Patent Application
20180100475
The present disclosure is directed to a fuel system and, more particularly, to a common rail fuel system having pump-accumulator-injectors.
Internal combustion engines such as diesel engines and gasoline engines use injectors to introduce fuel into combustion chambers of the engine. Two types of fuel systems are commonly used in modern engines, including a common rail (CR) fuel system and a mechanical unit injector (MUI) fuel system.
A CR fuel system includes a centralized high-pressure pump that feeds pressurized fuel to an accumulator (a.k.a., rail), and a plurality of electronically controlled fuel valves that are supplied with fuel by the accumulator. When a fuel valve inside each injector opens, pressurized fuel from the accumulator flows through an injector nozzle and sprays into an associated combustion chamber.
In contrast to a CR system, a MUI system does not include a centralized high-pressure pump. Instead, the MUI system relies on a cam-driven unit pump for each injector. As a cam rotates to push a lobe against a plunger of the unit pump, high-pressure fuel is forced from the unit pump through an injector nozzle and into an associated combustion chamber.
Competition and government regulations force engine manufacturers to continually improve engine performance, with respect to power, fuel efficiency, and emissions. One way to improve engine performance is to increase fuel injection pressure while also decreasing fuel injection duration. Conventional CR and MUI fuel systems struggle to provide the required higher-pressures within the shorter injection durations.
One attempt to provide a higher performing fuel system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,077,101 of Poola et al. that issued on Jul. 18, 2006 (“the '101 patent”). In particular, the '101 patent discloses a hybrid fuel injection system having CR components (i.e., a high-pressure pump that feeds an accumulator or rail) and MUI components (i.e., unit-pump injectors that communicate with the rail). With this arrangement, fuel from the unit pump provides for the main injection of the fuel injector, while fuel from the accumulator provides fuel for one or more auxiliary fuel injections.
Although the hybrid system of the '101 patent may exhibit benefits of a combined CR and MUI system, it may still be less than optimal. In particular, the system may be complex and expensive. In addition, the hybrid system may lack design flexibility and have limited retrofitting capabilities with respect to existing engines.
The fuel system of the present disclosure solves one or more of the problems set forth above.
One aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a fuel injector for a fuel system having a common rail. The fuel injector may include a pumping portion having a bore formed therein, and a plunger reciprocatingly disposed in the bore. The fuel injector may also include an accumulator portion fluidly connectable to the common rail and configured to receive fuel pushed from the bore of the pumping portion by the plunger. The fuel injector may further include a nozzle portion, and a valve portion connecting the pumping, nozzle, and accumulator portions.
Another aspect of the present disclosure is directed to fuel system. The fuel system may include a common rail, a first type of fuel injector fluidly connected to the common rail, and a second type of fuel injector fluidly connected to the common rail. The second type of fuel injector may include a pumping portion having a bore formed therein, and a plunger reciprocatingly disposed in the bore. The second type of fuel injector may further include an accumulator portion fluidly connected to the common rail and configured to receive fuel pushed from the bore of the pumping portion by the plunger, a nozzle portion, and a valve portion fluidly connecting the pumping, nozzle, and accumulator portions.
In yet another aspect, the present disclosure is directed to an engine. The engine may include an engine block at least partially defining a plurality of cylinders, a piston disposed within each of the plurality of cylinders, and at least one cylinder head configured to close off the plurality of cylinders and thereby form a plurality of combustion chambers. The engine may also include a common rail, a first type of fuel injector disposed at least partially within the at least one cylinder head and configured to inject fuel received from the common rail into a first of the plurality of combustion chambers, and a second type of fuel injector disposed at least partially within the at least one cylinder head and configured to pump fuel into the common rail and to inject fuel into a second of the plurality of combustion chambers. Each of the first and second types of fuel injectors may include an accumulator portion configured to hold pressurized fuel for subsequent injection events. The second type of fuel injector may further include a pumping portion having a bore formed therein, a plunger reciprocatingly disposed in the bore, the accumulator portion fluidly connected to the common rail and configured to receive fuel pushed from the bore of the pumping portion by the plunger, a nozzle portion, and a valve portion fluidly connecting the pumping, nozzle, and accumulator portions.
