrease in the effective compression ratio of the cylinder.

  Specifically, in the lift variable mechanism in which the valve opening period is extended and the closing timing is delayed as the lift amount of the intake valve increases as in the conventional example, the lift amount is naturally increased as the engine load increases. However, not only that, it is preferable to extend the valve opening period in accordance with the increase in engine rotation and to retard the closing timing until after the bottom dead center. This is because when the engine speed is high, even if the valve opening period as viewed from the crank angle is the same, the time is shortened. This is because the intake air still flows into the cylinder.

  On the other hand, since the inertia of the intake air flow is small in the low speed range, it is difficult for the intake air to flow into the cylinder even if the intake valve is open until after bottom dead center, rather the intake air is blown back to the intake port, and the charging efficiency is reduced There is a fear. Therefore, in order to increase the engine output in the low engine speed range, it is better to close the intake valve near the bottom dead center of the cylinder. For this reason, the maximum and minimum intermediate lift amounts are used instead of maximizing the lift amount. It is.

  In other words, when the engine having the variable lift mechanism as described above is in a full load state in response to the rapid acceleration operation in a low rotation range, and the occurrence of knocking is a concern, the lift amount of the intake valve By increasing the intermediate lift amount from the intermediate lift amount, it is possible to reduce the charging efficiency of the intake air in the same way as reducing the lift amount, thereby reducing the effective compression ratio and suppressing knocking. is there.

Therefore, the present invention provides a variable lift mechanism that changes the lift characteristics of the intake valve of the engine so that the valve opening period is increased and the closing timing is delayed as the lift amount increases. On the premise of an intake control device for an engine provided with a lift control means for controlling the variable lift mechanism so that the lift amount increases as the load or the high rotation side increases,
Determining means for determining knocking associated with acceleration operation of the engine, and correction control means for shifting the control target value of the variable lift mechanism by the lift control means to a value on the high rotation side when knocking is determined by the determining means; (Claim 1) or
A determination means for determining a sudden acceleration operation exceeding a predetermined value of the engine; and when a rapid acceleration operation is determined by the determination means in a low rotation range of the engine, a control target value of the variable lift mechanism by the lift control means is set to a high rotation side. Or a correction control means for shifting to the value (Claim 2).

  With the above configuration, in a steady operation state of the engine, the lift variable mechanism is controlled by the lift control means in accordance with the operation state, and the lift amount of the intake valve is relatively increased as the load increases from the high load to the high rotation side. As the lift amount increases, the valve opening period increases as the lift amount increases, and the closing timing of the intake valve is delayed.

  Here, “higher load or higher rotation side” means higher load side when compared at the same rotation speed, and higher rotation side when compared at the same load state. By changing the lift characteristic of the intake valve in accordance with the load and the rotational speed, the cylinder is filled with an amount of air corresponding to the output request to the engine.

  That is, on the low-load low-rotation side where the output demand is relatively low, the lift amount of the intake valve and the valve opening period (crank angle) are relatively reduced, thereby reducing the efficiency of charging the cylinder with intake air. At this time, if the closing timing of the intake valve is set before the bottom dead center of the cylinder, the pumping loss can be reduced. On the other hand, on the high-load high-rotation side where the output demand is relatively high, the charging efficiency increases due to the increase in the lift amount and the valve opening period, and if the intake valve is opened after the bottom dead center of the cylinder, The filling efficiency is also improved by the inertia of the flow.

  In the basic control of such a variable lift mechanism, the intake valve does not reach the maximum lift even at the full load in the low engine speed range, and the maximum and minimum intermediate lift states. It is better to close the intake valve near the bottom dead center of the cylinder. This is because the intake air is not blown back from the cylinder to the intake port after the bottom dead center, and the charging efficiency is increased.

  Then, the lift characteristic of the intake valve in the full load state of the engine becomes the intermediate lift amount in the low rotation range and closes at a substantially bottom dead center of the cylinder, and then the lift amount increases as the engine speed increases. Increases and the closing timing changes to the retard side. That is, the lift control means preferably controls the variable lift mechanism so that the closing timing of the intake valve in the high load range of the engine is substantially at or below the bottom dead center of the cylinder. ).

  When the engine having such a configuration is in a state of rapid acceleration exceeding a predetermined value in a low rotation range (Claim 2), or as a result of occurrence of knocking (Claim 1), one of them is determined. The control target value of the variable lift mechanism by the lift control means is increased to the high rotation side, that is, the lift amount of the intake valve is increased, and the valve opening period is widened and closed accordingly. It is shifted so that the time is retarded.

  In other words, it is preferable that the correction control means further delays the closing timing of the intake valve, which is set to approximately the bottom dead center of the cylinder or later in the control of the variable lift mechanism by the lift control means ( Claim 4). If the closing timing of the intake valve is retarded in this way, the charging efficiency is reduced due to the return of intake air to the intake port, and knocking can be more reliably suppressed.

  Here, shifting the control of the variable lift mechanism to the high rotation side in this way means correcting the lift characteristics of the intake valve in a direction in which the operating state of the engine changes due to acceleration operation. Thus, it is not necessary to suddenly increase the lift amount once reduced after knocking suppression, and even if the lift amount remains the same, the output naturally increases as the engine speed increases.

