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The design of the newly developed Toyota AZ series 4 cylinder engine has been optimized through both simulations and experiments to improve heat transfer, cooling water flow, vibration noise and other characteristics. The AZ engine was developed to achieve good power performance and significantly reduced vibration noise. The new engine meets the LEV regulations due to the improved combustion and optimized exhaust gas flow. A major reduction in friction has resulted in a significant improvement in fuel economy compared with conventional models. It also pioneered a newly developed resin gear drive balance shaft.

This paper describes a study of visual responses to center high mounted stop lamps (CHMSLs) using a newly developed sweeping neon lamp. This study compares sweeping neon, incandescent, and light-emitting diode (LED) technologies. The incandescent CHMSL was a conventional after-market CHMSL brake light. The sweeping neon CHMSL used a novel controller whereby the luminous signal started at the center of the neon tube and grew in a “sweeping” motion outward toward the ends of the tube at an adjustable rate. The sweeping LED CHMSL had a segmented display simulating the sweeping characteristics of the neon CHMSL. Both the neon and LED CHMSLs had faster onset times than the incandescent CHMSL. Experimental subjects performed a tracking task cognitively similar to driving, and released a flip switch upon detecting the onset of the CHMSLs, which were mounted so as to be seen peripherally.

Aqua-ammonia absorption refrigeration cycle and R-134a Vapor jet-ejector refrigeration cycle for automotive air-conditioning were studied and analyzed. Thermally activated refrigeration cycles would utilize combustion engine exhaust gas or engine coolant to supply heat to the generator. For the absorption system, the thermodynamic cycle was analyzed and pressures, temperatures, concentrations, enthalpies, and mass flow rates at every point were computed based on input parameters simulate practical operating conditions of vehicles. Then, heat addition to the generator, heat removal rates from absorber, condenser, and rectifying unit, and total rejection heat transfer area were all calculated. For the jet-ejector system, the optimum ejector vapor mass ratio based on similar input parameters was found by solving diffuser's conservation equations of continuity, momentum, energy, and flow through primary ejector nozzle simultaneously.

This paper will describe the BorgWarner Interactive Torque Management (ITM) system for FWD based AWD systems as well as the utilization of P/M technology for critical components within this system. The ITM is an electro-mechanical coupling device. The device consists of an electromagnet, ball ramp and wet clutch system. The system can be mounted anywhere in the drive line as well as integrated into components such as transfer cases and transaxles. The clutch actuation force is dependent on the current applied to the electromagnetic coil, providing a truly variable torque transfer device. The decision to make extensive use of P/M technology in the structural portion of this system was based on the net shape capability and weight reduction combined with the ability to chose from a wide range of engineered materials that resulted in the most economical total system package.

This paper introduces the new 1.6L engine family, designed and developed by the Chrysler group of DaimlerChrysler Corporation in cooperation with BMW. An overview of the engine's design features is provided, with a detailed review of the performance development process with emphasis on airflow, combustion, thermal management and friction. This information is presented, to provide an understanding of how the engine simultaneously achieves outstanding levels of torque, power, fuel consumption, emissions and idle stability. The use of analytical tools such as Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) in the optimization of the engine is shown.

Engineers use phenomenological simulation models to determine engine performance. Using these models, we can predict with reasonable accuracy the heat release rate mechanism inside the engine cylinder, which enables us to obtain a prediction of the pressure history inside the engine cylinder. Using this value and the volume change rate of the combustion chamber, we can then estimate the indicated power output of the engine. However, in order to obtain the brake engine power output we must have an indication for the mechanical losses, a great part of which are friction losses. Up to now various correlations have been proposed that provide the frictional mean effective pressure as a function mainly of engine speed and load. These correlations have been obtained from the processing of experimental data, i.e. experimental values for the indicated and brake power output of engines.

The combination of physical models of an advanced engine control system was proposed to obtain sophisticated combustion control in ultra-lean combustion engines, including homogeneous compression-ignition and activated radical combustion. Physical models of intake, combustion (including engine thermodynamics), and transmission were incorporated, in which the effects of residual gas from prior cycles on intake air mass and combustion were taken into consideration. Control of the in-cylinder air/fuel ratio, exhaust temperature and engine speed during start, post-start and gear shifting phases was investigated using simulations.