Cylinder 14, piston 16, and cylinder head 18 may together form a combustion chamber 20 (shown only in
As shown in
Fuel pumping arrangement 26 may include one or more pumping devices that function to increase the pressure of the fuel and direct one or more pressurized streams of fuel into supply passage(s) 30. In one example, fuel pumping arrangement 26 includes a low-pressure source 34. Low-pressure source 34 may embody, for example, a transfer pump that is powered by a variable speed electric motor 36 to provide low-pressure feed to injectors 28 via passage(s) 30. A filter 38 may be disposed within fuel line(s) 30, if desired. It is contemplated that fuel pumping arrangement 26 may include additional and/or different components than those listed above such as, for example, a high-pressure source disposed in series with or used in place of low-pressure source 34.
An exemplary fuel injector 28 is illustrated in
Fuel injector 28 may include multiple components that interact to pressurize and inject fuel into combustion chamber 20 of engine 10 in response to the driving motion of cam arrangement 40. In particular, each fuel injector 28 may include an injector body 48 divided into or otherwise enclosing a pumping portion 48a, a nozzle portion 48b, a valve portion 48c located between pumping and nozzle portions 48a and 48b, and an accumulator portion 48d. The driving motion of cam arrangement 40 described above may result in low-pressure fuel being drawn from passage 30 into pumping portion 48a, and high-pressure fuel being discharged from pumping portion 48a into accumulator portion 48d. Nozzle portion 48b may selectively discharge high-pressure fuel received from accumulator portion 48d into combustion chamber 20. Valve portion 48c may regulate various flows of fuel between the other portions of injector body 48.
Pumping portion 48a may include a plunger 50 reciprocatingly disposed within a bore 52. Plunger 50 may be operatively connected to rocker arm 46 via a tappet 54. Tappet 54 may be retained in continuous engagement with rocker arm 46 by a plunger spring 56. Low-pressure fuel may flow from valve portion 48c into bore 52 of pumping portion 48a during a retracting (e.g., upward) stroke of rocker arm 46, tappet 54, and plunger 50. High-pressure fuel may be forced from bore 52 into accumulator portion 48d via a discharge passage 58 during a contracting (e.g., downward) stroke of rocker arm 46, tappet 54, and plunger 50.
Nozzle portion 48b may be located at least partially inside cylinder head 18 and include an internal pressure chamber 60 that is fluidly connected with combustion chamber 20 via one or more orifices 62. A valve needle 64 may be reciprocatingly disposed within chamber 20 and movable from a first or closed position (shown in
Valve portion 48c may connect plunger portion 48a with nozzle and accumulator portions 48c, 48d, and also contain one or more valves that facilitate fuel flows therebetween. In the disclosed example, valve portion 48c includes a spill chamber 68 open to bore 52 of plunger portion 48a, a spill valve 70 associated with spill chamber 68, a control chamber 72 fluidly connected with pressure chamber 60 of nozzle portion 48b (e.g., via a restricted orifice 73), a control valve 74 associated with control chamber 72, a spring 76 disposed within a spring chamber 78 between spill and control valves 70 and 74, a first electrical actuator 80 configured to control movements of spill valve 70, and a second electrical actuator 82 configured to control movements of control valve 74. An inlet passage 84 may fluidly connect supply passage 30 with spill chamber 68. An outlet passage 86 may fluidly connect control chamber 72 with a return line 88 that leads back to tank 24. An accumulator passage 90 may extend from accumulator portion 48d through valve portion 48c to pressure chamber 60 of nozzle portion 48b.
