Data Logging in an Aircraft Engine Monitor
Data logging referees to capture of data. Typically, a data logger or data recorder is an electronic device that records data over time.
Thanks to modern IC-based smart technology, even a small digital ‘smart’ watch is capable of so much more than just displaying the time of the day. Similarly, an Aircraft engine monitor does a lot more than display a bunch of engine data.
Imagine blood pressure machine or a heart monitor machine that not only monitors the patient but also records the data. So that, with a press of a few buttons, a doctor could check if there were any anomalies during the day. The Aircraft engine monitor works in exactly the same principle.
There are probes attached to various parts of the aircraft engine that feed data to the Aircraft engine monitor. The Aircraft engine monitor has a screen that displays the data in an easy-to-understand format. The pilot can flip thru several pages of data on the screen.
The Aircraft engine monitor displays and records several parameters of aircraft engine operation. These include the exhaust gas temperatures for each cylinder, cylinder head temperatures, oil pressure, oil temperature, fuel use rate and fuel balance, RPM, carburettor temperature and so forth.
Depending on the Aircraft engine monitor model, several hundred hours of data can be simultaneously recorded / stored in the Aircraft Gauge internal memory. When the aircraft returns to ground, the aircraft maintenance technician can plug into the Aircraft engine monitor’s data port and download all the data for engine performance evaluation and analysis.
Using sophisticated analytical software, the technician can analyse the engine performance minutely and figure out if any part of the engine required tuning / repairs or replacement.
Sometimes pilot feedback might also be required e.g. intensity of vibration (if any) or stiffness of the controls and so forth.
Regular download and analysis can catch and nip a problem in the bud before it becomes something major and life-threatening during a flight. Imagine a heart monitoring software that works in tandem with a heart monitor and can predict a heart attack many months before it actually happens. Corrective action can be taken and the problem can be rectified before it becomes life-threatening.
An aircraft engine monitor is also immensely useful to owners of experimental aircraft as they would want to constantly evaluate the aircraft engine performance and data logging in an aircraft engine monitor and subsequent download is the best way to do it.
As for the data analysis software itself, there are many available that you could choose from and these include Savvy Analysis, Win Air, MX Systems etc.
For more information on Aircraft Engine Monitor, please visit: https://www.jpinstruments.com/product-category/single-engine-mgmt-systems/