  In other words, instead of reducing the lift amount of the intake valve while accelerating as in the past, on the contrary, the lift amount is increased to suppress knocking, so the engine output decreases momentarily. As the engine speed subsequently increases, the output increases without waiting for a change in the lift amount, so that the engine does not fluctuate and a good acceleration feeling is obtained.

  In particular, when the occurrence of knocking is predicted during sudden acceleration operation in a low rotation range and the lift characteristics of the intake valve are corrected accordingly (Claim 1), it is possible to prevent the occurrence of knocking in advance. However, there is a possibility that useless correction control may be performed even in a situation where knocking is unlikely to occur, such as on a rainy day, and there is a concern that the acceleration performance slightly decreases. On the other hand, if correction control is performed after the determination of knocking (claim 2), there is no such concern, but in this case, knocking must be determined accurately.

  In the intake control device for an engine having the above-described configuration, the variable lift mechanism may change the lift characteristic of the intake valve so that the lift peak timing is advanced as the lift amount is smaller. 5). By doing so, when the lift amount of the intake valve is reduced on the low load or low rotation side of the engine, the closing timing becomes particularly early, and the effect of reducing the pumping loss is increased.

  Further, in such lift characteristics, when the control target value of the lift variable mechanism is shifted to the high rotation side by the correction control described above, the delay rate of the closing timing of the intake valve due to this becomes relatively large. The filling efficiency can be reduced efficiently, and the effects of the above-described invention can be sufficiently obtained with a relatively small correction amount.

  As described above, according to the intake control apparatus for an engine according to the present invention, the lift characteristics of the intake valve that are changed according to the operating state of the engine basically increase as the lift amount increases. Thus, the cylinder can be filled with an amount of air corresponding to an output request to the engine without a throttle valve by delaying the closing timing. This can reduce the pumping loss and reduce the fuel consumption of the engine.

  In addition, when knocking is predicted, such as when fully opening from a low rotation range, or when knocking is actually determined, the basic lift characteristics are corrected and shifted to the high rotation side. By doing so, it is possible to suppress the knocking without reducing the filling efficiency as much as possible and impairing the acceleration feeling.

In particular, as the basic lift characteristic, if the closing timing of the intake valve when the lift amount is small is advanced as much as possible, the pumping loss can be further reduced and the fuel consumption reduction effect can be enhanced. Even if the control amount for the correction is not so large, knocking can be suppressed.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the following description of the preferred embodiment is merely illustrative in nature, and is not intended to limit the present invention, its application, or its use.

(Basic configuration of intake control system)
FIG. 1 shows the configuration of an embodiment of an intake side valve system of an engine to which the present invention is applied. Although not shown, this engine is an in-line four-cylinder engine in which four cylinders are arranged in a line, and each cylinder has two intake valves 1 and 2 and two exhaust valves (not shown). A 4-valve double overhead cam system is used. In the figure, reference numeral 3 is arranged so as to extend in the longitudinal direction of the engine (the lateral direction in the figure) in which the four cylinders are arranged, and is rotated by a crankshaft of the engine via a cam chain (not shown). This is the intake side camshaft.

  A known phase variable mechanism 18 (Variable Cam Timing: hereinafter abbreviated as VCT) capable of changing the rotational phase of the camshaft 3 relative to the crankshaft within a predetermined angle range is attached to the front end portion of the camshaft 3. Has been. Although not described in detail, the VCT 18 includes a rotor fixed to the front end of the camshaft 3 that passes through the center hole of the sprocket 19 and a casing that is disposed so as to cover the rotor from the front of the engine and is fixed to the sprocket 19. A plurality of hydraulic working chambers are formed between the rotor and the casing side by side in the circumferential direction.

  Then, in response to the input of a control signal from the controller 17, the position of the solenoid valve 20 is switched, so that the direction of the hydraulic pressure supplied to the hydraulic pressure chamber of the VCT 18 is switched, so that the rotor and casing, The camshaft 3 and the sprocket 19 are relatively rotated, whereby the rotational phase of the camshaft 3 with respect to the crankshaft is changed, and the operation timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 is changed.

  A pair of swing cams 4 and 5 are supported on the camshaft 3 so as to be swingable for each cylinder. The pair of swing cams 4, 5 are arranged so as to correspond to the two intake valves 1, 2, respectively, and are connected to each other by a cylindrical connecting portion 9 so as to swing integrally around the camshaft 3. It is supposed to be. As a result, the two intake valves 1 and 2 are lifted simultaneously for each cylinder. The outer peripheral surface of the connecting portion 9 is a cam journal portion that is in sliding contact with the cam bearing surface.

  In order to operate the swing cams 4 and 5 as described above, the camshaft 3 has four circular eccentric cams 6 that are eccentric from the axis X (the rotation center of the camshaft 3: see FIG. 2 and the like). They are integrally provided with a space therebetween. An outer ring 7 is fitted on each eccentric cam 6 so as to be rotatable. The swing cam 5 is connected to an eccentric convex portion provided so as to protrude from the outer periphery of the outer ring 7 via a connecting link 8. It is connected. That is, one end side of the outer ring 7 is rotatably fitted to the eccentric cam 6 of the camshaft 3, and the other end portion (eccentric convex portion) is connected to the swing cam 5 by the connecting link 8 (hereinafter, referred to as “the outer ring 7”). This is called an offset link).

