Patent Application
20230175451
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
Trademarks may be used in the disclosure of the invention and the applicant makes no claim to any such referenced trademarks.
The invention relates to the field of Internal combustion engines. An internal combustion engine (ICE or IC engine) is a heat engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the working fluid flow circuit. In an internal combustion engine, the expansion of the high-temperature and high-pressure gases produced by combustion applies direct force to some component of the engine. The force is typically applied to pistons (piston engine), turbine blades (gas turbine), a rotor (Wankel engine), or a nozzle (jet engine). This force moves the component over a distance, transforming chemical energy into kinetic energy which is used to propel, move or power whatever the engine is attached to. This replaced the external combustion engine for applications where the weight or size of an engine was more important.
However, most internal combustion engines have an efficiency of approximately 30%. This lack of efficiency is due in part to the energy that is required to compress the mixture of air and fuel. The initial mixture is compressed to 12 times original volume (12:1). Internal combustion engines in general complete one cycle with two revolutions of the crankshaft.
Currently the state of the art includes the basic reciprocating engine design which has one or more cylinders in which pistons reciprocate back and forth. The combustion chamber is located in the closed end of each cylinder. Power is delivered to a rotating output crankshaft by mechanical linkage with the pistons. The rotary engine is made of a block (stator) built around a large non-concentric rotor and crankshaft. The combustion chambers are built into the non-rotating block.
The basic reciprocating engine has both a four stroke and two stroke design.
The four stroke-cycles refers to its use in gasoline engines, gas engines, light, oil engine and heavy oil engines in which the mixture of air fuel are drawn in the engine cylinder. The ignition in these engines is due to a spark, therefore they are also called spark ignition engines.
In two stroke cycle engines, the whole sequence of events i.e., suction, compression, power and exhaust are completed in two strokes of the piston i.e. one revolution of the crankshaft. There is no valve in this type of engine. Gas movement takes place through holes called ports in the cylinder. The crankcase of the engine is airtight in which the crankshaft rotates.
In particular, there is a need for an easy to fabricate and fuel-efficient design for a combustion-based engine.
The instant invention in one form is directed to an internal combustion engine that uses a vacuum instead of a compressive force to produce the output. The design of the engine is such that it uses less fuel and will produce more power output than current comparable internal combustion engines. 1 cycle is completed with 1 crankshaft revolution. Whereas a comparable internal combustion engine completes 1 cycle with 2 crankshaft revolutions.
Less energy is required to apply the vacuum or negative force to the fuel and air mixture than the energy required to compress the fuel and air mixture. The engine valves may be operated by a cam or electromechanical valve actuators.
The instant invention method of operation works similar to a conventional internal combustion engine except that instead of applying a compressive force to the fuel mixture, it applies a negative compressive or vacuum force to the fuel mixture.
An advantage of the present invention is that it allows internal combustion engine manufacturers to produce small form factor machines or tools, for example road vehicles, lawn cutters, chainsaws, etc., with higher fuel efficiency than engines currently used and with reduced emissions.
Another advantage of the present invention is that the amount of mechanical components of the engine are reduced.
A further understanding of the nature and advantages of particular embodiments may be realized by reference to the remaining portions of the specification and the drawings, in which like reference numerals are used to refer to similar components. When reference is made to a reference numeral without specification to an existing sub-label, it is intended to refer to all such multiple similar components.
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. The exemplifications set out herein illustrate embodiments of the invention and such exemplifications are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.
While various aspects and features of certain embodiments have been summarized above, the following detailed description illustrates a few exemplary embodiments in further detail to enable one skilled in the art to practice such embodiments. The described examples are provided for illustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.
In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the described embodiments. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art however that other embodiments of the present invention may be practiced without some of these specific details. Several embodiments are described herein, and while various features are ascribed to different embodiments, it should be appreciated that the features described with respect to one embodiment may be incorporated with other embodiments as well. By the same token, however, no single feature or features of any described embodiment should be considered essential to every embodiment of the invention, as other embodiments of the invention may omit such features.
