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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

Chapter 1 Differences from the MC Engine

１-１ Differences with the MC Engine

No cam/camshaft → Fuel Pump/Exhaust Valve Actuator Pump is actuated and

controlled by electronic device through hydraulic
pressure oil.
Abolition of the electronic governor actuator → Integrated the Engine Control System
(ESC)
Abolition of the starting air distributor
Changed control system of Cylinder Lubricator → Combined to the Engine Control
System

The primary difference between the MC and ME engines is the actuating system and
controlling system for the fuel injection pump and the exhaust valve. The fuel injection
pump and the exhaust valve on the MC type engine is driven by cam on the cam shaft that is
linked to the main crank shaft by the chain and gear. On the ME type engine, the fuel injection
pump and exhaust valve is actuated by hydraulic pressure oil which is controlled by the
electronic control unit. With regard to the control of the fuel injection pump that had been
done through the mechanical link mechanism from the governor actuator on the MC type
engine. However, the fuel injection quantity and timing is governed by controlling hydraulic
pressure oil using a computer on the ME type engine. Consequently, the camshaft and the

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

chain device are abolished along with the governor actuator and mechanism. Meanwhile, the
hydraulic power system is added in the ME engine because the controlling material is shifted
to the hydraulic oil from the cam, so the ME engine is now equipped with a hydraulic pump
driven by main engine through the chain and gear.
Further, the ME engine features a TACHO system that accurately detects the position of the
crankshaft, so the engine control system can consistently sense the position of the piston in
each cylinder. With this, the optimum fuel injection timing and exhaust valve open/close
timing for each cylinder can be calculated through the computer. And together with the precise
implementation of fuel injection and exhaust valve open/close at the calculated time through
the hydraulic actuator electronically controlled , the combustion of fuel oil can be optimized.
Further, the reversing device equipped on the Fuel Injection Pump for reversing the main
engine is not needed because the Fuel Injection Pump can be controlled independently from
main crank shaft.
During startup, the cylinder to be injected starting air can be determined because the position of
the piston in each cylinder is electrically detected. Therefore, the starting air valve on the
cylinder in question is opened through the open valve command from the controller and
starting air can be let in. This has then led to the abolition of the starting air distributing
device used in the MC engine.
With regard to cylinder lubrication system, the alpha lubrication system that has control
system independently from the main engine’s control functions on MC type engine is now
controlled by the main engine control system on ME type engine.

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

FO Injection Pump
Exh’ Valve Actuator

Cam shaft
Cam shaft driving chain

MC Engine ME Engine

MC-
MC-C design ME-
ME-C design
Pilot air inlet
Blow-
Blow-off

NC-
NC-valves
Starting
Starting air Connection
Connection
distributor for
ECS

Starting valves Starting valves

Control of Starting Air Valve

1-2. Fuel Booster (Fuel Injection Pump)

1-2-a. Structure

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

( FO Injection Pump on MC ) ( FO Booster on ME )

The fuel injection pump of the conventional MC engine used to inject the fuel oil from the
fuel valve by activating the pump plunger via the roller guide through the cam attached to the
camshaft. With the ME engine, however, the pump plunger is activated directly through
hydraulic pressure oil to build the fuel injection pressure and consequently the roller guide
can be omitted together with cam and cam shaft, thereby the structure of the fuel pump is
simplified. The fuel injection timing and amount can be freely adjusted by controlling the
actuator hydraulic pressure oil. Therefore, the FO Booster has not the fuel rack for regulating
fuel injection quantity, movable barrels for adjusting fuel injection timing and the puncture
valves found in the conventional pump. Also the FO Booster has not a high pressure
receiving plug and shock absorber because it does not need to release the high pressure fuel
oil from spill port at the end of injection unlike the fuel pump of the MC engine. Instead, a
sensor is equipped on the FO Booster in order to control and monitor the position
(movement) of the plunger.

The plunger and actuator piston are different parts not one body, so they work independent of
each other. The plunger is formed in combination with the top cover that forms the cylinder,
so in the event of replacement, the plunger must be changed together with the top cover as a
one set. A circlip is put on top of the actuator piston for preventing fall when overhauling.

