Power Sports and Electronic Fuel Injection Glossary
KAWASAKI
A brand of motorcycle produced in Japan.
KE-JETRONIC
A mechanical hydraulic injection system provides the basis for the KE-Jetronic. This basic system is supplemented by an electronic control unit (ECU) in order to increase flexibility and to enable further functions.
K-JETRONIC
The K-Jetronic is a mechanically and hydraulically controlled fuel-injection system which needs no form of drive and which meters the fuel as a function of the intake air quantity and injects it continuously onto the engine intake valves.
KNOCK CONTROL
The Mono-Motronic can also be equipped with knock-control. This utilizes the signal from the knock sensor on the engine block to adjust the ignition advance angle in order to take full advantage of the available fuel quality. The result is a reduction in fuel consumption while at the same time ensuring that the engine cannot be damaged by combustion knock.
KNOCK INHIBITORS
The most effective knock inhibitors are organic lead compounds. These can raise the octane number by several points, with the exact amount depending on the specific hydrocarbon structure. Both DIN 51600 and most European national standards limit lead content to maximum of 150 mg per litre of fuel. Environmental considerations have combined with increasingly widspread use of catalytic converters to produce a steady reduction in the use of lead alklys.
KNOCK LIMIT
Operation with a catalytic converter requires that the engine be operated with unleaded gasoline with an excess-air factor of lambda=1.0. Previously, lead was mixed into gasoline as an anti-knock free operation at high compression ratios.
KNOCK PROTECTION
The octane rating defines resistance to preignition engines. Higher octane ratings indicate a greater resistance to knock. Two different procedures are in international use for defining octane ratings.
KNOCK SENSOR
Sensor which, fixed to the crankcase, can detect the so-called knocking.
KNOCKING
Metallic noise produced by a faulty combustion cycle inside the cylinder also known as pinging.
KNOCKING TENDENCY
One further important interrelationships is that between ignition point and the engine's tendency to knock. This is demonstrated by the effect of a too early or too late combustion point on the pressure in the combustion chamber. If the ignition point is too early, intake air temperature and air-fuel mixture can also be a cause for pre-ignition during the pressure wave. This means that the mixture burns irregularly and intense pressure fluctuations occur with high combustion-pressure peaks. This effect, called knocking, can be heard clearly at low engine speeds. At high engine speeds the noise is smothered by the engine noise, but it is precisely in this range that knocking may lead to engine damage and it must thus be avoided by finding an optimum combination of suitable fuel and ignition point. Many late-modeled vehicles have a form of technology that can sense pre-ignition. A low-tech solution is the use of a knock sensor while a more high-tech solution uses ion-censoring.
KNUCKLEHEAD
The name of the Harley-Davidson engine used from 1936-1947. If you sit on the seat of a knucklehead machine and look down to the right side of the engine, the rocker box looks like the knuckles on your fist.
KILOWATT
The kilowatt (kw) refers to a multiple of the watt (w) which is the unit of measure of power.
