JP7408964B2 - Diesel engine control device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a device for controlling a diesel engine that includes a cylinder, a piston that is reciprocatably housed in the cylinder, and an injector that injects fuel containing light oil into a combustion chamber that is a space above the piston.

As an example of the above-mentioned diesel engine, the one shown in Patent Document 1 below is known. In the diesel engine of Patent Document 1, injection patterns that combine pre-injection and after-injection with main injection are determined differently depending on operating conditions, and when fuel is injected by each injection pattern, the fuel pressure in the injector is controlled. The injection timing and injection period are adjusted based on the detected value of the pressure sensor.

For example, in an injection pattern that includes main injection and after injection, the pressure pulsations that occur with fuel injection are detected by a pressure sensor, and based on the detected pressure pulsations, the interval from main injection to after injection (injection interval ) is adjusted. This is said to reduce the influence of pressure pulsations in the fuel pressure on the after-injection, thereby improving the accuracy of adjusting the injection amount of the after-injection.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2011-190725

Here, if the interval from main injection to after injection is too short, fuel by after injection will be superimposed on the combustion gas based on main injection, and the fuel by after injection will be in an oxygen-deficient environment. As a result of combustion, soot is likely to be generated. Therefore, in order to reliably avoid the generation of such soot, it is conceivable to make the interval from the main injection to the after injection sufficiently long. However, if the interval becomes too long, the proportion of the combustion energy based on after-injection that is used as work decreases, resulting in poor fuel efficiency.

In order to prevent both the generation of soot and the deterioration of fuel efficiency as described above, it is desirable to set the timing of after-injection as early as possible during the period when sufficient air (oxygen) is available. . However, the timing of after-injection that can meet such demands is considered to change each time depending on the combustion state of the fuel injected in advance by main injection. Therefore, it is proposed to understand the state quantities that affect combustion based on main injection, and to determine the appropriate timing of after injection each time based on the results.

However, the diesel engine disclosed in Patent Document 1 cannot meet the above proposals. That is, in Patent Document 1, although there is room for correction based on pressure pulsations, basically the interval from main injection to after injection is determined based on an injection pattern that is predetermined for each engine operating condition. In other words, the timing of the after injection is determined according to a basic interval determined in advance experimentally. Therefore, in Patent Document 1, it is impossible to determine the optimal after-injection timing according to the constantly changing engine conditions.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to sufficiently suppress soot generation by increasing the air utilization rate of fuel injected by after-injection while maintaining relatively good fuel efficiency. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a diesel engine control device that can perform the following tasks.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention includes a cylinder, a piston housed in the cylinder so as to be able to reciprocate, and an injector that injects fuel containing light oil into a combustion chamber that is a space above the piston. A device for controlling a diesel engine, which includes an intake pressure sensor that detects an intake pressure that is the pressure of intake air introduced into the combustion chamber, and an intake pressure sensor that is set from a compression stroke to an expansion stroke when operating in a predetermined operating range. and an injection control unit that controls the injector so that fuel is injected at a plurality of timings, and the piston has a cavity recessed downward in the crown surface thereof, and a wall defining the cavity has a diameter. a bottom portion formed such that the height becomes lower toward the outer side in the direction; a curved outer peripheral portion formed radially outward than the bottom portion and concave so as to be convex radially outward in a cross-sectional view including the cylinder axis; The injector has a curved lip part formed above the outer peripheral part and protruding radially inward in a cross-sectional view including the cylinder axis, and the injector is arranged in the cavity in the ceiling part of the combustion chamber. The injection control section is configured to inject fuel diagonally downward radially outward from a position facing the central portion of the fuel injection control section, and the injection control section controls the total amount of fuel in one combustion cycle during operation in the predetermined operating region. Main injection that injects the largest proportion of fuel out of the injection amount and directs the injected fuel toward the lip portion to redirect at least a portion of the fuel downward from the lip portion; and a main injection that is delayed from the main injection. The injector is caused to perform an after injection in which a smaller amount of fuel is injected than the main injection at a predetermined time during the expansion stroke, and the injection interval time is the time from the end of the main injection to the start of the after injection. It is characterized in that the higher the intake pressure detected by the intake pressure sensor is, the longer the length of the intake pressure is, under the condition that parameters other than the intake pressure are the same (claim 1).

The fuel spray injected by the main injection swirls along the lip, outer periphery, and bottom walls of the cavity to form a vertical vortex, and returns to a specific position on the injection axis of the injector. . In other words, the oxygen concentration at the specific position varies greatly depending on the swirling flow of the fuel spray caused by the main injection. Therefore, in order to increase the air utilization rate of the fuel injected by after-injection, the timing when the fuel spray by the after-injection reaches the specific position and the timing when the oxygen concentration at the specific position becomes high (hereinafter referred to as oxygen arrival It is necessary to roughly match the period (also called the period). On the other hand, research by the present inventors has revealed that the higher the intake pressure is, the later the oxygen arrival timing becomes. As a control that takes this point into consideration, in the present invention, the injection interval time, which is the time from the end of main injection to the start of after injection, is adjusted so that the higher the intake pressure is, the longer it becomes. The fuel spray by after-injection can be made to reach the specific position at an appropriate time according to the timing trend (that is, the time when the oxygen concentration at the specific location becomes high), and the air utilization rate of the fuel spray can be increased. I can do it. As a result, generation of soot due to combustion can be effectively suppressed compared to a case where the injection interval time is set fixedly.

In addition, if the injection interval time is made variable according to the intake pressure as described above, the injection timing of the after injection can be advanced depending on the conditions, compared to the case where the injection interval time is fixed. The fuel efficiency of the engine can be improved. For example, if the injection interval time is set to a constant value regardless of the intake pressure, the temperature in the combustion chamber will be sufficiently reduced so that the amount of soot generated does not become excessive regardless of whether the intake pressure is high or low. It is necessary to start the after injection after waiting for a relatively long period of time to pass after the end of the main injection (the expansion stroke has progressed to some extent). This reduces the proportion of combustion energy based on after-injection that is used as work, leading to deterioration in fuel efficiency. On the other hand, when the injection interval time is made variable according to the intake pressure as in the present invention, there is no need to uniformly delay the start time of after-injection as described above, and after-injection can be performed depending on the conditions. injection timing can be advanced. Thereby, the rate at which combustion energy based on after-injection is converted into work can be increased as much as possible, and the fuel efficiency of the engine can be improved.

The diesel engine may include a turbocharger that pressurizes intake air introduced into the combustion chamber. In this case, the intake pressure sensor is provided to detect the pressure of the intake air after supercharging by the turbo supercharger, and the injection control section is configured to control the engine rotation during acceleration operation within the predetermined operating range. If a phenomenon in which the intake pressure continues to rise after the number of increases has ended is confirmed based on the detection value of the intake pressure sensor, the intake pressure may gradually increase during the period in which the phenomenon is confirmed. It is preferable to gradually lengthen the injection interval time (Claim 2).

According to this configuration, even if the intake pressure continues to rise even after the engine speed has finished increasing due to the effect of the turbo supercharger, which increases supercharging capacity as the engine speed increases during acceleration operation, By setting an appropriate injection interval time according to this delayed increase in intake pressure, it is possible to maintain a good air utilization rate for the fuel injected by after-injection even during acceleration operation, and The amount of soot generated can be reduced.

Preferably, the control device includes an injection pressure adjustment unit that adjusts the injection pressure of the fuel injected from the injector so that the higher the load within the predetermined operating region, the higher the injection pressure of the fuel injected from the injector; The injection control unit further includes an injection pressure sensor that detects pressure, and the injection control unit detects a phenomenon in which both the fuel injection pressure and the intake pressure increase during acceleration operation within the predetermined operation region. When it is confirmed based on the detection values of the sensor and the intake pressure sensor, the injection interval time is gradually shortened in accordance with the gradual increase in the injection pressure during the period in which the phenomenon is confirmed (Claim 3) .

In this way, if the injection pressure adjustment section is controlled so that the fuel injection pressure increases as the load increases within a predetermined operating range, the injection pressure adjustment section will control the fuel injection pressure under various conditions with different loads. The required fuel can be injected efficiently by adjusting the appropriate injection pressure, and both combustion controllability and fuel efficiency can be achieved. However, when the fuel injection pressure is made variable in this way, the timing of oxygen arrival varies depending on the injection pressure, and there is a tendency that the higher (lower) the injection pressure, the earlier (later) the timing of oxygen arrival. , this tendency is opposite to that of the intake pressure. On the other hand, research by the present inventors has revealed that the influence of fuel injection pressure on the timing of oxygen arrival is greater than the influence of intake pressure on the timing of oxygen arrival. In order to appropriately adjust the injection interval time in consideration of this point, in the above configuration, when a phenomenon in which both the fuel injection pressure and the intake pressure increase during acceleration operation is confirmed, the phenomenon is confirmed. The injection interval time is shortened in accordance with the gradual increase in injection pressure during this period. This makes it possible to set an appropriate injection interval time according to changes in injection pressure, which has a greater influence than intake pressure, and increases the air utilization rate of injected fuel through after-injection, reducing the amount of soot generated. can do.

Here, it is known that the oxygen arrival timing changes depending on various parameters other than the injection amount and injection pressure of the main injection. For example, even if the engine load and rotation speed are the same, and therefore the main injection amount and injection pressure are the same, if the degree of engine warm-up is different, the timing of oxygen arrival will change due to the difference. do. Specifically, as the warm-up progresses, the length of the fuel spray (spray length) becomes longer, which advances the timing of oxygen arrival. Therefore, the control device further includes a temperature sensor that detects a predetermined temperature parameter that increases as the engine warms up, and the injection control unit controls the Preferably , the higher the temperature parameter detected by the temperature sensor, the shorter the injection interval time (claim 4 ).

According to this configuration, a good air utilization rate can be ensured without any problem under various engine temperature conditions (degree of warm-up progress), and the amount of soot generated can be effectively reduced.

