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The exact moments at which the inlet and outlet valve open and close with reference to
the position of piston and crank, when shown diagrammatically, it is known as ˜
  

  ‘ The timing is expressed in terms of {      .

   Inlet valve is open. Piston moves from the Top Dead Centre (TDC) to Bottom
Dead Centre (BDC). Air-fuel mix is sucked in by negative pressure in cylinder.

    Inlet and outlet valves closed. Piston moves upwards from BDC to TDC.
Air-fuel mix is compressed.

      Inlet and outlet remains closed here also. Piston moves down from
TDC to BDC. This happens as a result of ignition of the mixture inside the cylinder. Ignition is
started by spark plug or as a result of compression ignition.

   Exhaust valve opens. Piston moves up from BDC to TDC. Exhaust gases are
pushed out of the cylinder.

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The Actual Valve Timing Diagram has slight variations with respect to the Theoretical Valve
Timing Diagram. The variations are made in order to maximize the engine performance. Refer the
figures [2.1 & 2.2] given above and compare it with the Theoretical VTD to the see the difference.

  {
  
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The inlet valve is made to open 10degree to 30degree before the piston reaches the Top
Dead Center (TDC) during Suction Stroke and is allowed to close only after 30degree to 40degree
after the piston reaches and leaves the BDC in the beginning of compression stroke. The reason for
doing this is to facilitate silent operation of the engine under high speeds.
The inlet valves are made to operate slowly to avoid noise and hence sufficient time
should be provided for the air-fuel mix to get into the cylinder. Thus valves are made to open before
the actual BDC. Since the inlet valve is a small opening sufficient mixture doesn¶t enter the cylinder
in such short time, as the piston reaches BDC. Thus the inlet valve is kept open for some time period
of time after BDC, to facilitate sufficient flow of charge into the cylinder.

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The exhaust valve is made to open 30degree to 60degree before the BDC in the exhaust
stroke and allowed to close only after 80 to 100 degree, in the beginning of the suction stroke. The
gases inside the cylinder have a very higher pressure even after the expansion stroke. This higher
pressure enables it to move out of the cylinder through the exhaust valve reducing the work that
needs to be done by the engine piston in pushing out these gases. Thus the exhaust valve is made
to open before the piston reaches the BDC thus enabling the gases to escape outside on its own and
the remaining gases are pushed out by the upward motion of the piston during the exhaust stroke.
When the piston reaches the TDC, if the exhaust valve is closed like in actual timing
diagram, a certain amount of exhaust gases will get compressed and remain inside the cylinder and
will be carried to the next cycle also. To prevent this, the exhaust valves are allowed to close only
a certain time after the piston reaches the TDC.

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The main task of variable valve timing (VVT) diagram is setting the most advantageous
valve timing for the particular engine for the operating modes like idle, maximum power and
torque as well as exhaust gas recirculation.
First I discuss the various valve timing diagrams which are obtained for different
operating conditions of engine with the help of variable valve timing technology.

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At idle, the camshafts are set so that the inlet camshaft

opens late and, consequently, loses late as well. The exhaust
camshaft is set so that it closes well before TDC. Due to the
minimal gas residue from combustion, this leads to smooth idling.
For this case valve timing diagram is shown in figure [2.3]

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To achieve good power at high engine speeds, the exhaust valves are opened late. In this
way, the expansion of the burned gases can act against the pistons longer. The inlet valves open
after TDC and close well after BDC. In this way, the dynamic self-charging effect of the entering
air is used to increase power. Valve timing diagram shown in figure [2.4]

|  

To achieve maximum torque, a high degree of volumetric efficiency must be attained. This
requires that the inlet valves be opened early. Because they open early, they close early as well,
which avoids pressing out the fresh gases. The exhaust camshaft closes just before TDC. Valve
timing diagram shown in figure [2.5]

