Engine airflow measurement
AssigneeOrbital Engine Company (Australia) Pty. Limited
InventorsDavid Richard Worth, Richard Albert Woolford, Troy Bradley Epskamp, Andrew Michael Tilmouth
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of measuring the airflow in an engine, the engine having an intake manifold, including: sampling the manifold absolute pressure in said intake manifold at a predetermined crank angle of the engine; and determining the airflow as a function of the pressure differential between atmospheric pressure and the manifold absolute pressure at said crank angle.
Claims31
A method of measuring the air flow in an engine, the engine having an intake manifold, the method including the steps of:
- selecting a pre-determined crank angle from a plurality of predetermined crank angles at which to sample manifold absolute pressure in said intake manifold;
- sampling the manifold absolute pressure in said intake manifold at said predetermined crank angle;
- and
- determining the airflow as a function of atmospheric pressure and the manifold absolute pressure at said crank angle.
A personal watercraft comprising a fuel injected internal combustion engine having at least one piston adapted to, in use, reciprocate within a cylinder to thereby provide a combustion chamber, said combustion chamber having a swept volume and said engine further comprising an inlet manifold in fluid communication with said combustion chamber;
- said inlet manifold having a volume less than twice the swept volume of the combustion chamber;
- said inlet manifold intermediate a throttle and an inlet valve;
- said inlet manifold locating a pressure sensor and said watercraft further comprising an electronic control unit adapted to sample said pressure sensor at a predetermined crank angle and thereby determine manifold pressure at said crank angle and to calculate mass air flow to said engine as a function of said manifold pressure at said crank angle.
A scooter comprising a fuel injected internal combustion engine having at least one piston adapted to, in use, reciprocate within a cylinder to thereby provide a combustion chamber, said combustion chamber having a swept volume and said engine further comprising an inlet manifold in fluid communication with said combustion chamber;
- said inlet manifold having a volume less than twice the swept volume of the combustion chamber;
- said inlet manifold intermediate a throttle and an inlet valve;
- said inlet manifold locating a pressure sensor and said scooter further comprising an electronic control unit adapted to sample said pressure sensor at a predetermined crank angle and thereby determine manifold pressure at said crank angle and to calculate mass airflow to said engine as a function of said manifold pressure at said crank angle.
An electronic control unit (ECU) for use with an engine having an inlet manifold intermediate a throttle and an inlet valve and said inlet manifold having a pressure sensor;
- said ECU adapted in use to measure manifold pressure at a predetermined crank angle and to calculate air flow to said engine as a function of manifold pressure at said crank angle wherein at least at higher engine speeds said mass air flow to said engine is calculated asynchronously with crank angle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.