Displacement measurement for engine optimisation

Monitoring the interaction of various components on the running engine presents a challenge. Enormous pressures and temperatures prevail, there are many moving parts and there is almost no way that a sensor can be integrated.

Only a few sensors are able to meet these challenges. Micro-Epsilon has for many years proved itself as a dependable supplier of measurement technology for engine development. And so, in interesting development projects new ways are continuously being found to improve the efficiency of internal combustion engines.
Eddy current sensors from Micro-Epsilon measure displacement, distance, position and spacing with sub-micrometer accuracy. These sensors have been used for many years in numerous applications on internal combustion engines. Special miniature eddy current sensors have been produced, the smallest having an external diameter of only 2 mm. This demonstrates that the company supplies the world's smallest eddy current sensor. The distance between the controller and sensor can be extended to 15 m. As a result, the controller can be mounted in the passenger compartment during measurement. In addition, the operating controls for the controller are located within the housing. This means that the controller is fully sealed and resistant to oil, water and dirt.

The number of applications is continually rising. For example, the lateral movement of the pistons can be determined, the movement of the crankshaft acquired, the bearing gap on the drive shaft can be measured and the expansion of the cylinder head gasket can also be monitored.