sensors

Article
Fault Diagnosis of Internal Combustion Engine
Valve Clearance Using the Impact Commencement
Detection Method
Zhinong Jiang, Zhiwei Mao ID
, Zijia Wang and Jinjie Zhang *
Diagnosis and Self-Recovering Engineering Research Center, Beijing University of Chemical Technology,
Beijing 100029, China; jiangzn@mail.buct.edu.cn (Z.J.); 2015400122@mail.buct.edu.cn (Z.M);
2017200672@mail.buct.edu.cn (Z.W)
* Correspondence: zhangjinjie@mail.buct.edu.cn; Tel.: +86-180-0106-7069

Received: 8 November 2017; Accepted: 11 December 2017; Published: 15 December 2017

Abstract: Internal combustion engines (ICEs) are widely used in many important fields. The valve
train clearance of an ICE usually exceeds the normal value due to wear or faulty adjustment. This
work aims at diagnosing the valve clearance fault based on the vibration signals measured on the
engine cylinder heads. The non-stationarity of the ICE operating condition makes it difficult to
obtain the nominal baseline, which is always an awkward problem for fault diagnosis. This paper
overcomes the problem by inspecting the timing of valve closing impacts, of which the referenced
baseline can be obtained by referencing design parameters rather than extraction during healthy
conditions. To accurately detect the timing of valve closing impact from vibration signals, we carry
out a new method to detect and extract the commencement of the impacts. The results of experiments
conducted on a twelve-cylinder ICE test rig show that the approach is capable of extracting the
commencement of valve closing impact accurately and using only one feature can give a superior
monitoring of valve clearance. With the help of this technique, the valve clearance fault becomes
detectable even without the comparison to the baseline, and the changing trend of the clearance
could be trackable.

Keywords: valve clearance fault diagnosis; internal combustion engine; vibration signal processing;
condition monitoring

1. Introduction
Internal combustion engines (ICEs), as a power source, are widely used in the automobile industry,
ship and power equipment. However, the complex structure, and harsh and fickle working conditions
usually result in unexpected faults. A serious failure of the ICE may cause loss of production or even
human casualties. The techniques of condition monitoring and fault diagnosis have received increasing
recognition and proven to be very valuable. Furthermore, the recent achievements of these techniques
for industrial applications is well reviewed and summarized in [1–3]. The reported faults mainly
include misfire, knock, piston slap, injection faults, valve fault, bearing cap with wear and connecting
rod with un-correct screw preload, etc. [1]. Furthermore, the techniques for ICE fault detection mainly
include vibration [4], acoustic emission [5], in-cylinder pressure [6] and the crank angular velocity [7]
as well as oil [8], etc.
The abnormal clearance fault of an ICE may lead to a decline in the performance and reliability,
as well as occurrences of malignant failure such as valve fracture and cylinder hit fault [9]. In fact,
the valve train clearance, one of the critical motion mechanisms controlling the timing of gas intake
and exhaust, is essential for thermal compensation. However, it frequently tends to increase due to
wear of the components or a faulty adjustment during engine overhaul [10]. In order to identify the

Sensors 2017, 17, 2916; doi:10.3390/s17122916 www.mdpi.com/journal/sensors

Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 2 of 19

fault in time based on the signal analysis, and then to conduct maintenance at the early stages of the
fault to avoid more severe deterioration and more economic losses, the research on detecting and even
tracking the valve train clearance of an ICE is of great importance.
Several significant works on detecting the valve clearance fault have been reported. Vibration
and acoustic emission analysis techniques are considered to be more suitable for implementation
on on-board monitoring systems as their signal acquisitions are non-intrusive and convenient [11].
However, vibrations and acoustic emission signals generated by an ICE are highly transient and
non-stationary, i.e., cyclostationary, and always inevitably contain the response of multiple exciting
forces. These make it very difficult to extract fault-sensitive characteristics of significant importance
for fault detection [12]. Therefore, many advanced signal processing techniques were proposed to
extract fault features from ICE signals. In [13], an impact strength feature was generated for each
valve closing impact by calculating the local root mean square and localizing the impact with adaptive
thresholding. An EMD-based signal processing method was proposed to detect the occurrence of
impacts generated by valve closing and piston slap in [12]. In [10], a set of features was extracted
from vibration signals only in the time domain. With these features, four commonly used supervised
classifiers were trained and tested. It was reported that the performance of classifiers would improve
when more features were selected. In [14], a two-load acoustic method was developed to detect
and diagnose the exhaust valve fault. The source strength characteristic extracted from the pressure
waveforms was proved to be useful by conducting experiments on a four-cylinder diesel engine by
enlarging the valve clearance from 0.35 mm (normal) to 0.7 mm and 1.7 mm. In [15], the exhaust
valve clearance fault was introduced to one cylinder of a four-cylinder ICE, and the faulty condition
was distinguished from the healthy condition in the time domain and frequency domain of acoustic
emission signals. In [16], the problem of feature extraction was turned into an image classification
problem. Firstly, vibration acceleration signals were transferred to time–frequency images by the
Wigner–Ville distributions. Then, the probabilistic neural networks were directly used to perform a
classification without extracting other fault features. With a similar idea to [16], cone-shaped kernel
distributions and a neural network were used in [17] to diagnose the valve fault. Despite many
recent studies on the feature extraction and fault diagnosis for the ICE valve clearance fault, practical
applications in real-time monitoring are scarce, because most of these methods require a lot of data
collected during the healthy condition to obtain the nominal baseline or data collected during the fault
condition to test the fault classifier, all of which are very difficult to implement on an in-service engine.
In this work, we study the detection approach of the ICE valve clearance fault using vibration
analysis. Vibration signals are measured on the engine cylinder heads of a 12-cylinder ICE.
The measurement is conducted at three different fault levels, three different operating speeds and five
different operating loads to provide investigative data. The main contribution of this work can be
summarized as follows: (1) a fault feature which is sensitive to the valve clearance and insensitive
to working conditions is selected through dynamic simulation; (2) a novel impact commencement
detection method which is capable of obtaining a sufficiently accurate result is proposed; (3) based on
experimental verification, using only one feature can provide superior monitoring and tracking of valve
clearance without comparison to the baseline extracted during the healthy condition; and (4) there
is potential for applying the fault diagnosis method in real-time mode since it has good adaptability
and robustness.
The rest of this paper is organized as follows. The test rig and experiment procedure are described
in Section 2. An elaboration based on dynamical simulation for the feature selection is presented
in Section 3. Section 3.4 presents the proposed feature extraction approach. In this section, a signal
pre-processing method based on filtering with adaptive cutoff frequency is presented, and a novel
fault feature extraction approach based on an adaptive impact detection technique is also introduced.
Section 4 reports the valve clearance fault detection results and verifies the validity of the diagnosis
method. Finally, conclusions are presented in Section 5.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 3 of 19

2. Diesel Engine Experimental Test System

2.1. Test Rig

All the experiments will be conducted on a TBD234 twelve-cylinder V-shaped direct injection
diesel engine (Henan Diesel Engine Industry Co. Ltd., Luoyang, China). The major features of the ICE
are summarized in Table 1. A hydraulic dynamometer is connected to the engine, so that different
loads can be applied to it. The data used in this work are collected under variable working conditions.