{|   
 

Internal exhaust gas recirculation can be achieved by adjusting the inlet and exhaust
camshafts. In this process, exhaust gas flows from the exhaust port into the inlet port while the
valves overlap (inlet and exhaust valves are both
Open). The amount of overlap determines the amount of re-circulated exhaust gas. The inlet
camshaft is set so that it opens well before TDC and the exhaust camshaft does not close until
just before TDC. As a result, both valves are open and exhaust gas is re-circulated.
 {    
    
   
   

             {    {ë    !
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   Valve timing diagram shown in figure [2.6]

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The variable valve timing system consists of the following components: also shown in
figure[2.7]

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The fluted variator for adjusting the inlet camshaft is fitted directly on the inlet camshaft.
It adjusts the inlet camshaft according to signals from the engine control unit. The fluted variator
for adjusting the exhaust camshaft is fitted directly on the exhaust camshaft. It adjusts the
exhaust camshaft according to signals from the engine control unit. Both fluted variators are
hydraulically operated and are connected to the engine oil system via the control housing.

ë|  
  

The control housing is attached to the cylinder head. Oil galleries to both fluted variators
are located in the control housing.

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There are two solenoid valves located in the control housing. They direct oil pressure to
both fluted variators according to the signal from the engine control unit. Inlet camshaft timing
adjustment valve -1- (N205) is responsible for the inlet camshaft, and exhaust camshaft timing
adjustment valve -1- (N318) is responsible for the exhaust camshaft.

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The basic mechanism

used by the VTEC technology
is a simple hydraulically
actuated pin. This pin is
hydraulically pushed
horizontally to link up
adjacent rocker arms. A spring
mechanism is used to return
the pin back to its original
position as shown in figure
[2.8].

To start on the basic

principle, examine the simple
diagram below. It comprises a M
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camshaft with two cam-lobes
side-by-side. These lobes drive two side-by-side valve rocker arms.
The two cam/rocker pairs operate independently of each other. One of the two cam-lobes is
intentionally drawn to be different. The one on the left has a "wilder" profile, it will open its
valve earlier, open it more, and close it later, compared to the one on the right. Under normal
operation, each pair of cam-lobe/rocker-arm assembly will work independently of each other.
VTEC uses the pin actuation mechanism to link the mild-cam rocker arm to the wild-cam
rocker arm. This effectively makes the two rocker arms operate as one. This "composite" rocker
arms, now clearly follows the wild-cam profile of the left rocker arm. This in essence is the basic
working principle of all of Honda's VTEC engines.

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 ˜˜ 

VVT-i, or Variable Valve Timing with intelligence, is an automobile variable valve
timing technology developed by Toyota, similar in performance to the BMW's VANOS. The
Toyota VVT-i system replaces the Toyota VVT offered starting in 1991 on the 5-valve per
cylinder engine.
VVT-i, introduced in 1996, varies the timing of the intake valves by adjusting the
relationship between the camshaft drive (belt, scissor-gear or chain) and intake camshaft. Engine
oil pressure is applied to an actuator to adjust the camshaft position.
The VVT-i system is designed to control the intake camshaft within a range of 50° (of
Crankshaft Angle) to provide valve timing that is optimally suited to the engine operating
conditions. This improves torque in all engine speed ranges as well as increasing fuel economy,
and reducing exhaust emissions. By using the engine speed, intake air volume, throttle position
and engine coolant temperature, the ECM (Engine Control Module) calculates optimal valve
timing for each driving condition and controls the camshaft timing oil control valve . In addition,
the ECM uses signals from the camshaft position sensor and the crankshaft position sensor to
detect the actual valve timing, thus providing feedback control to achieve the target valve timing.
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Engine control module (ECM) is a type of electronic control unit that determines the amount of
fuel, ignition timing and other parameters in an internal combustion engine needs to keep it
running efficiently at different conditions.

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Valve-tronic engines use a combination of hardware and software to eliminate the need for a
conventional throttle mechanism.

