Patent ID: 8775049

Claim:
A method for evaluating a state of at least one of a fuel-air mixture and combustion in a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine, said method comprising the steps of: (a) positioning a component which includes an optical multichannel sensor in an opening of a combustion chamber such that the optical multichannel sensor is positioned centrally in the middle of the combustion chamber, with each channel of the optical multichannel sensor being directed to at least one area within the combustion chamber, (b) providing a database containing sample values of flame light signals and associated emission values, (c) detecting flame light signals of combustion from at least two areas within the combustion chamber using the optical multichannel sensor, (d) comparing values of the detected flame light signals from step (c) with sample values of flame light signals in the database, (e) evaluating said state with coincidence of patterns of values of detected and sample flame light signals, and (f) evaluating said state of combustion with coincidence of patterns of detected and sample emission values.