Table 1. Features of the TBD234 diesel engine.

Item Value
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 3 of 19
Number of cylinders 12
Shape V-shaped 60◦
Firing sequence B1-A1-B5-A5-B3-A3-B6-A6-B1-A2-B4-A4
2. Diesel Rating
Enginespeed
Experimental Test System 2100 rev/min
Rating power 485 kW
Intake valve train normal clearance
2.1. Test Rig 0.3 mm
Exhaust valve train normal clearance 0.5 mm
All the experiments
Intake willtiming
valve opening 26.5◦ ± twelve-cylinder
be conducted on a TBD234 2◦ before top deadV-shaped direct injection
center (TDC)
Intake valve closing timing 46.5 ◦ ± 2◦ after bottom dead center (BDC)
diesel engine (Henan Diesel Engine Industry Co. Ltd., Luoyang, China). The major features of the
Exhaust valve opening timing 47◦ ± 2◦ before BDC
ICE are summarized in Table 1. A hydraulic dynamometer is connected to the engine, so that
Exhaust valve closing timing 13◦ ± 2◦ after TDC
different loads can be applied to it. The data used in this work are collected under variable working
conditions.
As
As shown
shownininFigure
Figure1, 1,
accelerometer
accelerometer sensors are mounted,
sensors are mounted, usingusingglue paste, on the on
glue paste, upper
the surface
upper
of the cylinder heads to acquire vibration signals directly. In order to achieve the
surface of the cylinder heads to acquire vibration signals directly. In order to achieve the correlation correlation between
the vibration
between the signals
vibrationandsignals
the displacement of each cylinder
and the displacement piston,
of each an eddypiston,
cylinder currentan transducer
eddy current used
for identifying
transducer usedthefordifferent
identifyingphases of the working
the different phases cycle
of theisworking
installedcycle
on the flywheelon
is installed thattheisflywheel
directly
connected to the engine crankshaft. Only one marker was used per rotation
that is directly connected to the engine crankshaft. Only one marker was used per rotation for for the eddy current sensor.
the
Moreover, in order to calculate the crankshaft angular speed for translating
eddy current sensor. Moreover, in order to calculate the crankshaft angular speed for translating signals from the time
domain to thethe
signals from angle
timedomain,
domainanother eddydomain,
to the angle current transducer
another eddy is installed just besideisthe
current transducer gear of just
installed the
flywheel to capture the pulse signals generated by gears. The parameters of the
beside the gear of the flywheel to capture the pulse signals generated by gears. The parameters of the accelerometer and the
eddy current sensor
accelerometer and are
the listed
eddyincurrent
Tables 2sensor
and 3, respectively.
are listed in The accelerometer
Tables 2 and 3, andrespectively.
pulse signalsThe are
sampled using a data acquisition (DAQ) system, in which the DAQ card has
accelerometer and pulse signals are sampled using a data acquisition (DAQ) system, in which the a 16-bit ADC resolution
and
DAQa card
maximum sampling
has a 16-bit ADCrate of 102.4and
resolution KS/s per channel,
a maximum and up
sampling rateto of
32102.4
analogKS/sinputs. Signalsand
per channel, are
processed usinginputs.
up to 32 analog a computer with
Signals are16processed
GB of RAM, and
using a 3.10 GHzwith
a computer Intel16i7GBprocessor.
of RAM,Aand photograph
a 3.10 GHz of
the ICE and positioning of the sensors is shown in Figure 1 and the interconnection
Intel i7 processor. A photograph of the ICE and positioning of the sensors is shown in Figure 1 and of the main test rig
components is presented
the interconnection of thein Figure
main test2.rig components is presented in Figure 2.

Figure
Figure 1.
1. The
The Internal
Internal combustion
combustion engines
engines (ICE) and sensors
(ICE) and sensors positioning.
positioning.

Gear pulse signal

Vibration signal

A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6

Hydraulic
transducer used for identifying the different phases of the working cycle is installed on the flywheel
that is directly connected to the engine crankshaft. Only one marker was used per rotation for the
eddy current sensor. Moreover, in order to calculate the crankshaft angular speed for translating
signals from the time domain to the angle domain, another eddy current transducer is installed just
beside2017,
Sensors the 17,
gear of the flywheel to capture the pulse signals generated by gears. The parameters of
2916 4 ofthe
19
accelerometer and the eddy current sensor are listed in Tables 2 and 3, respectively. The
accelerometer and pulse signals are sampled using a data acquisition (DAQ) system, in which the
Table 2. Parameters of the accelerometer.
DAQ card has a 16-bit ADC resolution and a maximum sampling rate of 102.4 KS/s per channel, and
up to 32Performance
analog inputs. Signals are processed
Specification Unit usingMeasurement
a computer with
Model 168711-01
GB of Accelerometer
RAM, and a 3.10 GHz
Intel i7 processor. A photograph of the ICE and positioning of the sensors is shown in Figure 1 and
Voltage sensitivity mV/g 10
the interconnection of the(±main
Frequency range 5%) test rig components
Hz is presented in 1–10,000
Figure 2.
Frequency range (±10%) Hz 0.4–16,000
Natural frequency Hz 42,000
Amplitude range ±g pk 500
Residual noise g rms 0.0003
Mechanical shock limit ±g pk 5000
Temperature range ◦C −55 to 125
Amplitude linearity % ±1

Table 3. Parameters of the eddy current sensor.

Performance Specification Unit Bently 3300 XL 11 mm Proximity Transducer System

Incremental scale factor V/mm 3.94
Frequency Response Hz 0–8000
Temperature range ◦C 0 to 45
Figure 1. The Internal combustion engines (ICE) and sensors positioning.
Linear Range mm 4

Gear pulse signal

Vibration signal

A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6

Hydraulic DAQ System

dynamometer ICE
Computer
B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6

Vibration signal

Key phase pulse signal

Accelerometer sensors Eddy current sensor Eddy current sensor

Figure 2. The interconnection of the main test rig components.

Figure 2. The interconnection of the main test rig components.

2.2. Introduction to the Valve Train Faults of ICE

In the ICE, the valve train controls the flow into and out of the combustion chambers. Figure 3
depicts the solid model of the valve train established based on the test rig, which typically consists
of one camshaft, two tappets, two pushrods, two rocker arms, intake and exhaust valves, and valve
springs. The valve clearance refers to the distance between the valve cap and rocker as illustrated in
Figure 3. In the valve train system, the camshaft driven by the crankshaft controls the valve behaviors,
and the lifting of the valve is determined by:

Fpre
lVAL (θ ) = lCAM (θ )·λ RA − cVT − (1)
KVT

where θ is the crank angle, lCAM (θ ) is the lifting of cam, λ RA is the arm length ratio of the rocker, cVT
represents the valve clearance, Fpre is the pretension force of valve springs, and KVT represents the
stiffness of the valve train. For a given ICE, the structural parameters, including the cam profile, λ RA ,
Fpre , and KVT , have been determined. From Equation (1), we can find that an abnormal valve clearance
may lead to improper valve timings and then result in the engine performance being degraded.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 5 of 19
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 5 of 19

Figure
Figure 3. The
The solid
solid model
model of
of the
the valve
valve train.
train.