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

Top cover Suction valve

Plunger

Plunger position sensor

Circlip

Actuator piston

Throttle valve

The suction valve is a very simple mechanism, but the seat portion undergoes specialized
processing, so it is prohibited to rub down the valve and the valve seat for maintenance by
ships hand. Valve and Valve seat should be changed with a set if the damage was found.
(There has been reported incident in our fleet involving the falling off of the valve spindle
because the conical ring ⑤ was taken out. Make sure that the ring is completely fit during
replacement. Measure the abrasion on the valve face based on Diagram 261 below to ensure
that it is within the allowed range.)
When the engine is not running, the fuel oil circulate in the fuel oil circulation line through
the fuel valve after such hydraulic pressure (7-8Bar) is placed at the back of the valve,
defeats the power of the spring and then pushes open the valve.

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

（Suction Valve）

The slot valve is installed under the housing for bleeding out the air in the oil space under the
piston. The bottom space and throttle valve go through the inner hole and the piston of the
throttle valve has a small hole, so when the engine is not running, the air is released from this
hole, thereby it does not need to bleed out air in the system during startup. During operation,
the actuator oil passes through the inner hole to reach the piston and then overpowers the
spring to close the valve, thereby preventing the release of the actuator oil.

Inner hole

Small hole

(Throttle valve)
1-2-b Operation
With the fuel injection pump of the conventional MC engine, the injection amount (feed rate)
is adjusted by turning the plunger through the fuel rack and then adjusting the height with the
notch (lead portion) on top of the plunger through the spill port. As for the injection timing,

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

changing the position of the barrel (spill port) through the VIT adjusts the start of injection,
but the fuel rack of each cylinder is controlled through the common output shaft that is linked
to the governor actuator, so such movement (amount/direction) will be identical for all
cylinders. Similarly, the control pneumatic pressure of the VIT is also distributed in common
for all cylinders, making it difficult to accurately control the injection amount and timing for
each cylinder.
However, with the ME engine, there is no governor link such as the one found in the MC
engine and the movement of the plungers per cylinder can be controlled to within a
microsecond (ms) range via the computer, thereby enabling a full command on the
adjustment of the injection amount and timing (VIT function). Consequently, it will be easier
to optimize combustion in all load areas and enhance combustion efficiency. The movement
of the plunger can be controlled by controlling the high-pressure actuator oil put on the
piston through the FIVA valve.

Fi-1 shows the suction process of FO Booster.

FIVA valve makes servo oil flow ④ stop and
makes flow circuit that the oil under the actuator
piston flows to return line ③. The Fuel oil with 8 to
10 Bar pressure② get into the cylinder through
FIVA valve suction valve pressing the plunger① ． The
accumulator is set to prevent pulsation of servo oil
pressure.

Accumulator Fig-2 shows the delivery process of FO Booster.

FIVA valve makes the oil flow circuit that the servo
(Fig-1) oil flows to under the space of actuator piston⑤ and
press up the actuator piston ⑥ with plunger.
Consequently the pressure of fuel oil got into the
cylinder increase until fuel oil is injected from Fuel
Injection Valve ⑧ after make suction valve close
⑦.

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

To FOV

( Fig – 2 )

1-3 Exhaust Valve

1-3-a Structure

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

Self-adjusting damper piston

Hydraulic nut/measuring cone

Contact less sensor with

integrated electronics
Outlet lube oil

Inlet lube oil

Damper

Air inlet

Similar to the fuel pump, the actuator that is driven by the cam in the MC engine is controlled
through the high-pressure servo oil in the ME engine. The structure of the exhaust valve itself
is not that much different from the MC engine, but the ME engine is equipped with a

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

hydraulic damper, thereby making the air damper smaller. The sensor for monitoring the
movement of the spindle is fitted and its output signal is sent to CCU (Cylinder Control Unit)
as feedback signal. The measuring corn is mounted on the top of spindle with hydraulic oil
pressure. Output signal from the monitoring sensor varies according to the clearance between
the sensor and the measuring corn and its signal value shows from 4mA to 20mA if the
spindle moves normally.
Further, the spindle guide section is lubricated and sealed using hydraulic oil in place of air.
The actuator oil is decompressed to 15Bar from 10Bar and then fed to the spindle guide from
the sealing oil control unit. The indicator pin of the sealing oil control unit will be pushed out
(in the exhaust valve opening process) when the actuator oil has set to work and then
returned to its original position through the spring when the actuator oil pressures is gone
(valve closing process), indicating if the actuator hydraulic pressure is working on the
exhaust valve spindle.