In this application the use of the singular includes the plural unless specifically stated otherwise and use of the terms “and” and “or” is equivalent to “and/or”, also referred to as “non-exclusive or” unless otherwise indicated. Moreover, the use of the term “including”, as well as other forms, such as “includes” and “included”, should be considered non-exclusive. Also, terms such as “element” or “component” encompass both elements and components including one unit and elements and components that include more than one unit, unless specifically stated otherwise.
Lastly, the terms “or” and “and/or” as used herein are to be interpreted as inclusive or meaning any one or any combination. Therefore, “A, B or C” or “A, B and/or C” mean “any of the following: A; B; C; A and B; A and C; B and C; A, B and C”. An exception to this definition will occur only when a combination of elements, functions, steps or acts are in some way inherently mutually exclusive.
As this invention is susceptible to embodiments of many different forms, it is intended that the present disclosure be considered as an example of the principles of the invention and not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments shown and described.
The terms fuel supply as used within the specification is intended to mean gasoline, petrol, diesel, natural gas fuel or any solid, liquid or gas substance that can be used to drive the instant invention.
Prior to a discussion of the preferred embodiment of the invention, it should be understood that while the features and advantages of the invention are illustrated in terms of a reciprocating engine with Negative Pressure Operating Method the technology can also be adapted for use with a Positive Pressure Operating Method.
Automotive vehicle and engine manufacturers and various technical societies such as the SAE International share in the desire for efficient, effective transportation. The balance between combustion processes to produce power, and those processes which create pollution, is best addressed by enhancing the fundamental efficiency of the internal combustion engine processes.
The Otto cycle is the ideal cycle for spark-ignition engines. It consists of four internal reversible processes: 1-2 Isentropic compression. 2-3 Constant volume heat addition. An engine based on the Otto cycle consists of a compression process of a fuel-air mixture followed by unregulated combustion. It is well known that for a given compression ratio the ideal Otto cycle is the most efficient expanding chamber piston engine since the Otto cycle combines high peak temperature with a practical average temperature of heat input. However, the high peak combustion temperature of an Otto engine can cause auto-ignition of a portion of the fuel-air mixture, resulting in engine noise and damage to the engine, as well as the creation of excess amounts of undesired nitrogen oxides. Nitrogen oxides are most relevant for air pollution and include nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO) and are commonly referred to as NOx.
Current internal combustion engines convert only about 12%-30% of the energy from the fuel into usable motion, depending on the drive cycle. The rest of the energy is lost to heat, engine and driveline inefficiencies or used to power accessories. Because these engines have such a low efficiency there is a huge potential to improve fuel efficiency with advanced technology. Just increasing fuel efficiency could help reduce the global CO2 emissions from transportation and power generation related processes.
The internal combustion engine market is expected to grow from US $55,176.7 million in 2020 to US$73,842.5 million by 2028. This translates to a CAGR of 3.71% during 2020-2028 period. This provides tremendous opportunity for a technology that can improve efficiency.
Technological advancements are resulting in the evolution of internal combustion engines, allowing them to offer high power outputs with improved fuel efficiency. Meanwhile, the engines continue to be vital in the development of the automotive industry. Further, they have a potential for improvement in various areas such as thermal efficiency, emissions, and electrification. The internal combustion engine allows manufacturers to produce small form factor machine or tools, for example road vehicles, lawn mowers, chainsaws, etc. which have enormous industrial application. Internal combustion engines are also critical to motorboats and ships which propel the marine applications and there is a critical need for heavy power output engines that are used in power generation.
For general purpose road use, the engines of emission-constrained passenger cars are presently limited to useful compression of about 10:1. Above that limit the increased cost of the fuel control system and the additional cost of more platinum or rhodium for exhaust catalytic converters generally outweighs the benefit of higher compression ratios. A technology which would allow a practical Otto compression process to operate more efficiently in terms of fuel economy and at lower operating temperatures, would be a significant advancement in the art.
Comparing the instant invention to the Scuderi split cycle internal combustion engine. This invention differs from the Scuderi split cycle internal combustion engine in that the four strokes are completed in one cycle of each cylinder individually, thus completing one cycle in one revolution of the crankcase. The four strokes of this method of operating an internal combustion engine consist of the fuel/air intake stroke, the compressive or negative pressure stroke, ignition stroke, and the exhaust stroke.