The
The engine’s
engine’s manufacturer
manufacturer provides
provides the
the normal
normal limits
limits of
of valve
valveclearances
clearancesororthe
the valve
valvetimings.
timings.
In the normal state of the TBD234V12 diesel engine (Henan Diesel Engine Industry
In the normal state of the TBD234V12 diesel engine (Henan Diesel Engine Industry Co. Ltd., Luoyang, Co. Ltd.,
Luoyang,
China), the clearance should be between 0.25 and 0.35 mm for the intake valve, and between 0.45 and
China), the clearance should be between 0.25 and 0.35 mm for the intake valve, and
between 0.45 and 0.55 mm for the exhaust valve. The chosen clearance fault levels of the
0.55 mm for the exhaust valve. The chosen clearance fault levels of the exhaust valve are 0.8 mm and exhaust
valve are 0.8 mm and 1.1 mm, i.e., the values of 0.5 mm, 0.8 mm and 1.1 mm will be used for the
1.1 mm, i.e., the values of 0.5 mm, 0.8 mm and 1.1 mm will be used for the normal and fault cases
normal
studiedand fault
in this cases studied in this paper.
paper.

2.3.
2.3. Test
Test Procedure
Procedure
Three setsofofmeasurement
Three sets measurement experiments
experiments werewere carried
carried out.first
out. The Thesetfirst set involves
involves testing attesting at
1500 rpm
1500
enginerpm engine
speed speed
at three at three
different different
engine loads:engine loads:
700, 1000 and700,
13001000
N m,and and 1300
testingN at
m,1800
andrpm
testing at
at four
1800 rpm at four loads: 700, 1000 1300 and 1600 N m, and testing at 2100 rpm at five
loads: 700, 1000 1300 and 1600 N m, and testing at 2100 rpm at five loads: 700, 1000 1300 1600 and loads: 700, 1000
1300
2200 1600 and 2200
N m during theNhealthy
m during the healthy
condition. condition.
The second andThe second
third sets ofand third sets ofare
measurements measurements
for the fault
are for the fault
conditions withconditions with the valve
the valve clearance in theclearance in theof
exhaust valve exhaust valve of the
the B1-cylinder B1-cylinder
of 0.8 mm and of 1.10.8
mm mmin
and 1.1 mm in the same operating conditions as the first set. The asynchronous sampling
the same operating conditions as the first set. The asynchronous sampling method is adopted, while method is
adopted, while
all channels all channels
are kept are kept inand
in synchronization, synchronization, andatdata
data was collected was collected
the sampling at theofsampling
frequency 51.2 kHz
frequency of 51.2 kHz
per channel in all tests. per channel in all tests.

3.
3. Feature
Feature Selection
Selection
Feature
Feature selection
selection isis aa key
key step
step in the processes
processes of fault diagnosis
diagnosis and prediction.
prediction. It It is
is generally
generally
related
related to two
two important
important aspects:
aspects: firstly,
firstly, the selected features
features should
should be be sensitive
sensitive toto target
target faults
faults and
and
not sensitive or
not sensitive orless
lesssensitive
sensitivetoto noises;
noises; then,then,
the the available
available signal
signal processing
processing techniques
techniques have the have the
ability
ability to the
to extract extract the selected
selected features
features with with sufficient
sufficient accuracy, the
accuracy, satisfying satisfying the requirements
requirements of the
of the engineering
engineering
application. application.
The objectiveThe objective
of this work is oftothis work is
develop to develop
a method a method
to detect to detect and
and diagnose diagnose ICE
the abnormal the
abnormal
valve trainICE valve train
clearance. The idealclearance.
selectedThe ideal should
features selected befeatures
sensitiveshould be sensitive
to abnormal to abnormal
valve train clearance
valve train to
and stable clearance and stable
engine operating to enginebecause
conditions, operatingit isconditions, because
usually difficult it is usually
to achieve difficult
the engine to
loads
achieve theengines
except for engineusedloadsforexcept
power forgenerating
engines used sets.for powertogenerating
In order select goodsets. In order
features to select good
for diagnosing the
features for diagnosing
valve clearance the valve
fault, studies on theclearance
influencefault, studies
of valve on theon
clearance influence
the kineticof valve clearance
and dynamic on the
response
kinetic and dynamic
of the valve train are response
conducted. of the valve train are conducted

3.1. Valve
3.1. Valve Impacts
Impacts Transmission
Transmission Paths
Changing this
Changing this clearance
clearancewould
wouldhave
haveanan
influence on on
influence the the
kinematic and and
kinematic dynamic response
dynamic of valve
response of
lifting.lifting.
valve The valve impacts
The valve include
impacts an opening
include impactimpact
an opening generated from the
generated collision
from between
the collision the rocker
between the
and valve
rocker andcap, and
valve a closing
cap, impact impact
and a closing generated from thefrom
generated collision betweenbetween
the collision the valvethe
seat and seat
valve cylinder
and
head. The vibration transmission paths are shown in Figure
cylinder head. The vibration transmission paths are shown in Figure 4.4.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 6 of 19

Figure 4.
Figure Valve impacts
4. Valve impacts transmission
transmission paths.
paths.