Actuator oil from Exh’ Valve

actuator
Indicator pin

To spindle guide

(Sealing oil control unit)

To spindle guide

1-3-b.
Operation

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

The difference with the MC engine is that the actuating hydraulic pressure for the exhaust
valve is established through the actuator that is controlled through the servo hydraulic
pressure oil instead of the cam drive. The FIVA valve controls the actuator piston by
switching the path of the actuator oil, similar to the fuel booster, but the difference lies in the
fixed stroke without controlling the spindle stroke. In short, when the exhaust valve is fully
open or fully shut, only the timing for opening and closing can be controlled.
The exhaust valve actuator is composed of the hydraulic piston and the actuator piston and
cylinder, and it generates the hydraulic pressure to actuate exhaust valve spindle in two
stages. The servo hydraulic pressure from the FIVA valve pushes up the hydraulic and
actuator pistons up in the first stage. The hydraulic piston stops the movement at where the
flared portion at the base touched the cylinder, and at the second stage, only the actuator
piston is pushed up to place the exhaust valve to the fully open position. The gas pressure
inside the cylinder of main engine just before valve opening is still high and a lot of power is
needed to open the exhaust valve, so by activating a large force (hydraulic piston + actuator
piston) through the increase of the projected net area at the first step, the valve opens.
Thereafter, the force (pressure) produced by only actuator piston will be working at the
second step, thereby fully opening the exhaust valve.

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

High pressure oil

Actuator piston

Hydraulic piston

Servo oil

（1st step） （2nd step）

When the FIVA valve shuts the circuit of the hydraulic pressure oil to the actuator and opens
the path between the actuator and drain, the hydraulic pressure place under the piston will
become zero and the exhaust valve spindle will be pushed up by the spring air. Following
that, the exhaust valve will close and the piston at the upper part of the spindle will send the
hydraulic oil back to the actuator, thereby pushing down the actuator piston.
With the actuator cylinder, the low pressure oil from hydraulic oil supply line (6.6Bar-
7.0Bar) gets in through the orifice and a portion of the oil will go back to the return line from
the high-pressure pipe for the exhaust valve actuator through the orifice inside the valve box.
With the constant circulation of the oil, the operation defects caused by the decline in oil
viscosity following the rise in oil temperature, as well as cavitation, are prevented.

1-3-c. Exhaust Valve Open/Close Timing

In the case of the MC engine, close and open timing of the exhaust valve can not be adjusted
because the actuator is driven (controlled) by the cam. With the ME engine, however, it is
possible to adjust open and close timing of the exhaust valve by combination with the
TACHO system. If the valve closing time is done earlier, the compression pressure will go
up, while if it is done later, the compression pressure will go down. With this, it makes the
valve closing time set earlier till the normal operating output area to rise the compression

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

pressure and set the difference between the maximum pressure and compression pressure to
within the prescribed range (ΔP is within 35Bar), thereby reducing the load on the piston
ring.
Further, adjusting the valve opening time can prevent the blow-back caused by the delayed
opening of the valve.

Advance closing timing to increase

compression prssure Δp in case that closing timing is not Delay
adjusted

1-3-d. Special Operation and Opening/Closing Test

Special Operation:
If for whatever reason, for instance, there is leakage inside the cylinder from a specific
cylinder liner and operation had to be done with the exhaust valve in an open state, the valve
can be mechanically set to an open position. (Refer to the Manual’s Maintenance Chapter,
906)

Stop the engine to cut the supply of exhaust

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

valve actuator oil and the supply of oil to the

damper.

Cease the supply of spring air, remove the air

inside the air cylinder and set the valve spindle
to the fully open position. (This is checked
through MOP. The System View I/O Test –
CCU, Ch34 is called and the Process Value Fig - 1

will become 0. Refer to Diagram 1.)

Remove the plug screw (Fig-2) to installed

the specialized tool and then mount the
specialized tool for fixing the spindle (Fig-3).

( Fig – 2)

Opening/Closing Test:
( Fig – 3)
Opening and closing test of the exhaust valve can be carried out from the MOP.
The system View I/O test screen (Fig-1 ) is activated by pressing [System View I/O Test] button
in the Main Navigator on the MOP.