The Negative Pressure Operating Method differs from the Scuderi split cycle internal combustion engine, in that the engine is operated as a One-Stroke One-Cycle engine. This one-stroke one-cycle operating method has one piston movement over one revolution for each cycle.
Scuderi Split-cycle engines divides the four strokes of intake, compression, power, and exhaust into two separate but paired cylinders.
The Negative Pressure Operating Method completes the four strokes of intake, compression, power, and exhaust into a single cylinder.
The Scuderi Split-cycle internal engine uses engines comprised of two cylinders and they have a 4 stoke cycle.
The Negative Pressure Operating Method can be used in engines with any number of cylinders.
Ignition types—there are two types of ignition methods currently employed in internal combustion engines.
The Negative Pressure Operating Method has features of both the spark ignited and compression ignited engines.
Number of strokes per cycle—there are two types of engine cycles systems currently employed in internal combustion engines.
The Negative Pressure Operating Method differs from the four stroke or the two stroke cycle. The difference is in how the engine operates. The preferred method is to use only a One-Stroke per cycle process.
Valve Location—there are currently two primary designs with respect to valve location.
The Negative Pressure Operating Method can operate regardless of the location of the valves. A Negative Pressure Operating Method does not dictate the location of the valves and therefore makes the engine design process more flexible.
Basic Design—there are currently two primary engine designs.
The Negative Pressure Operating Method can be use in reciprocating or rotary engines.
Number of Cylinders—there are currently two primary engine designs.
The Negative Pressure Operating Method can be used in engines with any quantity of cylinders.
Fuel Used
The Negative Pressure Operating Method is compatible with any fuel that can be used in internal combustion engines such as gasoline, diesel oil, fuel oils. Gases such as coal gas, natural gas, methane or Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG).
This Negative Pressure Operating Method is compatible with a wide variety of other substances which can be used as fuel, including explosive substances, pure or non-pure oxygen, chemical mixtures, solids, liquids, gaseous, and compounds.
Any material that can be made to react with other substances so that it releases energy as thermal energy and results in an expansive force can to be used as a fuel in the Negative Pressure Operating Method.
A novel feature of the Negative Pressure Operating Method is that it does not have a compression stroke and does not require the use of a cam to operate the intake and exhaust valves.
The design of the process used in the Negative Pressure Operating Method:
The instant invention is a Negative Pressure Operating Method, comprises an internal combustion engine system that applies a negative pressure or expansive force to the fuel/air mixture to produce power in the cylinder with an increase of fuel economy, power, and torque.
This method of operation may require the use of a solenoid actuated engine valve for each intake and exhaust valve. This technology is adequately described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,575,126 B2 issued to Sturman on Jun. 10, 2003. However, the Negative Pressure Operating Method can use any equivalent system of solenoid operating valves.
During the phase of applying the negative compression or expansive force to the air charge, during which the intake and exhaust valves are closed, the valve actuators must be able to provide sufficient force to prevent the valves from opening due to the referenced force. The engines operated with this method of operation may be operated either with or without camshafts.
In a first preferred embodiment, the method comprises of the following steps within the engine:
In second preferred embodiments, the method comprises of the following steps within the engine:
The concept of a cam-less or free-valve piston engine has been discussed. The basic concept is an engine that has poppet valves operated by means of electromagnetic, hydraulic, or pneumatic actuators instead of conventional cams. Actuators could also be used to both open and close valves, or to open valves closed by springs or another means. Camshafts normally have one lobe per valve, with a fixed valve duration and lift. Although many modern engines use camshaft phasing, adjusting the lift and valve duration in a working engine is more difficult. Some manufacturers use systems with more than one cam lobe, but this is still a compromise as only a few profiles can be in operation at once. This is not the case with the cam-less engine, where lift and valve timing can be adjusted freely from valve to valve and from cycle to cycle. It also allows multiple lift events per cycle and, indeed, no events per cycle—switching off the cylinder entirely. This technology can be operated from various electrical and electronic systems including an Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a microprocessor, analog circuit, or other electric or mechanical timing system.
