Abstract: A failure detection apparatus for a cooling system of an internal combustion engine is disclosed. The cooling system has a radiator, a cooling water pipe for circulating a cooling water in the engine to the radiator, and a thermostat provided in the cooling water pipe for opening and closing the cooling water pipe. An estimated cooling water temperature of the engine is calculated according to the engine operating condition. The estimated cooling water temperature is compared with a determination threshold set according to the detected vehicle speed at the time the detected cooling water temperature has exceeded a predetermined water temperature. If the estimated cooling water temperature is lower than or equal to the determination threshold, it is determined that the thermostat is normal.

Abstract: A method of measuring a rate of change of carbon dioxide concentration in recirculated air of an engine, is disclosed. The method includes installing a conductive sample tube into an engine's pre-combustion/air-mixing chamber, and installing a carbon dioxide sensor, remote from the chamber, to measure relative concentrations of carbon dioxide. The method may also be used to measure nitrogen oxide exhaust gas levels.

Abstract: A mass flow measurement and control device includes an enclosure with a Coriolis mass flowmeter situated therein. The Coriolis mass flowmeter has a flow-tube made of a high-purity plastic material, a driver coupled to the flow tube for vibrating the flow tube, and a pickoff coupled to the flow tube for sensing Coriolis deflections of the vibrating flow tube. A pinch valve includes an elastomeric tube made of a high-purity plastic material in fluid communication with the flow tube. An actuator with a ram operatively connected thereto is situated adjacent the elastomeric tube, and a reference surface is positioned generally opposite the ram such that the elastomeric tube is squeezable between the ram and the reference surface. A controller may also be provided, which receives an output signal from the Coriolis flowmeter and provides a control output signal to the pinch valve actuator in response to the flowmeter output signal and a setpoint signal.

Abstract: The invention is a strategy to detect spark plug misfires in a multiple spark plug per cylinder internal combustion engine (ICE). The present invention monitors spark plug misfires for each plug within each cylinder and initiates diagnostic fault code setting and failure mode actions such as modifying spark timing and the air/fuel ratio for the cylinder with the misfiring plug to optimize emissions and performance. The strategy modifies spark timing (such as spark retard) of a spark plug not under test but within the same cylinder of the tested spark plug and tests the tested spark plug for misfire (such as changes in crankshaft velocity or acceleration). The amount of spark retard invoked can be a calibrated value such as 30 or 50 degrees off Maximum Brake Torque (MBT) timing. The invention provides improvement over the prior art in that the strategy does not require the complete disabling of a spark plug within the same cylinder as the tested spark plug.

Abstract: Method and apparatus to measure in vitro or in vivo the volumetric flow in blood vessels using a pulsed Doppler instrument which allows assessement of crossectional area and mean velocity for determining the real volumetric flow in the vessel, characterized in that Q = k ⁢ M 1 , 3 M 0 , 3 × A 2 N + 1 A 1 N ⁢ M

Abstract: An electromagnetic flow sensor for a fluid flowing through a pipe comprises a measuring tube which can be inserted into a pipe. The measuring tube comprises a support tube as an outer covering of the measuring tube, a tubular liner of insulating material, located in a lumen of the support tube, for conducting the flowing fluid isolated from the support tube, and an open-pore reinforcing body for stabilizing the liner. The reinforcing body is sintered directly in said support tube. A magnetic-circuit arrangement is disposed on the measuring tube for producing and guiding a magnetic field which induces an electric field in the flowing fluid. Electrodes pick up voltages from the electric field. Furthermore, the reinforcing body has coil-core seats for coil cores of the magnetic-circuit arrangement.

Abstract: A method of determining throttle flow in a fuel delivery system is disclosed. First, a time-efficient throttle flow data collection method is described. The collection method uses a sonic nozzle flow bench to measure airflow as a function of throttle angle and pressure in a manner analogous to on-engine dynamometer throttle flow characterization. Opening each sonic nozzle combination, then recording throttle downstream pressure and computed nozzle flow allows data to be taken in a fraction of the time normally needed. In conventional methods, the estimated airflow rate as a function of throttle angle differs from the measured airflow rate because the leak area is incorrect. The method of the invention correctly determines the estimated throttle airflow rate by using a low pass filtering technique to adjust the estimated airflow rate to eventually equal the measured airflow rate, particularly at small throttle angles.

Abstract: A NoFoam system which permits the testing of the Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting vehicle's foam delivery system. The NoFoam system includes the piping, valves, and connecting elements to interface with the fire vehicle's foam delivery system, while minimizing the release of Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) to the environment.

Abstract: A method for detecting combustion misfires for internal combustion engines is introduced wherein an index for the rough running of the engine is formed and is compared to a threshold value. The threshold value is dependent upon the load of the engine. Exceeding the threshold value is evaluated as a misfire. The method is characterized in that the threshold value, in addition to being dependent upon the load, is also dependent upon the ignition angle and/or the lambda value or that the formation of the index for the rough running also takes place in dependence upon the ignition angle and/or on the lambda value; and/or that the activation/deactivation of the misfire detection is at least dependent upon the ignition angle and/or on the lambda value.