  A control shaft 11 is provided in parallel with the camshaft 3 obliquely above. Four control arms 12 are coupled and fixed to the control shaft 11, and the distal end portion of each control arm 12 and the other end portion of the offset link 7 are connected by a regulation link 13. The restriction link 13 restricts the displacement of the offset link 7 and reciprocates the other end when the one end side of the offset link 7 revolves around the camshaft 3 as the eccentric cam 6 rotates. Thus, the connecting link 8 connected to the other end of the offset link 7 swings the swing cams 4 and 5.

  Further, the control shaft 11 is coupled with a worm gear 14 having teeth formed on only a part of its circumference, and a worm 16 that is driven to rotate by a motor 15 is engaged with the teeth of the worm gear 14. Then, the motor 15 is actuated in response to the input of the control signal from the controller 17 and the control shaft 11 is rotated to change the position of the control arm 12, whereby the reciprocating motion of the other end of the offset link 7 is performed. The trajectory, that is, the swing trajectory of the connecting link 8 is changed, whereby the swing angle of the swing cams 4 and 5 is changed, and the lift characteristics such as the lift amount and opening / closing timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 are changed. It is supposed to be.

  In other words, the connecting link 8 and the restriction link 13 connect the swing cam 5 and the offset link 7 and also operate the offset link 7 accompanying the rotation of the eccentric cam 6 with the swing cam 5 (and the swing link 5). A link mechanism that restricts the moving cam 4) to swing is configured. Further, including the link mechanism, a variable lift mechanism capable of continuously changing the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 by the eccentric cam 6, the offset link 7, the control shaft 11, the control arm 12 and the like of the cam shaft 3. (Variable Valve Lift: hereinafter also referred to as VVL).

  More specifically, the configuration of the VVL is as follows. First, as shown in FIG. 2 (b), a direct acting tappet 21 is provided at the upper end of the stem of the intake valve 2, and the swing cam 5 is applied to the tappet 21. Touching. In the intake valve 2, the intake port 25 is closed by a valve spring 24 provided between a retainer 22 provided in the tappet 21 and a retainer 23 provided in the cylinder head (intake valve 1, 2 lift direction). (Opposite direction). Note that the intake valve 1 has the same configuration as the intake valve 2.

  One end portion of the connection link 8 is rotatably connected to the swing cam 5 by a pin 31, while one end portion of the regulation link 13 is rotatably connected to a tip portion of the control arm 12 by a pin 32. ing. Thus, the connecting link 8 and the regulating link 13 are disposed on both sides of the offset link 7 and are linked with the offset link 7 interposed therebetween. That is, the other end of each of the connection link 8 and the restriction link 13 is connected to the other end of the offset link 7 coaxially and rotatably by the connection pin 33. The pins 31 to 33 all extend parallel to the camshaft 3.

  As shown in the figure, the connecting pin 33 between the offset link 7 and the connecting link 8 is located above the camshaft 3, and the rotation center of the control arm 12 (the axis of the control shaft 11) is located on the side of the connecting pin 33. positioned. The pin 32 at the tip of the control arm 12 is a rotation shaft of the restriction link 13, and by changing the position of the pin 32, the swing trajectory of the restriction link 13 and the connecting pin 33 is changed. , 2 can be changed.

  That is, the specific operation of each link or pin will be described in detail below. The control shaft 11 and the control arm 12 are rotated by the motor 15 so that the pin 32 is moved below the control shaft 11 as shown in FIG. In this case, the swing angle of the swing cams 4 and 5 becomes large, and the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 at the lift peak becomes the largest lift control state. Further, when the pin 32 is moved upward by the rotation of the control arm 12 or the like, the swing angle of the swing cams 4 and 5 is reduced accordingly, and the pin 32 is moved to the camshaft as shown in FIG. If it is positioned above 3, the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 becomes the smallest lift control state.

  In the large lift control state shown in FIG. 2, the swing cam 5 presses the direct acting tappet 21 on the tip side of the cam nose as shown in FIG. A lift peak state (a state where the swing cam 4 greatly lifts the intake valve 1 via the direct acting tappet) and a intake valve 2 (the intake valve 1) as shown in FIG. Oscillates between zero lift and no lift. Similarly, in the case of FIG. 3 which is a small lift control state, it swings between a lift peak state (pressing the tappet 21 on the base end side of the cam nose) and a zero lift state (FIGS. 3A and 3B). reference).

(Operation of variable lift mechanism)
Hereinafter, the operation of such links and cams will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. In both figures, the control arm 12, the connecting link 8, and the restricting link 13 are simply represented by straight lines, and the rotation trajectory of the center of the eccentric cam 6 (the center of the outer ring of the offset link 7) is indicated as T0. ing. As described above, the relationship between the intake valve 1 and the swing cam 4 is the same as the relationship between the intake valve 2 and the swing cam 5, and the swing cam 4 works in the same manner as the swing cam 5. Now, the relationship between the intake valve 2 and the swing cam 5 will be described.