For a cam-less design, the opening and closing of the intake and exhaust valves required by this method cannot be achieved with the currently available cams and therefore leads one to the use of electromechanical valve actuators.
Electromagnetic Actuators for Cam-less Engines (or similar description) are currently available on the automobile market for engine manufacturers. Some valve manufactures include LaunchPoint Technologies Inc, Freevalve AB, GlideValve Engine Technology. Currently, cam-less engines using electromagnetic valve actuators are not available or in mass production.
The electromechanical valve actuators that can be used to facilitate cam-less operation must be able to provide sufficient force in the closed position that can exceed the negative pressure applied by the cylinder during the intake stroke.
The method of operation of a cam-less engine with a Negative Pressure Operating Method results in a vacuum or negative pressure being applied to a mixture of fuel and air prior to the application of the ignition source. The vacuum or negative pressure is applied during the downstroke of the cylinder between the 41° position and the 80° position. The position of the cylinder is referenced by the position of the crankshaft. The ignition source can be any device that is capable of producing a spark such as but not limited to a spark plug.
For purposes of the illustration, the crankshaft rotates in a clockwise direction.
The position of the cylinder referred to is the Top Of the Cylinder (TOC) when the head is at the top of the cylinder
The 0° position is also the 360°, which is called Top Dead Center (TDC).
At the beginning of the cycle, the cylinder is at the 0° position as referenced by the position of the crankshaft. At the 0° position the intake and exhaust valves are in the closed position.
Since a Negative Pressure Operating Method engine can be used in either a Spark Ignition Powered Internal Combustion Engine or the Auto-Ignition Powered Internal Combustion Engine the disclosure will look at both ignition sequences.
Method 1; Spark Ignition Powered Internal Combustion Engine
Upon reaching the 1-degree position, as referenced by the position of the crankshaft, the intake valve opens drawing the mixture of fuel and air into the chamber.
The inlet valve will remain open until the piston reaches the 40-degree position, as referenced by the position of the crankshaft.
The inlet valve will close when the piston reaches the 41-degree position, as referenced by the position of the crankshaft.
The piston continues its downward movement until it reaches the 80-degree position, as referenced the position of the crankshaft. In this position and the intake valve is still closed, the ignition source is applied producing the combustion of the fuel-air mixture.
The piston continues its downward movement until it reaches the 81-degree position and the and the intake valve is still closed, as referenced the position of the crankshaft. the ignition source is applied producing the combustion of the fuel-air mixture.
The energy produced by combustion causes the piston to increase its speed and provide the energy necessary for the crankshaft to continue rotating until the next cycle is reached.
When the piston reaches the 180-degree position which is known as Bottom Dead Center (BDC) as referenced by the position of the crankshaft, the outlet valve opens. The outlet valve will open until it reaches the 360° position, TDC, which is equivalent to the 0° position, as referenced by the position of the crankshaft. Then the one cycle of the engine is completed in one revolution. The one cycle consists of the intake phase, the application of vacuum phase, the ignition phase, and the exhaust phase which saves energy and increases efficiency.
Method 2; Auto-Ignition Powered Internal Combustion Engine
Upon reaching the 1-degree position, as referenced by the position of the crankshaft, the intake valve opens drawing the mixture of fuel and air into the chamber. The inlet valve will remain open until the piston reaches the 40-degree position, as referenced by the position of the crankshaft. The inlet valve will close when the piston reaches the 41-degree position, as referenced by the position of the crankshaft.
The piston continues its downward movement until it reaches the 80-degree position, as referenced the position of the crankshaft. Near this position, the fuel-air mixture will auto-ignite.
The energy produced by combustion causes the piston to increase its speed and provide the energy necessary for the crankshaft to continue rotating until the next cycle is reached. When the piston reaches the 180-degree position Bottom Dead Center (BDC), as referenced by the position of the crankshaft, the outlet valve opens. The outlet valve will open until it reaches the 360-degree position, TDC, which is equivalent to the 0-degree position, as referenced by the position of the crankshaft.