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Fuel injection systems monitor the volume of

air passing through the throttle butterfly and
determine the corresponding amount of fuel required
by the engine. The larger the throttle butterfly
opening, the more air enters the combustion
chamber.

At light throttle, the throttle butterfly partially

or even nearly closes. The pistons are still running,

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 taking air from the partially closed intake manifold. The intake manifold between the throttle and
the combustion chamber has a partial vacuum, resisting the sucking and pumping action of the
pistons, wasting energy. Automotive engineers refer to this phenomenon as "pumping loss". The
slower the engine runs, the more the throttle
butterfly closes, and the more energy is lost.
Valve-Tronic minimizes pumping loss by
reducing valve lift and the amount of air
entering the combustion chambers.

Compared with conventional twin-cam

engines with finger followers, Valve-Tronic
employs an additional eccentric sh¯ t, an
electric motor and several intermediate rocker
arms, which in turn activates the opening and
closing of valves. If the rocker arms push
deeper, the intake valves will have a higher lift,
and vice-versa. Thus, Valve-Tronic has the
ability to get deep, long ventilation (large valve
lift) and flat, short ventilation (short valve lift),
depending on the demands placed on the
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y| Valve lift is variable between 0 and 9.7 mm.

y| In Valve-Tronic engines coolant flows across the head, resulting in a temperature
reduction of 60%.
y| The water pump size is cut in half, reducing power consumption by 60%.
y| The power steering fluid is warmed quickly, reducing the power used by the hydraulic
pump.
y| Mounting the water and power pump on the same shaft and a heat exchanger between
coolant and engine oil reduces oil temperature by 30%.

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A choke v¯lve is a valve that lifts up
and down a solid cylinder (called a "plug" or
"stem") which is placed around or inside
another cylinder which has holes or slots.

The design of a choke valve means

fluids flowing through the cage are coming
from all sides and that the streams of flow
(through the holes or slots) collide with each
other at the center of the cage cylinder, thereby
dissipating the energy of the fluid through

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A choke valve is sometimes installed in the carburetor of internal combustion engines. Its
purpose is to restrict the flow of air, thereby enriching the fuel-air mixture while starting the
engine. Depending on engine design and application, the valve can be activated manually by the
operator of the engine (via a lever or pull handle) or automatically by a temperature-sensitive
mechanism called an ¯uto-choke.
Choke valves are important for carbureted gasoline engines because small droplets of
gasoline do not evaporate well within a cold engine. By restricting the flow of air into the throat
of the carburetor, the choke valve raises the level of vacuum inside the throat, which causes a
proportionally greater amount of fuel to be sucked out of the main jet and into the combustion
chamber during cold-running operation. Once the engine is warm (from combustion), opening
the choke valve restores the carburetor to normal operation, supplying fuel and air in the correct
stoichiometric ratio for clean, efficient combustion.
Chokes were nearly universal in automobiles until fuel injection replaced carburetion in
the late 1980s. Choke valves are still extremely common in other internal-combustion
applications, including most small portable engines, motorcycles, small prop-powered airplanes,
and carbureted marine engines.

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|   

An exhaust system is usually tubing used to guide reaction exhaust gases away from a
controlled combustion inside an engine. The entire system conveys burnt gases from the engine
and includes one or more exhaust pipes. Depending on the overall system design, the exhaust gas
may flow through one or more of:

y| Cylinder head and exhaust manifold

y| A turbocharger to increase engine power
y| A catalytic converter to reduce air pollution
y| A muffler (North America) / silencer (Europe), to reduce noise

   

Many automotive companies offer aftermarket exhaust system upgrades as a subcategory
of engine tuning. This is often fairly expensive as it usually includes replacing the entire exhaust
manifold or other large components. These upgrades however can significantly improve engine
performance and do this through means of two main principles:
y| By reducing the exhaust back pressure, engine power is increased in four-stroke engines
y| By reducing the amount of heat from the exhaust being lost into the under bonnet area.