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

pressing

( Fig-1 )

Then, by pressing the CCU button of the object cylinder, e.g. pressing the “CCU-1” button
activates the below screen (Fig-2).

①
②

( Fig -2 )
Pressing the “MPC Mode” button ① on the screen (Fig-2) activates the below tool bar at the
bottom of the screen and press the “TEST” button to change test mode.

After changed the mode to test mode, activate the following screen by pressing the channel No.49
on the main screen (Fig-2), and then press the Chanel Output “ON” button in the tool bar at the
bottom of this screen, the exhaust valve will open. At this time, hydraulic pressure and spring air

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

should be present.

( Fig -2 )

1-4. FIVA Valve

“FIVA” is an abbreviation for “Fuel Injection and Valve Activation”, the FIVA valve is the
valve that controls the fuel booster and the exhaust valve actuator. It functions not to control the
hydraulic pressure/oil amount through the spool valve, but as a switching valve.
There is a difference in the fuel injection time and the exhaust valve open/close timing (the fuel
injection time is controlled to within 0º to 20º for TDC and 115º to 270º for the exhaust valve),
so one spool valve can control two different actuator.
The Parker valve is linked to the FIVA valve and controls the movement of the FIVA valve
spool. It is a magnetic spool valve and with the command from the Cylinder Control Unit

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

(CCU), the spool of the Parker valve moves and hydraulic pressure circuit to the drive cylinder
of the FIVA valve will open/close to control the spool of FIVA valve. The movement of the
spool is fed back (4-20mA current signal) through the position sensor and at the condition
shown below, the exhaust valve is set up so that it automatically fully opens to ensure safety.

 The FIVA valve feed back

signal is not valid, i.e. outside
Parker valve
4-20 mA.
 The FIVA valve feed back
signal indicates a too high (not
physical possible speed)
 The FIVA valve feed back
signal indicates a position of
spool not allowed outside a
window around TDC.
 The fuel booster position feed
back signal indicates that the
fuel booster is moving during
the compression stroke.

Cylinder to control spool

Sensor for spool position

spool

P : from HPS T : Return

Fo : from/to FO Booster Ex : from/to Exh’ valve actuator

The below is the symbolic diagram of FIVA valve. The FIVA valve is controlled in the time of
micro second and required a precise movement.

FO Booster

Exh’ valve actuator

Parker valve

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

FIVA valve

( symbolic diagram of FIVA valve )

1-5 Hydraulic Power Supply (HPS) system

1-5-a Hydraulic Power
Hydraulic pressure is used to drive the fuel booster, exhaust valve and other parts in the ME
type engine, so it is equipped with a Hydraulic Power Supply (HPS) system. The hydraulic
pumps activated by the main engine through the chain and gear generate hydraulic pressure.
The hydraulic pressure during standby (S/B) is kept by running the electrically driven pump.
(In the case of HNB, there were four main engine-driven pumps and two electrically driven
pumps.)
The main engine-driven pump linked to the main engine through the chain can be driven
through the gears. Hydraulic pump is a axial piston pump and this type pump can control
feed rate adjusting an angle of inclination of swash plate, thereby the ECU (Engine Control

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

Unit) control hydraulic pressure (displacement) in the system of hydraulic power supply by
means of controlling swash plate according to the load of main engine. When the main
engine runs astern direction, the position of the swash plate is set to the reverse direction in
order to ensure the fixed flow of oil (suction/discharge).

Swash plate

Swash Plate

The power hydraulic pressure is automatically set corresponding to the load curve that was
computed according to the load of the main engine. The hydraulic pump is controlled to
discharge the amount that matches such setting point, but if one unit is chosen as the control
mode pump, two units will be set as follow-up. The remaining one unit is fixed its capacity
(the swash plate controlled through the ECU-A will be fixed to an 85% load position and the
direction of the swash plate can be changed through the revolution of the main engine).
During normal operation, the pump selected as control mode is controlled according to
required pressure set point and the other two follow-up pumps are controlled to slowly track
the displacement of control mode pump, leveling out pumping work among the pump.
In case of Honolulu bridge, she has 3 controllable and 1 fixed engine driven pump, total
pump displacement is enough capacity to run at MCR, consequently the pump selected
control mod usually keeps at 50% load position and other 2 follow mode pumps are
controlled with below 50% capacity to ensure the remaining displacement at MCR condition.

