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Model-based methodologies for the engine calibration process, employing engine cycle simulation and polynomial regression analysis, have been developed and the reliability of the proposed method was confirmed by validating the model predictions with dynamometer test data. From the results, it was clear that the predictions by the engine cycle simulation with a knock model, which considers the two-stage hydrocarbon ignition characteristics of gasoline, were in good agreement with the dynamometer test data if the model tuning parameters were strictly adjusted. Physical model tuning and validation were done, followed by the creation of a dataset for the regression analysis of charging efficiency, EGR mass, and MBT using a 4th order polynomial equation. The stepwise method was demonstrated to yield a logarithm likelihood ratio and its false probability at each term in the polynomial equation.

A new engine drivetrain control system is described which can provide a higher gear ratio and leaner burning mixture and thus reduce the fuel consumption of spark ignition engines. Simulations were performed to obtain reduced torque fluctuation during changes in the air - fuel ratio and gear ratio, without increasing nitrogen oxide emissions, and with minimum throttle valve control. The results show that the new system does not require the frequent actuation of throttle valves because it uses direct fuel injection, which increases the air - fuel ratio of the lean burning limit. It also achieves a faster response in controlling the air mass in the cylinders. This results in the minimum excursion in the air - fuel ratio which in turn, reduces nitrogen oxide emissions.

Generalized models of the air/fuel ratio control using estimated air mass in the cylinder were presented to obtain highly accurate control during transient conditions in high supercharged direct injection systems with a complex air induction system. The air mass change was estimated by using upstream models which estimated the pressure of the intake manifold by introducing the output of the air flow meter and the differential of the output into aerodynamic equations of the intake system. The air mass into the cylinders was estimated at the beginning of the intake stroke under a wide range of driving conditions, without compensating for changes in the downstream parameters of the intake system and engine. Therefore, the upstream models required relatively minor calibration changes for each engine modification to be able to estimate the air mass on a cylinder-by-cylinder basis.

A pioneering approach to implement transfer path analysis (TPA) is proposed in this paper through applying it to an automobile. We propose to use particle velocity as a measure of TPA, in addition to using sound pressure as a conventional measure for TPA. These two quantities together will give a comprehensive and complete definition of sound. Although sound pressure is a scalar, while particle velocity is a vector, it is also proposed that the same technique of the conventional sound pressure TPA should be independently applicable to each component of particle velocity vector. This has been experimentally verified with a study on our test box system. In this paper, we apply the proposed TPA to an actual vehicle to examine its applicability, advantages and limitations. The driving motor sound of a hybrid electric vehicle is chosen as the case study. A tri-axial particle velocity sensor which also measures sound pressure at the same point is utilized in the experiment.

An automatic matching method for engine control parameters is described which can aid efficient development of new engine control systems. In a spark-ignition engine, fuel is fed to a cylinder in proportion to the air mass induced in the cylinder. Air flow meter characteristics and fuel injector characteristics govern fuel control. The control parameters in the electronic controller should be tuned to the physical characteristics of the air flow meter and the fuel injectors during driving. Conventional development of the engine control system requires a lot of experiments for control parameter matching. The new matching method utilizes the deviation of feedback coefficients for stoichiometric combustion. The feedback coefficient reflects errors in control parameters of the air flow meter and fuel injectors. The relationship between the feedback coefficients and control parameters has been derived to provide a way to tune control parameters to their physical characteristics.

We developed a high-pressure fuel pump for a direct injection gasoline engine and used a hydraulic simulator to design it. A single plunger design is the major trend for high-pressure fuel pumps because of its simple structure and small size. However, the single plunger causes large pressure pulsation and an unstable flow rate, especially at high engine speed. Therefore, a fuel-pipe layout that inhibits the pressure pulsation and a flow-rate control that stabilizes the flow are the most important challenges in pump design. Our newly developed hydraulic simulator can evaluate the dynamic characteristics of a total fuel supply system, which consists of pump, pipe, injector, and control logic. Using this simulator, we have improved fuel flow by optimizing the outlet check valve lift and the cam profile, and we reduced pressure pulsation by optimizing the layout of fuel pipes. Our simulation results agreed well with our experimental results.

A fuel injection control method is developed in which the transient air-fuel ratio is accurately controlled by an internal state estimation method with dynamic characteristics. With conventional methods the air-fuel ratio control precision is limited, because the air measurement system, the air and the fuel dynamic characteristics lack precision. In this development, the factors disturbing the air-fuel ratio under transient conditions are determined by analysis of the control mechanisms. The disturbance factors are found to be (1) the hot wire sensor has a delay time, (2) manifold air charging causes an overshoot phenomenon, (3) there is a dead time between sensing and fuel flow into the cylinder and (4) there is a delay of fuel flow into the cylinder caused by the fuel film. Compensation schemes are constructed for each of these technical problems.

