An engine unit controller (EUC) in connection with a hybrid opposed piston engine can receive real-time movement data of a crankshaft via a crank position sensor. It can simultaneously receive current data of an electric motor that partially controls the crankshaft. With the known engine constants, the EUC can determine instantaneous combustion pressure data based on the movement data and the current data. Such combustion pressure data can be used to optimize the engine's performance in real-time.

Methods and systems are provided for operating a cylinder with a series gap igniter coupled to an ion sensing module. In one example, a method may include determining a location of an initial combustion in a cylinder from a series gap igniter based on a pressure rise rate in the cylinder, the ignition spark initiating combustion in the cylinder; and adjusting at least one setting of the cylinder based on the determined location. In this way, combustion stability and efficiency may be increased without increasing a cost and complexity of the engine.

The present invention relates to internal combustion engines. More particularly, the present invention relates to an arrangement whereby internal combustion engines can be operated more efficiently at higher compression pressures. Aspects and/or embodiments seek to provide a method and/or apparatus and/or system for using very high compression ratios in internal combustion engines while preventing damage from pinking or knocking.

A system and method includes a driver component having a first sensor rigidly mounted therewith and configured to provide a first signal indicative of a rotation of the driver component, and a second sensor rigidly mounted relative to the driver component, a driven component, and a flexible coupler disposed between the driver component and the driven component; wherein the second sensor provides a second signal indicative of a rotation of the driven component, and a controller disposed to receive the first signal and the second signal. The controller is configured and operates to calculate a difference between the first signal and the second signal, and infer a torque variation between the driver component and the driven component based primarily on the difference between the first signal and the second signal.

A compression monitoring system for a reciprocating engine includes a controller configured to terminate combustion within a combustion chamber of the reciprocating engine while a crankshaft of the reciprocating engine is rotating. The controller is also configured to receive an input signal from a sensor indicative of vibration within a cylinder extending from the combustion chamber while the crankshaft is rotating and the combustion is terminated. Furthermore, the controller is configured to determine a magnitude of the vibration within a frequency range and to determine a maximum pressure within the cylinder based on the magnitude of the vibration within the frequency range. The controller is also configured to output an output signal indicative of the maximum pressure within the cylinder and/or control operation of the reciprocating engine based on the maximum pressure within the cylinder.

To provide a controller and a control method for internal combustion engine which can calculate the shaft torque in unburning with good accuracy in all the operating condition in which calculation is required, using the shaft torque in unburning which was set in the specific operating condition, and can improve estimation accuracy of the parameter relevant to the combustion state. A controller for internal combustion engine calculates a specific shaft torque in unburning with reference to a specific unburning condition data; calculates specific and current generated torques of unburning assumption using the physical model equation; calculates a current shaft torque in unburning based on the specific shaft torque in unburning, and the specific and current generated torques of unburning assumption; and calculates an increment of gas pressure torque by burning based on the current shaft torque in unburning and the actual shaft torque in burning condition.

To provide a controller and a control method for internal combustion engine which can set appropriately an angle interval for estimating the combustion state in accordance with change of a burning angle interval, and can reduce calculation processing load for estimation of the combustion state. A controller for internal combustion engine changes the estimation crank angle interval based on an operating condition of the internal combustion engine; calculates an increment of gas pressure torque by burning at each crank angle of the estimation crank angle interval; and estimates the combustion state of the internal combustion engine, based on the increment of gas pressure torque by burning in the estimation crank angle interval.

An engine torque estimating apparatus having a processor and a memory accessed by the processor. The processor performs a torque estimating that calculates time series data of an estimated indicated torque, based on a crank angle having been extracted from an output of a crank angle sensor of an engine including a plurality of cylinders; an estimated indicated torque-related value extracting that extracts an estimated indicated torque-related value, for each of the cylinders, from the time series data of the estimated indicated torque, for each of the cylinders; and average indicated torque correct value acquiring that converts, for each of the cylinders, the estimated indicated torque-related value into an average indicated torque correct value having been calculated based on a cylinder internal state of the engine in correspondence to the estimated indicated torque-related value.

A controller performs a rotation angle deriving process that derives a value of the rotation angle of a crankshaft by each specified angle that is smaller than a predetermined angle by performing a Hilbert process on a detection signal from a crankshaft sensor, an angular velocity deriving process that derives an angular velocity of the crankshaft as an engine angular velocity from the value of the rotation angle of the crankshaft by each specified angle, an inertia torque calculation process that calculates an engine inertia torque from the engine angular velocity, a resonance effect torque calculation process that calculates a resonance effect torque, and an engine torque calculation process that calculates a sum of the resonance effect torque and the engine inertia torque as an engine torque that is an output torque of the engine.

A compression monitoring system for a reciprocating engine includes a controller configured to terminate combustion within a combustion chamber of the reciprocating engine while a crankshaft of the reciprocating engine is rotating. The controller is also configured to receive an input signal from a sensor indicative of vibration within a cylinder extending from the combustion chamber while the crankshaft is rotating and the combustion is terminated. Furthermore, the controller is configured to determine a magnitude of the vibration within a frequency range and to determine a maximum pressure within the cylinder based on the magnitude of the vibration within the frequency range. The controller is also configured to output an output signal indicative of the maximum pressure within the cylinder and/or control operation of the reciprocating engine based on the maximum pressure within the cylinder.