This reduces the under bonnet temperature and consequently lowers the intake manifold
temperature, increasing power. This also has positive side effect of preventing heat-sensitive
components from being damaged. Furthermore, keeping the heat in the exhaust gases speeds
these up, therefore reducing back pressure as well. ¦    
{{ë 

     
{   {$      ë{ {  

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Exhaust Heat Management
is the term that describes reducing
the amount of exhaust heat loss.
One dominant solution to
aftermarket up-graders is the use
of a ceramic coating applied via
thermal spraying. This not only
reduces heat loss and lessens back
pressure, but provides an effective
way to protect the exhaust system
from wear and tear, thermal
degradation and corrosion.
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A modern automobile air intake system has three main parts;

y| Air filter
y| Mass flow sensor
y| Throttle body

Some modern intake systems can be highly complex, and often include specially-designed
intake manifolds to optimally distribute air and air/fuel mixture to each cylinder. Many cars
today now include a silencer to minimize the noise entering the cabin. Silencers impede air flow
and create turbulence which reduces total power; so many performance enthusiasts often remove
them.
All the above is usually accomplished by flow testing
on a flow bench in the port design stage. Cars with
turbochargers or superchargers which provide
pressurized air to the engine usually have highly-refined
intake systems to improve performance dramatically.
Production cars have specific-length air intakes to
cause the air to vibrate at a specific frequency to assist air
flow into the combustion chamber. Aftermarket
companies for cars have introduced larger throttle bodies
and air filters to decrease restriction of flow at the cost of M
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changing the harmonics of the air intake for a small net increase in power or torque.
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Combustion normally begins at the spark plug where the molecules in and around the
spark discharge is activated to a level where reaction is self sustaining. This level is achieved
when the energy released by combustion is slightly greater than the heat loss to the metal & the
gas surroundings.
Initially, flame speed is very low as the reaction zone must be established, and heat loss
is high as the spark plug is located near the cold walls. During this period, pressure rise is also
small because the mass of mixture burned is small. Unburned gas ahead of flame front and the
burned gas behind the flame front are raised in temperature by compression, either by a moving
piston or by heat conduction from advancing flame. In the final stage, flame slows down as it
approaches the walls of the combustion chamber (from heat loss & low turbulence) and is finally
extinguished (wall quenching).

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Figure [2.16] below shows a conventional spark plug with its different parts.

y| A high ignition voltage to break down in the spark-gap

y| A low source impedance or steep voltage rise
y| A high energy capacity to create a spark kernel of sufficient size
 y| Sufficient duration of the voltage pulse to ensure ignition

