What is ECU remap

8/8/2019 What is ECU remap

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Motorsport Developments - What is Live mapping?

The following is an extract from a topic on My Ford Forum www.passionford.comThe topic itself is here: http://www.passionford.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33590

Please give the pictures time to loadthey are quite large but illustrate the text very nicely.

LIVE MAPPING

CHAPTER 1: "What happens on live map day?"

Ok, basically what will happen is as follows:

1) We will both sit down with a brew and discuss your personal requirements.

2) We will go over your mechanical engine specification on paper so I have ALL the facts.

3) I will sit down and devise a base map according to the details YOU have given to me.

4) I will check the car for basic safety and fluids. (You would be AMAZED how many cars I turn away because they

have no brakes, or no TAX!!)

5) I will take the car for a drive to asses its performance / flexibility in its current state.

6) I will return and check the fuel pumps flow performance and the fuel lines for any kinks etc and flow check theinjectors in the flow bench whether they are new or old. The whole engine intake system will be pressure tested at2.5bar for leaks and any rectified. Then a full setup will be performed on the engine in its current state, and thecar test driven again.

7) I will then return and if everything was fine on the test drive I will fit the following components into your car:

Lambda sensor boss welded into your down pipe.Boost gauge.

Detonation sensing equipment.Air Charge Temp monitoring equipment.Air/Fuel ratio monitoring equipment.Injector duty cycle monitoring equipment.A live fault code reader for the management system.A hardware emulator.A DC / AC Converter.A laptop.

8) I will then drive away in your pride and joy and two of us will start mapping it, which basically entails adjustingthe fuel to the correct level for the boost we are running and then taking the spark advance to its limits and thenback down again to our chosen level.

9) You will look really worried as we come back, poke around in your car and go out again.

10) We will probably come back again and poke around some more and you will say "How's it going?""Problems??" with a really worried look on your face.

11) We will say "Its going fine" and go out again.

12) We will finally return and say, "All done for you sir!" And you will collapse with relief!

13) You will pay us lots of your hard earned money in exchange for your old chip and your car keys and wheelspinaway like a lunatic leaving us with unhappy neighbours!!

CHAPTER 2: HOW DO YOU ACTUALLY GET AT THE DATA IN MY ECU BEFORE YOU CAN MAP IT LIVE?

Ok, the parts we need to access are within your vehicles ECU, so first of all we need to access that. They may bereally really easy like a Cossie, and as such just reside within a simple plug in chip, or they may be in a chip thatlook's like this:
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For clarity, Ive added a chip to the left of those now, and its a Cossie chip.The Cossie chip is 8k - the one on the right is 8mb.


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Now that chip wont be in a socket, it will be soldered on to the board and require unsoldering!!

Here are some pictures of other ECU packages and a couple of one after installation of the socket for the emulator

to be fitted.


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Ok, so thats given you an idea just how much aggro it is to even get at the data within a modern car, and how


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easy it would be for us to wreck a 1000+ ECU at our cost.

CHAPTER 3: What do we do with that chip?

Ok weve got a chip now. So we put it in the EPROM reader/programmer and extract its contents:Once loaded up into an appropriate editor, it will look like this:

The data Ive shown us working with is Escort Cosworth P8 just for claritys sake and to keep it topical for Fords.

Note the slider bar in the picture to give you some idea just how much data we are talking about, even in a tinyCosworth map file. Now it begins to get tricky.

CHAPTER 4: What does all that mean?

Ok, lets look at that same data in graphical form.


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See how its now represented as lines, on a graph? Almost like a spreadsheet? Still not much of any interest isthere?

Lets look at another part instead:

See anything there then? Well, I can actually, but I dont expect you to.Lets look at the same part of their file in 2d graphing mode.

Ahhh... now were getting somewhere.So weve found a map, what needs to be done now?


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Well, first we need to ascertain exactly what that map does. There are various ways of doing this that I wont boreyou with; suffice to say we have discovered it is a fuel table.

