Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[New York Preview: Nissan to introduce new variable valve timing tech]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2007/04/01/new-york-preview-nissan-to-introduce-new-variable-valve-timing/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/04/01/new-york-preview-nissan-to-introduce-new-variable-valve-timing/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/04/01/new-york-preview-nissan-to-introduce-new-variable-valve-timing/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Ever-tightening emissions requirements, teamed with consumers' lust for today's high horsepower numbers, have led to some creative valve timing and lift schemes. Infiniti's G37 will be pack some interesting tech underhood when it debuts at the upcoming New York International Auto Show. There are actually two new developments working in conjunction to give independent control over valve timing and lift. Nissan has dubbed the control technologies Variable Valve Event and Lift and Continuous Valve Timing control, or VVEL and C-VTC, respectively. VVEL uses a clever arrangement of links to actuate the valves, and moves the fulcrum for the links via a seperate shaft actuated by a DC motor. By moving the fulcrum, the valve lift is varied.

More after the jump, along with press release

[Source: Nissan via Gizmag]

Continue reading New York Preview: Nissan to introduce new variable valve timing tech

New York Preview: Nissan to introduce new variable valve timing tech originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 01 Apr 2007 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>autoAuto ShowAutoShowcontrolemissionsengineengine managementEngineManagementG37greeninfinitiliftmanagementNew YorkNewYorknissanperformanceshowtechnologytimingvalvevalve liftvalve timingValveLiftValveTimingvariablevariable liftvariable valve timingVariableLiftVariableValveTimingSun, 01 Apr 2007 11:29:00 EST<![CDATA[Behold the cam-less future]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/12/22/behold-the-cam-less-future/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/12/22/behold-the-cam-less-future/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/12/22/behold-the-cam-less-future/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Mechanically actuated valves may soon be a thing of the past. We've made over a century's worth of improvement on the same basic combination of a camshaft, followers (or lifters), a poppet valve and a spring. We've gone from using pushrods and rocker arms to actuate the valvetrain to direct-acting buckets motivated by an overhead camshaft with variable phasing and lift. While engineering ingenuity has managed to wring incredible performance and flexibility out of these setups, there's only so far you can go before bumping into the laws of physics. French automotive supplier Valeo SA has been working on camless engine technology for quite some time and they expect to have their system on the street by 2010 or 2011. Valeo is working with several automakers to implement the camless technology. Eliminating a traditional valvetrain is expected to yield efficiency improvements nearing 20 percent. An increase in performance and emissions decreases will also be realized from the system.

More after the jump


[Source: Valeo via Autoweek]

Continue reading Behold the cam-less future

Behold the cam-less future originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 22 Dec 2006 13:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>camshaftscylinder headCylinderHeadelectronicsengine electronicsengine managementengine technologyEngineElectronicsengineeringEngineManagementEngineTechnologymechanicalmotormotor technologyMotorTechnologyoverhead camOverheadCamtechvalvesvalvetrainFri, 22 Dec 2006 13:34:00 EST<![CDATA[PSA: Beware of cosmic rays]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/06/01/psa-beware-of-cosmic-rays/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/06/01/psa-beware-of-cosmic-rays/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/06/01/psa-beware-of-cosmic-rays/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

As if rollovers, suicidal deer, and thieves who break in with laptop computers weren't enough to worry about, now there's a new menace on the roadways - high-energy neutrons from cosmic rays.

Let's back up a moment. The increasing complexities and decreased time-to-market demands for automotive electronics has caused some manufacturers to migrate from microcontrollers and ASICs to field-programmable logic arrays (FPGAs). Devices based on volatile SRAM are the most common and also the most economical, but they rely on successfully loading and maintaining the device configuration into RAM upon each power-up.

Corruption of SRAM - where a stray cosmic ray disrupts the electron charge of a memory cell - has been a known phenomenon in the PC world for quite some time, but typically does not put the user at risk of a safety-critical failure. The story isn't the same in an automobile, where SRAM corruption can potentially cause a malfunction, or even the complete shut-down of a powertrain or safety system device. As annoying as PC crashes may be, it figures that a similar event in an ECM, ESP, or airbag module would be far worse.

It's highly unlikely that we'll ever see a recall that advises owners to minimize exposing their vehicles to cosmic radiation, but this issue does provide a sliver of insight into the challenges faced by those who design today's ever-more-complex vehicles.

[Source: Automotive Design Line via EE Times]

PSA: Beware of cosmic rays originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 01 Jun 2006 15:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ABSair bagECMEFIelectronicsengine managementESPPCMstability controlThu, 01 Jun 2006 15:53:00 EST<![CDATA[Engine management and emission controls (Part 2)]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/25/engine-management-and-emission-controls-part-2/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/25/engine-management-and-emission-controls-part-2/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/25/engine-management-and-emission-controls-part-2/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

In Part 1 of this series, we took at look at the engine control module (ECM), the "brains" of a modern vehicle's engine management and emission control systems. Next, we're going to dig a bit deeper and investigate the various sensors that feed information about the vehicle's operating conditions to the ECM.

Continue reading Engine management and emission controls (Part 2)

Engine management and emission controls (Part 2) originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 25 Apr 2006 11:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ECMEFIelectronic fuel injectionemission controlsemissionsengine managementTue, 25 Apr 2006 11:56:00 EST<![CDATA[Engine management and emission controls (Part 1)]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/24/engine-management-and-emission-controls-part-1/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/24/engine-management-and-emission-controls-part-1/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/24/engine-management-and-emission-controls-part-1/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

A modern engine makes use of a wide variety of technology, but it's not necessarily well-understood by the majority of the motoring public. Considering that this stuff isn't rocket science (for the most part), we figured that it's time to lift the hood on one of the cars in our garage and walk through its engine management system. Getting through it all will take a while, but your patience will be rewarded with a significantly improved understanding of what makes your car's powertrain tick.

Continue reading Engine management and emission controls (Part 1)

Engine management and emission controls (Part 1) originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 24 Apr 2006 13:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ECMEFIengine managementEngineManagementPCMMon, 24 Apr 2006 13:26:00 EST