| (19) |
 |
|
(11) |
EP 0 836 159 A3 |
| (12) |
EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
| (88) |
Date of publication A3: |
|
03.03.1999 Bulletin 1999/09 |
| (43) |
Date of publication A2: |
|
15.04.1998 Bulletin 1998/16 |
| (22) |
Date of filing: 07.10.1997 |
|
|
| (84) |
Designated Contracting States: |
|
AT BE CH DE DK ES FI FR GB GR IE IT LI LU MC NL PT SE |
| (30) |
Priority: |
09.10.1996 IE 960715
04.04.1997 IE 970250
|
| (71) |
Applicant: O'Donoghue, Conor |
|
Moylish,
County Limerick (IE) |
|
| (72) |
Inventor: |
|
- O'Donoghue, Conor
Moylish,
County Limerick (IE)
|
| (74) |
Representative: O'Connor, Donal Henry et al |
|
c/o Cruickshank & Co.,
1 Holles Street
Dublin 2
Dublin 2 (IE) |
|
| |
|
| (54) |
Improvements in and relating to prime movers |
(57) A method of determining the probable wear experienced by a prime mover having moving
parts which involves measuring the useful life of the prime mover under one particular
operating condition and thus one rate of energy input e.g. fuel to arrive at an optimum
life and then measuring the life under other operating conditions such as load and
environment to obtain compensating factors which can be applied to the energy input
under these operating conditions to get a measure of the probable accumulated wear
and thus its potential future useful life.