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If the pump cannot be controlled for some reason (abnormality in the controller, power loss,
etc.), the swash plate will mechanically be set to the maximum capacity position in the
forward direction.
Further, when the main engine is operated in reverse at this state, there is a line that is linked
to the pump outlet from the supply side (one-way passage to the discharge/outlet side from
the supply side through the check valve), consequently the pump sucks the oil from the
discharge side and then sends it to the suction side. As a result, the flow of oil inside the
pump cylinder will not be interrupted, thereby preventing sticking.
The electric pump has a fixed capacity and the pressure is set to 175Bar through the pressure
control valve mounted on the pump outlet side. It is operated to secure the hydraulic pressure
when the main engine is on S/B and then automatically stops when the main engine has
reached a certain load and beyond (15% MCO). In case of automatic operation, one electric
pump serves as the main pump and stand-by pump automatically operates until the
prescribed value of the hydraulic pressure is reached at startup condition, but stops when the
designated value is reached.
Under the original concept of MAN, power oil uses the same oil as the main engine’s system
oil. In K Line, however, the system is independent from the system oil system so a servo
pump is separately attached to supply the oil to the power oil pump from the sump tank. With
regard to the structure of the servo pump, the supply pressure (power oil pump’s inlet
pressure) is set to about 7Bar through the gear pump (changed to volute pump), with the
main engine shutting down when the hydraulic pressure drops below a fixed value.
The main engine driven pump is linked from the crankshaft through the chain and is
activated through the gear wheel. The pump shaft and the drive gear are connected by the
safety coupling (shear nut) so that when there is abnormal torque on the pump side, the
coupling is cut to prevent negative effects to the other parts (same as the safety joint used at
the Purifier).

駆動ギヤー
Driving gear
Pumpside gear
ポンプ軸ギヤー

Shear nut
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The hydraulic pump is surrounding by a fence to prevent spattering when there are oil leaks, with
the oil that has leaked to be retrieved from the drain pan to the drain tank. There is a chamber in
the middle of the drain pipe with two level switches. The low level switch activates when the
oil leak is small in amount and then activates an alarm, while the high level switch activates
when the leak amount is large and the main engine automatically shuts down.

Protect cover

1-5-b. High-Pressure Double Pipes (HNB Type)

The power oil hydraulic unit (HPS) and the hydraulic cylinder unit (HCU) are connected by
double pipes, similar to the link between HCUs. Double-piping is used in order to prevent that
the high pressure oil splash outside the unit when the high pressure pipe was damaged like a
crack and other factors. A pressure sensor is installed on the outer cylinder, so the pressure
inside the outer cylinder can be monitored. A drain pipe passes through the outer cylinder, with
a pressure control valve and leak detector mounted on the pipe. In case the cracks get in the
inside cylinder and the high-pressure oil leaks, the leak detector will detect the leak if the
amount is small and set off an alarm, while the oil leak will flow to the drain tank. However,
when the leak increases and the hydraulic pressure in the outer cylinder rises beyond a fixed
level, the pressure check valve will automatically close and seal the flow of the large amount of
oil leak to the drain tank. At this point, operation can still be continued as long as the leak has
not spread to outside the unit, but effort should be exerted to find the source of leaks right away.

Pressure Transducer

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Safety valve
(mechanical)
Pressure control valve

Safety valve
Leak detector (electrical)

1. Flange
2. Outer Pipe
3. Inner Pipe
4. Sealing ring

5. Sealing ring
6. Sealing ring
7. Sealing ring
8. Screw

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

( Double pipe )

The hydraulic power systems stated above were installed on a series vessels of the Humber
Bridge type. With the Honolulu Bridge type that were delivered starting 2012, however, the
following improvements were made.

a) Change in hydraulic oil pressure

The hydraulic oil pressure has been changed to 300Bar from 210Bar.
With this, the main engine driven pump can be downsizes and the capacity of the
accumulator can be reduced. At the same time, the fuel booster and exhaust valve actuator
can be minimized their size because it can make the diameter of plunger small.

b) Change the high-pressure pipe to single pipe from double-pipe

The double-pipe is equipped with an O-ring for hydraulic pressure sealing, thereby making it
difficult to change the pipe since the O-ring gets damaged or twisted. The double-pipe
structure was used to prevent the spattering of oil to outside the unit when there are oil leaks
from the pipe, but based on the track record thus far, there is only a small risk of pipe
damage. Further, the deterioration of the O–ring and difficulty in installing the
abovementioned led to the change to single pipe.
Further, the connection to the high-pressure pipe from the distributor adopts the high-
pressure rubber hose.