As explained above, according to the diesel engine control device of the present invention, while maintaining relatively good fuel efficiency, the air utilization rate of the injected fuel is increased by after-injection, and soot generation is sufficiently suppressed. can do.

1 is a schematic system diagram showing a preferred embodiment of a diesel engine to which a control device of the present invention is applied. It is a figure which shows the structure of the crown surface of the piston in the said diesel engine, (a) is a perspective view, (b) is a sectional perspective view. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the detailed structure of a cavity formed in the crown surface of the diesel piston and the flow of fuel spray injected into the cavity. It is a block diagram showing a control system of the above-mentioned diesel engine. It is an operation map showing the diffusion combustion region of the above-mentioned diesel engine. 2 is a time chart showing the fuel injection pattern adopted at two specific operating points in the above-mentioned diffuse combustion region, (a) shows the injection pattern at the first operating point, and (b) shows the injection pattern at the second operating point. The injection patterns are shown respectively. It is a flowchart which shows the specific procedure of fuel injection control performed in the said diffusion combustion region. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing the flow of fuel spray flowing inside the cavity, where (a) shows the state of the spray at the end of main injection, and (b) and (c) show the state of the spray over time after the end of main injection. Each figure shows the state of the spray that has changed accordingly. It is a graph showing a time change in oxygen concentration at a specific position (turning reference point) in the cavity. It is a figure which shows typically the positional relationship between the fuel spray by the said main injection, and the fuel spray by the subsequent after-injection. This is a group of graphs showing how the swirling flow of fuel spray due to main injection changes depending on various parameters, in which (a) shows the relationship between main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, and swirling speed, and (b) shows the relationship between main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, and swirling speed. (c) shows the relationship between main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, fuel temperature, and spray length. are shown respectively. A graph showing the relationship between the injection interval time, which is the time from the end of the main injection to the start of the after-injection, and the following parameters: main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, and fuel temperature. It is a group. It is a time chart showing time changes of various state quantities during acceleration operation within the above-mentioned diffusion combustion region.

<Overall engine configuration>
FIG. 1 is a schematic system diagram showing a preferred embodiment of a diesel engine to which a control device of the present invention is applied. The diesel engine shown in this figure is a four-stroke diesel engine that is mounted on a vehicle as a driving power source. A diesel engine has an engine body 1 that is driven by receiving fuel mainly composed of light oil, an intake passage 30 through which intake air introduced into the engine body 1 flows, and an exhaust gas discharged from the engine body 1. It includes an exhaust passage 40 that circulates, an EGR device 44 that recirculates a part of the exhaust gas that flows through the exhaust passage 40 to the intake passage 30, and a turbo supercharger 36 that is driven by the exhaust gas that passes through the exhaust passage 40. ing.

The engine body 1 is of an in-line multi-cylinder type having a plurality of cylinders 2 (only one of which is shown in FIG. 1) arranged in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. The engine body 1 includes a cylinder block 3 including a plurality of cylindrical cylinder liners defining a plurality of cylinders 2, and a cylinder head 4 attached to the upper surface of the cylinder block 3 so as to close the upper opening of each cylinder 2. , and a plurality of pistons 5 accommodated in each cylinder 2 so as to be able to reciprocate and slide. Note that since the structure of each cylinder 2 is the same, the following description will basically focus on only one cylinder 2.

A combustion chamber 6 is formed above the piston 5. The combustion chamber 6 is a space defined by the lower surface of the cylinder head 4 (combustion chamber ceiling surface 6U; see FIG. 3), the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder 2 (cylinder liner), and the crown surface 50 of the piston 5. . The combustion chamber 6 is supplied with the fuel by injection from an injector 15, which will be described later. The supplied mixture of fuel and air is combusted in the combustion chamber 6, and the piston 5, which is pushed down by the expansion force caused by the combustion, reciprocates in the vertical direction.

A crankshaft 7, which is an output shaft of the engine body 1, is provided below the piston 5. The crankshaft 7 is connected to the piston 5 via a connecting rod 8, and rotates around a central axis in accordance with the reciprocating motion (up and down motion) of the piston 5.

A crank angle sensor SN1 and a water temperature sensor SN2 are attached to the cylinder block 3. The crank angle sensor SN1 detects the rotation angle (crank angle) of the crankshaft 7 and the rotational speed (engine rotational speed) of the crankshaft 7. Water temperature sensor SN2 detects the temperature of cooling water (engine water temperature) flowing inside the cylinder block 3 and cylinder head 4. Note that the temperature of the cooling water detected by the water temperature sensor SN2 is one of the parameters that increases as the engine warms up, and corresponds to an example of the "temperature parameter" in the present invention.

The cylinder head 4 is formed with an intake port 9 and an exhaust port 10 that communicate with the combustion chamber 6 . An intake side opening, which is the downstream end of the intake port 9, and an exhaust side opening, which is the upstream end of the exhaust port 10, are formed on the lower surface of the cylinder head 4. The cylinder head 4 is assembled with an intake valve 11 that opens and closes an intake side opening and an exhaust valve 12 that opens and closes an exhaust side opening.

The cylinder head 4 is provided with an intake valve mechanism 13 and an exhaust valve mechanism 14 including a camshaft. The intake valve 11 and the exhaust valve 12 are driven to open and close by these valve mechanisms 13 and 14 in conjunction with the rotation of the crankshaft 7.

One injector 15 for injecting fuel into the combustion chamber 6 is attached to the cylinder head 4 for each cylinder 2 . The injector 15 has a tip 151 (FIG. 3) exposed at the ceiling of the combustion chamber 6, and the tip 151 is located on (or near) the cylinder axis X, which is the central axis of the cylinder 2. It is assembled to the cylinder head 4 in this manner. The injector 15 is capable of injecting fuel toward a cavity 5C (FIGS. 2 and 3), which will be described later, formed in the crown surface 50 of the piston 5.

A nozzle hole 152 (FIG. 3), which serves as a fuel outlet, is formed at the tip 151 of the injector 15. Although only one nozzle hole 152 is shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of nozzle holes 152 are actually arranged at equal pitches in the circumferential direction of the tip portion 151. The central axis of each nozzle hole 152 is inclined so that the further outward in the radial direction, the lower the center axis is located. The fuel injected through such a nozzle hole 152 is radially injected from the tip 151 of the injector 15 toward the radially outer side and diagonally downward.

The injector 15 of each cylinder 2 is connected to a common rail 18 (accumulation rail) common to all cylinders 2 via a fuel supply pipe 17. High-pressure fuel pressurized by a fuel pump (not shown) is stored in the common rail 18 . The fuel accumulated in the common rail 18 is supplied to the injector 15 of each cylinder 2, so that the fuel is injected into the combustion chamber 6 from each injector 15 at a high pressure (for example, about 150 MPa to 250 MPa).

The injector 15 is provided with an injection pressure sensor SN5 (FIG. 4) that detects the pressure of the fuel inside the injector 15, in other words, the injection pressure that is the pressure of the fuel injected from the injector 15. One injection pressure sensor SN5 is provided for each of the plurality of injectors 15 corresponding to the plurality of cylinders 2.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, a fuel pressure regulator 16 and a fuel temperature sensor SN6 (see FIG. 4) are provided in a pipe connecting the fuel pump and the common rail 18. The fuel pressure regulator 16 adjusts the pressure of the common rail 18, that is, the pressure (fuel pressure) of the fuel supplied to the injector 15, and corresponds to the "injection pressure adjustment section" according to the present invention. The fuel temperature sensor SN6 is a sensor that detects the temperature of fuel (fuel temperature) supplied to the injector 15.

The turbocharger 36 includes a compressor 37 disposed in the intake passage 30, a turbine 38 disposed in the exhaust passage 40, and a turbine shaft 39 connecting the compressor 37 and the turbine 38. The turbine 38 rotates by receiving the energy of the exhaust gas flowing through the exhaust passage 40. The compressor 37 compresses (supercharges) the air flowing through the intake passage 30 by rotating in conjunction with the rotation of the turbine 38 .

The intake passage 30 is connected to one side of the cylinder head 4 so as to communicate with the intake port 9. Air (fresh air) taken in from the upstream end of the intake passage 30 is introduced into the combustion chamber 6 through the intake passage 30 and the intake port 9. In the intake passage 30, an air cleaner 31, a compressor 37, a throttle valve 32, an intercooler 33, and a surge tank 34 are arranged in order from the upstream side.

The air cleaner 31 cleans the intake air by removing foreign matter from the intake air. The throttle valve 32 is an electrically operated butterfly valve that can adjust the flow rate of intake air in the intake passage 30. The compressor 37 is an impeller that compresses intake air and sends it out downstream of the intake passage 30. The intercooler 33 is a heat exchanger that cools intake air compressed by the turbocharger 36 (compressor 37). The surge tank 34 is a tank that provides a space for evenly distributing intake air to the plurality of cylinders 2, and is disposed immediately upstream of the intake manifold connected to the intake port 9 of each cylinder 2.

In the intake passage 30, an air flow sensor SN3 and an intake pressure sensor SN4 are arranged. The air flow sensor SN3 is arranged downstream of the air cleaner 31 and detects the flow rate of intake air passing through this part. The intake pressure sensor SN4 is arranged in the surge tank 34 and detects the pressure of intake air passing through the surge tank 34. In addition, since the surge tank 34 is disposed downstream of the compressor 37 of the turbocharger 36, the intake pressure detected by the intake pressure sensor SN4 indicates that the intake pressure has been supercharged by the turbocharger 36 (compressor 37). This is the later intake pressure, that is, the supercharging pressure.

The exhaust passage 40 is connected to the other side of the cylinder head 4 so as to communicate with the exhaust port 10. Burnt gas (exhaust gas) generated in the combustion chamber 6 is exhausted to the outside of the vehicle through the exhaust port 10 and the exhaust passage 40. In the exhaust passage, a turbine 38 and an exhaust purification device 41 are arranged in this order from the upstream side.

The turbine 38 is an impeller that rotates by receiving the energy of the exhaust gas, and applies rotational force to the compressor 37 in the intake passage 30 via the turbine shaft 39. The exhaust purification device 41 purifies harmful components in exhaust gas.