Meeting the future exhaust emission and fuel consumption standards for passenger cars will require refinements in how the combustion process is carried out in spark ignition engines. A direct injection system decrease fuel consumption under road load cruising conditions, and stratified charge of the fuel mixture is particularly effective for ultra lean combustion. On the other hands, there are requirements for higher output power of gasoline engines. A direct injection system for a spark ignition engine is seen as a promising technique to meet these requirements. To get higher output power at wide open throttle conditions, spray characteristics and in-cylinder air flow must be optimized. In this paper, the engine system, which has a side injection type engine and flat piston, was investigated. We tried some injectors, which have different spray characteristics, and examined effects of spray characteristics on combustion of the direct injection gasoline engine.

The closed ecology experiment facility (CEEF) has a small positive pressure control system consisting of rubber buffers and a mechanical subsystem. In the present study, effects of small temperature disturbances caused by changes of surrounding conditions on the pressure control system are investigated experimentally and in numerical simulations. Though solar radiation causes a pressure disturbance in the facility, choosing the proper diameter of ducts which connect the rubber buffers to the modules, the rubber buffers can follow fluctuations of low frequency, like daily atmospheric fluctuations and pressure changes caused by temperature control of the facility’s air conditioners, and can cut off those of high frequency due to changes of environmental conditions.

Time-resolved continuous images of wrinkling flame front cross-sections were acquired by a laser-light sheet technique in an optically accessible spark ignition engine. The test engine was operated at various engine speeds and compression ratios. The fractal dimension of the curve, D2, was measured in a time series for each cycle. Analysis of the data shows that as the flame propagates the fractal dimension, D2, is close to unity a short time after spark ignition and then increases. Examination of the relationship between the growth rate of the fractal dimension, ΔD2/Δt, and D2 reveals that the higher D2 is, the lower ΔD2/Δt becomes. An Empirical equation for ΔD2/Δt was derived as a function of the ratio of the turbulence intensity to the laminar burning velocity and pressure. This model was tested in an SI engine combustion simulation, and results compared favorably with experimental data.

The internal combustion engines waste large amounts of heat energy, which account for 60% of the fuel energy. If this heat energy could be converted to the output power of engines, their thermal efficiency could be improved. The thermal efficiency of the Otto cycle increases as the compression ratio and the ratio of specific heat increase. If high octane number fuel is used in engines, their thermal efficiency could be improved. Moreover, thermal efficiency could be improved further if fuel could be combusted in dilute condition. Therefore, exhaust heat recovery, high compression combustion, and lean combustion are important methods of improving the thermal efficiency of SI engines. These three methods could be combined by using hydrous ethanol as fuel. Exhaust heat can be recovered by the steam reforming of hydrous ethanol. The reformed gas including hydrogen can be combusted in dilute condition. In addition, it is cooled by directly injecting hydrous ethanol into the engine.

Hydrogen produced from regenerative sources has the potential to be a sustainable substitute for fossil fuels. A hydrogen internal combustion engine has good combustion characteristics, such as higher flame propagation velocity, shorter quenching distance, and higher thermal conductivity compared with hydrocarbon fuel. However, storing hydrogen is problematic since the energy density is low. Hydrogen can be chemically stored as a hydrocarbon fuel. In particular, an organic hydride can easily generate hydrogen through use of a catalyst. Additionally, it has an advantage in hydrogen transportation due to its liquid form at room temperature and pressure. We examined the application of an organic hydride in a spark ignition (SI) engine. We used methylcyclohexane (MCH) as an organic hydride from which hydrogen and toluene (TOL) can be reformed. First, the theoretical thermal efficiency was examined when hydrogen and TOL were supplied to an SI engine.

To increase thermal efficiency of internal combustion engines, dilution combustion systems, such as lean burn and exhaust gas recirculation systems, have been developed. These systems require spark-ignition coils generating large discharge current and discharge energy to achieve stable ignition under diluted mixture conditions. Several studies have clarified that larger discharge current increases spark-channel stretch and decreases the possibility of spark channel blow-off and misfire. However, these investigations do not mention the effect of larger discharge current and energy on the initial combustion period. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation among dilution ratio, initial-combustion period, and coil specifications to clarify the control factor of the dilution limit.

