Theory Of Operation

The Oxygen Sensors (O2 Sensor) are used for fuel control and catalyst monitoring. Each O2 Sensor measures the oxygen content of the exhaust stream. When the engine is started, the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) operates in an Open Loop mode, ignoring the O2 Sensor signal voltage while calculating the air-to-fuel ratio. The heating elements inside each O2 Sensor heats the sensor to bring it to operating conditions faster. This allows the system to enter Closed Loop earlier and the PCM to calculate the air-to-fuel ratio sooner. While the engine runs, the O2 Sensor heats up and begins to generate a voltage within a range of 0-1, 275 mV. Once sufficient O2 Sensor voltage fluctuation is observed by the PCM, Closed Loop is entered. The PCM uses the O2 Sensor voltage to determine the air-to-fuel ratio. An O2 Sensor voltage that increases toward 1, 000 mV indicates a rich fuel mixture. An O2 Sensor voltage that decreases toward 0 mV indicates a lean fuel mixture. The Powertrain Control Module (PCM) makes short term and long term fuel corrections to maintain stoichiometric fuel/air ratio for best catalytic converter efficiency. Short term fuel correction is based on upstream O2 Sensor output and is designed for quick engine response. The long term fuel correction compensated for variations in the engine specifications, sensor tolerances and component aging and is designed to correct rich and lean conditions over a longer period of time.

For an aged O2 Sensor, the response rate to the air/fuel change is slower than when it was new. The O2 Sensor tends to move less with the same air/fuel changes in a given time frame. Therefore by observing the activity of voltage readings from the upstream O2 Sensor, the quality of the O2 Sensor can be detected.