Fault assessment of a diesel engine using vibration measurements and advanced signal processing

Abstract

A Diesel Engine test cell was developed, which consisted of a Detroit Diesel 3-53 engine, a water brake dynamometer and an engine cycle analyzer. Extensive steady state and time resolved instrumentation were installed along with a highspeed data acquisition system to obtain cylinder pressure and engine vibration data. High frequency response accelerometers were mounted on the cylinder head assembly to measure phase resolved response relative to top dead center (TDC) on the first cylinder. Baseline vibration data were taken over a range of engine load and speed combinations. An engine fault was introduced by adjusting the timing on the first cylinder injector. The vibration signatures of the baseline engine and the induced fault engine were characterized using Joint Time Frequency Analysis. The fault condition was detected and localized