  First, the profile of the oscillating cam 5 itself will be described with reference to FIG. 4. The circumferential surface of the oscillating cam 5 has a base circle surface (base circle section) θ1 having a constant radius of curvature within a predetermined angular range, A cam surface (lift section) θ2 having a gradually increasing radius of curvature is formed following θ1. The figure shows the large lift control state of FIG. 2, and the control arm 12 is in the large lift control position.

  The solid line in FIG. 2 shows the state of FIG. 2B in which the intake valve 2 is in the vicinity of the lift peak. At this time, the pin 31 is pulled up most by the connecting link 8, and the swing cam 5 is The cam nose tip side of the surface θ2 is in contact with the tappet 21. On the other hand, the phantom line shows a zero lift state (FIG. 2A). At this time, the base circle surface θ1 of the swing cam 5 is in contact with the tappet 21, and the intake valve 2 is not lifted (intake air). Valve 2 is closed).

  When the camshaft 3 (eccentric cam 6) rotates in the clockwise direction in the figure, one end side (lower end side in the figure) of the offset link 7 moves along the axis X of the camshaft 3 as indicated by the arrow in the figure. In this case, the displacement of the other end of the offset link 7 is regulated by the regulation link 13 connected thereto. That is, the restriction link 13 swings between the position of the solid line and the position of the phantom line around the pin 32 positioned below the control shaft 11, and accordingly, the other end side of the offset link 7. The (connecting pin 33) reciprocates around the pin 32 every time the eccentric cam 6 makes one revolution (the movement locus of the connecting pin 33 is shown as T1).

  With the reciprocating arc motion T1 of the connecting pin 33, the other end portion (pin 31) of the connecting link 8 whose one end portion is connected to the offset link 7 by the same connecting pin 33 is reciprocated along a locus shown as T2. The oscillating cam 5 that is circularly moved and is connected to the connecting link 8 by the pin 31 oscillates between the position of the solid line and the position of the phantom line in the figure. That is, when the connecting pin 33 moves upward, the pin 31 is pulled upward by the connecting link 8, and the cam nose of the swing cam 5 pushes down the tappet 21, thereby pushing the valve spring 24 (see FIG. 2). The intake valve 2 is lifted while shrinking.

  On the other hand, when the connecting pin 33 moves downward, the pin 31 is pushed downward by the connecting link 8 and the cam nose of the swing cam 5 rises. Therefore, the valve spring 24 compressed as described above. The tappet 21 is pushed up by the reaction force and moves upward so as to follow the rise of the cam nose. The intake valve 2 is pulled up by the retainer 22 in the tappet 21 and the intake port 25 is closed.

  That is, in the large lift control state, the swing cam 5 swings greatly so as to press the tappet 21 by substantially the entire base circle surface θ1 and cam surface θ2 of the peripheral surface, and thus corresponds to such a large swing angle. As a result, the lift amount of the intake valve 2 increases.

  Next, when the control arm 12 is turned upward from the large lift control state until it becomes substantially horizontal around the axis of the control shaft 11, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. The pin 32, which is the moving shaft, is positioned on the near side in the rotational direction of the camshaft 3 with respect to the large lift control state, and the small lift control state with a small lift amount is entered. In FIG. 5 as well, the state where the intake valve 2 is in the vicinity of the lift peak is indicated by a solid line, and the state of zero lift is indicated by a virtual line as in FIG.

  In this figure, when the camshaft 3 (eccentric cam 6) rotates, the displacement of the connecting pin 33 of the offset link 7 is restricted by the restricting link 13 and is located on the side of the control shaft 11 as in the large lift control state. A reciprocating arc motion T3 is performed around the pin 32 (the restriction link 13 reciprocates between the solid line position and the virtual line position in the figure). The pin 31 of the connecting link 8 performs a reciprocating arc motion T4 in accordance with the reciprocating arc motion T3 of the connecting pin 33, and the swing cam 5 connected to the connecting link 8 by the pin 31 is indicated by a solid line in the figure. The intake valve 2 is opened and closed by swinging between the position and the position of the virtual line.

  That is, in the small lift control state, the swing angle of the swing cam 5 is smaller than that in the large lift control state, and the swing cam 5 has a base circle surface θ1 on its peripheral surface and a cam surface continuous therewith. The tappet 21 is pressed only by a part of θ2, and the lift amount of the intake valve 2 is reduced.

(Change in lift characteristics)
Next, FIG. 6 shows the lift curves of the intake valves 1 and 2 that are continuously changed from the large lift control state to the small lift control state by the operation of the variable lift mechanism as described above. In the drawing, a lift curve L1 indicates a large lift control state in which the swing cam 5 swings between the solid line position (near the lift peak in the large lift control state) and the virtual line position (zero lift) in FIG. L2 shows a small lift control state in which the swing cam 5 swings between the solid line position (near the lift peak in the small lift control state) and the virtual line position (zero lift) in FIG.

  In the illustrated example, the lift amount in the large lift control state is about 8.5 mm, and the lift amount in the small lift control state is about 1.0 mm. In this embodiment, although detailed explanation is omitted, in order to improve combustion stability during idling, the entire opening / closing period of the intake valves 1 and 2 is retarded by the operation of the VCT 18, and the phantom line in FIG. A lift curve L3 indicated by indicates a state in which the lift curve in the small lift control state is retarded as described above.

