In-Cylinder Pressure Reconstruction Based on Instantaneous Engine Speed Signal

Abstract

This paper presents an original methodology for the instantaneous in-cylinder pressure waveform reconstruction in a spark-ignited internal combustion engine. The methodology is based on the existence of a linear correlation, characterized by frequency response functions, between in-cylinder pressure and engine speed signals. This correlation is experimentally verified and evaluated by simultaneous measurements of the above-mentioned quantities. The evaluation of different frequency response functions, one for each steady-state condition investigated, allows recovering the pressure waveform even under other engine running conditions (i.e., transients). In this way, during on-board operation, the pressure waveform could be recovered using only the engine speed signal, already present in current production electronic control units. In this paper the signal processing methodology and some experimental results, obtained during transient tests, are presented. The methodology could be interesting for the development of advanced engine control strategies aimed at the management of the torque generated by the engine. As an example, traction control in drive-by-wire systems could be a possible challenging application. The in-cylinder pressure reconstruction performed using the frequency response functions, in fact, allows the evaluation of the indicated torque. An important characteristic of this methodology is, furthermore, the diagnostic capability for the combustion process, that is guaranteed by the linear correlation between in-cylinder pressure and instantaneous engine speed waveforms. Also in presence of a misfiring cylinder, when the instantaneous engine speed waveform is strongly affected by the absence of combustion, the reconstructed in-cylinder pressure shows a good agreement with the measured one. The experimental tests have been conducted in a test cell using a four-cylinder production engine. It has to be noted, anyway, that the same methodology can be applied to engines with a higher number of cylinders.