The exhaust purification device 41 includes an oxidation catalyst 42 that oxidizes CO and HC in the exhaust gas to render it harmless, and a DPF (diesel particulate filter) 43 that collects particulate matter contained in the exhaust gas. It has a built-in.

The EGR device 44 includes an EGR passage 45 that connects the exhaust passage 40 and the intake passage 30, and an EGR valve 46 that is provided in the EGR passage 45 and can be opened and closed. The EGR passage 45 connects a portion of the exhaust passage 40 upstream of the turbine 38 and a portion of the intake passage 30 between the intercooler 33 and the surge tank 34. The EGR valve 46 adjusts the flow rate of exhaust gas (EGR gas) that is returned from the exhaust passage 40 to the intake passage 30 through the EGR passage 45.

<Detailed structure of the piston>
Next, the structure of the piston 5, particularly the structure of the crown surface 50, will be described in detail. FIG. 2A is a perspective view mainly showing the upper part of the piston 5 (near the crown surface 50). FIG. 2(b) is a cross-sectional perspective view of the piston 5 shown in FIG. 2(a) taken along a vertical plane including the cylinder axis X. FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view showing a part of the crown surface 50 of the piston 5 together with other combustion chamber forming surfaces (inner peripheral surface of the cylinder 2 and combustion chamber ceiling surface 6U).

The piston 5 has the above-mentioned crown surface 50 that defines the bottom surface of the combustion chamber 6, and a cylindrical side peripheral surface 56 that continues to the outer peripheral edge of the crown surface 50.

A cavity 5C is formed in the crown surface 50, with a main region including the center portion depressed downward (on the opposite side from the cylinder head 4). In other words, the crown surface 50 includes a wall surface defining the cavity 5C (a bottom portion 511, an outer peripheral portion 512, a lip portion 513, a shelf portion 521, and a rising portion 522, which will be described later), and an annular portion formed on the radially outer side of the cavity 5C. It has a squish surface 55 that is a flat surface.

The cavity 5C is a so-called reentrant type cavity. In particular, the cavity 5C of this embodiment is a reentrant type cavity with two upper and lower stages including a first cavity part 51 and a second cavity part 52. The first cavity portion 51 is a recess formed in a region including the radial center of the crown surface 50, and the second cavity portion 52 is an annular recess formed above the first cavity portion 51 in the crown surface 50. It is a recess.

The crown surface 50 has a bottom portion 511 , an outer peripheral portion 512 , and a lip portion 513 as a wall surface defining the first cavity portion 51 .

The bottom portion 511 is a wall portion that defines the bottom surface of the first cavity portion 51 . The bottom portion 511 is formed to have a gentle mountain shape, and has a top portion 511a at a radially central portion directly below the injector 15 (a position facing the tip portion 151 of the injector 15). That is, the bottom portion 511 is formed so that the height thereof gradually decreases from the top portion 511a toward the outside in the radial direction. The height of the bottom portion 511 is set to be lowest at the first boundary portion W1, which is the boundary between the bottom portion 511 and the outer peripheral portion 512.

The outer circumferential portion 512 is a wall portion continuous to the outside in the radial direction of the bottom portion 511, and has a concave shape so as to be convex toward the outside in the radial direction when viewed in cross section. The outer peripheral part 512 has a concave shape so as to smoothly connect the first boundary part W1, which is the boundary between the bottom part 511 and the outer peripheral part 512, to the second boundary part W2, which is the boundary between the outer peripheral part 512 and the lip part 513. It is curved to. That is, the outer circumferential portion 512 includes a first portion that is curved so that the height gradually increases toward the outside in the radial direction from the first boundary portion W1, and a curved portion that is curved so that the height gradually increases from the first boundary portion W1 toward the second boundary portion W2. The second portion is curved so that the diameter thereof gradually decreases. In other words, the outer peripheral portion 512 is formed so as to be recessed most radially outward at the intermediate portion M (FIG. 3) that is the boundary between the first and second portions.

The lip portion 513 is a wall portion continuous to the upper side of the outer peripheral portion 512, and has a shape that protrudes radially inward in a cross-sectional view. The lip portion 513 extends from a second boundary portion W2, which is a boundary between the outer peripheral portion 512 and the lip portion 513, to a boundary between the lip portion 513 and a shelf portion 521, which will be described later (in other words, a boundary between the first cavity portion 51 and the second cavity portion). It is curved in a convex shape (bump shape) so as to smoothly connect to the third boundary portion W3, which is the boundary with 52.

The crown surface 50 includes, in addition to the wall surfaces (bottom section 511, outer peripheral section 512, and lip section 513) that define the first cavity section 51 as described above, a shelf section 521 that is a wall surface that defines the second cavity section 52. and a rising portion 522.

The shelf portion 521 is a wall portion that defines the bottom surface of the second cavity portion 52 and is connected to the outside of the lip portion 513 of the first cavity portion 51 in the radial direction. The height of the shelf portion 521 gradually decreases from the third boundary portion W3, which is the boundary between the lip portion 513 and the shelf portion 521, to the fourth boundary portion W4, which is the boundary between the shelf portion 521 and the rising portion 522. It's slanted like that.

The rising portion 522 is a wall portion continuous to the outside in the radial direction of the shelf portion 521, and has a shape that rises upward from the shelf portion 521. The rising portion 522 is curved so as to smoothly connect the fourth boundary W4, which is the boundary between the shelf portion 521 and the rising portion 522, to the inner circumferential edge of the squish surface 55, and curves outward in the radial direction. It is formed so that the height gradually increases.

<Fuel spray flow>
Next, the flow of the fuel spray injected from the injector 15 into the cavity 5C of the piston 5 will be described using FIG. 3. In FIG. 3, the symbol FS represents the spray of fuel immediately after the fuel is injected from the injector 15 with the piston 5 located at or near compression top dead center, and the main axis of this fuel spray FS, in other words, the injector The injection axis, which is an extension of the central axis of the 15 nozzle holes 152, is indicated by the symbol AX. Moreover, the main flows of the fuel spray after the fuel spray FS collides with the wall surface (lip portion 513) of the cavity 5C are represented by symbols F11, F12, F13, F21, F22, and F23. In addition, when fuel is injected near compression top dead center in a diesel engine like this embodiment, the fuel starts to burn after a short time after injection (diffusion combustion). Therefore, the fuel spray FS basically contains combustion gas in addition to the atomized fuel. However, in this specification, fuel spray containing combustion gas and fuel spray not containing combustion gas are simply referred to as fuel spray (or spray) without any particular distinction.

The fuel injected from the nozzle hole 152 of the injector 15 is atomized while being diffused at a spray angle θ, and flies along the injection axis AX. When the piston 5 is at or near compression top dead center, the fuel injected from the nozzle hole 152 (fuel spray FS) is directed toward the lip portion 513 of the cavity 5C. In other words, the injector 15 has a nozzle hole 152 that can direct fuel injected at or near compression top dead center to the lip portion 513.

The fuel spray FS injected toward the lip portion 513 collides with the lip portion 513, and then the spray is directed toward the first cavity portion 51 (downward) (arrow F11) and toward the second cavity portion 52 (arrow F11). and the spray (arrow F21) directed upward). The separated spray flows along the wall shapes of the first and second cavity parts 51 and 52 while being mixed with the air present in the first and second cavity parts 51 and 52, respectively.

Specifically, the spray indicated by the arrow F11 is directed downward at the lip portion 513 and enters the outer peripheral portion 512 of the first cavity portion 51. The spray that has entered the outer peripheral part 512 changes its flow direction from below to the inside in the radial direction along the curved shape of the outer peripheral part 512, and then flows along the wall shape of the bottom part 511 as shown by arrow F12. Since the bottom portion 511 is formed so as to rise toward the inside in the radial direction, the spray indicated by the arrow F12 is lifted upward, and finally changes direction so as to go outward and upward in the radial direction as indicated by the arrow F13. It flows so as to return to the position on the injection axis AX, which is the main axis of the initial spray (spray FS immediately after exiting from the injection hole 152). In this way, the spray that has entered the first cavity part 51 swirls and flows to form a vertical vortex within the first cavity part 51.

On the other hand, the spray indicated by the arrow F21 is directed upward at the lip portion 513 and enters the shelf portion 521 of the second cavity portion 52. The spray that has entered the shelf section 521 flows diagonally downward along the inclination of the shelf section 521, and is then lifted upward along the curved wall surface of the rising section 522 as shown by arrow F22, and finally flows radially inward along the combustion chamber ceiling surface 6U.

Here, the upper end portion of the rising portion 522 is not provided with a shaped portion that protrudes inward in the radial direction like the lip portion 513. Therefore, the flow of the spray indicated by arrow F22 is not excessively strengthened, and spray (arrow F23) that branches from arrow F22 and flows radially outward is also generated. In particular, in the later stages of combustion, the fuel may be pulled by a reverse squish flow (a flow directed from the inside to the outside in the radial direction along the squish surface 55), and the flow shown by arrow F23 is likely to occur. This promotes the use of the air present above the squish surface 55, which leads to suppressing the generation of soot.

As described above, the spray that has entered the second cavity portion 52 branches into two directions indicated by the arrows F22 and F23, so that the spray is dispersed over a relatively wide range in the upper part of the combustion chamber 6. Therefore, the flow of each spray after branching is not so strong, and in particular, the flow of arrow F22 after changing direction inward in the radial direction is relatively weak. Due to these circumstances, the spray indicated by arrow F22 does not substantially generate a swirling flow that returns to the position on the injection axis AX. In this respect, it is different from the spray inside the first cavity part 51, which generates swirling flows as shown by arrows F11, F12, and F13.

<Control system>
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the control system of the diesel engine. The ECU 70 shown in this figure is a microprocessor for controlling the engine in an integrated manner, and is composed of a well-known CPU, ROM, RAM, and the like.