Once we have a few more parameters deciphered such as RPM and load values, we can have the softwareconverted to show us a more useful display, as follows:

Now were getting somewhere... that looks almost useable.Repeat all the above and ultimately we will find and catalogue all the other maps like this one for spark advance:


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We can even view them in 3d if we wish:

Ultimately, we aim to end up with a nice list, like this one:


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Once we have all this data catalogued, we can start to look at mapping our never before mapped model.**This only has to be done once per ECU dataset type**

Breakpoints

Can you define the RPM points, or are you stuck with what they give you (stops at 7000) ?

Yes, this is done by altering what we call the "Breakpoints".The problem here is that we cannot ADD anymore. Consequently, if I was to change the end point to 8000rpm I

would then have an interpolation break between 6600 & 8000 rpm. Thats not the end of the world as P8 hasenough to spread out quite well, but some of the earlier 13 column stuff is much trickier to get decent set pointswith if you want to map right up to 8000rpm.

CHAPTER 5: ok, smashing, great, now what?Ok were prepared now and have access to the maps needed to actually do something to this beast, so what next?

Well next comes the hardware. Im not going to directly show you the hardware I use as its taken a lot of trial and

error of junk hard/software and a LOT of wasted cash to arrive at a package that is world-class in its field.

So first we need to hook up our hardware into YOUR car.

Det cans:


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Heres a photo of them hooked up to a YB lump:

And the other end of them with all the wire and stuff on the dash here in the same car. If you look closely you can

see the channel switch This allows me to swap between any of the 4 pickups Ive installed on the engine:

Next we need to fit something to monitor the most important aspect of a turbocharged engines survival chemistry

- the fuel content, or AFR as we call it. (Air/Fuel ratio)

The one we prefer to use, look's like this at the in car end:


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And will be fitted either directly into the downpipe or inserted in the tailpipe like so.(Tailpipe option requires high quality units with oxygen sensing capability like ours)

Ok were getting there... now we have to get the laptop to run your car. This is the expensive bit!


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CHAPTER 6: Running the car from a laptop.Ok youve got a very basic grasp now of what goes into getting the car to a mappable scenario. All we have to donow is hook our emulator into the setup and fire her up.

Heres the emulator :- (note how we have fitted a socket where the chip used to be, and then that socket is cabledacross to the emulator)

And here you can see it connected to a Marelli ECU:


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So that brings us to: What does an Emulator do ?

Basically, as the ECU requires information, it accesses a lookup table in the control maps and then, based on

various parameters, draws a result from the software and applies that result to the engine.

What we want to do is change that result whilst its happening. Thats where the emulator comes in. It loads thesoftware required into its very fast flash memory and addresses it correctly so that the ECU thinks it is still a chip.Now whilst the ECU needs info, its taking it from the same control maps, only its being taken from its storagearea within my Emulator, and not from an EPROM as normal!

So why is this good?

This is good because now I have the ECU on one side of my Emulator, but I have my Laptop on the other sidedoing two VERY useful things:1) Showing me what data the ECU is asking for and at what time

2) Allowing me to change it

Remember at 6000rpm, the ECU will access for the same data 50 times per second so its not like I will missanything if thats what you think.

So: Were hooked up now, the engines running; we will now get a screen something like these:


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These services are all a little different from each other and you should take the time to understand what thedifferences are before parting with your money, so please read the sections below in order to understand which iswhich.

Chips. (Chipping)Old cars, prior to around year 2000 used to have EPROMS in the ECU that had to be removed, recalibrated andrefitted. This service was widely known as chipping.

Remapping: (A remap)

Arguably the most common term used today and is used to cover so many things it has become almostmeaningless but regardless, its true meaning is simply to recalibrate the existing system. As the name suggest,the seller is not clarifying exactly how this will be done and if it involves a new chip, a single remap via OBD port,a custom remap (See below) or a full on live remap (See below).

