Intelligent Alcohol Fuel Sensor

For the use in flexible fuel vehicles able to operate with mixtures of alcohol fuels and gasoline, an intelligent alcohol sensor has been developed.

Based on the measurement of the dielectric constant, this sensor overcomes the problems with optical measuring principles; these problems are due to sensitivity to different contents of aromatics. To increase the accuracy, a microprocessor evaluates the input signals (dielectric constant and other parameters). Thus, a compensation of misdetection due to impurities can also be achieved. The output characteristic of the sensor can be chosen freely; the output voltage can correspond to the alcohol content as well as to the required correction factor for the injection time.