Portable useful horsepower measuring instrument

Claim 3

A readily portable apparatus for determining the useful horsepower of any prime mover at any point along its power train inclusive of the final drive element in the power train as said prime mover operates with a known load on any given roadway grade, a. a velocity signal means having an input indicative of the velocity of rotation delivered by said prime mover and having an output directly proportional to said velocity of rotation of said prime mover, b. an absolute acceleration signal generator having a signal output directly proportional to the absolute acceleration paRallel to said given roadway, c. a time constant means having as its input said absolute acceleration signal and as its output a gain controlled d.c. signal compatible with the rest of the apparatus, d. a multiplier circuit means coupled respectively to both said pulsed velocity signal output and said gain controlled output to thereby provide an output signal which is a multiplication of said pulsed velocity signal output and said gain controlled signal output, e. a time constant circuit coupled to said multiplier circuit means output, the output from said time constant circuit being said useful horsepower and torque at any given instant on any given grade during operation of said prime mover.

Claim 4

A readily portable apparatus for determining the useful horsepower of any prime mover at any point along its power train inclusive of the final drive element in the power train as said prime mover operates with a known load on any given roadway grade, a. a velocity signal means having an input indicative of the velocity of rotation delivered by said prime mover and having an output directly proportional to said velocity of rotation of said prime mover, b. an absolute acceleration signal generator having a signal output directly proportional to the absolute acceleration paRallel to said given roadway, c. a time constant means having as its input said absolute acceleration signal and as its output a gain controlled d.c. signal compatible with the rest of the apparatus, d. a multiplier circuit means coupled respectively to both said pulsed velocity signal output and said gain controlled output to thereby provide an output signal which is a multiplication of said pulsed velocity signal output and said gain controlled signal output, e. a time constant circuit coupled to said multiplier circuit means output, the output from said time constant circuit being said useful horsepower and torque at any given instant on any given grade during operation of said prime mover.

Claim 5

The apparatus claimed in claim 2 wherein said absolute acceleration signal generator is an accelerometer.

Claim 6

The apparatus claimed in claim 2 wherein said absolute acceleration signal generator is a single degree of freedom accelerometer.

Claim 7

The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said prime mover is providing the pulling effort necessary to move a predetermined load.

Claim 8

The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said prime mover is housed in the passenger compartment of a vehicle and said predetermined load is the mass of the vehicle being pulled by said prime mover effort.

Claim 9

The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said absolute acceleration signal generator is an accelerometer connected directly to said vehicle to determine absolute acceleration parallel to said given roadway.

Claim 10

A readily portable apparatus for determining the useful torque and horsepower pulling a given load on any given roadway grade, a. a pulsed signal source having an output indicative of the velocity of rotation delivered by said prime mover at any point along said power train, b. a pulsed velocity signal means coupled to said pulsed signal source output indicative of the velocity of rotation delivered by said prime mover and having an output directly proportional to said velocity of rotation of said prime mover, c. an absolute acceleration signal generator having a d.c. level signal output directly proportional to the absolute acceleration parallel to said given roadway, d. a signal summing and time constant means having at least one input as its absolute acceleration signal and as its output a gain controlled d.c. signal compatible with the rest of the system. e. a multiplier circuit means coupled respectively to both said pulsed velocity signal output and said gain controlled d.c. signal output to thereby provide an output signal which is a multiplication of said pulsed velocity signal output and said gain controlled signal output, f. a time constant circuit coupled to said multiplier circuit means output, said time constant circuit having a time constant parameter, said parameter is proportional to the mass driven by said prime mover, said time constant circuit means thereby having an output which is directly proportional to the useful horsepower or torque developed at any given instant during operation of said prime mover.

Claim 11

A readily portable apparatus for determining the useful torque and horsepower pulling a given load on any given roadway grade, a. a pulsed signal source having an output indicative of the velocity of rotation delivered by said prime mover at any point along said power train, b. a pulsed velocity signal means coupled to said pulsed signal source output indicative of the velocity of rotation delivered by said prime mover and having an output directly proportional to said velocity of rotation of said prime mover, c. an absolute acceleration signal generator having a d.c. level signal output directly proportional to the absolute acceleration parallel to said given roadway, d. a signal summing and time constant means having at least one input as its absolute acceleration signal and as its output a gain controlled d.c. signal compatible with the rest of the system. e. a multiplier circuit means coupled respectively to both said pulsed velocity signal output and said gain controlled d.c. signal output to thereby provide an output signal which is a multiplication of said pulsed velocity signal output and said gain controlled signal output, f. a time constant circuit coupled to said multiplier circuit means output, said time constant circuit having a time constant parameter, said parameter is proportional to the mass driven by said prime mover, said time constant circuit means thereby having an output which is directly proportional to the useful horsepower or torque developed at any given instant during operation of said prime mover.

Claim 12

The apparatus claimed in claim 8 wherein said absolute acceleration signal generator is an accelerometer.

Claim 13

The apparatus claimed in claim 8 wherein said absolute acceleration signal generator is a single degree of freedom accelerometer.

Claim 14

The apparatus of claim 8 wherein said prime mover is providing the pulling effort necessary to move a vehicle.

Claim 15

The apparatus of claim 11 wherein said absolute acceleration signal generator is an accelerometer connected directly to said vehicle to determine absolute acceleration parallel to said given roadway.

Claim 16

The apparatus claimed in claim 8, wherein said pulsed signal source includes in combination an internal combustion engine which has an rpm signal generating source means having a primary coil which has an output electrically coupled to breaker points, said breaker points controlling said output from said primary coil to provide a pulsed output which is directly proportional tO the revolutions per minute at which said internal combustion engine is operating, said pulsed output having an a.c. portion which is superimposed on the d.c. level at which said engine ignition d.c. power supply is operating, a. a low pass filter means electrically coupled to said pulsed output which substantially recovers a d.c. wave form while rejecting the a.c. component of said pulsed output and thereby producing a low pass filter output, b. a switching amplifier means electrically connected to said low pass filter output to thereby extract the d.c. level from the switching wave form to thereby produce a pulsed signal output that has a repetition rate equal to the velocity of rotation of said internal combustion engine.

Claim 17

The apparatus claimed in claim 8, wherein said pulsed and d.c. level velocity signal means includes an adjustable monostable multivibrator electrically coupled to said pulsed signal output and having a square wave output with a repetition rate directly proportional to the velocity of rotation of said engine, a. a two-stage switching amplifier electrically coupled to said square wave output and having a primary output which is a pulsed output directly proportional to said velocity and a secondary output which is said second output of said pulsed and d.c. level velocity signal means, b. a time constant circuit electrically coupled to said primary output and having an output which is said first output of said d.c. level velocity signal means.

Claim 18

The apparatus claimed in claim 8, wherein said pulsed signal source includes an rpm signal generating source means which is a pulsed tachometer.

Claim 19

The apparatus claimed in claim 8, wherein said pulsed signal source includes an rpm signal generating source means which includes a rotating element driven at a speed directly proportional to engine rpm, said rotating element having regions thereon spaced such that a detecting means in a region near said rotating means will detect the passing of said regions and produce said pulsed signal.

Claim 20

The apparatus of claim 16, wherein said rotating element is a shaft having regions that are of retroreflective material and produce detecting means is a photosensitive optical pickup to produce said pulsed signal.

Claim 21

The apparatus of claim 17, wherein said rotating element is a disc with a plurality of peripheral reflective and nonreflective regions and said detecting means is a photosensitive optical pickup to produce said pulsed signal.