3.2. Simulation Study

To study
study the the movement
movement characteristics
characteristics of the valve valve train
train mechanism,
mechanism, ADAMS, a multi-body
dynamic simulation tool, is employed to simulate and to obtain the dynamic influence of the valve
clearance and and operating
operating condition.
condition. The Thesolid
solidmodel
model used
used forfor simulation
simulation is shown
is shown in Figure
in Figure 3,
3, as
as previously
previously mentioned.
mentioned. In In order
order toto
keepkeepthe theanalysis
analysissimple
simpleandandtotoillustrate
illustratethe thedynamic
dynamic behavior,
behavior,
all the
thebodies
bodiesare areconsidered
considered to rigid.
to be be rigid. A contact
A contact pair is
pair model model is introduced
introduced to simulate to the
simulate the
clearance
clearance
[18]. Two[18]. sets Two sets of simulations
of simulations are performed:
are performed: one is onefor isa for a different
different valvevalve clearance
clearance simulated
simulated by
by setting
setting a different
a different valve
valve clearance,
clearance, and and thetheother
otheroneoneisisfor
fordifferent
differentoperating
operating conditions
conditions simulated
by changing the engine speed.
Four valve
valvelift liftcurves
curvescorresponding
corresponding to clearances
to clearances of 0.5
ofmm0.5 (normal),
mm (normal), 0.8 mm, 0.81.1 mm1.1
mm, andmm1.4 and
mm
are drawn in Figure 5, respectively. When the valve clearance increases,
1.4 mm are drawn in Figure 5, respectively. When the valve clearance increases, the time of valve the time of valve opening is
delayed
opening and the time
is delayed andof the
valve
timeclosing
of valveis advanced. Because the
closing is advanced. buffer section
Because the bufferof the camof
section is the
nonlinear,
cam is
the changing
nonlinear, degree
the changingof delaying
degreeorof advancing
delayingbecomes smaller becomes
or advancing when the smaller
clearancewhen increases, as shown
the clearance
in Figure 6.
increases, asThe
shown results can also
in Figure be obtained
6. The results can from Figure
also 7, in which
be obtained fromfour valve
Figure acceleration
7, in which fourcurves,
valve
corresponding
acceleration curves, to four clearances, are
corresponding toshown. Meanwhile,
four clearances, areFigure
shown. 7 shows that high
Meanwhile, impacts
Figure occur
7 shows at
that
the
highmoments
impacts when occur the valve
at the opens and
moments when closes;
the the closing
valve opens impact is much
and closes; stronger
the closingthan the opening
impact is much
impact.
strongerMoreover,
than the openingthe impacts
impact.become stronger
Moreover, theas the clearance
impacts becomeincreases.
stronger as Combining Figures
the clearance 5–7 to
increases.
analyze
Combining the Figures
characteristics
5–7 to of sensitivity
analyze to the valve clearance,
the characteristics we can
of sensitivity to ascertain
the valve that the timings
clearance, we can of
valve
ascertainimpacts have
that the more of
timings ofan effect
valve than the
impacts havestrength
more of impacts
an effectwhen clearanceofisimpacts
than the strength small, butwhenthe
result reversesiswhen
the clearance small,the butclearance
the resultis large.
reverses This is due
when thetoclearance
the cam profile which
is large. Thiscontains
is due tothe thebuffer
cam
section and rapid
profile which containslifting
thesection. Therefore,
buffer section andthe timing
rapid of section.
lifting the impact is more the
Therefore, capable
timing of of
detecting
the impactthe
Sensors
abnormal 2017, clearance
17, 2916 in the early stage, and the valve closing impact is much easier to detect. 7 of 19
is more capable of detecting the abnormal clearance in the early stage, and the valve closing impact
is much easier to detect.
On the other hand, the simulation results corresponding to different operating conditions
(1200 rpm, 1500 rpm, 1800 rpm, and 2100 rpm) with normal clearance are shown in Figure 8. It is
obvious that the impacts become stronger with the engine speed rising, while the timing of impacts
almost stays the same. The valve lift curves are not drawn because they are completely coincident.

Figure 5.
Figure Valve lift
5. Valve lift of
of different
different clearances.
clearances.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 Figure 5. Valve lift of different clearances. 7 of 19
Figure 5. Valve lift of different clearances.

Figure 5. Valve lift of different clearances.

Figure 6.
Figure 6. The relationship
The relationship
6. The between
relationship between valve
between valve clearance
valve clearance and
clearance and the
and the timing
the timing of
timing of valve
of valve closing.
valve closing.
closing.
Figure

Figure 6. The relationship between valve clearance and the timing of valve closing.

Figure 7.
Figure Valve acceleration
7. Valve acceleration of
of different
different clearances.
clearances.
Figure 7. Valve acceleration of different clearances.

On the other hand, the simulation results corresponding to different operating conditions (1200
rpm, 1500 rpm, 1800 rpm, and 2100 rpm) with normal clearance are shown in Figure 8. It is obvious
that the impacts become stronger with the engine speed rising, while the timing of impacts almost
stays the same. The valve lift curves
Figure are not
7. Valve drawn because
acceleration theyclearances.
of different are completely coincident.

Figure 8. Valve acceleration of different speeds.

Figure 8. Valve acceleration of different speeds.

Figure 8.
Figure Valve acceleration
8. Valve acceleration of
of different
different speeds.
speeds.

3.3. Feature Selection

As shown in Figures 7 and 8, the opening impact is usually very small and easily influenced by
noise. So, the features extracted from valve closing impacts are much better to study for detecting
the abnormal clearance in a valve train. Generally, the features related to valve closing impact can
be divided into three categories: the impact strength features, the impact frequency features and the
timing of impact appearance features.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 8 of 19

The first category includes features such as the peak and the peak-to-peak, the root mean square,
etc. These features are extracted directly from the time domain and indicate the overall level, or the
peakedness, or the flatness of the vibration signals. The simulation results show that the first category
features are connected to the operating conditions. In particular, the valve closing peaks have
unpredictable behaviors and even change considerably in a random manner. Therefore, the first
category features may not be useful for the valve fault detection.
The second category features are extracted from the vibration signal after transformation to the
frequency domain usually by means of FFT. These features can often be effective for diagnosing
the faults that may have detectable characteristic frequency components of the vibration signal. So,
the application of the frequency domain is usually more successful for stationary vibration signals,
such as the vibration signals of most rotating machines. However, the vibration signals measured on
the upper surface of the cylinder heads are usually non-stationary signals resulting from the variation
of the crankshaft angular speed of ICEs. According to previous studies [1,17] and the vibration tests
on various ICEs, a typical frequency spectrum of cylinder head vibration, as shown in Figure 10
(the solid blue line), indicates that the frequency spectrum is chaotic and complex. Thus, it is difficult
to use the frequency features for the valve fault diagnosis of ICEs.
The representative feature of the third category is mainly the timing of valve closing.
The simulation results indicate that the valve would open late and close early when the valve clearance
increases. In fact, the theoretical timing of valve closing is mainly determined by the cam profile,
the arm length ratio of the rocker, and the valve train clearance. The lift of the valve train can
be approximately derived based on these parameters, almost without consideration of the engine
operating conditions.
Therefore, we select the timing of valve closing as the target feature, i.e., the commencement
phase of valve closing impact.

3.4. Feature Extraction Approach

3.4.1. Signal Pre-Processing

3.4.1.1. Angle Domain Translation Based on Soft Re-Sampling

To carry out the commencement phase of valve closing impact, the angle-invariant interval
sampling mode, rather than the time-invariant interval sampling mode, is usually recommended to
collect the vibration signals, in which the variations in ICE speed will have less impact on the measured
signals. However, it is well known that the angle-invariant interval sampling approach requires a
high-cost analog anti-aliasing filter, while the time-invariant interval sampling has relatively lower
requirements and is simple to implement. Therefore, an indirect approach, combining time-invariant
interval sampling with soft re-sampling, is employed in this study.
The rationale and procedures of the introduced method can be found in [19,20]. Furthermore,
the main procedures can be divided into three steps summarized as follows. Firstly, collect all the
signals, including the vibration signal, the key phase pulse signal indicating the top dead center (TDC)
of a specified cylinder, and the gear pulse signal used for calculating the crankshaft angular speed,
at a fixed sampling rate simultaneously. Secondly, calculate the instantaneous rotation angle with
the help of the gear pulse signal, and segment the signals into integral periods using the key phase
pulse signal. Finally, re-sample the vibration signals digitally with a constant-angle interval using an
interpolation method.

