In this study, we propose a new method for knocking detection that utilizes the vibration signal measured by a knock sensor under the knocking conditions known as a real mother wavelet (RMW), and carry out instantaneous correlation from the wavelet transform. We call this method the wavelet instantaneous correlation (WIC) method. The degree of similarity between the RMW and the vibration of the engine block was judged and only the knocking signal from the vibration of the engine block was extracted. The results obtained here show that the method proposed in this study is useful for knocking detection even if the engine speed is very high at 6000 rpm. (C) 2002 Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan, Inc. and Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.