Detection information from various sensors is input to the ECU 70. For example, the ECU 70 is electrically connected to the above-described crank angle sensor SN1, water temperature sensor SN2, air flow sensor SN3, intake pressure sensor SN4, injection pressure sensor SN5, and fuel temperature sensor SN6. Information detected by each of these sensors SN1 to SN6, such as crank angle, engine speed, engine water temperature, intake air amount, intake pressure, fuel injection pressure, and fuel temperature, is sequentially input to the ECU 70.

The vehicle is also provided with an accelerator opening sensor SN7 that detects the opening of an accelerator pedal operated by the driver of the vehicle. Information detected by the accelerator opening sensor SN7 is also sequentially input to the ECU 70.

The ECU 70 controls each part of the engine while executing various determinations and calculations based on information inputted from each of the sensors SN1 to SN7. That is, the ECU 70 is electrically connected to the injector 15, fuel pressure regulator 16, throttle valve 32, EGR valve 46, etc., and sends control signals to each of these devices based on the results of the above-mentioned determination and calculation. Output.

<Fuel injection control in the diffusion combustion region>
Next, as a typical fuel injection control in the above engine, injection control in the diffusion combustion region A1 shown in FIG. 5 will be described. The diffusion combustion region A1 shown in FIG. 5 is an operating region in which most of the fuel injected from the injector 15 is burned by diffusion combustion, and is the main operating region excluding the extremely low load region, extremely high load region, and extremely high speed region of the engine. is set in the area. Diffusion combustion, as is well known, is a combustion form widely adopted in diesel engines, in which the fuel injected from the injector 15 is evaporated and mixed with air due to the diffusion effect, resulting in a combustible part (the main part). This is a type of combustion in which the air-fuel mixture is combusted by self-ignition from the boundary between the fuel spray and the air).

When the total amount of fuel to be supplied from the injector 15 to the combustion chamber 6 (cylinder 2) during one combustion cycle is defined as the total injection amount, in the diffusion combustion region A1 of FIG. An injection pattern is adopted in which fuel is injected at or near compression top dead center. FIG. 6 is a time chart showing injection patterns adopted at two typical operating points C1 and C2 within the diffuse combustion region A1, where the horizontal axis is the crank angle (deg) and the vertical axis is the crank angle reference. It is the fuel injection rate (mm ³ /deg). The operating points C1 and C2 have the same rotation speed and different loads. Hereinafter, the operating point C1 with a lower load will be referred to as a first operating point, and the operating point C2 with a higher load will be referred to as a second operating point.

As shown in FIG. 6(a), at the first operation point C1, three pre-injections JP, one main injection Jm, and one after-injection Ja are performed. The main injection Jm is a fuel injection performed at or near compression top dead center (TDC), which is the top dead center (TDC) between the compression stroke and the expansion stroke. executed over a period of time. The injection period of the main injection Jm includes at least the timing at which the injection axis AX of the injector 15 and the lip portion 513 of the first cavity portion 51 intersect (see FIG. 3). Pre-injection Jp is fuel injection performed during the compression stroke before main injection Jm. The after injection Ja is a fuel injection performed during the expansion stroke after the main injection Jm. Among the main, pre, and after injections, the main injection Jm injects the largest proportion of fuel out of the total injection amount during one combustion cycle.

Similarly, at the second operation point C2, as shown in FIG. 6(b), three pre-injections JP, one main injection Jm, and one after-injection Ja are performed. It is also the same as at the first operation point C1 that the ratio of the injection amount due to the main injection Jm is the largest. However, since the load (required torque of the engine) is higher at the second operating point C2 than at the first operating point C1, the total injection amount at the second operating point C2 needs to be greater than at the first operating point C1. There is. In the illustrated example, this fuel increment is primarily allocated to the main injection Jm. That is, when comparing the second operation point C2 and the first operation point C1, the injection amount of the main injection Jm at the second operation point C2 is larger than the injection amount of the main injection Jm at the first operation point C1. Become.

The fuel injection pattern in the diffusion combustion region A1 is basically determined with reference to predetermined map data. Specifically, the storage unit of the ECU 70 stores the injection amount and injection timing (or number of injections) of pre-injection JP, the injection amount and injection timing of main injection Jm, and the injection amount of after-injection Ja based on operating conditions (load map data determined for each engine (speed, rotation speed, etc.) is stored in advance. When operating in the diffuse combustion region A1, the ECU 70 refers to the map data to determine an injection pattern that suits the operating conditions (operating points) at the time, and injects fuel from the injector 15 according to the determined injection pattern. let

However, the injection timing of after-injection Ja is determined each time by calculation without using map data. Although the details will be described later, the injection timing of after injection Ja is a desirable time when the injection interval time (Ti in Fig. 6), which is the time from the end of main injection Jm to the start of after injection Ja, is determined from the viewpoint of air utilization rate. It is determined that

Further, the storage unit of the ECU 70 stores map data in which a target injection pressure, which is a target value of the injection pressure of fuel from the injector 15, is predetermined for each engine operating condition (load, rotation speed, etc.). The fuel pressure regulator 16 is controlled so that the actual injection pressure matches the target injection pressure. The target injection pressure is set to increase as the engine load increases and the total injection amount during one combustion cycle increases. This is because by increasing the amount of fuel that can be injected per unit time, a relatively large amount of fuel commensurate with the high load can be injected within a limited time. Conversely, when the engine load is low (the total injection amount is small), the target injection pressure is lowered, so the load on the fuel pump can be reduced and fuel efficiency can be improved.

According to the setting of the target injection pressure as described above, when the target injection pressure at the first operating point C1 is P1 and the target injection pressure at the second operating point C2 is P2, the latter is larger than the former. The following relationship holds true (P2>P1). When this and the above-mentioned relationship between the injection amounts are taken into consideration, in this embodiment, the relationship shown in Table 1 below holds when comparing the first operation point C1 and the second operation point C2. Become.

That is, when comparing the injection patterns at the first operation point C1 and the second operation point C2, which has a higher load, the total fuel injection amount, the injection amount of the main injection Jm, and the injection pressure are all the same as the second operation point C2. Driving points will be larger. Although the injection amounts of the pre-injection Jp and the after-injection Ja are not particularly shown, the injection amounts of each of these injections Jp and Ja may be the same or may vary.

Next, the procedure of fuel injection control in the diffusion combustion region A1 will be explained based on the flowchart of FIG. When the control shown in the flowchart starts, the ECU 70 determines whether the current operating point of the engine is included in the diffusion combustion region A1 shown in FIG. 5 (step S1). That is, the ECU 70 determines the current engine speed based on the engine speed detected by the crank angle sensor SN1 and the engine load (required torque) specified from the detected value (accelerator opening) of the accelerator opening sensor SN7. It is determined whether or not the operating point is included in the diffusion combustion region A1.

If the determination in step S1 is YES and it is confirmed that the current operating point is included in the diffusion combustion region A1, the ECU 70 controls the total injection amount, which is the total amount of fuel to be injected from the injector 15 during the next one combustion cycle. The amount and the injection pattern for injecting fuel corresponding to the total injection amount are determined (step S2). For example, the total injection amount is determined to increase as the engine load increases, and the injection pattern is determined based on the above-mentioned map data stored in advance in the storage section of the ECU 70. The injection pattern determined here includes the injection amount and injection timing (or number of injections) of the pre-injection Jp, the injection amount and injection timing of the main injection Jm, and the injection amount of the after-injection Ja. On the other hand, the injection timing of the after injection Ja is not determined here, but is determined based on the injection interval time calculated in step SS6, which will be described later.

Next, the ECU 70 determines whether the closing timing (IVC) of the intake valve 11 has arrived (step S3). That is, the ECU 70 determines whether or not the intake valve 11 in the cylinder 2 to which fuel is to be injected is closed.

If the determination in step S3 is YES and it is confirmed that the closing timing of the intake valve 11 has arrived, the ECU 70 detects the fuel injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, and fuel temperature from each sensor. Acquire (step S4). Specifically, the ECU 70 obtains the fuel injection pressure from the detection value of the injection pressure sensor SN5 provided in the injector 15 of the target cylinder 2, obtains the intake pressure from the detection value of the intake pressure sensor SN4, and obtains the intake pressure from the detection value of the intake pressure sensor SN4. The engine rotation speed is obtained from the detected value of SN1, the engine water temperature is obtained from the detected value of water temperature sensor SN2, and the fuel temperature is obtained from the detected value of fuel temperature sensor SN6.

Next, the ECU 70 uses the information acquired in step S4 (injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, fuel temperature) and the injection amount of main injection Jm determined in step S2. , the swirl frequency and initial phase of the fuel spray injected by the main injection Jm are calculated (step S5). Here, the swirl frequency refers to the number of swirls per unit time of the fuel spray that swirls in the first cavity part 51 of the piston 5 as indicated by the arrows F11, F12, and F13 shown in FIG. is the initial phase of a periodic function (see FIG. 9) when the oxygen concentration that varies with the swirling flow of the fuel spray (see FIG. 8) is likened to a periodic function (see FIG. 9).

FIG. 8 is a diagram schematically showing the flow of fuel spray caused by the main injection Jm that swirls inside the first cavity part 51, (a) shows the state of the spray at the end of the main injection Jm, and (b) shows the state of the spray at the end of the main injection Jm. and (c) respectively show the state of the spray that changed with the passage of time after the end of the main injection Jm. As shown in this figure, the fuel spray Fm injected by the main injection Jm in the vicinity of the compression top dead center (or over a predetermined period beyond the compression top dead center) (in reality, it is a combination of combustion gas and atomized fuel). ) swirls to form a vertical vortex along each wall surface of the lip part 513 , outer peripheral part 512 , and bottom part 511 that constitute the first cavity part 51 , and the injection axis AX of the injector 15 ( It returns to the position above the extension line of the central axis of the nozzle hole 152. If the intersection point between the main axis of the fuel spray Fm that has returned onto the injection axis AX due to such a swirling flow and the injection axis AX is defined as a swirling reference point Z, the oxygen concentration at this swirling reference point Z is determined by the swirling flow of the fuel spray Fm. It varies depending on the degree of progression.