3.4.1.2. Filtering Using Adaptive Cutoff Frequency

In order to improve the accuracy of fault detection and diagnosis methods, the vibration data
should be filtered through a high-pass or band-pass filter with a certain cutoff frequency [13].
Considering that higher frequency may appear when the fault occurs and becomes worse, we employ
4.1.2. Filtering Using Adaptive Cutoff Frequency
In order to improve the accuracy of fault detection and diagnosis methods, the vibration data
should be filtered through a high-pass or band-pass filter with a certain cutoff frequency [13].
Considering that higher frequency may appear when the fault occurs and becomes worse, we
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 9 of 19
employ a high-pass filter to ensure that failure information would not be lost. Generally, the cutoff
frequencies are empirically selected or manually tried. However, for different ICEs, the target
frequency
a high-pass ranges of ensure
filter to the vibration response
that failure are different.
information wouldTherefore,
not be lost.a Generally,
method forthe choosing the cutoff
cutoff frequencies
frequency that isselected
are empirically suitableorfor differenttried.
manually ICEsHowever,
is developed in this work.
for different ICEs,Firstly,
the targetthefrequency
distinct impacts
ranges
representing valve closing and opening, as well as combustion, are segmented. The
of the vibration response are different. Therefore, a method for choosing the cutoff frequency that is ICE parameters,
including
suitable forfiring sequence,
different ICEs injection timing,
is developed andwork.
in this valveFirstly,
timing,the
aredistinct
used for identifying
impacts the range
representing valveof
specific
closing impacts,
and opening,i.e., the
as valve
well asopening and valve
combustion, are closing impact
segmented. Theregions are calculated
ICE parameters, according
including to
firing
the firing sequence and valve timing, and the fire combustion impact range is recognized
sequence, injection timing, and valve timing, are used for identifying the range of specific impacts, i.e., based on
the
the firing
valve sequence
opening and andvalve
injection timing.
closing Theregions
impact impactare regions are extracted
calculated accordingfrom thefiring
to the original angle
sequence
waveform
and valve of the raw
timing, andvibration signal cycleimpact
the fire combustion by cycle. Weisnamed
range the rest
recognized signals
based on the SREST . This
firing step is
sequence
described as follows:
and injection timing. The impact regions are extracted from the original angle waveform of the raw
vibration signal cycle by cycle. We  S the
named
SREST  SIVC
SIVOrest  SEVOSREST
signals  SEVC  SFIstep is described as follows:
. This (2)

where S is the original angle SRESTsignal, S IVO S−IVOS,IVC

= S −and − ,SEVO
S IVC , SSEVC
S EVO− EVC −and
S FI S FI represent the intake
(2)
valve opening, intake valve closing, exhaust valve opening, exhaust valve closing, and fire
where S is the
combustion original
impact angle
regions, signal, and as
respectively, S IVO , S IVCin, SFigure
shown EVO , S9.
EVCThen, S FIfrequency
andthe represent spectrums
the intake of
valve
S
opening, intake valve closing, exhaust valve opening, exhaust valve closing,
and SREST are calculated by means of FFT. As shown in Figure 10, the low frequencies of the and fire combustion
impact regions, respectively, as shown in Figure 9. Then, the frequency spectrums of S and SREST
spectrum of S are almost overlapped with the spectrum of SREST , indicating that low frequencies
are calculated by means of FFT. As shown in Figure 10, the low frequencies of the spectrum of S are
are useless for studying the ICE abnormal clearance in the valve train. The cutoff frequency can be
almost overlapped with the spectrum of SREST , indicating that low frequencies are useless for studying
easily determined at the right edge of the overlap region. In Figure 11, the waveform represented by
the ICE abnormal clearance in the valve train. The cutoff frequency can be easily determined at the
the solid red line is the data filtered through a high-pass filter with a cutoff frequency of 4.5 kHz, and
right edge of the overlap region. In Figure 11, the waveform represented by the solid red line is the
the other waveform represented by the solid blue line is the raw data. The filtered waveform is
data filtered through a high-pass filter with a cutoff frequency of 4.5 kHz, and the other waveform
similar to the raw one, but sharper in the transient response due to the removal of low frequencies in
represented by the solid blue line is the raw data. The filtered waveform is similar to the raw one,
the high-pass process. The degree of sharpness is related to the components of low frequency noise
but sharper in the transient response due to the removal of low frequencies in the high-pass process.
around the transient impact. The advantages of the cutoff frequency determining method developed
The degree of sharpness is related to the components of low frequency noise around the transient
in this work are two-fold: firstly, it improves the filtering effect and lightens the workload of
impact. The advantages of the cutoff frequency determining method developed in this work are
technicians, since it avoids manual selection by relying on experience or constant trials, and
two-fold: firstly, it improves the filtering effect and lightens the workload of technicians, since it avoids
secondly, it is an adaptive method that is suitable for each ICE, theoretically. Furthermore, the cutoff
manual selection by relying on experience or constant trials, and secondly, it is an adaptive method
frequency could be determined automatically by employing a recognition technique to identify the
that is suitable for each ICE, theoretically. Furthermore, the cutoff frequency could be determined
right edge of the overlap region.
automatically by employing a recognition technique to identify the right edge of the overlap region.

Figure 9. Raw vibration signal collected on the B1-cylinder head during one combustion cycle.
Figure 9. Raw vibration signal collected on the B1-cylinder head during one combustion cycle.
 Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 10 of 19
Sensors2017,
Sensors 2017,17,
17,2916
2916 10ofof1919
10

Figure
Figure 10.
Figure10. Comparison
10.Comparison of
Comparisonof the
ofthe raw
theraw dataSSSand
data
rawdata and processed
andprocessed dataSSSREST
data
processeddata inthe
RESTin
REST thefrequency
frequencydomain.
domain.

Figure 11.Comparison
Figure Comparison of theraw
raw dataand
and filtereddata
data waveformsininthe
the angledomain.
domain.
Figure11.
11. Comparisonofofthe
the rawdata
data andfiltered
filtered datawaveforms
waveforms in theangle
angle domain.