  As shown in the figure, in the variable lift mechanism VVL of this embodiment, the valve opening period (the crank angle period from the opening timing to the closing timing and not including the buffering interval) is increased as the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 increases. As a result, the closing timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 is retarded. This is because, as described above, the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 is changed in response to the change in the swing angle of the swing cam. Is consistent with typical engine intake characteristics.

  That is, in general, the engine load is often increased on the high rotation side, but on the high rotation side, even if the valve opening periods of the intake valves 1 and 2 are the same as viewed from the crank angle, Since the interval becomes shorter, it is necessary not only to increase the intake passage cross-sectional area by increasing the lift amount but also to secure the intake time by increasing the valve opening period (crank angle). Further, if the intake valves 1 and 2 are closed at an appropriate time after the bottom dead center of the cylinder, the charging efficiency can be increased by the inertia of the intake flow.

  If the change in the lift characteristics of the intake valves 1 and 2 as described above is used, the amount corresponding to the output request to the engine is not provided in the intake passage, or the throttle valve is left fully open. The engine output can be controlled by adjusting the intake charge amount. This eliminates the need to throttle the intake passage with the throttle valve for engine output control, and reduces the pumping loss of the engine by eliminating the throttle valve or by fully opening the throttle valve even in the partial load range. it can.

  In this embodiment, as shown in the figure, the lift peak timing (crank angle position) is advanced as the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 is smaller. As described above, in the transition from the large lift control state to the small lift control state, the position of the restriction link 13 is moved to the front side in the rotational direction of the camshaft 3 by the rotation of the control arm 12 or the like. This is because the trajectory of the reciprocating arc motion of the connecting pin 33 moves from the position T1 in FIG. 4 to the position T3 in FIG.

  That is, in the large lift control state shown in FIG. 4, the center of the eccentric cam 6 when the intake valves 1 and 2 are in the vicinity of the lift peak is located at the point Ta on the rotation locus T0. In the small lift control state shown in FIG. 2, the center position of the eccentric cam 6 in the vicinity of the lift peak moves to a point Tb shown in FIG. That is, when shifting from the large lift control state to the small lift control state, the lift peaks of the intake valves 1 and 2 advance by the center angle θ3 of the points Ta and Tb on the rotation locus T0 as shown in FIG. is there.

  Since the lift peak timing is advanced as the lift amount becomes smaller, as shown in FIG. 6, the opening timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 does not change much even if the lift amount changes. While close to the compression top dead center (TDC) of the cylinder, the closing timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 greatly changes with the change in the lift amount. Therefore, when the lift amount is relatively large, the closing timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 can be greatly retarded after the bottom dead center (BDC) of the cylinder, and the charging efficiency is sufficiently increased by the inertia of the intake flow. be able to.

  Conversely, when the lift amount is small, the intake valves 1 and 2 are closed earlier by the advance of the lift peak timing as described above, so that the so-called quick intake closing characteristic becomes stronger. Thus, the pumping loss can be effectively reduced and the fuel consumption reduction effect can be enhanced.

  In this embodiment, the lift characteristic of the intake valve by the lift variable mechanism VVL as described above is basically changed according to the operating state of the engine. For example, referring to a control map as shown in FIG. 7, an appropriate lift amount corresponding to the engine target torque (engine load state) and the engine speed is obtained as a control target value, and this value (target lift amount) is obtained. Thus, the controller 17 controls the operation amount of the motor 15. The control shaft 11 is rotated by the operation of the motor 15, and the rotation position of the control arm 12 is controlled to an appropriate position between the large lift control position and the small lift control position.

  More specifically, according to the control map of FIG. 7, the controller 17 determines that the lift amount becomes larger at the higher rotation side if the target torque is the same, based on the target torque and the rotational speed of the engine. In the case of engine speed, the rotational position of the control arm 12 is changed so that the lift amount increases as the target torque increases, that is, the lift amount increases as the load increases or increases. In other words, the controller 17 controls the lift variable mechanism VVL in accordance with the operating state of the engine as shown by the phantom line in FIG. 1 so that the intake valves 1 and 2 are relatively small on the low load or low rotation side. A lift control unit 17a (lift control means) is provided in the form of a program, which is a lift and a relatively large lift on the high rotation or high load side.

  The reason why the lift amount is changed not only according to the target torque but also according to the engine speed is based on the above-described change characteristic of the lift amount by the VVL. That is, as described above, in the VVL of this embodiment, the valve opening period is widened as the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 is increased, so that the closing timing is retarded. In the rotational range, the closing timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 is greatly retarded until after the bottom dead center of the cylinder, and the charging efficiency is enhanced by the inertia of the high-speed intake flow.

  On the other hand, since the inertia of the intake air flow is reduced when the engine speed is low, the intake air cannot be efficiently flowed into the cylinder even after the intake valves 1 and 2 are opened after the bottom dead center. There is a possibility that the intake efficiency is blown back and the charging efficiency is lowered. In other words, in order to increase the engine output in the low rotation range, it is more important to set the closing timing appropriately than to increase the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2. Even so, the target lift amount is not set to the maximum value, but is set to an intermediate value between the maximum and minimum values.