First and second actuators 80, 82 may be selectively energized by controller 32 to cause movements of spill and control valves 70, 74, respectively. In particular, spill valve 70 may be moved from a first or open position (shown in
When spill valve 70 is in the open position during a retracting stroke of plunger 50, low-pressure fuel may be forced and/or drawn into bore 52 via inlet passage 84 and spill chamber 68. When spill valve 70 is in the closed position during a contracting stroke of plunger 50, high-pressure fuel may be inhibited by spill valve 70 from passing through spill chamber 68 and inlet passage 84, thereby forcing the displacing fuel to instead flow through passage 58 and into accumulator portion 48d. However, when spill valve 70 is in the open position during the contracting stroke, some or all of the fuel being displaced from bore 52 by plunger 50 may be allowed to “spill” through spill chamber 68 and inlet passage 84. When fuel forced from bore 52 is allowed to exit fuel injector 28 via inlet passage 84, the buildup of pressure within fuel injector 28 due to contracting stroke of plunger 50 may be minimal. Accordingly, by timing an opening and closing of spill valve 70 relative to the strokes of plunger 50, an amount and/or pressure of the fuel being displaced by plunger 50 and directed into accumulator portion 48d may be regulated by controller 32.
When control valve 74 is in the open position, high-pressure fuel at a base end of valve needle 64 may be allowed to drain through restricted orifice 73, control chamber 72, outlet passage 86, and return line 88 to tank 24. As the fluid pressure at the base end of valve needle 64 drops with the draining fuel, the high-pressure fuel acting at a tip end of valve needle 64 may create a pressure imbalance that forces valve needle 64 upward against the bias of spring 66 to the open position at which fuel discharge from injector 28 begins. When control valve 74 is in the closed position, pressure may build at the base end of valve needle 64, thereby balancing pressures across valve needle 64 and allowing spring 66 to move valve needle 64 to the closed position to stop fuel injection. Accordingly, by timing an opening and closing of control valve 74, a fuel injection time, amount and/or pressure may be regulated by controller 32.
First and second electrical actuators 80, 82 may each include a solenoid, and an armature fixedly connected to the respective valve (e.g., to spill valve 70 or to control valve 74). The solenoid may include windings of a suitable shape and/or size through which current may flow to establish a magnetic field that, when energized, draws the corresponding armature toward itself. It is contemplated that first and/or second electrical actuators 80, 82 may embody another type of actuator (e.g., a piezo motor), if desired. It is further contemplated that first and second electrical actuators 80, 82 may be combined in some embodiments.
Accumulator portion 48d may be rigidly connected to plunger and/or valve portions 48a, 48c of injector body 48. In one embodiment, accumulator portion 48d may be generally cylindrical and have a center axis that is offset from and parallel to a center axis of pumping, nozzle, and valve portions 48a, 48b, and 48c. In some embodiments, accumulator portion 48d may be integrally formed (e.g., cast, machined, printed, etc.) with one or both of pumping and valve portions 48a, 48c. Accumulator portion 48d may include, among other things, a pressure chamber 94 configured to collect high-pressure fuel pushed from bore 52 by plunger 50. The high-pressure fuel of bore 52 may pass from discharge passage 58 through a check valve (e.g., a spring-biased check valve) 95 before entering pressure chamber 94. Pressure chamber 94 may be fluidly connected with pressure chamber 60 of nozzle portion 48b via accumulator passage 90. Pressure chamber 94, on the disclosed example, has a volume that is greater than an amount of fuel injected during any one injection event by a single injector 28 (e.g., 15 to 50 times greater), such that one injection event does not exhaust a supply of fuel stored within pressure chamber 94. For the purposes of this disclosure, an injection event may be considered to include all fuel injections by a single fuel injector 28 during a complete combustion cycle of engine 10.
As shown in
As shown in
Because fuel injectors 102 may not internally pressurize fuel for injection, the fuel pressurized by fuel injectors 28 must be sufficient to provide for the injection needs of all fuel injectors connected in the same arrangement. Accordingly, each fuel injector 28 of arrangement 100 (referring to
The fuel injector and system of the present disclosure have wide application in a variety of engine types including, for example, diesel engines and gasoline engines. The disclosed fuel injector and system may facilitate high performance of the associated engine in a simple, flexible, and low-cost configuration. Operation of system 22 will now be explained.
