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US 10,669,956 B2Granted
Fuel type prediction from mass flow measurements and thermal conductivity sensor
AssigneeCummins Inc.
InventorsMarten H. Dane, Shu Li
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present disclosure provides a method for predicting a fluid type, comprising sensing, by a first sensor, mass flow data of a fluid in an engine, wherein the first sensor operates based on a first fluid property; sensing, by a second sensor, mass flow data of the fluid, wherein the second sensor operates based on a second fluid property; and detecting, by a logic circuit of a controller, a percent difference in the mass flow data provided by the first and second sensors, the percent difference indicating that the fluid is comprised of at least a first fluid type.
Claims26
A fluid type prediction system, comprising:
- a first sensor that provides a first mass flow measurement of a fluid in an engine, wherein the first sensor is sensitive to at least a first property of the fluid;
- a second sensor that provides a second mass flow measurement of the fluid, wherein the second sensor is sensitive to at least a second property of the fluid;
- and
- a controller configured to detect a difference between the first and the second mass flow measurements indicating a presence of at least a first fluid type in the fluid, and to adjust a performance characteristic of the engine in response to detecting the difference between the first and second mass flow measurements;
- wherein the fluid is natural gas fuel, the first property is molecular weight, and the second property is at least one of viscosity and thermal conductivity.
2 more elements
A fluid type prediction system, comprising:
- a controller comprising at least one processor and memory;
- and
- a first interface coupled to the controller, the first interface configured to receive parameter signals corresponding to a mass flow measurement of a fluid in an engine, the parameter signals being provided by at least a first sensor and a second sensor;
- wherein the memory comprises instructions that when executed by the at least one processor causes the controller to detect a difference between the mass flow measurement provided by the first sensor and the mass flow measurement provided by the second sensor, the difference indicating the presence of at least a first fluid type in the fluid, and to adjust a performance characteristic of the engine in response to detecting the difference between the mass flow measurements provided by the first and second sensors;
- and
- wherein the first interface receives parameter signals provided by a third sensor, the parameter signals indicating a characteristic of the fluid, wherein the characteristic indicates a percentage of a second fluid type in the fluid.
3 more elements
A method for predicting a fluid type, comprising:
- providing, by a first sensor, a mass flow measurement of a fluid in an engine, wherein the first sensor is sensitive to at least a first property of the fluid;
- providing, by a second sensor, a mass flow measurement of the fluid, wherein the second sensor is sensitive to at least a second property of the fluid;
- detecting, by a logic circuit of a controller, a difference between the mass flow measurement provided by the first sensor and the second sensor, the difference indicating a presence of at least a first fluid type in the fluid;
- adjusting, by the logic circuit, a performance characteristic of the engine in response to detecting the difference between the mass flow measurement provided by the first sensor and the second sensor;
- detecting a percentage of the first fluid type in the fluid in response to the difference in the mass flow measurement provided by the first sensor and the second sensor exceeding a threshold difference;
- and
- sensing, by a third sensor, a characteristic of the fluid;
- detecting, based on the characteristic, the presence of at least a second fluid type in the fluid;
- and
- determining a percentage of the second fluid type in the fluid.
7 more elements
A fluid type prediction system, comprising:
- a controller comprising at least one processor and memory;
- and
- an interface coupled to the controller, the interface configured to receive parameters indicating a mass flow measurement of a fluid in an engine;
- wherein the memory comprises instructions that when executed by the at least one processor causes the controller to detect a difference between the mass flow measurement provided by a first sensor and the mass flow measurement provided by a second sensor, the difference indicating the presence of at least a first fluid type in the fluid;
- wherein a performance characteristic of the engine is adjusted in response to the controller detecting a difference between the mass flow measurements provided by the first and second sensors;
- wherein the parameters received by the interface are provided by at least the first sensor and the second sensor;
- and
- wherein the interface is further configured to receive a measurement of a characteristic of the fluid, the characteristic indicating a percentage of a second fluid type in the fluid, and the measurement being provided by a third sensor.
5 more elements
A fluid type prediction system, comprising:
- a first sensor that provides a first mass flow measurement of a fluid in an engine, wherein the first sensor is sensitive to at least a first property of the fluid;
- a second sensor that provides a second mass flow measurement of the fluid, wherein the second sensor is sensitive to at least a second property of the fluid;
- a third sensor that provides a measurement of a characteristic of the fluid;
- and
- a controller configured to detect a difference between the first and the second mass flow measurements, indicating a presence of at least a first fluid type in the fluid, and to adjust a performance characteristic of the engine in response to detecting the difference between the first and second mass flow measurements;
- wherein the system is configured to detect a percentage of the first fluid type in the fluid in response to the difference between the first and second mass flow measurements exceeding a threshold difference;
- and
- wherein the characteristic indicates a percentage of a second fluid type in the fluid.
5 more elements
A fluid type prediction system, comprising:
- a controller comprising at least one processor and memory;
- and
- a first interface coupled to the controller, the first interface configured to receive parameter signals corresponding to a mass flow measurement of a fluid in an engine, the parameter signals being provided by at least a first sensor and a second sensor;
- wherein the memory comprises instructions that when executed by the at least one processor causes the controller to detect a difference between the mass flow measurement provided by the first sensor and the mass flow measurement provided by the second sensor, the difference indicating the presence of at least a first fluid type in the fluid, and to adjust a performance characteristic of the engine in response to detecting the difference between the mass flow measurements provided by the first and second sensors;
- wherein the first sensor is sensitive to at least a first property of the fluid and the second sensor is sensitive to at least a second property of the fluid;
- wherein the fluid is natural gas fuel, the first property is molecular weight, and the second property is at least one of viscosity and thermal conductivity.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.