LC-1 Digital Air/Fuel Ratio (Lambda) Sensor Controller Manual Warning! The Oxygen Sensor used in this device gets very hot in operation. Do not touch the hot sensor. Do not let a hot sensor touch a combustible surface. Do not use the sensor with or near flammable liquids or gases. Failure to heed these warnings may result in severe burns, explosions or fires. When installed in the exhaust, the oxygen sensor MUST be connected and operating with the LC-1 whenever the car is running.
1 2 Overview................................................................................................................................... 3 Mounting and Wiring the LC-1 ................................................................................................. 4 2.1 Indicator LED and Calibration button hookup: .................................................................. 5 2.2 Connecting the LC-1 to an ECU or data logger ................................................................ 6 2.
1 Overview The LC-1 is a stand-alone Wideband Controller used to measure the Air/Fuel Ratio (AFR) or Lambda for an engine. For gasoline-driven engines, the theoretically optimal air fuel ratio is 14.7 pounds of air for every pound of fuel. At this ratio, theoretically, all available oxygen in the air combines with all available fuel. This ratio is called the stoichiometric ratio. Stoichiometric for different fuels are as follows: Gasoline LPG (Propane) Methanol Ethanol CNG Diesel 14.7 15.5 6.4 9.0 17.2 14.
2 Mounting and Wiring the LC-1 1. Find a suitable location under your vehicle where the LC-1 body can be mounted. Using zip ties or other suitable method, fasten the body of the LC-1 device securely to the framerails or other mounting points as far away from the heat of the exhaust system as the sensor cable allows. DO NOT zip-tie the LC-1 by the cables. 2. Route the cables from the LC-1 (except sensor cable) into the car interior under the dash. 3. LC-1 Cable connections: A.
8. Optionally connect a indication LED (1.2-2.2V, 1-30mA is recommended) between the calibration wire and ground. Please refer to section 2.1 2.1 Indicator LED and Calibration button hookup: The LED will communicate the LC-1’s status. To monitor LC-1 status, connect the red wire (Anode) of the included LED to the calibration wire (black) of the LC-1 and connect the black wire (Cathode) of the LED to the ground wire of the momentary switch.
2.2 Connecting the LC-1 to an ECU or data logger All Innovate MTS devices like the LC-1 with dual serial ports should have their system grounds connected together to a common ground point. If an external data logger or ECU is to be fed by an MTS device, the MTS ground should be located at or near the ECU or data logger’s input signal ground. Some ECU’s or data loggers have differential inputs. A differential input has a separate ground INPUT for each sensor input.
Using a bung is the preferred method for mounting the O2 sensor for both catalytic and non-catalytic cars. On CATALYTIC CONVERTER equipped vehicles: Install the oxygen sensor’s bung upstream from the catalytic converter (a bung and plug is included in the LC-1 kit). Any decent muffler or exhaust shop can do this for you. The wideband oxygen sensor is then installed into the bung to take a reading. (Insert the plug into the bung when not in use).
The maximum temperature of the sensor at the bung (the sensor hexagon) should not exceed 500 oC or 900 oF. If these temperatures are exceeded in your application you should either install a copper heat sink (instructions below) or the Innovate Motorsports Heat-Sink Bung extender (HBX-1). The bung extender is recommended for situations where airflow is restricted or the encountered heat is higher than a heat sink can handle.
5. Switch the LC-1 on and wait for 2 minutes. If you connected a LED to the calibration button, you will at first see the LED blink slowly and steadily. If it blinks for a fixed number of pulses, then switches off for 2 seconds and then repeats, you have an error code. See Appendix for details. Slow and steady blinking indicates that the sensor is warming up to its optimum operating temperature. The warm-up period will last for about 30 seconds for a cold sensor, depending on the sensor type used.
Use'). The heater calibration data in the LC-1 will be reset when the device is operated from 12V without a sensor connected for at least 5 seconds. You can force a reset by doing this, and then recalibrate by turning the unit off, reconnecting the sensor, and turning the unit on. After the sensor is warmed up the meter automatically calibrates the sensor heater controller to the particular sensor.
5.2 Digital XD-16 Instrument 1. Connect the Serial OUT connection to the Serial IN connection of the XD-16 with the included 2.5mm to 2.5mm cable. Make sure the XD-1 is programmed as AFR instrument for the first channel like for an LM-1. 2. Connect the terminator plug (2.5mm male plug with no cable) into the Serial IN connection of the LC-1. 3, If real-time recording with the Innovate LogWorks software, connect the included 2.5mm stereo to DB-9 cable to a serial port on your laptop. 5.
6 Programming the LC-1 The LC-1 is programmable with the following functionality: 1. Change the relationship between Lambda and AFR. 2. Upgrade and change the software. 3. Change the output characteristics of the Analog outputs. Avoid connecting or disconnecting any of the ports labeled IN or OUT while the unit is powered ON. 6.1 Installing the LM Programmer Software Put the included CD in your CD-drive on your computer and follow the instructions on screen.