3.4.2. Impact Commencement Detection

It is well known that thresholding is a frequently used technique to detect the impact region
in signal processing. In many cases, the threshold parameters are set manually, leading to risks of
unreasonable setting. In this application, an adaptive method-based optimized maximum ascending
gradient will be used to extract the start time of an impact.
As an impact is the result of a sudden collision between components, the vibration energy will
suddenly increase upon commencement of the impact. Then, it will decrease gradually due to the
existence of structural impedance. Therefore, theoretically, the energy increase rate may be used to
find the commencement of an impact, i.e., the maximum ascending gradient point of vibration energy
can verify the impact location. However, the signal energy gradient is usually influenced by many
factors. In this work, we further enhanced the impact detection method to overcome this problem by
changing the policy of maximum point selection.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 11 of 19

The main steps can be summarized as follows:

1. Calculate the local energy using a sliding window method. The local energy values were
calculated by sliding a given window through the vibration signal and calculating the local
energy for each data point of the signal. The process can be described mathematically as:

1
E (i ) = (s(i + Nw )2 + s(i + Nw − 1)2 + . . . + s(i − Nw )2 ), (3)
2Nw + 1

where s(i ) is the given cycle vibration signal, and E(i ) is the local energy, and Nws (Nws = 2
Nw + 1) is the window width. Nws was related to the interval of the angle domain sampling or
re-sampling. In this study, the constant-angle interval is a 0.2 crank angle, i.e., the re-sampling
rate is 5 points per crank angle; the best value of Nws is empirically found to be 20.
2. Calculate the signal energy gradient. It is calculated with the following equation:

DE(i ) = E(i + 1) − E(i ) , (4)

where DE(i ) is the local energy gradient.

3. Find the commencement of impact. We find the kth maximum value rather than the first
maximum value in DE(i ), and then look for the first point which is equal to or bigger than the
kth maximum value, and consider that point as the commencement of impact. This step can be
written mathematically as:
DE(u) ≥ DEkthmax , (5)

indexSP = u(1), (6)

CI = DE(indexSP ), (7)

where DEkthmax is the kth maximum value in DE(i ), i.e., k = num{ DE(i ) ≥ DEkthmax },
and DE(u) is the sequence that is not less than DEkthmax in DE(i ), indexSP is the value of the first
point in u(i ), and CI is the commencement of the impact.

3.4.3. Valve Closing Impact Commencement Extraction

The exhaust valve closing impact region was extracted from the filtered vibration signal in the
angle domain. The segmental signal will be used in the subsequent analysis.
To confirm the ability of the impact detection method presented in this paper, the test results of the
exhaust valve closing commencement phase with different values of k introduced in Equation (5) are
shown in Figure 12, based on the data from the B1-cylinder head sensor shown in Figure 1 measured
when the engine was in a healthy condition. Meanwhile, the fluctuations of the angle ranges are also
displayed against 480 combustion cycles (40 combustion cycles per operating condition) in Figure 12.
It is shown that the mean value and angle range fluctuation corresponding to each value of k are
different. The mean values, the variance values, and the number of outliers corresponding to more
values of k are tabulated in Table 4. Figure 13 shows the probability distribution of the commencement
of valve closing impact in 480 combustion cycles with different values of k. The mean value decreases,
the variance value decreases first and then increases, and the number of outliers that are more than
three times the standard deviation of plus (or minus) decreases (or increases) as k increases. This is
due to the points in front being more likely to be identified when the value of k increases. On the other
hand, the mean value of the valve closing impact phase extracted from the real response signature
cycle by cycle is basically consistent with the theoretical occurrence time of the valve that is listed in
Table 1 (13◦ ± 2◦ after TDC). The error is in the allowable range, i.e., less than 3 crank degrees, when
k is greater than 10. The error decreases when a bigger value of k is selected. The calculation error
may be due to the measurement error of the TDC signature and errors between the designed and real
parameters of the ICE.
the theoretical occurrence time of the valve that is listed in Table 1 (13° ± 2° after TDC). The error is in
the allowable range, i.e., less than 3 crank degrees, when k is greater than 10. The error decreases
when a bigger value of k is selected. The calculation error may be due to the measurement error of
the TDC signature and errors between the designed and real parameters of the ICE.
In addition, it is also worth noting here that the basic trend of the valve closing phase does not
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 12 of 19
change with the working condition of the engine, as alluded to in the aforementioned analysis.

Figure 12. Angle and range fluctuations of the commencement of B1-cylinder exhaust valve closing
impact in 480 combustion cycles with different values of k.

Table
Table 4.4.Statistics
Statistics of the
of the commencement
commencement of B1-cylinder
of B1-cylinder exhaustexhaust valveimpact
valve closing closing impact
in 480 in 480
combustion
combustion cycleswith
cycles calculated calculated with
different different
values values
of k; N1 and of
N2k;represent
N1 and N2
the represent
number ofthe number
outliers thatofare
outliers
more
thanare
that three times
more thanthethree
standard
timesdeviation of plus
the standard and minus,
deviation respectively.
of plus and minus, respectively.

k k MeanMean Variance
Variance N1
N1 N2 N2
0 0 21.1938
21.1938 29.9478
29.9478 1212 0 0
5 5 17.2107
17.2107 11.8933
11.8933 1212 0 0
10 15.8125
10 15.8125 5.1422
5.1422 77 1 1
15 15.0819 3.7590 4 3
20 1514.4608
15.0819 4.0561
3.7590 42 3 6
25 2013.8538
14.4608 4.1,000
4.0561 20 6 8

In addition, it is also worth 25 13.8538

noting here that4.1,000 0
the basic trend 8 the valve closing phase does not
of
change with the working condition of the engine, as alluded to in the aforementioned analysis.
From Figure 12 and Table 4, it can be seen that the outliers always exist, due to the fact that the
dynamic status signals of ICE cylinder heads are non-stationary signals because the running process of
an ICE is usually non-stationary, as well as the influence of noises. However, since the outliers will
have a negative effect on the fault diagnosis, their number is expected to be minimized. Hence, further
optimization is employed to enhance the method by improving its robustness and applicability.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 13 of 19
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 13 of 19

Figure 13. Probability distribution of the commencement of B1-cylinder exhaust valve closing impact
in 480 combustion cycles with different
different values
values of
of k.
k.

