System and method for analyzing carbon build up in an engine

• US 10,344,735 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2017
• Issued: 07/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
• Original Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
• Inventors: Thompson, Bernie C., Pederson, Neal R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Jin, George C
• Application Number:
  US15/826,134
• Publication Number:
  US 20180080428A1
• Time in Patent Office: 587 Days
• Field of Search: 7311433, 7311406, 73116, 7311469, 7311476
• CPC Class Codes: F02P 17/02 Checking or adjusting ignition timing
• CPC Class Codes: F02P 5/04 automatically, as a function of the working conditions of the engine or vehicle or of the atmospheric conditions dependent on position of personal controls of engine F02P5/02
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 15/04 Testing internal-combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 15/10 by monitoring exhaust gases or combustion flame
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 15/106 using pressure sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 15/11 by detecting misfire
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/006 Indicating maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005

Abstract

An induction cleaning analyzing system includes a pressure sensor, an ignition event detector, and a control module. The pressure sensor measures airflow pressures of intake air and/or exhaust from cylinders in a common airflow pathway of a vehicle. The ignition event detector determines ignition events of the cylinders. The control module obtains pressure waveforms representative of the airflow pressures and divides the pressure waveforms into waveform segments. The control module associates different subsets of the waveform segments with different ones of the cylinders using the ignition events. The control module also identifies cyclic variations in the airflow pressures flowing in the common airflow pathway and caused by at least one of the cylinders by examining the waveform segments associated with the at least one of the cylinders.

Claims

1. An induction cleaning analyzing system comprising:

one or more microprocessors configured to receive, from a pressure sensor, airflow pressures in an airflow pathway of a vehicle into which exhaust from at least one cylinder of multiple cylinders in an engine of the vehicle flows or intake air is drawn by the at least one cylinder, the one or more microprocessors also configured to determine ignition events of the cylinders in the engine, the one or more microprocessors configured to determine pressure waveforms that represent the airflow pressures in the airflow pathway as measured by the pressure sensor, the one or more microprocessors also configured to associate different segments of the pressure waveforms with different cylinders of the cylinders in the engine using the ignition events,

wherein the one or more microprocessors are configured to quantify a magnitude of carbon build up in one or more of the cylinders by comparing the different segments of the pressure waveforms associated with the different cylinders with each other.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more microprocessors are configured to determine the magnitude of carbon build up in the one or more cylinders by examining cyclic variations in the airflow pressures caused by the one or more of the cylinders.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more microprocessors are configured to receive the airflow pressures from the pressure sensor that is at least partially inserted into a tail pipe of the vehicle.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more microprocessors are configured to receive the airflow pressures from the pressure sensor that is at least partially inserted into an intake manifold of the engine.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more microprocessors are configured to determine the ignition events of the cylinders from an antenna that wirelessly detects one or more of an ignition signal transmitted to a spark plug of the engine, an ignition signal transmitted to an ignition coil of the engine, or electromagnetic interference caused by the spark plug in the engine firing.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the ignition events represent combustion cycles of the different cylinders, and wherein the one or more microprocessors are configured to associate the segments of the pressure waveforms that occur between the ignition events with the different cylinders.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more microprocessors are configured to receive the airflow pressures from the pressure sensor that is outside of the cylinders.

8. A method comprising:

measuring airflow pressures of air flowing into or out of cylinders in an engine using a pressure sensor;

determining when ignitions of the cylinders occur using one or more processors;

segmenting the airflow pressures that are measured into pressure waveform segments based on when the ignitions of the cylinders occur using the one or more processors;

assigning different ones of the pressure waveform segments with different ones of the cylinders based on a sequence in which the pressure waveform segments occur using one or more processors; and

quantifying an amount of carbon build up in a first cylinder of the cylinders in the engine using one or more processors by comparing the pressure waveform segments assigned to the first cylinder with the pressure waveform segments assigned to at least one other cylinder of the cylinders in the engine.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising cleaning at least the first cylinder responsive to quantifying the amount of carbon build up in the first cylinder.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the airflow pressures are measured by the pressure sensor that is inserted into a common airflow pathway of the engine that is shared by the cylinders.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the airflow pressures are measured by the pressure sensor inserted into one or more of an intake manifold of the engine or a tailpipe of a vehicle that includes the engine.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein determining when the ignitions of the cylinders occur includes wirelessly detecting when an ignition signal is sent to one or more spark plugs or ignition coils of the engine.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein determining when the ignitions of the cylinders occur includes wirelessly detecting electromagnetic interference created by one or more spark plugs of the engine.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

determining a number of cylinders that are in the engine; and

dividing a sequence of the pressure waveform segments by the number of cylinders in the engine;

wherein assigning the different ones of the pressure waveform segments with the different ones of the cylinders is based on the sequence of the pressure waveform segments that is divided by the number of cylinders in the engine.

15. A system comprising:

a pressure sensor configured to measure airflow pressures of air flowing into or out of cylinders in an engine; and

one or more processors configured to determine when ignitions of the cylinders occur and to segment the airflow pressures that are measured into pressure waveform segments based on when the ignitions of the cylinders occur, the one or more processors also configured to assign different ones of the pressure waveform segments with different ones of the cylinders based on a sequence in which the pressure waveform segments occur, and to quantify an amount of carbon build up in a first cylinder of the cylinders in the engine by comparing the pressure waveform segments assigned to the first cylinder with the pressure waveform segments assigned to at least one other cylinder of the cylinders in the engine.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the pressure sensor is configured to measure the airflow pressures while the pressure sensor is inserted into a common airflow pathway of the engine that is shared by the cylinders.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the pressure sensor is configured to measure the airflow pressures while the pressure sensor is inserted into one or more of an intake manifold of the engine or a tailpipe of a vehicle that includes the engine.

18. The system of claim 16, further comprising an antenna configured to sense the electromagnetic interference indicative of when the ignitions of the cylinders occur by wirelessly detecting when an ignition signal is sent to one or more spark plugs or ignition coils of the engine.

19. The system of claim 16, further comprising an antenna configured to sense the electromagnetic interference created by one or more spark plugs of the engine.

20. The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors also are configured to determine a number of cylinders that are in the engine and divide a sequence of the pressure waveform segments by the number of cylinders in the engine,

wherein the one or more processors are configured to assign the different ones of the pressure waveform segments with the different ones of the cylinders based on the sequence of the pressure waveform segments that is divided by the number of cylinders in the engine.