US Patent 10125712 Torque security of MPC-based powertrain control

A propulsion system, control system, and method are provided that use model predictive control to generate an initial selected engine output torque value. A minimum torque limit is determined by selecting a minimum acceptable engine output torque. A maximum torque limit is determined by selecting a maximum acceptable engine output torque. A desired engine output torque value is set as: a) the minimum torque limit, if the initial selected engine output torque value is less than the minimum torque limit; b) the maximum torque limit, if the initial selected engine output torque value is greater than the maximum torque limit; or c) the initial selected engine output torque value, if the initial selected engine output torque value is neither greater than the maximum torque limit nor less than the minimum torque limit.