Custom mapping:

During custom mapping, we take the vehicle out with a datalogger and asses what parts of the ECU calibrationrequire work and then go back to the workshop and recalibrate the necessary parts of the calibration before

uploading it back into the ECU and performing the same test again. This is repeated until such time as thecalibration is as close to perfect as we can get it. (This is often all you can do with a modern ECU that cannot be

done live.)

Live Mapping:

During live mapping, we will attach an emulator to the ECU and actually access the information within it whilst theengine is running and the ECU is in use. This is the ultimate form of mapping and usually gives far more accurate

results than simple chipping or remapping and is usually quite a lot better than a custom mapping session toobecause we can adjust the data at the same time as the ECU is supplying results to the engine and so can asses

the results in real time. This is doubly true for those engines that have strayed from the norm and are nowutilising uprated cams, ported heads, altered compression ratios etc.

Please click on any of the pictures below to see a larger version.

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:: Chips, Remaps, Live mapping and custom mapping by Motorsport Developments in Blackpool, Lancashire

Note the difference between these and previous screenshots is the addition of a red box, covering 4 separate

values? That is the live trace and its position, and is the exact data the ECU is using to run the engine at thattime so we can now alter the data in these boxes, whilst the engine is runningat 200mph if we like!

The following, are questions asked by forum members after reading the above information:

Supposing you wanted to increase the fuel at 6000rpm, and retard the ignition, would you have to alter

the lookup values in the tables to do that? Or can you drag/adjust something on the graph to do that?Would you, for example, make the 255 to 256 if it was in that particular region?
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I would literally increase the number in the fuel map that corresponded to the area I was running lean at. 255 isthe maximum, so if we were already at 255, we have problems, but none that cant be worked around.

The advance would be done last and again, I would simply do it from the advance screen you have seen alreadyand adjust the number highlighted when the problem arose.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We have separate tables completely, for example

Advance with ACTFuel with ACT

Take fuel for example:Its usually a simple 16x1 map with each point a temperature.

Each of the separate temperature plots will either add, or in the case of excessive ACT's subtract, a degree of fuel

from the main map. The same goes for spark, and same again for coolant temperatures.

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Cars fitted with a lambda sensor as standard : how much of a bearing and how does the lambda effectthe fuelling? Is it just for safety (extremes) or is it a function to enable efficient running? like a closed

loop system.

99% of cars fitted with closed loop fuel term control, utilize it only under part load conditions, and also only with ahot engine.

How do you implement the functionality - say a high ACT retardation, or a low ECT enrichment.

Are they separate lookup tables, or are they simple parameters in an equation already implementedin the ECU (dependant upon ECU type)?


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This is simply because if the sensor drifted from cal, under Wide Open Throttle conditions it would cause anexpansive meltdown. WOT is not seen as an emissions issue as most engines spend a VERY small percentage oftheir life there.

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What happens when things go wrong with boost? I know some have got over-boost protection in thechip, but is that always there?

Depends which application it is, but we will choose Marelli.

The 3bar can have a boost limit up to and including 28.5psi thats still reliable. If you want to run more boost thanaround 26.5 held, then the boost limit must be removed completely. The alternative is to fit an alternative method

of boost limiter, such as a pressure cut-off switch or a blow off valve.

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Escort RS Turbos - what stops you from 'live mapping' the ignition on these for example?

Bosch KE's Spark control map is part of a Motorola "processor" and is not stored on an "EPROM" as per other

designs. Processors cannot be emulated live by conventional emulation methods.

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Changing Map Sensors : what happens when you change to a different map sensor, and if the mapsensor is limited to 1 bar positive - how would you get around this for running say 18-20psi?

The map sensor doesnt really "limit" anything. If you look at this fuel map:

The left hand column is map sensor output voltage, so obviously, should we change the sensor, the columnmeaning will change, yet fuelling remain the same.

For example: Top line is 4.9volts. That on the standard FRST OFAB sensor is 1bar positive or 2bar absolute. If wechange to a 3bar, that line now equates to 2bar positive or 3bar absolute. The result = very lean everywhere.