That is, at the time of FIG. 8A, which is the end of the main injection Jm, the fuel spray Fm is passing over the turning reference point Z, so the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z becomes very thin. This state of low oxygen concentration continues until the time point in FIG. 8(b) when the fuel spray Fm has completely passed through the turning reference point Z. However, at this point, as shown by the white arrow E, a flow of air with a high oxygen content (hereinafter referred to as a clean air flow) is generated as it is attracted to the negative pressure generated at the rear end of the fuel spray Fm. This clean air flow E starts flowing into the turning reference point Z. As a result, the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z gradually increases after the time point shown in FIG. 8(b). Thereafter, at the time point in FIG. 8(c) when the rear end of the fuel spray Fm has left the turning reference point Z, a state is obtained in which the middle part of the clean air flow E passes through the turning reference point Z, and at this point, the turning reference point Z is reached. The oxygen concentration at point Z is the highest. The reason why the oxygen concentration gradually increases between FIG. 8(b) and (c) is that the oxygen concentration on the clean air flow E increases as the distance from the fuel spray Fm increases (in other words, the oxygen concentration on the clean air flow E increases as the distance from the streamline of the clean air flow E increases). This is because the closer to the center of the direction, the higher the height.

FIG. 9 is a graph showing changes in oxygen concentration over time at the turning reference point Z. Specifically, in this graph, the local λ, which is the value obtained by dividing the local air-fuel ratio at the turning reference point Z by the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio, is used as a parameter representing the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z, and this local λ The value of is plotted on the vertical axis. The larger the local λ, the higher the oxygen concentration. Further, t on the horizontal axis is the time change (msec) from the end of the main injection Jm.

As shown by the solid line waveform in the graph of FIG. 9, the local λ at the turning reference point Z increases as time passes from the end of the main injection Jm (t=0), and after reaching the maximum value, the local λ increases again. It changes periodically, such as decreasing. Specifically, the local λ is very small (point Ra) at the time when the main injection Jm ends (t=0), and starts to rise significantly after the subsequent time t11 (point Rb). Furthermore, the local λ takes a maximum value at time t12 (point Rc), which is later than time t11, and gradually decreases thereafter. In this case, point Ra at t=0 corresponds to the state in FIG. 8(a), point Rb at t=t11 corresponds to the state in FIG. 8(b), and point Rb at t=t12 corresponds to the state in FIG. 8(b). Point Rc corresponds to the state shown in FIG. 8(c).

As described above, the local λ (or oxygen concentration) at the swirl reference point Z changes periodically as the fuel spray Fm swirls within the first cavity portion 51. On the premise of this phenomenon, in step S5 of FIG. 7, the fluctuation in oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z is likened to a predetermined periodic function, and its frequency (turning frequency) and initial phase are calculated by calculation using a predetermined calculation formula. do. How to obtain these swirling frequencies and initial phases will be explained in detail later.

Next, the ECU 70 determines the injection interval time Ti, which is the time from the end of the main injection Jm to the start of the after-injection Ja, based on the swirl frequency and initial phase calculated in step S5 (step S6). As shown in FIG. 10, this injection interval time Ti is set to a time such that the tip of the fuel spray Fa caused by the after-injection Ja reaches the turning reference point Z at the time when the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z becomes the highest. be done. Hereinafter, the time when the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z is the highest (time t12 in the case of the solid line waveform in FIG. 9) will be referred to as the oxygen arrival time. This oxygen arrival timing corresponds to when the middle part of the clean air flow E passes through the turning reference point Z as shown in FIG. 8(c) or FIG. 10. Using this to rephrase the injection interval time Ti, the injection interval time Ti is determined by determining the time when the tip of the fuel spray Fa due to the after-injection Ja reaches the turning reference point Z, and the time when the middle part of the clean air flow E is turning. The time is set to match the time when the reference point Z is reached.

Next, the ECU 70 causes the injector 15 to perform pre-injection Jp and main injection Jm (step S7). Note that the pre-injection Jp and the main injection Jm here are executed according to the injection pattern determined based on the predetermined map data in step S2 (the injection pattern that determines the injection amount and injection timing of each pre-main injection). be done.

Next, the ECU 70 determines whether the elapsed time since the end of the main injection Jm executed in step S7 has reached the injection interval time Ti determined in step S6 (step S8).

If the determination in step S8 is YES and it is confirmed that the injection interval time Ti has elapsed since the end of the main injection Jm, the ECU 70 causes the injector 15 to start the after injection Ja at that time (step S9). As a result, as shown in FIG. 10, the time when the tip of the fuel spray Fa caused by the after-injection Ja reaches the turning reference point Z on the injection axis AX is determined as the oxygen arrival time when the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z becomes high. Can be matched. This leads to increasing the air utilization rate when the fuel injected by after-injection Ja is combusted. Note that the injection amount determined in step S2 based on the predetermined map data is adopted as the injection amount of after-injection Ja in step S9.

<How to calculate rotation frequency and initial phase>
Next, the method of calculating the rotation frequency and initial phase in step S5 will be described in detail. As mentioned above, the swirl frequency and the initial phase are based on the phenomenon in which the fuel spray Fm caused by the main injection Jm swirls in the first cavity part 51, and the swirl frequency and initial phase are the swirl standards that vary with the swirl flow. This refers to the frequency and initial phase when the fluctuation in oxygen concentration at point Z is treated as a periodic function. Letting x(t) be a periodic function representing fluctuations in oxygen concentration, x(t) is schematically defined by the following equation (1).

[Number 1]
x(t)=cos(2πft-φ) (1)
Here, f is the rotation frequency and φ is the initial phase.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8(a), the length of the fuel spray Fm is defined as a spray length L, and the speed at which the fuel spray Fm flows (swivels) is defined as a swirling speed V. Further, as shown in FIG. 8(b), the moving distance from the turning reference point Z to returning to the turning reference point Z by following the broken line route (the distance along the broken line route) is defined as the turning distance D. The swirling frequency f and the initial phase φ can be expressed by the following equation (2) using the spray length L, the swirling speed V, and the swirling distance D, respectively.

[Number 2]
f=V/D
φ=2π×L/D (2)
That is, the swirling frequency f is equal to the swirling speed V divided by the swirling distance D, and the initial phase φ is equal to a constant times the spray length L divided by the swirling distance D.

From the above equation (2), in order to obtain the swirling frequency f and the initial phase φ, it is necessary to know the swirling speed V, the swirling distance D, and the spray length L. According to the findings of the inventor of the present application, these values (V, D, L) are calculated based on the main injection amount (injection amount of main injection Jm), injection pressure, intake pressure, engine It can be expressed as a function of multiple parameters selected from rotational speed, engine water temperature, and fuel temperature.

[Number 3]
V=F1 (main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure)
D=F2 (main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, rotation speed)
L=F3 (main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, rotation speed, water temperature, fuel temperature) (3)
In other words, the turning speed V is a function whose parameters (variables) are the main injection amount, injection pressure, and intake pressure, and the turning distance D is a function whose parameters are the main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, and engine speed. The spray length L is a function whose parameters are the main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, and fuel temperature.

FIG. 11 is a group of graphs for explaining the outline of the function of the above equation (3), in which (a) shows the relationship between the turning speed V and each parameter, and (b) shows the relationship between the turning distance D and each parameter. (c) shows the relationship between the spray length L and each parameter.

As shown in FIG. 11(a), the turning speed V becomes faster as the injection amount of the main injection Jm becomes larger, becomes faster as the fuel injection pressure becomes higher, and becomes slower as the intake pressure becomes higher. As shown in FIG. 11(b), the turning distance D increases as the injection amount of the main injection Jm increases, increases as the fuel injection pressure increases, decreases as the intake pressure increases, and increases as the engine speed increases. The longer it gets. As shown in FIG. 11(c), the spray length L increases as the injection amount of the main injection Jm increases, increases as the fuel injection pressure increases, decreases as the intake pressure increases, and increases as the engine speed increases. The higher the engine water temperature, the longer it becomes; and the higher the fuel temperature, the longer it becomes. In addition, each graph of FIG. 11(a), (b), and (c) shows the changes in V, D, and L obtained when the parameter shown on the horizontal axis changes alone (when the other parameters are constant). shall be shown. Further, each graph is a linear graph representing a simple direct proportional or inverse proportional relationship, but it is only a schematic and is not necessarily a linear graph.

In step S5, the rotation frequency f and the initial phase φ are calculated by a predetermined calculation using the above knowledge. That is, in the above step S5, the ECU 70 uses each information of the injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, and fuel temperature acquired in the above step S4 and the main injection Jm determined in the above step S2. The turning speed V, the turning distance D, and the spray length L are calculated by substituting the above amount into an arithmetic expression corresponding to the above equation (3) (or FIG. 11) stored in advance. Then, by substituting these calculated values (V, D, L) into the pre-stored arithmetic equation corresponding to the above equation (2), the rotation frequency f (=V/D) and the initial phase φ (=2π×L/D) is calculated.

<How to calculate injection interval time>
Next, a method for calculating the injection interval time Ti in step S6 will be described in detail. As mentioned above, in order to obtain the injection interval time Ti, it is necessary to determine the timing when the middle part of the clean air flow E shown in FIG. It is necessary to specify the timing of a certain oxygen arrival. This oxygen arrival time corresponds to the time when the periodic function x(t) shown in equation (1) above reaches its maximum value (=1). In this case, since x(t) is a cosine function, x(t) = 1 because the term (2πft-φ) in the above equation (1) is 0, 2π, 4π... It's time to become Therefore, the oxygen arrival timing can be expressed by the following equation (4).

[Number 4]
t=(φ+nπ)/2πf (n=0, 2, 4‥‥) ‥‥(4)
In other words, the oxygen arrival timing is when t, which is the elapsed time from the end of main injection Jm, satisfies the relationship of equation (4) above, and can be expressed as a function with only the swirl frequency f and initial phase φ as variables. can.