A new CAD-based model of the occupant/driver for interior and seat design has been developed. Unlike traditional automotive iterative design methods that begin with a 2D human manikin in an environment based on the location of H-point, the 3D ERL manikins determine the initial design positions of multiple occupants based on the simulated interactions of seat, driver package, skeletal linkage system and deflected human tissue. The 3D ERL human body representations come from measurements of posture-critical skeletal landmarks on 102 test subjects combined with measurements of “deflected human tissue” data from 60 test subjects. The result is a set of three dimensional, posture-biofidelic manikins that a computer algorithm optimizes the driver's workplace environment to fit the population range of sizes and postural preferences.

Due to the wide and ever increasing application of thermoplastics for the transportation and automotive industries, the performance of the under-the-hood plastic parts depend upon optimized design and processing technology and properties of polymer based materials. Nylon (polyamide) based plastics are used widely for automotive cooling fans and various under-the-hood injection molded components. For injection molding of multi-blade cooling fans and various rotating plastic parts the complex of multiple gating injection molding tools were used. Both the design of the various rotating parts (including industrial and automotive cooling fan, and the molding tool design are very important to get optimum flow patterns and to predict the locations and interaction of stress-bearing areas and knit lines (planes or inter-phases)1. The mechanical performance of the injection-molded thermoplastic components depends on the peculiarity of the part and the molding tool design.

Engineering thermoplastics were successfully utilized in the design of injection molded rotating parts such as the impellers, wheels, and cooling fans of commercial air-cooled chillers, and gas and diesel engines. Complex aerodynamic and mechanical performance of impellers and cooling fans are very important for the efficiency of integrated air-movement, climate control and cooling systems of various types of engines of vehicles, cars, heavy-duty tractors and trucks. The transportation and automotive industries have developed a culture of reliability and cost effectiveness, in which high risks and adventures are not encouraged. Due to the wide and ever increasing application of thermoplastics for the transportation and automotive industries, the performance of the under-the-hood parts depend upon optimized design and processing technology and properties of polymer based materials.

A comparative study of the mechanical performance of welded polyamide joints is evaluated. Under optimized welding (linear and orbital vibration, hot plate, transmission laser) conditions, the tensile strength of welded polyamide/nylon (filled and fiber-reinforced) is close or slightly higher (up to 14%) than the tensile strength of the base polymer (non-filled polyamide). In this study, the influence of two important effects (local reinforcement and “memory”) on the mechanical performance of polyamide/nylon welds is analyzed and discussed. The results presented in this study will help plastic part designers, material developers and manufacturers, choose optimized welding conditions for polyamide/nylon parts in a wide range of industrial applications.

Water-emulsified diesel fuel technology has been proven to reduce nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) simultaneously at relatively low cost compared to other pollution-reducing strategies. While the mechanisms which result in these reductions have been postulated, the development of new analytical tools to measure in-cylinder soot formation using optically accessible engines can lead to a deeper understanding of combustion and the chemical and physical mechanisms when water is present during combustion. In this study, an optically accessible single cylinder engine was used to study how water brought into the combustion chamber via an emulsified fuel changes the combustion process and thereby reduces emissions. In-cylinder measurements of relative soot concentrations were used to determine the effect of water-emulsified fuel on soot formation.

Beside the traditional prediction of stresses and verification by mechanical testing the optimization of cylinder liner bore distortion is one of today's most important topics in crankcase structure development. Low bore distortion opens up potentials for optimizing the piston group. As the piston rings achieve better sealing characteristics in a low deformation cylinder liner, oil consumption and blow-by are reduced. For unchanged oil consumption and blow-by demands, engine friction and subsequently, fuel consumption could be reduced by decreasing the pre-tension of the piston rings. From the acoustical point of view an optimization of piston-slap noise is often based on an optimized bore distortion behavior. Apart from basics to the behavior of liner bore distortion the paper presents advanced analytical and empirical methods for detailed prediction, verification and optimization of bore distortion taking into account the effective engine operation conditions.

Today, a number of simulation codes are available for pre-designing gas exchange systems of IC engines with good accuracy (e.g. PROMO, WAVE, GT-Power). However, optimizing such systems still requires numerous time consuming and inefficient trial and error runs. Also, accounting for constraints as size, volume, peak combustion pressure etc. multiplies the necessary efforts additionally. Hence there is a strong need for efficient procedures for finding optimum designs automatically and reliably. To automatically find the global optimum design parameters under a given set of real constraints of a practical case, a multi-membered evolution-strategy based optimization code was developed. The code which efficiently finds the true optimum dimensions of gas exchange systems (duct lengths, duct diameters, volumes) of an IC engine. The code can be readily generalized, and adapted to arbitrary optimization problems.