Abstract: A split-flow-type flowmeter in which an end portion of a flow splitter tube 1 is inserted into a main-flow pipe 10 having a diameter D. A flow splitter tube 1 includes a U-shaped split-flow passage 1a. A detection element is disposed at a bottom portion (not shown) of the U-shaped split-flow passage 1a. The split-flow passage 1a assumes a flow path structure symmetrical with respect to a plane passing through the detection element. A flow inlet 2a and a flow outlet 2b of the split-flow passage 1a face in mutually opposite directions along the flow direction of the main-flow pipe 10 and open symmetrically at the same position on the flow cross section of the main-flow pipe 10.

Abstract: A time-of-flight flow sensor, of the type in which a measured phase difference between upstream and downstream acoustic propagations is representative of fluid flow rates, is operated at two distinct frequencies. Operation at a relatively low propagation frequency yields a first phase difference signal that is unambiguously representative of the rate of flow but that has a larger than desired measurement error. Operation at the higher frequency provides a lower measurement error, but may be ambiguous because of the modular nature of phase detectors. The low frequency phase difference signal can be used by a signal processor to determine a compensation term that can be combined with the higher frequency phase difference signal to remove the phase detector ambiguity, if one is present.

Abstract: A thermal type flow rate measuring device can certainly prevent adhesion of water droplet onto a sensor element and thus achieve high reliability. The thermal type flow rate measuring device includes an auxiliary passage defined within a main passage for introducing a part of fluid flowing through the main passage, a sensor disposed within the auxiliary passage for detecting flow rate of the fluid and capturing means formed on an inner periphery of the auxiliary passage for capturing liquid contained in the fluid and transferring the captured liquid.

Abstract: A disk probe velocimeter is formed by multiple orthogonal disks fitted with pressure transducers positioned to measure dynamic pressure differences between the center of one disk face and the center of the other face of each disk. The velocimeter can measure reasonably accurately three components of velocity where the approximate direction of the flow is not known. Where the dominant velocity component is known, the velocimeter may be combined with a Pitot probe to form a compact anemometer.

Abstract: An improved method of determining and preserving soak-related time intervals of an internal combustion engine resets a continuous timer at the end of each engine run period, and reads the value of the continuous timer at specified events during an ignition key cycle. The method measures and preserves the engine soak time preceding the current and previous ignition key cycle, and determines an extended soak time that includes intervals of engine operation that are too short to significantly affect the engine thermal and fuel vapor purge conditions. The determined soak-related times are then utilized by various engine control and/or diagnostic algorithms, such as a hot re-start fuel control algorithm.

Abstract: A system for measuring and monitoring multi-phase fluid production of a plurality of individual wells, each operating as part of a common production field. Upstream multi-phase flow measurements are simultaneously taken at each individual well. Downstream multi-phase flow measurements are taken at a point where the production from the entire field is combined. The downstream multi-phase flow measurement is allocated back to each individual well based on the measured upstream multi-phase flow for each individual well.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for calculating the air charge mass for an engine as a function of four measured parameters. These parameters include the engine speed measured by a tachometer, a throttle position measured by a throttle position sensor, manifold air temperature, and barometric pressure. Without the need for a mass air flow sensor or a manifold absolute pressure sensor, the present invention provides a system for quickly and accurately calculating the air charge mass for the engine.

Abstract: A method for online-determination of at least one characteristic value of a mass flowmeter operating by the Coriolis principal and incorporating a fluid-conducting Coriolis conduit. The method includes the following steps of exciting the Coriolis conduit in a first oscillation pattern, exciting the Coriolis conduit in a second oscillation pattern, the second oscillation pattern being different from the first oscillation pattern, capturing the response of the Coriolis conduit to the excitation in the first oscillation pattern and in the second oscillation pattern and determining at least one characteristic value of the mass flowmeter by evaluating the response of the Coriolis conduit with the aid of a model in real time during operation of the mass flowmeter.

Abstract: A heating element (4) is arranged between two temperature sensors (5, 6) in order to measure the mass flow of a liquid or a gas. The mass flow is determined from the temperature difference of the temperature sensors (5, 6). The heating element (4) is operated by pulses in order to reduce power consumption of the device. A further reduction of the power consumption is reached by means of a monitoring circuit (12), which switches the actual measuring section (11) on only if the signals from the temperature sensors (5, 6) fulfil a threshold condition.

Abstract: A method for measuring the liquid and gas flow rates (QL and QG) of a multiphase fluid stream which comprises: withdrawing a portion of the overall flow rate (Q) under isokinetic conditions, measuring the liquid and gas flow rates (qL, qG) of the withdrawn portion, measuring the pressure drop in correspondence of a t least one of the constricted sections located upstream and downstream of the sampling section and calculating said liquid and gas flow rates (QL, QG) from the sampling section and calculating said liquid and gas flow rates (QL, QG) from the relation QL=(A1/A2) qG, where A1 and A2 are the areas of the constricted section and of the sampling section respectively.

Abstract: A flow sensing head for a magnetic flow sensor may be configured as an insertion probe having one or more flow passageways oriented perpendicular to the magnetic axis of an electromagnet. When a conductive liquid flows through the passageway a voltage is induced between two electrodes spaced out along a line perpendicular to the passageway and to the axis of the electromagnet. A portion of the lead wires from the electrodes is fed through an axial throughhole in a conductive core of the electromagnet in order to electrostatically shield the wires from extraneous voltage sources. A preferred flow sensing head has two flow passageways, each with its own pair of electrodes. Signals from the two pairs of electrodes may be combined in a series-aiding arrangement, or in a parallel arrangement, or the signals from the two pairs of electrodes may be processed independently of each other.