Rubber hose to
HCU
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c) Use of main engine’ system oil, from the independent system oil
With the conventional model, the high-pressure hydraulic oil system used to be independent
from the main engine’s system oil system. With the new model, however, the high-pressure
hydraulic oil now uses the oil of the main engine’s system oil system. Consequently, the
high-pressure hydraulic oil supply pump servo pump) has disappeared and the automatic
backwash-type fine filter is installed at the HPS pump inlet.
1-6. Cylinder Lubricator
The assembly of the main body of the lubricator is similar to the conventional alpha
lubricator. With the MC engine, however, the alpha lubricator system used the high-pressure
oil (40-50Bar, using cylinder oil), which was generated through the independent hydraulic
pump, as actuator oil, while in the ME engine, the high-pressure oil of the hydraulic power
system (HPS) is used as the actuator oil (200/300Bar) and the lubricant amount and time are
controlled from the Cylinder Control Unit (CCU). As a result, the hydraulic pump that used
to be exclusively utilized for the lubricator has been eliminated and the main body of the
lubricator is now mounted on the block of the Hydraulic Control Unit (HCU).
The capacity of the actuator oil is large and the pressure is also high, so the new system has
no accumulator anymore. The Human Machine Interface (HMI) that was found in the MC
engine has been eliminated and that function has been built into the main engine control
system. Consequently, control and monitoring is done through the CCU that is a part of the
main engine’s control unit and the lubrication rate can be adjusted from the Main Operation
Panel (MOP).
The items that can be adjusted through the MOP are only the basic items (as stipulated in
Chapter 2: System) and many of the parameters in the HMI have already been inputted.

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( Alpha Lubricator )
Magnet valve
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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

Cylinder lub. Inductive proximity sensor

oil inlet for feed-back signal to
control of piston movement
Signal for
lubrication from
controller
Level sensor for
cylinder oil in lubricator

Outlets for
cylinder liner Injection plunger
lub. oil
injectors

Spacer for
basic setting of
pump
stroke
Drain 200 bar system oil supply
Non-return valve Stroke oil
adjusting outlet Actuator
screw piston
Sealingring

Alpha lubricator

( Action during emergency )

If the CCU malfunctions and could not be replaced right away, an emergency measure that
could be taken is to operate the lubricator through the temporary wiring from the ECU-A or
B Plug 52 up to the terminal of the solenoid valve of the lubricator of the affected cylinder.
However, the lubrication timing will not be the designated timing.

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1-7. Hydraulic Cylinder Unit (HCU)

The HCU is made up of the distributor block, fuel booster, actuator cylinder lubricator for the
exhaust valve and the accumulator, and it is installed in each cylinder. The high-pressure
hydraulic oil from the Hydraulic Pressure Supply (HPS) system gets inside each cylinder
block. The hydraulic oil then passes through a large number of the routes set up inside the
block and is controlled by the FIVA valve and the cylinder lubricant oil control valve to
activate each component part.

(HCU on Hanover Bridge)

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

(HCU on Honolulu Bridge)

With the Honolulu Bridge series, the hydraulic oil pressure has been changed, leading to the
minimization of the overall size of this unit. The actuator’s for the FO Booster and the exhaust
valve capacity is also minimized and its installation place has been improved, where the
maintenance job is easy to do.

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

HCU

（ Flow of servo oil ）

1-8. Remote Control Air System

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

To start the engine, the control valves for the starting air valve on each cylinder is controlled by
CCU. The CCUs on each cylinder recognizes the position of the piston of the cylinder based on
the crankshaft position signal sent from the TACHO system, so by the time the starting signal
comes in, the CCU of the cylinder whose piston is a the starting position will open the control
valve for the starting air valve, activate the starting valve and inject the starting air. With this,
the starting air control valve that was found in the MC engine has been eliminated, along with
the reverse operation mechanism and the VIT too, thereby making the remote control air control
system extremely simple.
Two control valves (A and B) for the starting air main stop valves are installed and are controlled
through the Engine Control Units (ECU) A and B. So, should one of the two starting air stop
valve control systems encounter problems, the other line is working, so operation can be
continued.
Now separate from the usual starting air pipe line, the unit is also equipped with a starting air
main stop valve and pipe line for slow turning.

