Me Engines (The Computer Controlled Electronic Engines)

ME ENGINES ( THE COMPUTER CONTROLLED ELECTRONIC ENGINES)
It is not generally known that the first airless injection system (i.e. not to use
compressed air to atomise the fuel) was a common rail system. The invention of this
system is often mistakenly credited to Doxford, but it was invented and patented by
Vickers of Barrow in Furness.
In this early common rail system the engine driven fuel pumps pressurised a fuel
rail to about 400 bar from which pipes led to the fuel valves operated by cams and
rocking levers. Independently driven pumps were provided to prime the system for
starting.
Later systems used hydraulically operated injectors, the delivery of fuel being
controlled by a cam operated valve. Fuel quantity was controlled by an eccentric on
the cam follower.
With the integration of industrial electronics into marine engineering systems

coupled with the giant strides made in the development of computer technology, it
has now become possible to re-introduce the fuel injection common rail along with
other fuel injection systems, using this modern technology to time the injection of
fuel without mechanical aids.
In addition to this, it has become possible to dispense with the timed camshaft
altogether by using similar systems to control operation of valves and the air start
system.
The two major manufacturers of two stroke crosshead engines have both introduced
a camshaft-less engine. Sulzer call theirs the RT Flex engine, and MAN B&W call
theirs the ME intelligent engine. Both engines use electrical and engine driven axial
piston pumps to pressurise servo oil rails to 200 bar which are then used for fuel
injection and exhaust valve operation. In addition MAN B&W use the servo oil to
drive the cylinder lubricator units (Alpha system)
Although they both work without a camshaft and use computers to control, fuel
injection, exhaust valve operation and air starting, the method of fuel injection is
different.
Sulzer use a pressurised fuel rail using a set
of jerk type pumps driven by a three lobe
cam geared to the crankshaft. The pumps
are variable delivery, based on the ZA40
fuel pump, controlled by an electrically
driven fuel pump shaft linked to the engine
computer.
The engine computer system known as

the Wartsila Engine Control System
(WECS)controls the delivery from the
common rail to the individual cylinders via
the volumetric injection control system
which uses finely filtered engine LO
pressurised by electric pumps to 200 bar.
When the Rail Valves are energized for injection by the

Valve Driver Module, oil from the Control Rail opens the
Injection Control Valves. The fuel injectors are
pressurized and fuel oil pressure behind the Fuel Quantity
Piston maintains this pressure at the injectors. As the
Piston moves to the left a feedback signal is sent to the
Cylinder Control Module.
At low engine load the control system cuts out one of the
three injection valves per cylinder.
At very low load two of the three injection valves are cut
out. This is used to avoid visible smoke emission and to
reduce fuel consumption. It is possible to reduce engine
load to 10% with engine revolutions as low as 7RPM.
Unlike the Sulzer RT Flex engine the MAN B&W ME engine
does not operate the fuel injection on a common rail system.
Instead a solenoid operated proportioning valve

(the FIVA valve - Fuel Injection Valve Activation) allows the
pressurised servo oil under a hydraulic piston. This then moves
the fuel pump piston upwards, raising the fuel pressure and
opening the injection valves.
A nitrogen filled accumulator maintains the hydraulic servo oil

pressure during the operation of the pump.
To be able to time the fuel injection the Control Systems must know the crank angle
of the individual units. To do this two crank angle sensors are fitted at the free end
of the engine. These sensors are accurate to 0.1°. Cylinder pressures and powers are
continually monitored by using strain gauges built into the cylinder head, and the
computer automatically compensates for twist in the crankshaft when relating
crankshaft position to cylinder pressure. the systems give complete flexibility over
start and end of injection and take into account fuel quality, dead time (the time
between injection start command being given and actual injection),
and Variable Injection Timing (VIT).
The exhaust valve actuator replaces the cam operated
exhaust valve hydraulic pump on both make of
camshaftless engines. Both working on a similar principle,
servo oil at 200 bar is used to operate a piston which
operates the exhaust valve "hydraulic push rod" The oil for
operating the "hydraulic push rod" comes from the main
engine LO supply via a non return valve.
The air start system is similar to that on a conventional

engine except there is no need for a mechanically driven
distributor to open the air start valves at the correct time.
Instead of a camshaft driven, reversing air start distributor,

each air start valve is opened at the correct time by the
engine computers sending a signal to a solenoid controlled
nc (normally closed) valve.
The timing of the air start valves will vary depending on the
number of cylinders, but they will be open for a long
enough period to allow overlap, so that a valve opens before
the previous valve closes, allowing starting from any
position of rest. The nominal opening can be considered as
0° (ie TDC) and closing at 110° ATDC.
The computer knows when to send the signal because it is

receiving information as to the crankshaft position from the
angle encoders which measure crankshaft position and
RPM.
When the engine has reached firing speed the computers

shut off the air and introduce the fuel.
This gives a brief overview of the computer controlled camshaftless engine. More
detailed explanations with detailed drawings can be found in the members section
under Common Rail and Camshaftless Engines
Here there are chapters on:
 A Brief History Of Fuel Injection.
 The RT Flex Engine Fuel Injection System.
 The RT Flex Engine Exhaust Valve Actuator System.
 The RT Flex Engine Air start System.
 The MAN B&W ME Electronic Engine Operation.
 The MAN B&W ME Fuel Injection System.
 The MAN B&W ME Exhaust Valve Actuator System.
 The MAN B&W ME Air start System.
 The MAN B&W ME Alpha Cylinder Lubrication System.

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ME ENGINES ( THE COMPUTER CONTROLLED ELECTRONIC ENGINES)

With the integration of industrial electronics into marine engineering systems

The engine computer system known as

When the Rail Valves are energized for injection by the

Instead a solenoid operated proportioning valve

A nitrogen filled accumulator maintains the hydraulic servo oil

The air start system is similar to that on a conventional

Instead of a camshaft driven, reversing air start distributor,

The computer knows when to send the signal because it is

When the engine has reached firing speed the computers

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