Abstract
The project discussed herein is to develop the hardware and software necessary to identify the detonation frequency of a BMW S14 internal combustion engine. This test engine is considered to be vibration intensive and difficult to distinguish the difference between a detonation event and normal engine vibration. Data used for the analysis of this project was gathered utilizing off-the-shelf audio hardware in conjunction with a custom written LabVIEW software application. The LabVIEW application and identified detonation frequency was verified for accuracy through the use of known frequencies simulated with a microcontroller and compared against the results of a computer based oscilloscope. The detonation frequency of the 2.5 liter BMW S14 engine was determined to be 6,480 Hz as calculated via the LabVIEW application through the use of a Fast Fourier Transform.