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Intake
/ Exhaust Manifold and Cylinder Head
DESCRIPTION
An
automotive client required an air flow test stand to aide in
improving engine design. Accurate air flow measurements
through cylinder heads, intake and exhaust manifolds, intake
air cleaner boxes, throttle bodies, exhaust piping systems,
mufflers, and catalytic converters would be used to develop
more efficient engines and improve computer engine models.
Speed and ease in setup and use must be maintained for rapid
prototyping . |
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SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
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Bi-directional flow Capability
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Dual control Modes
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Automated Testing Capability
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Precision Engine Valve Positioning System
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Expandable and Flexible Data Acquisition and Control sub-system
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Expandable Air-Flow metering system and Instrumentation
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Automated System Check and Calibration
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User-friendly Test System Controller Software for Operator, Maintenance and Engineering personnel
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SOLUTION
FLOW SYSTEMS designed and manufactured an Air Flow system that employed a set of five (5)
Subsonic Venturis. The system includes a Flow Direction Manifold that allows for pressure or vacuum testing of each Unit Under Test (UUT). The flow control system is capable of maintaining a constant pressure drop across the test piece regardless of flow rate or capable of maintaining a constant flow rate regardless of pressure drop.
The test system is fully automated. After the operator enters test parameters and hardware configuration data, the test stand performs the tasks of positioning the valves, controlling pressure or flow rate at the UUT, and recording all measurements to a database without further human intervention.
The test system was fully integrated with a Precision Valve Positioning system. The valve position system is capable of positioning up to six (6) valves independently through a range of 0 to 20 mm with an accuracy of +/- 15 µm.
As with all FLOW SYSTEMS' Test System designs, the Test System controller, data acquisition and control subsystems, and all instrumentation are standard, readily available Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) items. This ensures that servicing or replacement of any item can be achieved in a timely manner, providing for a high-availability for the Test System. This includes all of the UUT related instrumentation that was explicitly specified by the customer.
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SPECIFICATIONS
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Flow Elements: Five (5) Subsonic Venturis
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Flow Range: 1 to 650 SCFM
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Test Pressure Range: 0.25 – 82 INWC (pressure or vacuum)
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Accuracy: +/- 1 % of reading, traceable to NIST standards
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Repeatability: Estimated better than 0.25%
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Cycle Time: Average cycle time for a 10 point test is 7 minutes
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SYSTEM LAYOUT
The following diagram illustrates the physical layout of the test system.
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SYSTEM SCHEMATICS
The following illustrates the Pneumatic and Instrumentation Diagram (P&ID) of the test system.
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SOFTWARE OPERATOR INTERFACE
The following image illustrates the operator interface of the test system.
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