According to the above equation (4), the oxygen arrival timing becomes earlier as the swirl frequency f becomes larger, and becomes later as the initial phase φ becomes larger.

Here, the oxygen arrival timing according to the above equation (4) appears periodically (repeatedly) corresponding to the change in n (0, 2, 4, etc.) in calculation. On the other hand, from the viewpoint of fuel efficiency, it is preferable that the timing of after-injection Ja be as early as possible. That is, in the above formula (4), when n = 0, t, that is, the first oxygen arrival time (t = φ/2πf) that appears periodically among the oxygen arrival times, is specified, and based on this, It is preferable to determine the start timing of after-injection Ja.

In step S6, the injection interval time Ti is calculated by a predetermined calculation using the above knowledge. That is, in the above step S6, the ECU 70 determines the oxygen arrival timing by substituting the rotation frequency f and the initial phase φ calculated in the above step S5 into the pre-stored arithmetic expression corresponding to the above equation (4). Calculate. At this time, n in the above equation (4) is set to 0 in principle, and t=φ/2πf is calculated as the oxygen arrival time. This oxygen arrival timing (φ/2πf) is the timing when the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z first reaches its maximum value after the end of the main injection Jm, and corresponds to time t12 in the solid line waveform in FIG.

As mentioned above, the oxygen arrival timing (φ/2πf) is determined by the swirling frequency f and the initial phase φ. 11 or the parameters shown in equation (3) above (main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, and fuel temperature). In other words, the timing of oxygen arrival is influenced by each of the above parameters and becomes later or earlier. As an example of this phenomenon, FIG. 9 shows a change in local λ when the intake pressure increases using a waveform of a two-dot chain line. As shown in this figure, the timing of oxygen arrival changes from the time (t12) corresponding to point Rc on the solid line waveform to the time corresponding to point Rc' on the two-dot chain line waveform, as the intake pressure increases. (t12'). That is, t12', which is the oxygen arrival time when the intake pressure is high, is later than t12, which is the oxygen arrival time when the intake pressure is low.

The ECU 70 determines the injection interval time Ti so that the fuel spray Fa caused by the after-injection Ja reaches the turning reference point Z at the oxygen arrival time calculated as described above (for example, time t12 in FIG. 9). Here, in order for the fuel spray Fa to reach the turning reference point Z at the oxygen arrival time, it is necessary to start the after injection Ja a little before the oxygen arrival time. That is, the time required for the fuel spray Fa caused by the after-injection Ja to move from the nozzle hole 152 to the turning reference point Z, that is, the time required from the start of the after-injection Ja until the tip of the spray Fa reaches the turning reference point Z. If time is defined as the required spray arrival time, it is necessary to set the after injection Ja start time to be earlier than the oxygen arrival time by the spray arrival required time. Therefore, the ECU 70 calculates the oxygen arrival timing calculated as described above, in other words, the time required from the end of the main injection Jm until the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z becomes the highest (the solid line waveform in FIG. 9). In this case, the value obtained by subtracting the above-mentioned time required to reach the spray from t12 (msec) is calculated as the injection interval time Ti. Note that the time required for the spray to reach the spray (the time required for the fuel spray Fa caused by the after-injection Ja to move from the nozzle hole 152 to the turning reference point Z) can be calculated each time, but it may be determined by a predetermined fixed value. may also be used. This is because the time required for the spray to reach the spray is relatively short, and it is thought that fluctuations due to differences in conditions are also small.

FIG. 12 is a group of graphs showing the relationship between the injection interval time Ti calculated as described above and each parameter of main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, and fuel temperature. be. As shown in this figure, the injection interval time Ti becomes shorter as the injection amount of the main injection Jm becomes larger, becomes shorter as the fuel injection pressure becomes higher, becomes longer as the intake pressure becomes higher, and becomes shorter as the engine speed becomes higher. The higher the engine water temperature, the shorter the time, and the higher the fuel temperature, the shorter the time. It is assumed that each graph shown in FIG. 12 shows a change in the injection interval time Ti obtained when the parameter shown on the horizontal axis changes alone (when the other parameters are constant). Further, each graph is a linear graph representing a simple direct proportional or inverse proportional relationship, but it is only a schematic and is not necessarily a linear graph.

<Example of setting injection interval time>
Next, an example of setting the injection interval time Ti obtained as a result of the above control or calculation will be explained.

(Injection interval time during steady operation)
First, a specific example of the injection interval time Ti set during steady operation will be described. As shown in FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b), in this embodiment, at two typical operating points (first operating point C1 and second operating point C2) in the diffuse combustion region A1 (FIG. 5), In each case, three pre-injections JP, one main injection Jm, and one after-injection Ja are performed. In this case, the injection amount and fuel injection pressure of the main injection Jm are larger at the second operating point C2, which has a higher load, than at the first operating point C1, which has a lower load (as shown earlier). (See Table 1, etc.) As a result, as shown in FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b), the injection interval time Ti at the second operation point C2 where the load is high is shorter than the injection interval time Ti at the first operation point C1 where the load is low. .

That is, when comparing when the engine is operating steadily at the first operating point C1 and when the engine is operating steadily at the second operating point C2, the six parameters (main Of the injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, and fuel temperature of injection Jm, only three of them are different: "main injection amount," "injection pressure," and "intake pressure." The parameters (engine speed, engine water temperature, fuel temperature) are all the same. Here, according to the injection pressure graph in FIG. 12, the injection interval time Ti becomes shorter as the injection amount of the main injection Jm becomes larger, and the injection interval time Ti becomes shorter as the fuel injection pressure becomes higher. The injection interval time Ti becomes longer. In other words, the injection amount and injection pressure of the main injection Jm and the intake pressure have opposite effects on the injection interval time Ti. However, the negative effect on the injection interval time Ti caused by an increase in both the injection amount and the injection pressure is greater than the positive effect on the injection interval time Ti caused by an increase in the intake pressure. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b), the injection interval time Ti at the second operation point C2 where the load is high is shorter than the injection interval time Ti at the first operation point C1 where the load is low. ing. In Fig. 6(a) and (b), the horizontal axis is the crank angle and not the time, but since the engine speed is the same at both the first and second operating points C1 and C2, the length in the horizontal axis direction is It can be regarded as the length of time.

(Fuel injection during acceleration operation)
Next, a specific example of the injection interval time Ti set during acceleration operation will be described. Here, as an example, the change in the injection interval time Ti when the operating point of the engine changes as shown by arrow B within the diffusion combustion region A1 (FIG. 5) and the injection amount of the main injection Jm changes in the increasing direction. I will explain about it. Note that in the example of FIG. 5, arrow B is an arrow such that the operating point after acceleration matches the second operating point C2, but this is just an example; As long as the condition is such that the injection amount of main injection Jm increases, the injection interval time Ti changes in the same manner as described below.

FIG. 13 is a time chart showing temporal changes in various state quantities during acceleration operation within the diffusion combustion region A1. Time t1 in this figure is the time when the accelerator opening increases to a predetermined opening due to the driver's further depression of the accelerator pedal (see chart (a)). As the accelerator opening degree increases at time t1, the engine load (required torque) increases in a stepwise manner, and the injection amount of the main injection Jm and the target injection pressure of fuel increase in a stepwise manner accordingly. That is, at time t1, the injection amount of main injection Jm changes stepwise from Q1 to Q2, which is larger than this (see chart (b)), and the target injection pressure of fuel changes stepwise from P1 to P2, which is larger than this. (see chart (c)). On the other hand, the actual fuel injection pressure (actual injection pressure), that is, the injection pressure detected by the injection pressure sensor SN5, gradually increases in accordance with the operation of the fuel pressure regulator 16, and increases at time t2, which is later than time t1. It reaches P2, which is the same value as the later target injection pressure (see chart (d)).

The increase in the injection amount of the main injection Jm after the above-mentioned time t1 increases the output torque of the engine and gradually increases the engine speed. In the illustrated example, the engine speed detected by the crank angle sensor SN1 continues to increase until time t3, which is later than time t2 when the increase in actual injection pressure is completed, at which point the increase is completed. That is, the engine speed increases from N1 to N2, which is greater than this, from time t1 to time t2, and further increases from N2 to N3, which is greater than this, from time t2 to time t3 (see chart (e)). .

Furthermore, since the increase in the output torque (heat generation amount) and the rotational speed increases the supercharging ability of the turbo supercharger 36, from time t1 onward, the intake pressure after supercharging, that is, the intake air detected by the intake pressure sensor SN4, increases. The pressure (supercharging pressure) gradually increases. In the illustrated example, the intake pressure (supercharging pressure) continues to increase until time t4, which is later than time t3 when the increase in engine speed is completed. That is, the intake pressure increases from Ps1 to Ps3, which is greater than Ps1, from time t1 to time t3, and further increases from Ps3 to Ps4, which is greater than Ps3, from time t3 to time t4 (see chart (f)).

Due to the above-mentioned temporal changes in the injection amount, injection pressure, engine speed, and intake pressure, the injection interval time Ti, which is the time from the end of main injection Jm to the start of after injection Ja, is determined as shown in chart (g). Changes to That is, the injection interval time Ti decreases stepwise from T1 to T1' at time t1, gradually decreases from T1' to T2 from time t1 to time t2, and decreases from T2 to T3 from time t2 to time t3. It gradually decreases from time t3 to time t4, and gradually increases from T3 to T4.

Among the above changes, the stepwise decrease in the injection interval time Ti at time t1 is due to the stepwise increase in the injection amount of main injection Jm shown in chart (b) from Q1 to Q2 at time t1. It is something. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, an increase in the injection amount of the main injection Jm has the effect of shortening the injection interval time Ti, so if the injection amount increases stepwise at time t1, the injection amount increases accordingly. The interval time Ti will be shortened in steps.

