Mechanical signature analysis using time-frequency signal processing: application to internal combustion engine knock detection

Signature analysis consists of the extraction of information from measured signal patterns. The work presented in this paper illustrates the use of time-frequency (TF) analysis methods for the purpose of mechanical signature analysis. Mechanical signature analysis is a mature and developed field; however, TF analysis methods are relatively new to the field of mechanical signal processing, having mostly been developed in the present decade, and have not yet been applied to their full potential in this field of engineering applications. Some of the ongoing efforts are briefly reviewed in this paper. One important application of TF mechanical signature analysis is the diagnosis of faults in mechanical systems. In this paper we illustrate how the use of joint TF signal representations can result in tangible benefits when analyzing signatures generated by transient phenomena in mechanical systems, such as might be caused by faults or otherwise abnormal operation. This paper also explores signal detection concepts in the joint TF domain and presents their application to the detection of internal combustion engine knock.