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The sequence of events which take place inside the engine cylinder is illustrated in Figure [2.17].
Several variables are plotted against crank angle through the entire four-stroke cycle. Crank angle is a
useful independent variable because engine processes occupy almost constant crank angle intervals over
a wide range of engine speeds. The figure shows the valve timing and volume relationship for a typical
automotive spark-ignition engine. To maintain high mixture flows at high engine speeds (and hence high
power outputs) the inlet valve, which opens before TC, closes substantially after BC. During intake, the
inducted fuel and air mix in the cylinder with the residual burned gases remaining from the previous
cycle. After the intake valve closes, the cylinder contents are compressed to above atmospheric pressure
and temperature as the cylinder volume is reduced. Some heat transfer to the piston, cylinder head, and
cylinder walls occurs but the effect on unburned gas properties is modest.
Between 10 and 40 crank angle degrees before TC an electrical discharge across the spark plug
starts the combustion process. A distributor, a rotating switch driven off the camshaft, interrupts the
current from the battery through the primary circuit of the ignition coil. The secondary winding of the
ignition coil, connected to the spark plug, produces a high voltage across the plug electrodes as the
magnetic field collapses. Traditionally, cam-operated breaker points have been used; in most automotive
engines, the switching is now done electronically. A turbulent flame develops from the spark discharge,
propagates across the mixture of air, fuel, and residual gas in the cylinder, and extinguishes at the
combustion chamber wall. The duration of this burning process varies with .engine design and
operation, but is typically 40 to 60 crank angle degrees.
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As fuel-air mixture bums in the flame, the cylinder pressure as shown in Figure [2.17] by (solid
line) rises above the level due to compression alone (dashed line). This latter curve-called the 9otored
cylinder pressure (is the pressure trace obtained from a motored or non-firing engine). Note that due to
differences in the flow pattern and mixture composition between cylinders, and within each cylinder
cycle-by-cycle, the development of each combustion process differs somewhat. As a result, the shape of
the pressure versus crank angle curve in each cylinder, and cycle-by-cycle, is not exactly the same.
There is an optimum spark timing which, for a given mass of fuel and air inside the cylinder,
gives maximum torque. More advanced (earlier) timing or retarded (later) timing than this optimum
gives lower output, Called  ë ! %¦ $ this optimum timing is an empirical
compromise between starting combustion too early in the compression stroke (when the work transfer is
to the cylinder gases) and completing combustion too late in the stroke (and so lowering peak expansion
stroke pressures).
About two-thirds of the way through the expansion stroke, the exhaust valve starts to open. The
cylinder pressure is greater than the exhaust manifold pressure and a blow down process occurs. The
burned gases flow through the valve into the exhaust port and manifold until the cylinder pressure and
exhaust pressure equilibrate. The duration of this process depends on the pressure level in the cylinder.
The piston then displaces the burned gases from the cylinder into the manifold during the exhaust stroke.
The exhaust valve opens before the end of the expansion stroke to ensure that the blow down process
does not last too far into the exhaust stroke.
The actual timing is a compromise which balances reduced work transfer to the piston before BC
against reduced work transfer to the cylinder contents after BC. The exhaust valve remains open until
just after TC; the intake opens just before TC. The valves are opened and closed slowly to avoid noise
and excessive cam wear. To ensure the valves are fully open when piston velocities are at their highest,
the valve open periods often overlap. If the intake flow is throttled to below exhaust manifold pressure,
then backflow of burned gases into the intake manifold occurs when the intake valve is first opened.

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y| http://yanswerz.blogspot.com/2009/12/valve-timing-diagram-of-four-stroke.html
y| http://www.classle.net/bookpage/valve-timing-diagram
y| http://www.waybuilder.net/sweethaven/MechTech/Automotive01/default.asp?unNum=1
&lesNum=3&modNum=4
y| http://thecartech.com/subjects/engine/engine_testing3.htm
y| http://ispark.computersolutiontrio.com/how-it-works.html
y| http://moodle.student.cnwl.ac.uk/moodledata_shared/cdx%20etextbook/dswmedia/engine
s/comp/vlves/valvetimingdiagram.html
y| http://www.austincc.edu/wkibbe/vvt.htm (FOR VVT)
y| http://www.2dix.com/document-pdf/variable-valve-timing-diagram-pdf.php (FOR VVT)
y| http://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-camshaft-variable-valve-timing-works (VCT)
y| http://www.enginebuildermag.com/Article/39596/variable_valve_timing.aspx
y| http://www.2carpros.com/questions/toyota-other-variable-valve-timing-vvt (VVT-I)
y| http://www.wiringdiagrams21.com/2009/05/27/toyota-vvt-i-variable-valve-timing
intelligent-system-and-schematic-diagram
y| http://asia.vtec.net/spfeature/vtecimpl/vtec1.html (VTECH)
y| http://www.usautoparts.net/bmw/technology/valvetronic.htm (VALVE TRONIC)
y| http://www.freeautoanswers.com/choke.html (Choke operation)
y| http://teacher.buet.ac.bd/zahurul/ME401/ME401_combustion_SI.pdf (Self sustaining
flame)
y| Internal Combustion Engine by J.B Heywood (Book)