摘要 |
A system for detecting the concentration of oxygen in a gas which comprises an oxygen sensor having a first solid electrolyte cell, which produces an electrical output representing a difference between oxygen partial pressures on the opposite two sides of a solid electrolyte layer, and a second solid electrolyte cell which acts as an oxygen ion pump by application of a current thereto and is used to control the oxygen partial pressure in a fraction of the gas admitted into the sensor. The current is controlled so as to render the output of the oxygen sensor equal to a target value. The system includes means for continuously making a judgement whether the gas under inspection is equivalent to the air or not. When the atmospheric condition of the gas is established the target value is varied so as to avoid undesirable increase in the current intensity. This is favorable for durability of the oxygen sensor. A provisional output signal representing the current intensity is corrected based on the output value obtained under the atmospheric condition. This system is suitable for use in detecting the air/fuel ratio in an internal combustion engine by detecting oxygen concentration in the exhaust gas.
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