On this page you can see the software version of the LC-1 and you can change the multiplier to calculate AFR from Lambda. A number of different multipliers are already pre-selectable but you can change it to a custom one for the particular fuel you are using. If you plan to use multiple LC-1’s, change the device name to something identifying which LC-1 is connected where. For example LC1-Cyl1 for a LC1 connected to Cylinder 1. The device name can be up to 8 characters long. 6.
6.5 Programming the analog outputs Select one of the Analog output tabs. The Analog output page looks like this: This shows the analog output voltages versus Lambda for one of the two analog outputs. The graph display is automatically scaled to the selected voltages. For each output you can specify a minimum and maximum lambda value and the associated voltages. Below the minimum and above the maximum lambda values the output voltages stay constant at the associated programmed voltage.
When setting the LC-1 to the slower response speed settings the measured mixture data will be averaged over the response time setting before being output. You can also specify what output voltage is visible on the analog outputs during warm-up of the sensor and during error conditions. The ‘High Impedance’ setting allows to specify that the analog outputs do not drive the output during warm-up or error condition. They will be free floating. This is important for more closely simulating a narrow band sensor.
7 Tips, Tricks and Troubleshooting 7.1 General measurement requirements The LC-1 measures the air-fuel-ratio by measuring the amount of oxygen in the exhaust (for lean conditions) or the amount of unburned or partially burned fuel (for rich conditions). You should correct for the following in order to get optimum results from the LC-1 1) An exhaust leak will allow oxygen to enter the exhaust stream and therefore will measure leaner than the engine is actually running.
Under some rare circumstances it is possible that the heater calibration data in the LC-1 can become partially destroyed. This can manifest in the above-mentioned errors. Follow the steps in chapter 4 ‘First time use’ to reset the heater calibration data. 7.7 Sensor Timing Errors These errors are typically encountered when the sensor does not have outside air available as reference gas. If you encounter this error, restart the LC-1 and operate the sensor in free air.
It is possible to install the wide-band sensor in place of the OEM oxygen sensor. In this case the meter's analog output signal will replace the OEM oxygen sensor's signal to the fuel injection computer. EFI equipped cars typically incorporate a narrow band oxygen sensor. These sensors are typically 1, 2, 3 or 4 wire sensors. The analog output connector of the LC-1 can simulate the operation of a narrow band sensor while the wide-band oxygen sensor is installed in place of the OEM narrow-band sensor.
b. Vehicle has a 2-wire sensor: While the engine is off determine which of the 2 wires has a low resistance between the wire and the sensor body. This is the heater power for the sensor. Wire analog output 1 directly to the other wire. Leave the heater power wire unconnected but make sure it cannot ground itself or see above. c. Vehicle has a 3-wire sensor: Typically the 3 wires are: heater power, Ground, and sensor element connection. Generally they have 1 black wire and 2 white wires.
Appendix B: LED blinking codes 1. Blinking steady about 2 times/second: 2. Blinking steady at about 4 times/second: 3. LED off 4. Blink sequence with 2 second pause Warming up Heater calibration No Power or free air calibration Error indication Error indication details: Count the number of fast flashes between 2 second pauses. The number of flashes indicates the error code as in 1 Flash 2 Flashes Error 1 Error 2 And so on. See Appendix C for error code details.
Appendix C: LC-1 Error Codes and Troubleshooting Tips Error Code Error 1 Error Message Likely Root Cause Fix Heater circuit shorted Error 2 Heater circuit open 1. Short in cable 2. Short in sensor 1. Damaged sensor cable or Cable connector not fully seated Error 3 Pump cell circuit shorted 1. Short in sensor cable 2. Short in sensor 3. Sensor heater calibration incorrect 4. Sensor overheating 5. EGT >1700º F Error 4 Pump cell circuit open 1.
Appendix D: Limited Warranty LIMITED WARRANTY Innovate stands behind the quality of its products. Innovate makes the following warranty to purchasers of its products: All new Innovate products carry a six-month warranty from the date of purchase. If proof of purchase cannot be provided, warranty will be determined by date of manufacture.
Appendix E: Kit Contents LC-1 Kit - P/N: 3769 (as shown) LC-1 – P/N: 3744 (3737, 3735, 3773, and 3789 are not included) Program Cable (P/N: 3746) 02 Sensor (P/N: 3737) LC-1 Terminator Plug (P/N: 3750) Bung/Plug (P/N: 3735) 2.5mm to 2.5mm Patch Cable (P/N: 3789) ** Parts with P/N numbers can be purchased separately as replacement parts.
Revision History 1.0 – 1/23/05 Initial release. 1.1 – 5/16/05 Corrected error in section 6.4 1.2 – 5/26/05 Updates to section 3 1.3 – 11/03/05 Update Chapter 2 1.4 – 03/01/06 Update Chapter 2 1.5 – 03/16/06 Added Push Button/ LED, Calibration Schedule, and updated wiring schematic 1.6 – 06/08/06 Updated Tips and Tricks. 1.7 – 02/14/07 Update 6 Wire LC-1 and new schematic 1.8 – 3/16/07 Fixed Erroneous data 1.
