Elasto-multi-body dynamics of internal combustion engines with tribological conjunctions

Reduction of frictional losses and NVH (Noise, Vibration, and Harshness) refinement constitute the key customer-focussed aims in internal combustion engine development. Numerical predictive tools have progressively become an important part of achieving these aims. However, the interactions and sometimes the conflicting requirements of the aforementioned objectives call for the inclusion of many phenomena in realistic models of practical significance. These phenomena occur at varying physics of scale, from micro-scale tribological conjunctions to small scale vibrations and onto large scale inertial dynamics. At the same time, the inclusion of many disciplines for a cohesive analysis will be required, such as rigid body dynamics and elastodynamics, as well as tribology. While the inclusion of such a multi-disciplinary approach is deemed essential, the use of analytical rather than numerical models, as far as possible, would render realistic predictions within the usual tight industrial timescales. This article presents an experimentally validated model of the engine piston assembly, which is based on the multi-physics, multi-scale nature of the interacting components. Furthermore, it provides predictions of some current development trends in engines such as the high output power to weight ratio and offset crankshaft. The emphasis of this article is on the integration of the kinetic reactions arising from the tribological conjunction of the dynamics of engine subsystems, piston, and crankshaft.