Instrument to average 100 data sets

Abstract

An instrumentation system is currently under development which will measure many of the important parameters associated with the operation of an internal combustion engine. Some of these parameters include mass-fraction burn rate, ignition energy, and the indicated mean effective pressure. One of the characteristics of an internal combustion engine is the cycle-to-cycle variation of these parameters. A curve-averaging instrument has been produced which will generate the average curve, over 100 cycles, of any engine parameter. the average curve is described by 2048 discrete points which are displayed on an oscilloscope screen to facilitate recording and is available in real time. Input can be any parameter which is expressed as a + or - 10-volt signal. Operation of the curve-averaging instrument is defined between 100 and 6000 rpm. Provisions have also been made for averaging as many as four parameters simultaneously, with a subsequent decrease in resolution. This provides the means to correlate and perhaps interrelate the phenomena occurring in an internal combustion engine. This instrument has been used successfully on a 1975 Chevrolet V8 engine, and on a Continental 6-cylinder aircraft engine. While this instrument was designed for use on an internal combustion engine, with some modification it can be used to average any cyclically varying waveform.