The gradual decrease in the injection interval time Ti from time t1 to time t2 is mainly due to the fact that the fuel injection pressure (actual injection pressure) shown in chart (d) gradually increases from P1 to P2 from time t1 to time t2. This is due to That is, as shown in FIG. 12, an increase in the injection pressure has the effect of shortening the injection interval time Ti, so if the injection pressure gradually increases from time t1 to t2, the injection interval time Ti will increase accordingly. will be gradually shortened. Here, the intake pressure also gradually increases during the period from time t1 to t2, and according to FIG. 12, this increase in intake pressure has the effect of extending the injection interval time Ti (an effect opposite to the injection pressure). bring about. However, it has been found that when both the injection pressure and the intake pressure increase during acceleration operation as shown in FIG. 13, the influence of the increase in the injection pressure becomes dominant. Therefore, during the period from time t1 to t2 in FIG. 13, even though the intake pressure is increasing, the injection interval time Ti is gradually shortened due to the influence of the increase in injection pressure.

The gradual decrease in the injection interval time Ti from time t2 to time t3 is mainly due to the engine speed shown in chart (e) gradually increasing from N2 to N3 from time t2 to time t3. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, an increase in engine speed has the effect of shortening the injection interval time Ti, so if the engine speed gradually increases from time t2 to t3, the injection interval will change accordingly. The time Ti will be gradually shortened. Here, the intake pressure also gradually increases during the period from time t2 to t3, and according to FIG. 12, this increase in intake pressure has the effect of extending the injection interval time Ti (an effect opposite to the engine speed ). However, it has been found that when both engine speed and injection pressure increase during acceleration operation as shown in FIG. 13, the influence of the increase in engine speed becomes dominant. Therefore, during the period from time t2 to t3 in FIG. 13, even though the intake pressure is increasing, the injection interval time Ti is gradually shortened due to the influence of the increase in engine speed.

The gradual increase in the injection interval time Ti from time t3 to time t4 is due to the fact that the intake pressure (supercharging pressure) shown in chart (f) gradually increases from Ps3 to Ps4 from time t3 to time t4. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, an increase in the intake pressure has the effect of lengthening the injection interval time Ti, so if the intake pressure gradually increases from time t3 to t4, the injection interval time Ti will increase accordingly. will be gradually extended. The period from time t3 to t4 is a period in which the engine frequency and injection pressure have finished increasing, and only the intake pressure is increasing. Therefore, during the period from time t3 to t4, the influence of the increase in intake pressure purely affects the injection interval time Ti, and the injection interval time Ti is gradually lengthened.

After the above-described behavior has occurred, in the example shown in FIG. 13, the driver releases the accelerator pedal, thereby reducing the accelerator opening degree. That is, at time t4 when the injection interval time Ti reaches T4, the accelerator opening has decreased to a value that is almost the same as the opening before acceleration (the opening before time t1) (see chart (a)). . Then, at time t5, which is a little later than time t4, the driver depresses the accelerator pedal again, and thereby the accelerator opening increases again to the opening before decreasing (the opening after time t1).

As mentioned above, from the time t4 when the accelerator opening temporarily decreases to the time t5, the injection amount of the main injection Jm and the target injection pressure of fuel decrease in a step manner in conjunction with the decrease in the opening. (See charts (b) and (c)). Similarly, during the period from time t4 to time t5, the actual fuel injection pressure (actual injection pressure) gradually decreases in response to the operation of the fuel pressure regulator 16 (see chart (d)), and as the output torque decreases. The engine speed and intake pressure (supercharging pressure) gradually decrease (see charts (e) and (f)).

Due to the above-described temporal changes in the injection amount, injection pressure, engine speed, and intake pressure, the injection interval time Ti changes as shown in chart (g) after time t4. That is, the injection interval time Ti increases stepwise from T4 to T4' at time t4, gradually increases from T4' to T5 from time t4 to time t5, and increases stepwise from T5 to T5' at time t5. decreases to

Since the injection amount of the main injection amount Jm increases again at time t5, the injection pressure (actual injection pressure), engine speed, and intake pressure gradually increase again after time t5. More specifically, from time t5 to time t6, the injection pressure, engine speed, and intake pressure all gradually increase, and from time t6 to time t7, only the intake pressure increases gradually. In accordance with this behavior, the injection interval time Ti is gradually shortened from time t5 to t6, which is a period in which all three factors increase, and at time t6 to t7, which is a period in which only the intake pressure increases. gradually lengthened.

Here, when comparing the conditions at time t4 and the conditions at time t7, the injection amount of main injection Jm, injection pressure (actual injection pressure), and engine speed are all the same, but the intake pressure There are differences regarding this. That is, the intake pressure at time t7 is higher than the intake pressure at time t4 (see chart (f)). On the other hand, regarding the injection interval time Ti, as shown in chart (g), the injection interval time Ti at time t7 (=T7) is longer than the injection interval time Ti at time t4 (=T4). ing. This is due to the relatively high intake pressure at time t7. In other words, since the condition holds that only the intake pressure is different and the other parameters are the same between time t4 and time t7, this difference in intake pressure alone affects the injection interval time Ti, and This results in the injection interval time Ti at t7 being relatively long. Note that such a comparison holds true between time t3 and time t6 as well.

<Effect>
As explained above, in this embodiment, when the diesel engine including the piston 5 in which the reentrant cavity 5C is formed in the crown surface 50 is operated in the diffuse combustion region A1, the total amount of fuel injected during one combustion cycle is reduced. Main injection Jm that injects the largest proportion of fuel into the first cavity portion 51, and after injection that injects a smaller amount of fuel than the main injection Jm at a predetermined time during the expansion stroke that is later than the main injection Jm. The injector 15 is controlled so that Ja is executed, and the injection interval time Ti, which is the time from the end of the main injection Jm to the start of the after injection Ja, is made longer as the intake pressure (supercharging pressure) is higher. Ru. According to such a configuration, it is possible to increase the air utilization rate of the fuel injected by the after-injection Ja and sufficiently suppress the generation of soot, while maintaining relatively good fuel efficiency.

That is, as shown in FIG. 8, the fuel spray Fm injected by the main injection Jm forms a vertical vortex along each wall surface of the lip portion 513, outer peripheral portion 512, and bottom portion 511 of the first cavity portion 51. The injector 15 then returns to the turning reference point Z on the injection axis AX (an extension of the central axis of the nozzle hole 152). The oxygen arrival time when the oxygen concentration at this turning reference point Z becomes high is the time when the clean air flow E (air flow with high oxygen content) that is generated following the rear end of the spray Fm passes through the turning reference point Z. If it is possible to make the fuel spray Fa by the after injection Ja reach the turning reference point Z in accordance with this oxygen arrival timing, it is possible to increase the air utilization rate of the fuel injected by the after injection Ja (see Fig. 10). . On the other hand, the inventor's research has revealed that the timing of oxygen arrival becomes later as the intake pressure is higher, as shown in FIG. As a control taking this point into consideration, in this embodiment, the injection interval time Ti, which is the time from the end of main injection Jm to the start of after injection Ja, is adjusted so that it becomes longer as the intake pressure is higher. The fuel spray Fa caused by the after-injection Ja can be made to reach the turning reference point Z at an appropriate time according to the tendency of the oxygen arrival timing (that is, the time when the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z becomes high), and the fuel The air utilization rate of spray Fa can be increased. As a result, as shown by the solid line waveform in chart (h) of Fig. 13, the generation of soot due to combustion is reduced compared to the case where the injection interval time Ti is set fixedly (shown by the two-dot chain line). can be effectively suppressed.

Furthermore, if the injection interval time Ti is variable according to the intake pressure as described above, the injection timing of the after injection Ja can be advanced depending on the conditions compared to the case where the injection interval time Ti is fixed. It is possible to improve the fuel efficiency of the engine. For example, when the injection interval time Ti is set to be constant regardless of the intake pressure, the temperature of the combustion chamber 6 is sufficiently lowered so that the amount of soot generated does not become excessive regardless of whether the intake pressure is high or low. It is necessary to start the after-injection Ja after waiting for a relatively long time to have passed since the end of the main injection Jm (the expansion stroke has progressed to some extent). This reduces the proportion of the combustion energy based on after-injection Ja that is used as work, leading to deterioration in fuel efficiency. On the other hand, when the injection interval time Ti is made variable according to the intake pressure as in the above embodiment, there is no need to uniformly delay the start time of after injection Ja as described above, and it depends on the conditions. The injection timing of after injection Ja can be advanced. Thereby, the rate at which combustion energy based on after-injection Ja is converted into work can be increased as much as possible, and the fuel efficiency of the engine can be improved.

More specifically, in the above embodiment, the engine speed increases during accelerated operation as shown by arrow B in FIG. If a phenomenon in which the intake pressure (supercharging pressure) continues to rise after the completion of The injection interval time Ti is gradually lengthened in accordance with the gradual increase in the intake pressure. According to such a configuration, the intake pressure continues to rise even after the engine speed has finished increasing due to the action of the turbo supercharger 36 whose supercharging capacity increases as the engine speed increases during acceleration operation. However, by setting an appropriate injection interval time Ti according to this delayed increase in intake pressure, it is possible to maintain a good air utilization rate of the fuel injected by after injection Ja even during acceleration operation. , the amount of soot generated during accelerated driving can be reduced.

Further, in the embodiment described above, the fuel pressure regulator 16 is controlled such that the injection pressure of the fuel from the injector 15 increases as the engine load increases within the diffusion combustion region A1. According to such a configuration, under various conditions with different loads within the diffusion combustion region A1 (for example, at each of the first and second operating points C1 and C2 shown in FIG. 5), the appropriate fuel pressure adjusted by the fuel pressure regulator 16 is The required fuel can be injected efficiently depending on the injection pressure, and both combustion controllability and fuel efficiency can be achieved. However, when the fuel injection pressure is made variable in this way, the timing of oxygen arrival varies depending on the injection pressure, and there is a tendency that the higher (lower) the injection pressure, the earlier (later) the timing of oxygen arrival. (See FIG. 12), this tendency is opposite to that of the intake pressure. On the other hand, research by the present inventors has revealed that the influence of fuel injection pressure on the timing of oxygen arrival is greater than the influence of intake pressure on the timing of oxygen arrival. In order to appropriately adjust the injection interval time Ti in consideration of this point, in the above embodiment, when it is confirmed that both the fuel injection pressure and the intake pressure increase at the beginning of acceleration operation, The injection interval time Ti is gradually shortened in accordance with the gradual increase in the injection pressure during the period in which the phenomenon is confirmed (the periods from time t1 to t2 or from time t5 to t6 in FIG. 13). As a result, it is possible to set an appropriate injection interval time Ti according to the change in injection pressure, which has a greater influence than the intake pressure, and increases the air utilization rate of the injected fuel by after-injection Ja, thereby increasing the amount of soot generated. can be reduced.