  Specifically, in this embodiment, as shown in the control map of FIG. 7, when the engine speed is the lowest (for example, 650 rpm), the target lift amount is about 5 mm even in the full load state. At this time, the intake valves 1 and 2 are closed at substantially the bottom dead center of the cylinder as shown in FIG. If the engine speed increases while maintaining the full load state, the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 gradually increases along with this, and the closing timing changes to the retarded side. The lift amount is maximized, and the closing time is greatly delayed from the bottom dead center.

  That is, according to the control map of FIG. 7, in the full load state of the engine, the increase of the inertia of the intake air flow accompanying the increase in the rotational speed causes the intake air flow to efficiently flow into the cylinder even after the bottom dead center. The target lift amount is optimally set for each engine speed.In other words, the target lift amount is set so that the intake charge efficiency is always the highest from the lowest speed to the highest speed under the full load condition of the engine. Has been. As a result, the closing timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 in the full load state is approximately the bottom dead center of the cylinder or later.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of an experimental result in which the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 is changed stepwise from 4 to 7 mm, and the charging efficiency of the cylinder that changes depending on the engine speed is measured. According to the figure, the 5 mm lift has the highest filling efficiency when the engine speed is about 1000 to 1600 rpm, the 5.5 mm lift is about 1600 to 2200 rpm, the 6 mm lift is about 2200 to 4000 rpm, and so on. As the rotational speed increases, the lift amount at which the charging efficiency is maximized increases, and it can be seen that the control map of FIG. 7 is made generally in accordance with such characteristics. In FIG. 8, the decrease in the charging efficiency as a whole at 2000 to 4000 rpm is due to the dynamic effect inherent in the intake system of the engine used in this experiment.

(Correction of lift characteristics during knock determination)
By the way, in general, in a gasoline engine in which a uniform air-fuel mixture in a cylinder is ignited and burned, the load becomes higher than a predetermined value while being in a low rotation range as in sudden acceleration, for example, and the charging efficiency of intake air is increased. If it becomes high, the temperature and pressure in the cylinder will become very high, so the air-fuel mixture will self-ignite before the flame surface propagates after ignition, sudden pressure rise and unpleasant vibration and noise due to this, that is, There is a risk of knocking.

  On the other hand, in general, countermeasures are taken by delaying the ignition timing of the cylinder (ignition retard), but a large ignition retard is not preferable because it reduces engine efficiency. In addition, conventionally, when the lift characteristics of the intake valve can be changed as in the engine of this embodiment, the lift amount of the intake valve is temporarily reduced in response to the occurrence of knocking, thereby reducing the charging efficiency. Although a proposal has been made (Patent Document 2), reducing the lift amount is contrary to the normal control of the lift amount during acceleration operation. It is inevitable to damage the ring.

  In this respect, in this embodiment, as shown in the control map of FIG. 7, the intake valves 1 and 2 are not in the large lift control state even in the full load state in the low engine speed range. The lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 is momentarily determined when knocking is determined by paying attention to the fact that the intermediate lift state is 5 to 6 mm and the intake charge efficiency is highest at this time. By increasing the charging efficiency, the filling efficiency is lowered, so that knocking is suppressed.

  Hereinafter, a specific control procedure of VVL by the controller 17 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 9, focusing on the correction control at the time of knock determination as described above. First, in step S1 after the start, signals from various sensors for mainly detecting the operating state of the engine are input, and data stored in the memory is read. In the subsequent step S2, for example, a target torque of the engine is calculated based on a signal from a sensor that detects the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal and a signal from an engine speed sensor (may be a crank angle sensor). The lift amount corresponding to the engine operating state is set with reference to the control map of FIG. 7 from the torque and the engine speed (setting of the target lift amount).

  Next, in step S <b> 3, knocking is determined based on a signal from the knock sensor 26. If the engine is in a normal operating state, it is determined that knocking has not occurred (NO), the process proceeds to step S4, and a control signal corresponding to the target lift amount set in step S2 is output to the motor 15. Then, the control shaft 11 and the control arm 12 are rotated, and then the process returns.

  In this way, the controller 17 controls the motor 15 to change the relative position of the link mechanism in the VVL, so that the lift curve of the intake valve 2 changes according to the engine operating state (target torque and engine speed) as shown in FIG. Is continuously changed. As a result, each cylinder is filled with an amount of air corresponding to the output request to the engine, and the output can be controlled.

  On the other hand, for example, as indicated by the white arrow on the control map of FIG. 7, the accelerator pedal is fully opened when the engine is in the driving state A with a low load close to idle and low rotation (for example, about 1000 rpm). (Rapid acceleration operation), it is assumed that the engine load suddenly rises to the full load operation state B with the engine rotation speed substantially unchanged. At this time, according to the basic lift characteristics, the target lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 is set to 5 mm corresponding to the operation state B on the map. However, when this happens, the charging efficiency increases and knocking occurs. It becomes easy to do.