Coming along with the present movement towards the ultimately variable engine, the need for clear and simple models for complex engine systems is rapidly increasing. In this context Common-Rail-Systems cause a special kind of problem due to of the high amount of parameters which cannot be taken into consideration with simple map-based models. For this reason models with a higher amount of complexity are necessary to realize a representative behavior of the simulation. The high computational time of the simulation, which is caused by the increased complexity, makes it nearly impossible to implement this type of model in software in closed loop applications or simulations for control purposes. In this paper a method for decreasing the complexity and accelerating the computing time of automotive engine models is being evaluated which uses an optimized method for each stage of the diesel engine process.

A wide-range Air-Fuel Ratio sensor (WRAF) response diagnostic algorithm was developed for production application in Gasoline Direct Injection (Gas-DI) powertrains to fulfill On Board Diagnostic (OBD) legislative requirements [1] for wide-range oxygen sensors. The algorithm measures the response of a wide-range air-fuel ratio (AFR) sensor signal to an input AFR signal of known amplitude to determine whether degradation in sensor responsiveness is severe enough to cause a failure of legal emissions requirements. A practical IIR (Infinite Impulse Response) digital bandpass filter design was used in series with a rectifier and low-pass filter to process the AFR sensor signal for comparison to a reference signal amplitude. The IIR filter was designed with a moveable pass-band to enable the algorithm to be used at variable frequencies during intrusive and non-intrusive sensor diagnostic tests.

An electromechanically driven valve train offers unprecedented flexibility to optimize engine operation for each speed load point individually. One of the main benefits is the increased fuel economy resulting from unthrottled operation. The absence of a restriction at the entrance of the intake manifold leads to wave propagation in the intake system and makes a direct measurement of air flow with a hot wire air meter unreliable. To deliver the right amount of fuel for a desired air-fuel ratio, we therefore need an open loop estimate of the air flow based on measureable or commanded signals or quantities. This paper investigates various expressions for air charge in camless engines based on quasi-static assumptions for heat transfer and pressure.

This paper introduces the preliminary simulation of a four-stroke spark ignition engine. An arbitrary heat release formula was used to predict the cylinder pressure, which was used to find out the indicated work done. The heat transfer from the cylinder, friction and pumping losses also were taken into account to predict the brake mean effective pressure, brake thermal efficiency and brake specific fuel consumption. Most of the parameters that can affect the performance of the four stroke spark ignition engines such as equivalence ratios, spark timing, heat release rate, compression ratios, compression index and expansion index are studied. The use of a real combustion curve has a profound influence on the similarity of the pressure-volume profile to that seen for the real engine. The modeling process is obviously getting closer to reality and is now worth pursuing as a design aid.

This paper presents the experimental work and the results obtained from the implementation of a transient fuel compensation algorithm for the 6.0-liter V12 high-performance engine that equips the Lamborghini Diablo vehicles. This activity has been carried out as part of an effort aimed at the optimization of the entire fuel injection control system. In the first part of the paper the tests for fuel film compensator identification are presented and discussed. In this phase the experimental work has been conducted in the test cell. An automatic calibration algorithm was developed to identify the well-known fuel film model X and τ parameters, so as to define their maps as a function of engine speed and intake manifold pressure. The influence of engine coolant temperature has been investigated separately; it will be soon presented together with the air dynamics compensation algorithm. In the second part of the paper, the performance of the fuel dynamics compensation algorithm is analyzed.

The alleviation of environmental problems associated with personal, public and commercial transport in urban areas has become an important issue for both policy makers and the automotive industry. Future legislation in Europe and the USA is expected to introduce strict limits in vehicle emissions, and both electric and hybrid vehicles are considered to be strong contenders for meeting low / zero emissions targets. As a result, research into electrically driven powertrains, which have similar performance attributes as ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) vehicles, has led to the development of electrically actuated wheel technologies, with increasing attention being focused on research into novel antilock braking / traction control (ABS / TCS) strategies. This paper describes a comparison of traction control schemes using real - time observer based estimates of μ-slip characteristics.