Etuner.com.au Article 160108

So you've installed your Emanage Ultimate and it’s finally time to get it cranked over and running properly! This is where the drama begins for some installations, especially if your particular engine type is not explicitly recognised by the Emanage software. For those of us with Japanese engines it is usually as simple as clicking on a drop box and selecting the right engine number. Or is it?

 I receive many emails asking why things don't feel right when the engine is cranked after an install. Most of the time it's an incorrect installation or the unit hasn't been setup appropriately, either of which will cause problems with engines vitals. In this fortnights Etuner article I’ll be going over the most common setup issues and trying to clarify why they happen and the easiest solutions to these common problems.

    Step 1. Parameter Setting - Vehicle 

    If the engine you are using is not listed, then the unit will need to be configured based on a similar engine, or using the 'Universal Option'. Using this option allows us to adapt the Emanage Ultimate to most engine package out there. 

- Selecting the correct number of cylinders is vital for the Emanage to understand/derive the correct injection and ignition outputs from the current RPM signal input (if the Brown RPM signal wire is used). It also opens up option in the injection and ignition menus, allowing you to run various possible combinations of both.

- The Engine size area is (from what i can tell) just a note, it has no bearing on other settings or relation to the tune we're using. It may be some kind of gain setting Greddy has incorporated, but i have seen no evidence of this.

- Airflow Meter Spec setting determines whether the metering device employed by the manufacturer is of any of the 4 types compatible with the Emanage Ultimate. PR/Pressure = MAP sensor, HW/Hotwire = Hotwire (aka MAF), KR/Karman = Karman Vortex, FL/Flap = Vane Meter, some of which utilise different signal output methods (voltage or frequency).

- RPM signal type determines where the Emanage will be deriving its RPM signal from. Depending on what functions you are willing to use, I would recommend this be set to Crank (where applicable). For this to work, the Crank wire will need to spliced into the wiring loom. If you are having trouble finding a working Crank signal output, use the RPM (brown wire). Using the Crank wire will allow you to use the launch control feature of the Emanage Ultimate and (combined with a cam sensor output) will allow a numeric ignition timing output to be logged.

- Crank signal type determines the crank pickup output type. There are many styles available to choose from, I would determine this via trial and error with the RPM Signal Type setting on Crank to see if you're getting a proper reading. Once this work, you know it’s correct.

- The offset angle allows us to make set adjustments to the ignition timing noted in the Emanage logger. Before relying on the numeric output in the logger menu to make tuning changes it’s important to check it is correct by referring to a timing light output. To achieve a steady ignition signal, many standard ECUS’ will have a diagnostic mode which can be accessed.

- Vehicle pulse output determines how the SPD (Speed signal) output is interpreted. This is typically 4 for Japanese vehicles. Having a correct speed sensor reading is necessary to utilise the vehicle speed vs. injection adjustment map amongst other minor adjustable outputs. It is also necessary to remove and manufacturer imposed vehicle speed limits.

The speed cut removal is a feature put in place to remove Japanese 180kph speed restrictions.

     Step 2. Parameter Setting - Throttle Position Sensor

The throttle position sensor input is required if you're to utilise some of the finer adjustable points of the Emanage Ultimate. This can be setup by simply clearing the current values and depressing the throttle pedal 100% a couple of times. Once apply is clicked the settings are saved and you're ready to map off throttle inputs (good for naturally aspirated installations and making minor adjustments). Some throttle position outputs are not a normal linear output and work with resistance; this is catered for by selecting the reverse option.

      Step 3. Parameter Setting - CH Setting

This area allows us to configure the use of various additional sensors for logging. The Emanage Ultimate has two sensor inputs, both of which can accept knock sensor signals also. I think the best way to set things up is by omitting the intake temp sensor input and using channel one of water input. The second input (intake temperature wire) can be used for monitoring knock. The main unit jumpers may need to be configured for this to work in your application, for jumper adjustments refer to the user manual. The most common knock frequency is around 6.8-7.2kHz, try selecting resonant sensor first and see if the output is clean or mixed and undistinguishable.