From that
Note Figure 12 and the
changing Table 4, itclearance
valve can be seen that the aoutliers
is usually alwaysrather
slow process exist, due
thantoanthe fact that the
instantaneous
dynamic status signals of ICE cylinder heads are non-stationary signals because
one, and the valve closing phase is stable when the valve clearance remains unchanged, as previously the running process
of an ICE is usually non-stationary, as well as the influence of noises.
mentioned. According to the three-sigma rule, singular measurement data can be suggested as anHowever, since the outliers
will have
outlier a negative
if its effect
error is three on the
times faultthan
greater diagnosis, their number
the standard is expected
error; singular to be
data can beminimized. Hence,
reasonably deleted
further optimization is employed to enhance the method by improving
and substituted with an arithmetic average value. As the error processing criterion is very simple its robustness andto
applicability.
implement and widely used in practical engineering applications, it was introduced in this work to
Notethe
enhance that changing the
robustness. We valve
used aclearance is usually
given detection a slowtoprocess
window rather than
slide through an instantaneous
the time series of the
one, and the valve closing phase is stable when the valve
valve closing phase extraction results. The value of each point is calculated using: clearance remains unchanged, as
previously mentioned. According to the three-sigma rule, singular measurement data can be
(
suggested as an outlier if its error y(i )is,threei times
f y(i )greater
∈ [µ(i )than
− 3σthe
(i ),standard
µ(i ) + 3σerror;
(i )] singular data can be
reasonably deleted and y (i ) =
substituted with an arithmetic average value. As ,the error processing (8)
µ (i ) , i f others
criterion is very simple to implement and widely used in practical engineering applications, it was
introduced
where y(i ) isinthe
this work to result
calculation enhance thevalve
of the robustness. We used
closing phase a given
for each detection
combustion window
cycle, and µ(to
i ) isslide
the
through the time series of the valve closing phase extraction results. The value
local mean value calculated by Equation (8), and σ (i ) is the local standard deviation determined using of each point is
calculated(9):
Equation using:
j=i + Lw
 y(iµ) ,(i )if=y(i) 1[  (i)  3 (i),
y(j)(i, )  3 (i)]
2Lw + 1 j=∑
y(i)   , (9)
(7)
  (i ) , if others i − Lw
v
where y (i) is the calculation result u j=i + Lw phase for each combustion cycle, and  (i )
of the 1valve closing
∑ [y( j) − µ(i )]2 ,
u
σ (i ) = t (10)
is the local mean value calculated by 2Lw Equation
+1 (8), and  (i ) is the local standard deviation
j=i − Lw
determined using Equation (9):
where Lws(Lws = 2Lw + 1) is the detection window width, and represents the number of cycles taken
1 is just
 j i -Lwlikey(aj)moving
into account. In fact, the signal processing j  i  Lw
 (i) process
 , filter which will introduce(8)
a
2 Lw  1
short time delay. The maximum delay time can be calculated by:

1 120Lw
 (i)  TD =  n j i - Lw  y( j )-  (i) ,
j  i  Lw
( s ), 2 (11)
(9)
2 Lw  1
where TLw
where D represents
s ( Lws = 2Lwthe
 1maximum delay time,
) is the detection and nwidth,
window is the and
average speed of
represents theannumber
ICE. In of
practice,
cycles
ataken
balance between the outlier detection effect and the delayed imposition should be taken into
into account. In fact, the signal processing process is just like a moving filter which will account,
since a small
introduce Lw cannot
a short achieve
time delay. The amaximum
good detection effectcan
delay time and large Lw will
beacalculated by: add a significant time
delay to the fault diagnosis. The delay time of one cycle is 0.08 s when the ICE is running at 1500 rpm.
120 Lw
TD  (s) , (10)
n
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 14 of 19

where TD represents the maximum delay time, and n is the average speed of an ICE. In practice, a
balance between the outlier detection effect and the delayed imposition should be taken14 into
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 of 19
account, since a small Lw cannot achieve a good detection effect and a large Lw will add a
significant time delay to the fault diagnosis. The delay time of one cycle is 0.08 s when the ICE is
In this work,
running we empirically
at 1500 rpm. In thisselected the we
work, value of Lw to beselected
empirically 20 after performing
the value aofcomparison
Lw to beof20 various
after
Lw values.
performing a comparison of various Lw values.
The optimized results are shown in Figures 14 and 15 as well as Table Table 5.5. It can be seen that such
optimization
optimization steps stepswould
wouldtend
tendtoto make
makethethe
fluctuation
fluctuationof the
of angle range
the angle moremore
range stable. The results
stable. show
The results
that the variation in the angle range decreases first and then increases as the
show that the variation in the angle range decreases first and then increases as the value of k is value of k is increased.
It is worth noting
increased. here noting
It is worth that thehere
probability
that thedistributions
probability of the commencement
distributions of valve closingofimpact
of the commencement valve
are
closing impact are similar and approximate when k is greater than 10. Thus, the selection ofvery
similar and approximate when k is greater than 10. Thus, the selection of the value of k is not the
strict,
value i.e.,
of kwe mayvery
is not select k from
strict, i.e., awe
wide
mayband without
select k fromseriously
a wide band affecting the accuracy
without seriouslyofaffecting
the results,
the
which
accuracy is of
ofgreat significance
the results, whichfor is the applications.
of great In the
significance forfollow-up work of In
the applications. this
thepaper, the value
follow-up work ofofk
is selected as 15, since the variance becomes minimal when k is equal to 15, as shown
this paper, the value of k is selected as 15, since the variance becomes minimal when k is equal to 15, in Table 5 and
Figure
as shown 15. in Table 5 and Figure 15.

Figure 14.
Figure 14. Angle
Angle and
and range
range fluctuations
fluctuations of
of the
the commencement
commencement of of B1-cylinder
B1-cylinder exhaust
exhaust valve
valve closing
closing
impact in
impact in 480
480 combustion
combustioncycles
cyclescalculated
calculatedbybythe
thefurther
furtherenhanced
enhancedmethod
method with
with different
different values
values of of
k.
k.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 15 of 19
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 15 of 19