  If knocking occurs, it is determined in step S3 that knocking has occurred (YES) based on the signal from the knock sensor 26, and the process proceeds to step S5. First, the engine operating state (target torque and A correction amount (a shift amount of the engine speed) for shifting the target lift amount corresponding to the engine speed) to the high rotation side is read from a preset map. Then, the target lift amount corresponding to the engine operating state B 'on the high rotation side by the shift amount is read from the control map of FIG. 7, and this is reset as the target torque amount.

  In step S4, a control signal corresponding to the reset target lift amount is output to the motor 15, the control shaft 11 and the control arm 12 are rotated, and then the process returns.

  Shifting the target lift amount to the high rotation side as described above means correcting the target lift amount to be slightly larger. When this is seen in the lift curves of the intake valves 1 and 2 as shown in FIG. 6, as shown in FIG. 10, first, with the change in the operating state of A → B due to the acceleration operation, first, the basic lift characteristics. According to the above, the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 is a 5 mm lift indicated by a solid line in the figure. At this time, as shown in the figure, the closing timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 is substantially at the bottom dead center (BDC). Therefore, the charging efficiency is highest in the low rotation range where the inertia of the intake air flow is small, and knocking is likely to occur. Become.

  However, when the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 becomes 5.5 mm lift shown by a broken line in the figure by the above correction, the closing timing is retarded from the bottom dead center. The intake air is blown back to the intake port from the cylinder in which the valves 1 and 2 are open, and even if the lift amount and the valve opening period of the intake valves 1 and 2 are increased, the charging efficiency of the intake air into the cylinder is descend. That is, as shown in FIG. 8, when the engine speed is about 1000 rpm, the charging efficiency is maximized when the lift is 5 mm, and when the lift amount is increased to 5.5 mm at this time, The filling efficiency is lowered to the same extent as if it was reduced to 4 mm, and knocking can be suppressed almost certainly.

  Then, for a moment, after the charging efficiency is reduced and knocking is suppressed, when the engine speed increases to 1600 to 2000 rpm, for example, as shown in FIG. Highest efficiency and high engine output. This means that shifting the lift characteristics of the intake valves 1 and 2 to the high rotation side means changing the lift characteristics of the intake valves 1 and 2 in a direction in which the operating state of the engine changes due to acceleration operation. This is because if the engine speed subsequently increases, the operation state B ′ on the control map of FIG. 7 is naturally set.

  That is, if the lift characteristic is shifted to the high rotation side as in this embodiment, this can instantaneously lower the charging efficiency and suppress knocking, and thereafter increase the engine rotation. As a result, the charging efficiency is increased, and the engine output immediately increases without waiting for the change in the lift amount, so that the engine blows up quickly. From FIG. 8, it can be seen that if the lift is 4 mm, the charging efficiency is drastically reduced and the engine output is reduced as the engine speed is increased.

  Therefore, according to the intake control apparatus for an engine according to this embodiment, first, the intake variable valve mechanism VVL provided in the valve system on the intake side is controlled in accordance with the operating state (load and rotational speed) of the engine, and the intake valve By continuously changing the lift amounts of 1 and 2, it is possible to fill each cylinder with a necessary amount of air, so that the engine output can be controlled even if the throttle valve is eliminated. Therefore, the pumping loss can be reduced and the fuel consumption can be reduced.

  Further, the variable lift mechanism VVL has a characteristic that the intake valve 1 and 2 have a small lift amount and a low load and low rotation side normal operation region where the intake valve closes quickly. This also reduces fuel consumption. On the other hand, in a high load high rotation range where the lift amount becomes large, the lift period (crank angle period) becomes sufficiently long, and the inertia of the intake air flow can be effectively used to sufficiently increase the charging efficiency. High engine output can be obtained.

  Further, when the engine enters a sudden acceleration operation state in a low rotation range and knocking occurs, the lift characteristics of the intake valves 1 and 2 are temporarily increased to the high rotation side, that is, the engine operation state changes due to acceleration operation. By correcting, it is possible to quickly increase after reducing the charging efficiency of the intake air for a necessary minimum period, thereby suppressing knocking without impairing the acceleration feeling.

  In the embodiment described above, the knock determination unit 17b (determination means) of the controller 17 that determines the occurrence of knocking based on the signal from the knock sensor 26 is configured by step S3 of the flow shown in FIG. Further, in step S5, when knocking is determined in the knock determination unit 17b, the control target value (target lift amount) of the variable lift mechanism VVL by the lift control unit 17a is corrected to be shifted to a value on the high rotation side. A correction control unit 17c (correction control means) is configured. In other words, the controller 17 of this embodiment includes the knock determination unit 17b and the correction control unit 17c in the form of programs, as indicated by phantom lines in FIG.

  In addition, the structure of this invention is not limited to the thing of embodiment mentioned above, Other various structures are included. That is, for example, the specific configuration of the variable lift mechanism provided in the valve system of the engine is not limited to that of the above embodiment. The lift variable mechanism may be any mechanism as long as the lift curves of the intake valves 1 and 2 change as shown in FIG. 6, or the lift peak timing is changed even if the lift amount changes as shown in FIG. The opening timing may be advanced and the closing timing may be retarded as the lift amount increases without changing.