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This effect obviously happens to every map that is pressure related.

As for the upper limit of the sensor, once we hit the 4.9volt line, we can run all the boost we like, we will never getanymore fuel, hence when your tuner says: "set it to 28psi" you dont set it to 34psi and presume it will be ok.

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How do you map past the boost limitations of the map sensor you are using? For example, how doyou map for 34psi when using a 3bar map sensor?

When the map reaches 4.9Volts it still has RPM factors etc it can read to keep RPM based fuelling correct for RPM.

And we can still increase the values and duration it puts out at that level, but we cannot change the fact it is nolonger scalable against pressure.

What has to be done is map at perfectly at the maximum boost, then anything below this will simply be a bit rich.

Ive highlighted the lines which I am talking about in blue.Next to the lines, in the map sensor pressure boxes, I have written in a boost pressure example.

The top line will be hit at 28psi and above so at 28psi we are on the top line and at 34psi we are STILL on the top

line.Now if we are running 20psi we will be fuelling from the 2nd line.

So: If the top line is mapped to fuel perfectly well at 34psi and we drop the boost to 29psi we will be slightly rich.

But if we drop to 22psi we will be fine.

The topic continues @ http://www.passionford.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33590

This page was kindly constructed by Nigel Burroughs (Sketch) after i "mentioned" that I may cut this usefuldiscussion from the forum page and reproduce it on my website. This must have taken a couple of hours or more,

so Nige, THANKS!!

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:: Motorsport Developments - What is Live mapping? ::

Chips, Remaps, Live Mapping & Custom Mapping in Lancashire.

Chips, Remaps, Live mapping and custom mapping are our specialty subjects. We have the ability to access yourmanagement systems inner workings and adjust all the parameters that control things such as your engines sparkadvance, fuel delivery, cam timing and boost pressure to name only a few of the often thousands of calibrations

within a modern ECU.

These services are all a little different from each other and you should take the time to understand what thedifferences are before parting with your money, so please read the sections below in order to understand which iswhich.

Chips. (Chipping)Old cars, prior to around year 2000 used to have EPROMS in the ECU that had to be removed, recalibrated andrefitted. This service was widely known as chipping.

Remapping: (A remap)Arguably the most common term used today and is used to cover so many things it has become almostmeaningless but regardless, its true meaning is simply to recalibrate the existing system. As the name suggest,the seller is not clarifying exactly how this will be done and if it involves a new chip, a single remap via OBD port,a custom remap (See below) or a full on live remap (See below).

Custom mapping:

During custom mapping, we take the vehicle out with a datalogger and asses what parts of the ECU calibration
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require work and then go back to the workshop and recalibrate the necessary parts of the calibration beforeuploading it back into the ECU and performing the same test again. This is repeated until such time as thecalibration is as close to perfect as we can get it. (This is often all you can do with a modern ECU that cannot bedone live.)

Live Mapping:During live mapping, we will attach an emulator to the ECU and actually access the information within it whilst theengine is running and the ECU is in use. This is the ultimate form of mapping and usually gives far more accurateresults than simple chipping or remapping and is usually quite a lot better than a custom mapping session toobecause we can adjust the data at the same time as the ECU is supplying results to the engine and so can assesthe results in real time. This is doubly true for those engines that have strayed from the norm and are nowutilising uprated cams, ported heads, altered compression ratios etc.

Please click on any of the pictures below to see a larger version.

HOME - BACK

:: SiteMap|Home | News |Chip Search|Tuning & Diagnostic Services|Evolution Chips | About Us | ContactUs| Technical Info | Find A Dealer::

:: Evolution Chips is a registered trade name of Motorsport Developments :: Design l-tech.fr :: Powered byBKWeb.co.uk ::

:: Chips, Remaps, Live mapping and custom mapping by Motorsport Developments in Blackpool, Lancashire
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What is ECU remap