We have developed a model-based control for the air intake system in a variable valve engine, employing total engine simulation, the response surface method and multi-objective optimization scheme. In our technique, we performed the simulation model tuning and validation, followed by the creation of a dataset for the polynomial regression analysis of the charging efficiency. A D-optimal design, robust least squares method, and likelihood-ratio test were demonstrated to yield a robust and accurate control model. Coupling the total engine simulator with a genetic algorithm, model based calibration for optimal valve timing stored in lookup table was carried out under multiple objectives and restrictions. The reliability of the implementation control model, which considers the effect of gas dynamics in the intake system, was confirmed using a model-in-the-loop simulation.

Automotive fuel can be efficiently combusted by injecting it into the cylinders at high pressure to atomize it to pass the regulations for exhaust gas and fuel economy. For this reason, automotive companies have developed direct injection engines, which can inject gasoline into the cylinders directly. Furthermore, the demand for lower-noise high pressure pumps is also increasing from the viewpoint of automotive comfort. Since the valve velocity and noise level will increase as the pressure in fuel pumps increases, noise problems need to be solved under the high pressure conditions. Accordingly, the valve motion should be predicted with high accuracy under operating conditions to evaluate the noise caused by valve impingement. In addition, the squeeze film effect phenomenon will occur in the physical fuel pumps affect the prediction of the noise level caused by valve impingement.

The authors developed a multi-swirl type injector characterized by a short spray penetration length and fine atomization to improve exhaust emissions and fuel consumption for port fuel injection (PFI) gasoline engines. In PFI gasoline engines, fuel adhesion to an intake manifold causes exhaust emission. In addition, good mixing of fuel and air causes high combustion efficiency, and as a result the fuel consumption improves. Injectors therefore require two improvements: first, a short spray penetration to avoid fuel adhesion to the intake manifold, and second, a fine atomization spray to generate a good mixture formation of fuel and air. In this study, the authors developed a multi-swirl type injector equipped with multiple orifice holes featuring swirl chambers upstream of each orifice. The key feature of the proposed injector is “involute curve-formed swirl chambers” for generating a uniform thin liquid-film in the orifices.

It is necessary to develop a small positive pressure control system for the closed ecology experiment facility (CEEF) to protect against over-differential pressure loading. In the present study, a numerical method was developed to calculate the quantity of state of the closed module, which is fitted with rubber buffers, for the small positive pressure control system. Experiments to examine the pressure change of the closed module were carried out at CEEF. Comparison of calculated and experimental results showed that the present dynamic simulation is suited to estimating the quantity of state of the closed module.

We have examined a new precise control method of the air fuel ratio during a transient state which provides improved exhaust characteristics of automobile engines. We investigated the measurement method for the mass of fresh air inducted by the cylinder, which is most important for controlling the air fuel ratio. The mass of fresh air must be measured in real time because it changes in each cycle during a transient state. With an conventional systems, it has been difficult to get accurate measurement of this rapidly changing mass of fresh air. The method we studied measures the mass of fresh air by using the intake manifold pressure and air flow sensors. During a transient state, the reverse flow of the residual gas from the cylinder into the intake manifold, which occurs at the first stage of the suction stroke, changes with each cycle. The mass of fresh air changes accordingly.

Mixture formation and the ignition process in 4 cycle 4 cylinder spark ignition engines were investigated, using an optical combustion sensor that combines fiber optics with a conventional spark plug. The sensor consists of a 1-mm diameter quartz glass optical fiber cable inserted through the center of a spark plug. The tip of the fiber is machined into a convex shape to provide a 120-degree view of the combustion chamber interior. Light emitted by the spark discharge between spark electrodes and the combustion flames in the cylinder is transmitted by the optical cable to an opto-electric transducer. As a result, the ignition and combustion process which depends on the mixture formation can be easily monitored without installing transparent pistons and cylinders. This sensor can give more accurate information on mixture formation in the cylinders.

A recent trend in high-pressure gasoline pumps is increasing the outlet pressure. One of the most important topics for increasing this pressure is improving volumetric efficiency. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to quantify the breakdown of efficiency loss factors and to suggest a new design for improving volumetric efficiency. Authors developed a method of quantifying the efficiency loss breakdown of high-pressure gasoline pumps by using 1D fluid pressure simulation results and conducting evaluation experiments regarding sensitivity. Authors separated pump movement into three phases; suction, compression, and delivery. Authors then investigated the loss factors in each phase. As a result, authors obtained an equation for predicting the final output volume. The equation consists of a limit output volume and other types of leakage volumes.