Further, in the above embodiment, the main injection Jm is executed at the timing when the injection axis AX of the injector 15 and the lip part 513 of the first cavity part 51 intersect, and after the end of this main injection Jm, the injection axis AX is The oxygen arrival time, which is the time when the clean air flow E arrives at the turning reference point Z, is determined by multiple parameters including intake pressure and injection pressure (main injection amount, injection pressure, intake pressure, engine speed, engine water temperature, The injection interval time Ti is determined based on the calculated oxygen arrival timing. According to such a configuration, the oxygen arrival time can be appropriately calculated based on the knowledge obtained by the present inventor that the oxygen arrival time changes depending on a specific parameter group including intake pressure and injection pressure, and the calculated oxygen arrival time can be By adjusting the start timing of after-injection Ja so that the fuel spray Fa caused by after-injection Ja reaches the turning reference point Z in accordance with the timing of oxygen arrival, the air utilization rate of the fuel spray Fa is increased and the amount of soot generated is increased. can be reduced.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the injection interval time Ti is adjusted in consideration of various parameters other than the intake pressure and the injection pressure. Specifically, the injection interval time Ti is adjusted to become shorter as the injection amount of the main injection Jm, engine speed, engine water temperature, or fuel temperature increases (see FIG. 12). According to such a configuration, it is possible to set an appropriate injection interval time Ti that takes into account various parameters that change the timing of oxygen arrival, and to start after-injection Ja at an appropriate time when a high air utilization rate can be obtained. be able to.

In particular, if the engine water temperature, that is, the degree of engine warm-up, differs, the timing of oxygen arrival will differ even if the engine load and rotation speed are the same. However, in the above embodiment, the injection amount, injection pressure, The timing of oxygen arrival is determined not only by parameters that depend on the load and rotational speed such as intake pressure, but also by taking into account the engine water temperature, which allows for good air utilization under various engine temperature conditions (degree of warm-up progress). rate can be secured without any problem. The difference in engine water temperature affects the timing of oxygen arrival because, as shown in FIG. 11(c), the higher the engine water temperature, the longer the length of the fuel spray (spray length L) becomes. . As the spray length L becomes longer, the length of the clean air flow E shown in FIG. 8 or 10 becomes shorter, so the timing at which the middle part of the clean air flow E passes the turning reference point Z is brought forward. This is the reason. For this reason, in the embodiment described above, the higher the engine water temperature, the shorter the injection interval time Ti, thereby improving the air utilization rate.

<Modified example>
In the above embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to a diesel engine equipped with a piston 5 in which an upper and lower two-stage cavity 5C including a first cavity part 51 and a second cavity part 52 is formed on the crown surface 50 will be described. However, a diesel engine to which the present invention is applicable may include a piston having a single-stage cavity instead of a two-stage cavity. That is, in the cavity 5C of the piston 5 of the above embodiment, a chevron-shaped bottom portion 511, an outer peripheral portion 512 that is concave so as to protrude radially outward, and a lip portion that protrudes radially inwardly. The present invention can be applied to diesel engines equipped with pistons of various shapes, as long as the piston has at least a reentrant cavity corresponding to the first cavity portion 51 having the first cavity portion 513.

In the above embodiment, each of the plurality of injectors 15, one for each of the plurality of cylinders 2, is provided with the injection pressure sensor SN5, and when injecting fuel from the injector 15 in any cylinder 2, the injector for that cylinder 2 Although the injection interval time Ti is determined based on the injection pressure detected at the IVC point (intake valve closing timing) by the injection pressure sensor SN5 provided in the 15, the method for determining the injection interval time Ti is limited to this. I can't do it. For example, an injection pressure sensor may be provided on the common rail 18 connected to the plurality of injectors 15 via the fuel supply pipe 17, and the injection interval time Ti may be determined based on the injection pressure detected by the injection pressure sensor. In addition, the injection pressure used to determine the injection interval time Ti in a certain cylinder 2 is determined before the injector 15 for the cylinder 2 injects fuel and in the cylinder one combustion order earlier than the cylinder 2. It may be done after the combustion in Step 2 is completed, and is not limited to the time of IVC.

In the above embodiment, the time when the middle part of the clean air flow E passes the turning reference point Z on the injection axis AX, that is, the time when the oxygen concentration at the turning reference point Z becomes the highest, is defined as the oxygen arrival time (for example, the solid line in FIG. 9). In the case of the waveform of The timing is when any of the main parts of the clean air flow E excluding the front end and the rear end passes the turning reference point Z (the period when the fuel spray Fm exists on the turning reference point Z is clearly avoided) It is not necessary to limit the period to the period when the oxygen concentration is the highest. In particular, during cold operation when the engine water temperature is sufficiently low, the stability of combustion based on after-injection Ja is likely to decrease, so the start time of after-injection Ja should be brought forward as much as possible from the perspective of ensuring the combustion stability. This may be required. In such a case, the injection interval time Ti may be adjusted so that the fuel spray Fa caused by the after-injection Ja reaches the turning reference point Z at a timing slightly earlier than the timing when the oxygen concentration becomes the highest.

In the above embodiment, the number of main injections Jm is set to one, and the main injection Jm is executed in such a manner that fuel is continuously injected over a predetermined period including the compression top dead center. , a relatively large amount of fuel may be injected at a timing such that the fuel spray heads toward the lip portion 513 of the cavity 5C (that is, near the compression top dead center), and the number of injections is not limited to one. . For example, the main injection may be performed at multiple timings near the compression top dead center.

2 cylinder 5 piston 5C cavity 6 combustion chamber 15 injector 16 fuel pressure regulator (injection pressure adjustment part)
18 Common rail (accumulation rail)
36 Turbo supercharger 50 Crown surface (of the piston) 70 ECU (injection control unit)
152 Nozzle hole (injector) 511 Bottom 512 Outer periphery 513 Lip SN4 Intake pressure sensor SN5 Injection pressure sensor A1 Diffusion combustion region (predetermined operating region)
AX Injection axis C1 1st operating point C2 2nd operating point E Clean air flow Fm Fuel spray (by main injection) Fa Fuel spray (by after injection) Jm Main injection Ja After injection Ti Injection interval time Z Turn reference point (injection axis specific position above)

Claims (4)

A device for controlling a diesel engine including a cylinder, a piston housed in the cylinder so as to be able to reciprocate, and an injector that injects fuel containing light oil into a combustion chamber that is a space above the piston,
an intake pressure sensor that detects intake pressure that is the pressure of intake air introduced into the combustion chamber;
an injection control unit that controls the injector so that fuel is injected at a plurality of timings set from a compression stroke to an expansion stroke when operating in a predetermined operating region;
The piston has a cavity recessed downward in the crown surface thereof, and a bottom portion formed such that the height becomes lower toward the radially outer side as a wall surface defining the cavity, and a bottom portion formed radially outwardly than the bottom portion. A curved outer peripheral part that is curved and concave so as to be convex radially outward in a cross-sectional view including the cylinder axis, and a curved outer peripheral part that is formed above the outer peripheral part and convex radially inward in a cross-sectional view including the cylinder axis. It has a curved lip part that protrudes from the
The injector is provided to inject fuel obliquely downward toward the outside in the radial direction from a position facing the center portion of the cavity in the ceiling portion of the combustion chamber,
During operation in the predetermined operating range, the injection control section injects the largest proportion of fuel out of the total amount of fuel injected during one combustion cycle, and directs the injected fuel toward the lip section. A main injection that redirects at least a portion of the fuel downward from the lip portion, and an after injection that injects a smaller amount of fuel than the main injection at a predetermined time during an expansion stroke that is later than the main injection, to the injector. let it run,
The injection interval time, which is the time from the end of the main injection to the start of the after injection, is lengthened as the intake pressure detected by the intake pressure sensor is higher, under the condition that parameters other than the intake pressure are the same. A diesel engine control device characterized by: The diesel engine control device according to claim 1,
The diesel engine includes a turbo supercharger that pressurizes intake air introduced into the combustion chamber,
The intake pressure sensor is provided to detect the pressure of intake air after supercharging by the turbo supercharger,
When the injection control unit confirms, based on the detection value of the intake pressure sensor, that the intake pressure continues to increase even after the engine speed has finished increasing during acceleration operation within the predetermined operating range. The control device for a diesel engine is characterized in that the injection interval time is gradually lengthened in accordance with a gradual increase in the intake pressure during a period in which the phenomenon is confirmed. The diesel engine control device according to claim 2,
an injection pressure adjustment unit that adjusts the injection pressure such that the injection pressure of the fuel injected from the injector increases as the load increases within the predetermined operating region;
further comprising an injection pressure sensor that detects the injection pressure of the fuel,
The injection control unit is configured to detect, based on detection values of the injection pressure sensor and the intake pressure sensor, a phenomenon in which both the fuel injection pressure and the intake pressure increase during acceleration operation within the predetermined operating range. A control device for a diesel engine, characterized in that when the phenomenon is confirmed, the injection interval time is gradually shortened in accordance with the gradual increase in the injection pressure during the period in which the phenomenon is confirmed. The diesel engine control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
further comprising a temperature sensor that detects a predetermined temperature parameter that increases as the engine warms up;
The control device for a diesel engine, wherein the injection control unit shortens the injection interval time as the temperature parameter detected by the temperature sensor increases , under the condition that parameters other than the temperature parameter are the same .

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