If your engine uses two airflow sensors, the second Airflow input will be necessary, otherwise this can be utilised as an auxiliary output of sorts. Analogue inputs are important in some applications where the engine uses two kinds of metering during operation. Some AFM powered engines utilise a MAP sensor to employ hard injection or ignition cuts as a boost cut measure, or to run other related features. In such cases the analogue input can be manipulated to hold a certain voltage (effectively eliminating boost cut) whilst still giving us the ability to reference the AFM/MAF output for injection or ignition adjustments.

     Step 4. Parameter Setting - Front Panel 

Front panel inputs give us further functionality benefits, having external MAP sensors of any size to reference to and being able to log Wideband oxygen sensor outputs are just some of the additional features these inputs allow. Using a simple plug-in harness these additional inputs can be catered for. The serial dropdown box allows us to tell the Emanage unit what kind of information it's expecting, which in turn determines the style of information output we're able to derive on the logging interface.

If you're tuning for different fuels, it’s important to cater for each fuel with individual maps. We are able to swap up to 4 maps by clicking over the respective front panel dip switches made available to us. The map we want to switch to can be selected and that’s that, once clicked over its enabled and put in use when you start the engine. The warning section is used to notify us when a specific event occurs, its very easy to setup and rather important to have functional because you can't keep an eye on everything at once. If the knock sensor output is working properly, you're able to display a warning if it exceeds a certain level (or percentage in the Emanage Loggers case).

If you are introducing Nitrous into the system and there is a trigger point that needs catering for, we're able to provide additional enrichment or pull ignition timing for the duration of the NOS injection period. The Emanage Ultimate trigger/switch input can be used to select a map and allow us to impose an altered tune on the fly without delays.

    Step 5. (I/J) Injection Setup  

Injection setup is probably the most important part of setting up an Emanage Ultimate properly to match your application. When installed with all of its features, the Emanage Ultimate takes over injection (and ignition) completely, that is, the signals are taken in from the standard ECU and recreated to match the user’s criteria. In essence, the Emanage Ultimate is powering injection duration directly. Defining injector lag times are necessary for this reason.  The number of injector inputs and outputs should match the number of wires you've cut or spliced into to modify. If you're converting the correct vehicle from batch injection to sequential injection, we're able to double the outputs and make this work.

Because there are seldom published injector lag times for factory injectors, its important that matching the lag times is done with a wideband oxygen sensor installed. The vehicle should be started with settings 1cc/1cc and lag times 0ms/0ms (if you know the factory injector sizes, use them instead of 1). In most cases this should be sufficient for the engine to start and run. Increasing the AFTER lag time field by 0.10ms increments, a target air fuel ratio of 14.5-15:1 should be achieved at idle. Increasing the lag times beyond what is required to achieve a stoich idle mixture will invoke other issues that should be avoided. If the installation has not been covered properly, at times the injectors are non-responsive and the engine will not start unless the lag times are dramatically enlarged. The manual should be sighted for the correct installation procedure in any case, and you should ensure the Injection Ground wire is wired into the correct point in the factory harness. Not doing so can cause issues that again, should be avoided.

WARNING: Do not let idle mixtures remain under 11:1 for prolonged periods of time for longevity reasons. If the injection map or correction parameters in the Injection setup menu are non-responsive, and do not alter the fuel mixture or solve your starting issues - keep the engine speed up and attempt to solve the problem promptly.

    Step 6. (IGN) Ignition Setup

The number of ignition inputs and outputs should match the number of wires spliced into for signal modification, multiplied by the number of cylinders each signal caters for. In normal circumstances where there is one igntion signal per cylinder, this is a 1:1 relationship and should simply represent the number of cylinders the engine has. Some engines run a electronic distributor that is where complications can occur. Honda installations should follow the installation proceedure outlined for them specifically in the latest printed Emanage Ultimate manual. 

 In this section of the Ultimate software, were able to set a hard ignition based RPM limit. The cut can be implemented when the throttle position is above %50. For the cut to come into play, its important the Adj. tick box is clicked. The additional features in this menu are used to retard ignition timing during gear changes on an auto vehicle.

Once the INJ and IGN are setup properly, you should have no problem or trouble driving the car as you did before the harness was wired in or the plugin was installed. The car is ready to tune and make adjusments to.

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