Figure 15. Probability distribution calculated by the further enhanced method to identify the
Figure 15. Probability
commencement distribution
of B1-cylinder calculated
exhaust by the
valve closing further
impact enhanced
in 480 method
combustion towith
cycles identify the
different
commencement
values of k. of B1-cylinder exhaust valve closing impact in 480 combustion cycles with different
values of k.
Table 5. Statistics of the commencement of B1-cylinder exhaust valve closing impact in 480 combustion
Table 5. Statistics
cycles calculated by of
thethe commencement
further of B1-cylinder
enhanced method exhaust
with different valuesvalve
of k. closing impact in 480
combustion cycles calculated by the further enhanced method with different values of k.
k Mean Variance
k Mean Variance
0 0 20.7403
20.7403 21.4636
21.4636
5 16.8284 5.6607
5 16.8284 5.6607
10 15.6677 2.6582
15 10 15.6677
15.0469 2.65822.0952
20 15 15.0469
15.1344 2.09523.2264
25 20 14.5093
15.1344 3.22643.4426
25 14.5093 3.4426
4. Valve Clearance Fault Detection
5. Valve Clearance Fault Detection
In order to evaluate the performance of the feature extraction method for valve clearance condition
In orderthe
monitoring, to abnormal
evaluate the performance
valve clearance faultof the feature extraction
is introduced into the method
B1-cylinder, for valve
while clearance
the other
condition monitoring,
cylinders are kept in normalthe abnormal valve
condition. clearance
Three differentfault
valveis introduced
clearances—0.5 into mmthe B1-cylinder, while
(health condition),
the
0.8 other
mm and cylinders
1.1 mm are(fault
kept in normal condition.
conditions)—are used Three differentthe
to examine valvefaultclearances—0.5
diagnosis andmm (health
prediction
condition),
capabilities.0.8Tomm and 1.1 the
investigate mminfluence
(fault conditions)—are
of the operating used to examine
condition on thethe fault diagnosis
detection and
results, data
prediction capabilities.
from all sensors mounted Tooninvestigate
the enginethewasinfluence
collected of withthethree
operating
different condition
operating onspeeds
the detection
and five
results,
differentdata from all
operating sensors
loads mounted
for each on the engine
valve clearance was collected
condition, as mentioned with in three different
Section 2.2. operating
speedsTheand five different
procedures operating
are briefly loads for
summarized each
in the flowvalve
chart clearance
presented condition,
in Figure as 16,mentioned
as mentioned in
Section 2.2. extraction results of the exhaust valve closing phase of the B1-cylinder at different valve
above. The
The procedures
clearances and different are operating
briefly summarized
conditionsin arethe flow in
shown chart presented
Figure 17. Theinresults
Figureshow16, as mentioned
that, for each
above. The extraction
valve clearance, the valveresults of the
closing exhaust
phase valve located
is basically closing inphase of the
a small B1-cylinder
limited angle range at different
even when valve
the
clearances and different
operating speed or load is operating
constantlyconditions
changing.are shown
This provesin Figure
that the17. Theclosing
valve resultsphase
show isthat,
notfor each
affected
valve clearance,
by variation theoperating
in the valve closing phase isFrom
condition. basically
Figurelocated
17, it in
can a small
also belimited
seen thatangle therange even when
commencement
the operating
of valve closingspeed
impactor load is constantly
obviously changing.
advances when the This proves
valve that theincreases.
clearance valve closing phase is not
The difference in
affected
the advance is about 8◦inwhen
by variation the the
operating
clearancecondition.
increasesFrom0.3 mm, Figure
and it 17, it can 10
becomes ◦ when
also be seen that the
the clearance
commencement
increases 0.6 mm. of valve
This notclosing
onlyimpact
provesobviously advancesofwhen
the effectiveness the valve method
the presented clearanceinincreases.
detectingThe the
difference in thecondition,
valve clearance advance is about
but also 8° whenthe
verifies theimportance
clearance increases
of the phase 0.3 extraction
mm, and itaccuracybecomesbecause
10° when the
the clearance
advance is notincreases
large enough.0.6 mm. This notitonly
Meanwhile, proves
is worth the that
noting effectiveness
with the same of the 0.3presented
mm increase method in
of valve
detecting
clearance, the valve advance
the phase clearanceincondition, but also state
the small clearance verifies
(0.5 the
mm)importance
is greater than of the phase
in the largeextraction
clearance
accuracy
state (0.8because
mm), i.e., thetheadvance
phaseisadvance
not large enough.
has Meanwhile,
a nonlinear it is worth
relationship withnoting that with
the increase same
of the valve
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 16 of 19

0.3 mm increase of valve clearance, the phase advance in the small clearance state (0.5 mm) is greater
than in
Sensors the17,large
2017, clearance state (0.8 mm), i.e., the phase advance has a nonlinear relationship16with
2916 of 19
the increase of the valve clearance and is more sensitive when the clearance is small. This has a
strong relationship with the cam profile and agrees with the simulation results. Moreover, Figure 18
clearance
shows theand is more sensitive
probability whenofthe
distribution theclearance is small. of
commencement This hasclosing
valve a strongimpact
relationship
in 480with the cam
combustion
profile and agrees with the simulation results. Moreover, Figure 18 shows the probability distribution
cycles with different clearances. It is easy to see that the data concentration becomes higher with the
of the commencement
increase of valve closing impact in 480 combustion cycles with different clearances. It is
of valve clearance.
easy Hence,
to see that the data
our accurate concentration becomesfor
extraction method higher
the with
valvethe increase
closing of valve
phase has clearance.
been proven to be
Hence, our accurate extraction method for the valve closing phase has been proven
effective, and the fault detection performance based on it has been verified as good enough, to be effective,
as the
and
valvetheclosing
fault detection
phase isperformance
sensitive tobased on it in
changes hasvalve
been verified
clearance as good enough, as the
and insensitive valveworking
to the closing
phase is sensitive
condition to changes in valve clearance and insensitive to the working condition of the engine.
of the engine.

Figure
Figure 16.
16. The
The procedures
procedures of
of the
the proposed method.
proposed method.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 17 of 19
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 17 of 19

Figure 17. Angle and range fluctuations of the commencement of B1-cylinder exhaust valve closing
Figure 17. Angle and range fluctuations of the commencement of B1-cylinder exhaust valve closing
impact in 480 combustion cycles calculated by the presented method with different valve clearances.
impact in 480 combustion cycles calculated by the presented method with different valve clearances.

18.Probability
Figure 18.
Figure distribution
Probability calculated
distribution by the presented
calculated method to identify
by the presented method the tocommencement
identify the
of B1-cylinder exhaust
commencement valve closing
of B1-cylinder impact
exhaust valveinclosing
480 combustion
impact in cycles with different
480 combustion clearances.
cycles with different
clearances.
Sensors 2017, 17, 2916 18 of 19

5. Conclusions
In this study, an effective approach has been developed to detect and diagnose the ICE valve
train clearance based on the vibration signal measured on the engine cylinder heads. This presented
method is capable of monitoring the clearance accurately with only one feature—the commencement
of valve closing impact—since the feature is sensitive to the valve clearance and insensitive to working
conditions. Moreover, because this feature has clear physical significance, the baseline acquired during
the healthy condition is no longer needed. Subsequently, a novel feature extraction technique was
carried out based on a newly proposed impact detection method to meet the feature calculation
accuracy requirement. The experimental results proved that the selected feature is indeed ideal for this
fault detection, and the feature extraction results are accurate enough. In addition, this method has
potential for application in real-time and the trend of the valve clearance may become trackable, as the
calculation processes are adaptable and automatic with good robustness, and the implementation is
simple. In the future, the new impact detection method will be extended to diagnose other impulse
faults, and the valve clearance detection approach will be further studied and finally built into a
real-time monitoring system for an engine.

Acknowledgments: This work was supported by National High Technology Research and Development Program
of China (863 Program) under Grant No. 2014AA041806 and the National Key Research and Development Plan
(2016YFF0203301).
Author Contributions: The approach was conceived by Zhinong Jiang and Zhiwei Mao. Jinjie Zhang and Zhiwei Mao
performed the experiments. Zijia Wang performed the dynamical simulation. Zhiwei Mao analyzed the data and
wrote the manuscript under the supervision of Zhinong Jiang and Jinjie Zhang.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Abbreviations
List of Symbols
θ crank angle µ (i ) local mean value
lCAM (θ ) lifting of cam σ (i ) local standard deviation
λ RA arm length ratio of rocker Lws detecting window width
cVT valve clearance TD maximum delay time
Fpre pretension force of valve springs n speed of the ICE
KVT stiffness of valve train S original angle signal
SREST rest signals S IVO intake valve opening impact regions
S IVC intake valve closing impact regions SEVO exhaust valve opening impact regions
SEVC exhaust valve closing impact regions S FI fire combustion impact regions
E (i ) local energy Nws window width
DE(i ) gradient of local energy DEkthmax kth maximum value in DE(i )
DE(u) sequence that not less than DEkthmax in DE(i ) indexSP value of the first point in µ(i )
calculation result of valve closing phase for
CI commencement of the impact y (i )
each combustion cycle

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