Internal-combustion engines – Vibration compensating device
Utility Patent
1998-08-05
2001-01-02
Argenbright, Tony M. (Department: 3747)
Internal-combustion engines
Vibration compensating device
C123S339230
Utility Patent
active
06167860
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method of controlling idle of an internal combustion engine supported by a variable vibro-isolating supporting device a vibro-isolating characteristic of which is variably controlled corresponding to a vibration characteristic inputted.
In an automobile etc, a device for supporting an internal combustion engine on a car body side involves the use of a vibro-isolating supporting device incorporating a function of preventing a variety of vibrations such as engine shakes and idle vibrations of the internal combustion engine from being transmitted to the car body side.
What is known as the vibro-isolating supporting device is a variable vibro-isolating supporting device the vibro-isolating characteristic of which is variable corresponding to characteristics of the variety of vibrations as in the case of an active mount disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.3-66949 and a liquid-sealed vibro-isolating device disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.6-137361.
The active mount disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.3-66949 is intended to damp the vibrations transmitted from the internal combustion engine to the car body side by expanding and contracting a piezoelectric element laminated member so as to follow up the vibrations when the vibrations are inputted from the internal combustion engine.
Further, the liquid-sealed vibro-isolating device disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.6-137361 includes an elastic member composed of rubber in the device, a main liquid chamber in which a liquid sealed, an auxiliary liquid chamber communicating via a throttle passageway (an orifice) with this main liquid chamber, and a movable diaphragm for partitioning an interior of the auxiliary liquid chamber into a liquid sealing chamber and an air chamber. The liquid-sealed vibro-isolating device is constructed to change a dynamic spring characteristic of the whole device by selectively introducing an intake air negative pressure and an atmospheric pressure, and thus actualize the vibro-isolating characteristics adapted to a variety of vibration characteristics.
The variable vibro-isolating supporting devices described above are capable of obtaining damping effects and vibro-isolating effects corresponding to the variety of vibrations and therefore enhancing a drivability.
Incidentally, in the variable vibro-isolating supporting device described above, conditions in a using environment are not taken into consideration. For example, if the device set to obtain desired vibro-isolating and damping characteristics at a normal temperature is used at an extremely low temperature, the dynamic spring characteristic of the whole device can not be controlled to a desired characteristic due to hardening of the elastic member and a change in expanding/contracting characteristics of the piezoelectric element, resulting in declines of the vibro-isolating effect and of the damping effect.
Further, if the liquid-sealed vibro-isolating device disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.6-137361 is used in a highland etc, the dynamic spring characteristic of the whole device might change due to a change in the atmospheric pressure, and the vibro-isolating effect declines.
Moreover, the active mount disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.3-66949 might be short of the driving voltage of the piezoelectric element when the battery would be deteriorated with a passage of time, and exhibits declines of the vibro-isolating and damping effects.
To obviate such problems, there has hitherto been provided an abnormality control device in an active type vibro-isolating device disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.6-288421. This abnormality control device detects a temperature of the piezoelectric element and, if the detected element temperature becomes a predetermined value or more, stops the drive of the active mount. Namely, the abnormality control device judges that the expanding/contracting characteristics of the piezoelectric element laminated member largely fluctuates when the element temperature is high with the result that the desired vibro-isolating and damping effects are not obtained and, besides, the vibration might be further deteriorated, and therefore halts the drive of the active mount. As explained above, the abnormality control device is constructed to prevent an occurrence of vibrations which exert an adverse influence upon the vehicle performance under such an environment that the desired vibro-isolating characteristic is not obtained.
The vibrations of the internal combustion engine are, however, transmitted directly to the car body side simply by stopping the drive of the active mount under the environment where the desired vibro-isolating characteristic is not obtained. In particular, the number of idling rotations of the internal combustion engine supported by the active mount is so controlled as to be set lower than that of the internal combustion engine supported by an ordinary engine mount, allowing for the vibro-isolating effect of the active mount, and hence, if when the drive of the active mount is halted, the idle vibrations larger than normal are transmitted to the car body side. This might result in a problem of causing an ill-feeling in riding.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To overcome the above problem of causing the ill-feeling in riding, in an internal combustion engine supported by a variable vibro-isolating supporting device for actualizing vibro-isolating characteristics corresponding to a variety of vibrations, it is an object of the present invention to provide a technology capable of restraining deterioration of idle vibrations even if a desired vibro-isolating effect is not obtained due to variations in using environment conditions.
The present invention adopts the following constructions in order to obviate the problems described above.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a method of controlling idle of an internal combustion engine supported by a variable vibro-isolating supporting device a vibro-isolating characteristic of which is variably controlled to reduce idle vibrations when in an idling operation, comprises a step of increasing the number of idling rotations of the internal combustion engine by a predetermined number of rotations under a using environment in which a desired vibro-isolating effect is not obtained by the variable vibro-isolating supporting device.
Normally, a frequency of the idle vibrations of the internal combustion engine becomes higher as the number of rotations of the engine becomes greater, and the idle vibrations are hard to be transmitted to the car body side. Therefore, under the using environment where the desired vibro-isolating characteristic can not be obtained by the variable vibro-isolating supporting device, the idle vibrations of the internal combustion engine becomes hard to be transmitted to the car body side by increasing the number of idling rotations by the predetermined number of rotations, thereby preventing the deterioration of the idle vibrations.
The following is what ca be considered as the using environment where the variable vibro-isolating supporting device is incapable of actualizing the desired vibro-isolating characteristic.
(1) If the variable vibro-isolating supporting device is a device including at least an elastic member, under a using environment in which a temperature of said elastic member is over an upper limit value or under a lower limit value, the characteristic of the elastic member changes, and hence the variable vibro-isolating supporting device is incapable of actualizing a desired vibro-isolating characteristic.
(2) If the variable vibro-isolating supporting device is a liquid-sealed type engine mount constructed by sealing a liquid in the device, under a using environment in which a temperature of the liquid is over an upper limit value or under a lower limi
Argenbright Tony M.
Huynh Hai
Oliff & Berridg,e PLC
Toyota Jidosha & Kabushiki Kaisha
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