Douglas L Potratz, 6926 Van Dyne Rd, Van Dyne, WI 54979

4960398, Oct 2, 1990

Dec 28, 1988

7/291145

Douglas R. Potratz - Oshkosh WI

Brunswick Corporation - Skokie IL

B63H 2132

440 53

A stern drive marine propulsion system, including an exhaust discharge control mechanism for selectively routing exhaust to an above-water outlet and to a below-water outlet, and an automatic trim control mechanism, is provided with circuitry interconnecting such components. The trim control system and the exhaust control system are selectively interconnectable so that the exhaust control is actuated responsive to operation of the trim control system.

5924404, Jul 20, 1999

Oct 24, 1997

8/957144

Mark A. Ruman - Fond du Lac WI
Douglas R. Potratz - Oshkosh WI

Brunswick Corporation - Lake Forest IL

F02P 500

12340618

A direct fuel injected two-stroke engine controls spark ignition timing and/or ignition coil dwell time on a cylinder-specific basis. The engine also preferably controls fuel injection timing and amount and injection/delivery duration on a cylinder-specific basis. Cylinder-specific customization of spark ignition and fuel injection allows better coordination of spark with fuel injection which results in better running quality, lower emissions, etc. Memory in the electronic control unit for the engine preferably includes a high resolution global look-up table that determines global values for spark ignition and fuel injection control based on engine load (e. g. throttle position, manifold air pressure, etc. ) and engine speed. Memory in the electronic control unit also includes a plurality of low resolution, cylinder-specific offset value look-up tables from which cylinder-specific offset values for spark ignition and fuel injection can be determined, preferably depending on engine load and engine speed.

5913302, Jun 22, 1999

Sep 19, 1997

8/934475

Mark A. Ruman - Fond du Lac WI
Douglas R. Potratz - Oshkosh WI

Brunswick Corporation - Lake Forest IL

F02P 900

123609

A two-stroke direct fuel injected internal combustion engine has an ignition coil dwell time control system. An electronic control unit controls switching of electronic ignition coil drivers in a manner to minimize ignition coil dwell times at medium and high engine speeds where low ignition coil dwell times can be used without sacrificing engine performance. The electronic control unit also implements an intermittent spark plug cleaning strategy to remove carbon deposits from fouled spark plugs. Intermittent cleaning is accomplished during engine operation by periodically raising the ignition coil dwell time to an exaggerated cleaning level for a relatively short period of time (e. g. one minute) after it is determined the spark plug cleaning should occur (e. g. 10 to 20 engine operating hours since previous cleaning).