Am new here, and out of my element,so here's my question; I work with steam engines and to tune them we use a tool called an indicator (150 years old ; mechanical) I would like to be able to make an electronic one, more portable, and more adaptible. What the indicator does is measure the cylinder pressure (from negative pressure to about 200 psi) against piston stroke, or crankshaft revolution degrees. The indicator plots, on a piece of paper, roughly an egg shape so you can see the valve events and make any changes needed. This is like a scope for modern cars. With my dual trace scope I can get the pressure curve, and the distance line but I've got no good way to tie the two together. What I would like to do is use a laptop (with a scope adaptor if needed) to get these plots and store them (record multiple minutes worth, not just one stroke). Also as to the distance sensor something as an optical or magnetic pickup would be nice, for ease of set up. The pressure transducer is no problem, but it does have to be timed to top dead and bottom dead center. Am I asking too much? Thanks for any help or thoughts in this regard. Ron Parola
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steam engine indicator
in Electronic Projects Design/Ideas
Posted
Am new here, and out of my element,so here's my question; I work with steam engines and to tune them we use a tool called an indicator (150 years old ; mechanical) I would like to be able to make an electronic one, more portable, and more adaptible. What the indicator does is measure the cylinder pressure (from negative pressure to about 200 psi) against piston stroke, or crankshaft revolution degrees. The indicator plots, on a piece of paper, roughly an egg shape so you can see the valve events and make any changes needed. This is like a scope for modern cars. With my dual trace scope I can get the pressure curve, and the distance line but I've got no good way to tie the two together. What I would like to do is use a laptop (with a scope adaptor if needed) to get these plots and store them (record multiple minutes worth, not just one stroke). Also as to the distance sensor something as an optical or magnetic pickup would be nice, for ease of set up. The pressure transducer is no problem, but it does have to be timed to top dead and bottom dead center. Am I asking too much? Thanks for any help or thoughts in this regard. Ron Parola