Experimental determination of general characteristic of internal combustion engine using mobile test bench connected via Power Take-Off unit

The general characteristics of the engine include information about the regions of the engine's operating area that are most efficient, where specific fuel consumption reaches the smallest values. Economic operation based on those characteristics can contribute to a significant reduction of fuel consumption and consequently less pollutant emissions and lower costs. The paper presents an experimental method of determination of general characteristic of internal combustion engine mounted in a truck chassis. Experimental tests focus on low torque and engine speed range, which is observed during operation of the body Refuse Collection Vehicle. To conduct the measurements, the specially designed test bench was used. The collected data from two engines was processed applying machine learning methods, which were described and compared to obtain best regression model. Determined general characteristic was used to evaluate fuel consumption in a time period of variable engine load. Finally, simulated total fuel used for both engines in different engine speeds and load were compared. Results show significant differences in total fuel consumption depend on engine speed, thus it is an evidence that there is a large field to improvement in propulsion system configuration.