  In the above embodiment, knocking is determined from the signal of the knock sensor 26. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the occurrence of knocking is predicted based on the acceleration operation of the engine and the engine speed. Correction control may also be performed. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 12, for example, the full open acceleration of the engine is determined in step S30, and the engine is in a low rotation speed range equal to or lower than a predetermined rotation speed (for example, set to 1500 to 3000 rpm) in step S31. When both the determinations are YES (knocking is predicted), the lift characteristics of the intake valves 1 and 2 are corrected as described above.

  In such a case, the step S30 constitutes a determination means for determining whether or not the engine is accelerated more than a predetermined value, and steps S31 and S5 are determined by the determination means in the low engine speed range. The correction control unit 17c is configured to shift the control target value (target lift amount) of the variable lift mechanism VVL by the lift control unit 17a to the high rotation side.

  In this way, when knocking is predicted and correction control is performed, there is a merit that the occurrence of knocking can be prevented, but it is useless in situations where knocking is unlikely to occur, such as on a rainy day. There is also a possibility that correction control is performed, in which case the acceleration performance itself is slightly lowered. In this regard, if the knocking is determined based on the signal of the knock sensor 26 as in the above-described embodiment, there is no such fear, but in this case, the knocking must not be accurately determined. In other words, a highly accurate knock sensor 26 is required.

  In the above embodiment, as a basic lift characteristic of the VVL, when the engine is at full load, the lift amount of the intake valves 1 and 2 is an intermediate lift of about 5 mm even at the minimum rotational speed. 2 is set to close at approximately the bottom dead center of the cylinder, but not limited to this, the closing timing of the intake valves 1 and 2 may be slightly advanced from the bottom dead center of the cylinder, On the contrary, it may be slightly retarded from the bottom dead center.

  The present invention is an engine intake control device in which the lift characteristics of the intake valve of the engine are made variable, and can achieve a good acceleration feeling while suppressing knocking during acceleration operation. This is particularly useful as a valve operating device for an automobile engine.

1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment in which an intake control device of the present invention is applied to an in-line four-cylinder engine. It is sectional drawing which shows the large lift control state of a lift variable mechanism, (a) shows the state of zero lift, (b) shows the state of a lift peak. FIG. 3 is a view corresponding to FIG. 2 showing a small lift control state. It is explanatory drawing of the action | operation of a large lift control state. FIG. 5 is a view corresponding to FIG. 4 related to a small lift control state. It is a characteristic view which shows the change of the lift curve by a lift variable mechanism. It is a figure which shows an example of the basic control map of a lift characteristic. It is a graph of the experimental result which changed the lift amount in steps from 4 to 7 mm, and measured the filling efficiency of the cylinder which changes with engine speed, respectively. It is a flowchart figure which shows the control procedure of VVL. It is explanatory drawing which shows the change of the lift curve at the time of the acceleration driving | operation by correction | amendment control. FIG. 7 is a view corresponding to FIG. 6 according to another embodiment having different lift characteristics. FIG. 10 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 9 according to another embodiment in which knocking is predicted and correction is performed.

Explanation of symbols

1, 2 Intake valve 3 Camshaft 4, 5 Oscillating cam (lift variable mechanism)
6 Eccentric cam (lift variable mechanism)
7 Offset link (lift variable mechanism)
8 Link (lift variable mechanism)
11 Control shaft (variable lift mechanism)
12 Control arm (lift variable mechanism)
13 Restriction link (lift variable mechanism)
17 Controller 17a Lift control unit (lift control means)
17b Knock determination unit (determination means)
17c Correction control unit (correction control means)

Claims (5)

A lift variable mechanism that changes the lift characteristics of the engine intake valve so that the valve opening period increases as the lift amount increases and the closing timing is delayed, and the higher the load or the higher the rotation side, the more depending on the operating state of the engine. An intake control device for an engine, comprising: lift control means for controlling the variable lift mechanism so that the lift amount increases;
Determination means for determining knocking associated with acceleration operation of the engine;
An engine intake control device comprising: correction control means for shifting a control target value of the lift variable mechanism by the lift control means to a high rotation side when knocking is determined by the determination means. A lift variable mechanism that changes the lift characteristics of the engine intake valve so that the valve opening period increases as the lift amount increases and the closing timing is delayed, and the higher the load or the higher the rotation side, the more depending on the operating state of the engine. An intake control device for an engine, comprising: lift control means for controlling the variable lift mechanism so that the lift amount increases;
A determination means for determining a rapid acceleration operation of the engine more than a predetermined value;
Correction control means for shifting the control target value of the variable lift mechanism by the lift control means to the high speed side when the rapid acceleration operation is determined by the determination means in a low engine speed range. Engine intake control device. In the intake control device for an engine according to claim 1 or 2,
The lift control means controls the variable lift mechanism so that the closing timing of the intake valve is substantially at or below the bottom dead center of the cylinder in a high load region of the engine. . The intake control apparatus for an engine according to claim 3,
The correction control means sets the closing timing of the intake valve, which is approximately at or below the bottom dead center in the control of the lift variable mechanism by the lift control means, to the retard side so that the cylinder charging efficiency is reduced by the return of intake air. An intake control device for an engine characterized by being changed to In the intake control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
An engine intake control apparatus characterized in that the variable lift mechanism changes the lift characteristic of the intake valve so that the lift peak timing is advanced as the lift amount is smaller.

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