POWERDYN

Download

Powerdyn is a shareware. Download it and try it for free.

PowerDyn 2.73 English version (3.5Mo)

If you like it and want to use it's full functionalities either :

  • You can Send 35 € using secure payment (Visa, Mastercard ...) and you will recieve your licence by e-mail.

  • To get the best out of Powerdyn, we recommend the use of the electronic interfaces from Plug 'n Perf Ltd who also offers a reduction on the software when purchasing both the software and the interface.
  • Don't forget to look at our Forum for more tips and tricks

What is PowerDyn ?

it's a shareware Dynamometer for all performance enthusiastic. A dynamometer is basically a device that measures the amount of power being developed by an engine.
In the past, if you wanted accurate information about the performance of your automobile engine, you had to take your car to a rolling road and have it tested. everybody doesn't have access to a rolling road, moreover it's expensive.
Once correctly parametered, PowerDyn proves to be as accurate as a traditional rolling road. Also it will be easy to test your changes and totally costless. You want to compare two state of tune, the first with a dizzy giving 10° static advance at idle, and the second with 14°. Record some runs and compare them directly with PowerDyn graphic facility.
What give me this KN air filter or this exhaust/intake manifold ? With PowerDyn, you will be able to keep a trace of all the modifications and what are the impacts on the Power band.
All you'll need is a flat section of road, usually less than 1/4 mile in length.

How does it work ?

Well, basically PowerDyn is a precision timing system that looks at a record of ignition sparks over time. Based on when a single spark plug fires, the program can compute acceleration, and therefore, power.
The user must supply the car's weight, gear ratios, tire sizes, and some other variables, but the rest is pure physics.
PowerDyn measures power by the same method as a chassis dyno. Instead of measuring the amount of power required to accelerate a drum, you are measuring the amount of power required to accelerate the car.
PowerDyn will allow you to accurately measure the amount of power your car is putting to the ground, which is an invaluable tool when doing aftermarket modifications.

What you need :

  • IBM Compatible running Windows 95/98/Millenium/2000/XP or Windows NT. Sound Blaster or equiv. sound card capable of sampling in 8 bit/mono format.
  • Sound editing software such as WaveStudio (comes with SB) or Goldwave (shareware).
  • Sound recorder such as a camcorder, laptop, tape recorder, or digital voice recorder with mic input and earphone output. Also note that using very cheap tape recorders can cause "wavy" graphs due to high wow/flutter.
  • A Cheap eletronic device that you can make with 1 Jack and 2 resistors and an inductive pickup (or a coil of copper wire).
  • Any cables necessary to connect the device to your sound card or to the sound recorder (and the sound recorder to the computer to record the sound after the run).
  • You can check Plug'n Perf website too, they sell great kits ready to run, and you can save money if you buy a bundle.

User Guide :

First, a little information about inductive pickups. Inductive pickups are a common part of most timing lights, dwell meters. it is possible to wire your own inductive pickup. Below is a schematic of the simple circuit needed to connect an inductive pickup to your sound recorder.

 

 

Inductive pickups have two leads. These leads are connected to a 1/8 inch phone plug which should plug into the microphone jack on most sound recorders or sound card. Although you may be able to get away with simply plugging the inductive pickup into your sound recorder, the following circuit is recommended. Keep in mind that inductive pickups vary in signal strength, noise suppression, and signal quality. Most inductive pickups should work fine when wired properly/securely, but some may transmit enough noise to confuse the software. Parts needed:

  • Inductive pickup
  • 100 ohm resistor
  • 100k ohm resistor
  • 10 ft. of two conductor shielded wire

You may want to use the stereo plug if you are connecting to a laptop. If so, connect one wire to the inner shaft (the section closest to the screw-off cap) and connect the other wire to both the middle and outer section (tip) of the plug. This will give you the same signal in the left/right channel.

Connecting Things Up

The first step is to connect the inductive pickup to a spark plug wire. clamp the pickup to any spark plug wire. Maybe there is an arrow on the pickup, so you should clamp the pickup with the arrow pointing the spark plug.

Making a Dyno Run

Now you're ready for a run! Go to a flat section of road, If you have a laptop, you can record the run directly as a wav file or use real time acquisition. You should use 44kHz Mono 8bits to record the run using the 'Line in' of your sound card. Start out in SECOND gear. Get the car rolling at about 1000 rpm with your FOOT OFF THE CLUTCH. At this point, start recording. Let the recorder record for about a second and then press the accelerator to the floor smoothly but quickly. Leave the pedal to the floor until redline is reached, at which point you may release the gas pedal and push in the clutch. Stop the recorder.


If you have used a recorder (tape, camcorder...), then you have to transfer the run in your computer. Just use a the necessary cable to connect the recorder to the line input of your sound card. use 44kHz Mono 8bits to record the run.

Edit the Wav File Using Goldwave (or another sound editor), cut the first second (just before the acceleration), and the last seconds (just before the redline) of your run. Save the new wav file, it's ready for processing in PowerDyn.

If you has used real time acquisition, there is nothing to do, the Power/torque graph is displayed at the end of the run.

Plug'nPerf Ltd also propose you some ready to use electronic interfaces, that let you use parallel port for real time acquisition. Ask for more in the forum, this section is under construction.

Creating a new run in PowerDyn

  • Just use File/Choose Vehicle/New Vehicle and fill the informations.
  • Save it and select it.
  • Then go to Data Acquisition/Torque & Power, select the Wav file, gear used for the run and press the green arrow (analyze). Here it is..

Other great functions :

  • -All graphs are sizeable and you can have the same graph for different vehicles on the screen at the same time (Mosaic, Cascade...).
  • -Print your results
  • -Metric or Imperial units
  • -Graph of Forces (Drag & rolling resistance)
  • -Necessary power to maintain a choosen speed
  • -Torque and Power graph
  • -Export / Import of vehicle
  • -Export / Import Power & Torque values
  • -Graph of Acceleration according gear used (versus RPM)
  • -Graph of Acceleration according gear used (versus speed)
  • -Graph of speed according gear used
  • -Direct comparison of Power & Torque for different vehicle on the same graph
  • -Simulation of acceleration time and distance traveled. (just fix initial abd final speed, rpm for shifting). Find the best moment to shift. Evaluate your Quarter, 0-60mph and more.
  • -Graph of RPM and speed versus time
  • -Graph of Acceleration and speed versus time
  • -Graph of Distance and speed versus time
  • -Graph of disponible power and used power versus speed Of course, you can modify gear ratio, wheels, Mass and other parameters to see what will be the effect on acceleration, time to distance, speed. Choose easyly your final gear ratio according to your torque curve...