A controlled injection event may start by first receiving an indication of a desired start of injection (SOI) timing, a desired injection amount, a desired SOI pressure, and/or a desired end of injection (EOI) pressure. For example, engine 10 may request an SOI corresponding to a particular position of piston 16 within cylinder 14. Similarly, engine 10 may request a specific quantity of fuel, an SOI pressure, and/or an EOI pressure. These requested (e.g., desired) injection characteristics may be received by controller 32 (referring to
After receiving the desired fuel injection characteristics, controller 32 may determine a start of current (SOC) for second electrical actuator 82 that will move control valve 74 to the open position and initiate injection at the desired SOI timing. As indicated above, movement of control valve 74 toward the energized flow-passing position may cause an imbalance of pressure that moves valve needle 64 toward the orifice-opening position, thereby initiating injection of fuel into combustion chamber 20. Controller 32 may determine the SOC by offsetting the desired SOI by system delays associated with control valve 74 and valve needle 64.
Controller 32 may determine an EOI timing that corresponds with injection of the desired quantity of fuel. Using known kinematics of nozzle and valve portions 48c and 48d and based on known or assumed fuel pressures inside accumulator portion 48d and/or common rail 96, controller 32 may calculate a delay after SOI required for the desired amount of fuel to pass through orifices 62. Controller 32 may then calculate an end of current (EOC) that accounts for delays associated with control valve 74 such that by the end of the injection at the determined EOI timing, the proper amount of fuel has been injected into combustion chamber 20.
Controller 32 may end injection by terminating the current supplied to second electrical actuator 82 at the calculated EOC timing such that control valve 74 moves to the closed position in time for the pressures acting on valve needle 64 to balance and allow movement thereof back to block orifices 62 at the EOI timing.
Because the fuel injected through orifices 62 may be linked primarily to a pressure of fuel within pressure chamber 94 of accumulator portion 48d (i.e., and not necessarily linked to pumping operations of plunger 50), fuel injecting by injectors 28 may be performed somewhat independent of fuel pumping. For example, controller 32 may determine a SOC for first electrical actuator 80 associated with spill valve 70 that results in a desired pressure inside of pressure chamber 94 of accumulator portion 48d and/or inside of common rail 96, regardless of when fuel is being injected. As indicated above, the amount of displacement of plunger 50 into bore 52 after spill valve 70 has been moved to the flow-blocking position may correspond to an amount of fuel displaced into pressure chamber 94 and a resulting pressure. Controller 32 may be programmed with geometric relationships between an angular position of cam arrangement 40, a stroke length and area of plunger 52, and/or a displacement position of plunger 50 within bore 52. From these geometric relationships and the desired displacement amount and/or resulting pressure, controller 32 may calculate a SOC for first electrical actuator 80 (e.g., in terms of crank angle, cam angle, and/or displacement position of plunger 50). When plunger 50 moves through the subsequent displacement, a desired amount of fuel may be pushed from bore 52 to raise a pressure inside of chamber 94 to a desired level. Controller 32 may be further configured to account for delays associated with spill valve 70 when determining SOC of first electrical actuator 80.
The disclosed arrangement may be simple and inexpensive. In particular, fuel injectors 102 may have fewer control requirements and cost less than fuel injectors 28 because they do not have pumping capabilities. Accordingly, because arrangements 100 and 104 may allow use of only a limited number of fuel injectors 28 (i.e., and a greater number of fuel injectors 102), the corresponding arrangements may be simpler and less expensive than if arrangements 100 and 104 utilized only fuel injectors 28.
In addition, because the pumping action of fuel injectors 28 may be at least somewhat independent of the injecting action, the pumping action may occur over a greater period of time during each combustion cycle. That is, the pumping action may not be limited to only a period during which fuel is injected. This separation of pumping from injection may allow for the torque associated with the pumping action to be spread over a greater amount of time (and a greater amount of cam surface area), resulting in a lower peak torque and less wear. A lower peak torque passing through cam arrangement 40 during pumping may improve longevity of cam arrangement 40. In addition, the separation of pumping from injection may allow for as short of an injection duration as desired.
Finally, injector 28 may be used alone and placed within each cylinder head 18 of engine 10, or used together in a connected arrangement with other injectors of the same or a different type. This may allow for flexibility in designing engine 10, as well as retrofitting of existing engines with complex supply and/or routing requirements.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the fuel system and injector of the present disclosure without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Other embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the fuel system and injector disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope of the disclosure being indicated by the following claims and their equivalents.
