Page "Heat engine" Paragraph 4

In thermodynamics, heat engines are often modeled using a standard engineering model such as the Otto cycle.

The theoretical model can be refined and augmented with actual data from an operating engine, using tools such as an indicator diagram.

Since very few actual implementations of heat engines exactly match their underlying thermodynamic cycles, one could say that a thermodynamic cycle is an ideal case of a mechanical engine.

In any case, fully understanding an engine and its efficiency requires gaining a good understanding of the ( possibly simplified or idealized ) theoretical model, the practical nuances of an actual mechanical engine, and the discrepancies between the two.