Starting air line for slow turnning

Control magnetic valve

for starting valve

Control valve for main stop

valve of starting air

（ Control Air System ）

1-9. TACHO System
The TACHO system detects the revolution of the main engine and the crankshaft position of the

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

rotation direction only, so the position of the piston of each cylinder is known all the time. With
regard to controlling the output (revolution) of main engine, the control of the fuel injection
timing and exhaust valve opening/closing time, cylinder lubrication timing and the selection of
the starting air injection cylinder on starting main engine are done based on the signal from this
system, making this an extremely important system for control in the ME engine.
The TACHO system has two systems with the same function, making them redundant. It has two
sets of angle encoders on fore side of main engine the bow and one Slave Sensor on the flywheel
side.

Inner encoder
(Encoder A)

Outer encoder
( Encoder B )

( Encoder )

Principle of the TACHO System

Each encoder is made up of the main/slave marker sensors (Marker Master and Marker
Slave) that detect the position of the crankshaft, two pickup sensors that detect the revolution

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MAN-B&W ME Engine Chapter I: Differences from the MC Engine

and rotation direction, the marker ring (semicircle, 180 degrees) and the trigger ring.
However, the Marker Slave Sensor of Encoder A is attached to the flywheel side to detect the
slippage in the encoder.
During the positive rotation of the engine, the marker ring is set so that the Marker Master
Sensor (MMA) on Encoder A would sense (ON signal) that the No.1 cylinder at its top is at
the TDC position. Consequently, during positive rotation, when the MMA turns ON when the
No.1 cylinder is at the TDC position and then turns OFF when it exceeds BDC, i.e. 0°ON
→180°OFF when the No.1 TDC is set as the base point 0. During reverse operation, it turns
ON when the No.1 cylinder comes to the BDC and then turns OFF when it exceeds the TDC
(180°ON → 0°OFF).
The Marker Slave Sensor (MSA) installed on the flywheel side is placed at a 90-degree
positive rotation direction from the base point and turns ON at 90-gegree different position
from MMA.
Meanwhile, the Marker Master Sensor (MMB) on Encoder B is placed 45 degrees from the
MMA and senses the position when crankshaft turns 45 degrees from the base point. The
Master Slave Sensor (MSB) is placed at a position that is 90 degrees from the MMB and
senses when the crankshaft comes to a position that is 135 degrees from the base point.
The revolution sensor gives out the pulse signal equivalent to the number of teeth of the
trigger ring when the shaft turns one revolution, thereby the shaft angle equivalent to one
pulse can be calculated. For instance, if the number of teeth (gear) is 360, the crank angle
corresponding to one pulse will be one degree, so the when the cycle of the pulse signal is
obtained, the current position of the base point, or the position of the crankshaft, can be
derived right away when combined with the shaft position signal detected through each
Marker Sensor. Now when the shaft is not turning during startup, combining the ON/OFF
signals from the four marker sensors the position of the shaft within the 45-degree range
(refer to diagram below) can be detected. With this, the cylinder that will inject the starting
air can be identified.
The signals of Encoders A and B are amplified through the amplifier and with the TACHO
Systems A and B and they are transferred to CCU and ECU through Bus System.

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MMA
Q1A
Q2A
System A (powered from ECU A)
Q1B
MMB MMA = Marker Master A
Q2B MSA = Marker Slave A
Q1A = Quadratur 1A
Q2A = Quadratur 2A

MS A

System B (powered from ECU B)

MMB = Marker Master B
MSB = Marker Slave B
Q1B = Quadratur 1B
Q2B = Quadratur 2B
T rig g e r rin g MS B
pos . 1

S e m i-c irc u la r
m a rk in g rin g
pos . 2

Pos 0-44 45-89 90-134 135-179 180-224 225-269 270-314 315-359

MMA ON ON ON ON OFF OFF OFF OFF
MMB OFF ON ON ON ON OFF OFF OFF
MSA OFF OFF ON ON ON ON OFF OFF
MSB OFF OFF OFF ON ON ON ON OFF

Pickup signal according to Marker position

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