This ends the one cycle of the engine which has completed one revolution. The One cycle consists of the intake phase, the application of vacuum phase, the auto-ignition phase, and the exhaust phase.
The instant invention for an ignition source engine can also be described as follows.
A negative pressure internal combustion engine having a cylinder, a piston, at least one intake valves, at least one exhaust valves, a connecting rod, a crank shaft wherein a cycle is mapped to a 360-degree motion of the crankshaft by the connection point of the connecting rod to the camshaft and the piston is connected to a connecting rod at an upper connecting rod connection point and a camshaft at a lower connecting rod connection point and the cycle comprises:
The cycle wherein at least one intake valve is operated by an electromechanical valve actuator.
The cycle wherein at least one exhaust valve is operated by an electromechanical valve actuator.
The instant invention for an ignition source engine can also be described as follows.
A negative pressure internal combustion engine having a cylinder, a piston, at least one intake valves, at least one exhaust valves, a connecting rod, a crank shaft wherein a cycle is mapped to a 360-degree motion of the crankshaft by the connection point of the connecting rod to the camshaft and the piston is connected to a connecting rod at an upper connecting rod connection point and a camshaft at a lower connecting rod connection point and the cycle comprises:
The cycle wherein at least one intake valve is operated by an electromechanical valve actuator.
The cycle wherein at least one exhaust valve is operated by an electromechanical valve actuator.
The different valve positions and the application of the ignition source, during any degree of the cycle or position of the crankshaft and/or piston position, will allow to operate the engine with various power settings. The revolutions may be increased or decreased as needed for various operating scenarios. Cylinder deactivation may be achieved by these instant variations.
The intake and the exhaust valve(s) can be instantly varied to open and/or close at any position (degree) of the crankcase and/or piston position. These variations will produce different levels of power and/or increase or decrease the revolutions per minute (RPM) of the engine.
The intake and the exhaust valve(s) can be instantly varied to open and/or close at any time (degree) of the cycle. These variations will produce different levels of power and/or revolutions per minute (RPM) of the engine.
The ignition spark may be applied to the fuel mixture at any position of the crankcase and/or piston position.
The ignition spark may be applied to the fuel mixture at any position of the crankcase and/or piston position and/or valve position, (open or closed).
Referring now to the drawings
The difference in the process of the Negative Pressure Operating Method using a Compression Ignition Powered Internal Combustion Engine process versus the Negative Pressure Operating Method using a Spark Ignition Powered Internal Combustion Engine process is that instead of initiating combustion using an ignition source the system uses the compression of the fuel and air mixture to create the combustion (explosion).
Since many modifications, variations, and changes in detail can be made to the described embodiments of the invention, it is intended that all matters in the foregoing description and shown in the accompanying drawings be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. Furthermore, it is understood that any of the features presented in the embodiments may be integrated into any of the other embodiments unless explicitly stated otherwise. The scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.
In addition, the present invention has been described with reference to embodiments, it should be noted and understood that various modifications and variations can be crafted by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, the foregoing disclosure should be interpreted as illustrative only and is not to be interpreted in a limiting sense. Further it is intended that any other embodiments of the present invention that result from any changes in application or method of use or operation, method of manufacture, shape, size, or materials which are not specified within the detailed written description or illustrations contained herein are considered within the scope of the present invention.
Insofar as the description above and the accompanying drawings disclose any additional subject matter that is not within the scope of the claims below, the inventions are not dedicated to the public and the right to file one or more applications to claim such additional inventions is reserved.
Although very narrow claims are presented herein, it should be recognized that the scope of this invention is much broader than presented by the claim. It is intended that broader claims will be submitted in an application that claims the benefit of priority from this application.
While this invention has been described with respect to at least one embodiment, the present invention can be further modified within the spirit and scope of this disclosure. This application is therefore intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the invention using its general principles. Further, this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which this invention pertains and which fall within the limits of the appended claims.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/287,385 filed on Dec. 8, 2021, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63287385 | Dec 2021 | US |
