Expansible chamber engine
First Claim
1. An engine, including:
- a rotatable flywheel having a flywheel axis and including an undulating cam surface;
an expansible chamber device including a piston having a central axis radially spaced from said flywheel axis, said piston abutting said cam surface and movable in a cycle between retracted and extended positions;
said cycle including a power stroke from said retracted position to said extended position to urge said piston against said cam surface to thereby rotate said flywheel, and a compression stroke from said extended position to said retracted position in response to said cam surface.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
This engine 1 relies on a flywheel having a flywheel axis and an undulating cam surface. A piston with a roller at its base is positioned in a cylinder such that the roller abuts the undulating cam surface at some radial distance from the flywheel axis. Thus, as the piston is pushed downward by an explosion in the cylinder, it pushes against the cam surface causing the flywheel to rotate. As the flywheel continues to rotate its undulating surface pushes the piston back into position for a repetition of the cycle. More complex embodiments include one in which undulating surfaces are located on opposite faces of the same flywheel with separate pistons interacting with each face and one in which undulating surfaces are located on the facing surfaces of two separate flywheels with pistons positioned between the flywheels. In the latter embodiment, pistons can share the same cylinder.
12 Citations
18 Claims
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1. An engine, including:
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a rotatable flywheel having a flywheel axis and including an undulating cam surface;
an expansible chamber device including a piston having a central axis radially spaced from said flywheel axis, said piston abutting said cam surface and movable in a cycle between retracted and extended positions;
said cycle including a power stroke from said retracted position to said extended position to urge said piston against said cam surface to thereby rotate said flywheel, and a compression stroke from said extended position to said retracted position in response to said cam surface. - View Dependent Claims (7, 11, 15)
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2. An engine, including:
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a rotatable flywheel having a flywheel axis and including first and second undulating cam surfaces on opposite faces thereof;
a first expansible chamber device including a piston having a central axis radially spaced from said flywheel axis, said piston abutting said first cam surface and movable in a cycle between retracted and extended positions;
a second expansible chamber device including a piston having a central axis radially spaced from said flywheel axis, said piston abutting said second cam surface and movable in a cycle between retracted and extended positions;
said cycle including a power stroke from said retracted position to said extended position to urge said piston against said cam surface to thereby rotate said flywheel, and a compression stroke from said extended position to said retracted position in response to said cam surface. - View Dependent Claims (8, 12, 16)
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3. An engine, including:
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first and second coaxial and axially spaced flywheels operatively connected to a coaxial output shaft and including respectively first and second undulating cam surfaces facing each other; and
an expansible chamber device disposed between said flywheels and radially offset relative to said output shaft, said expansible chamber device including first and second opposed pistons movable in a cylinder between retracted and extended positions, said pistons adapted for engagement with respectively said first and second cam surfaces;
said pistons operating in cycles including power strokes from said retracted positions to said extended positions to urge said pistons against respective cam surfaces to thereby rotate corresponding flywheels, and compression strokes from said extended positions to said retracted positions in response to said cam surfaces. - View Dependent Claims (4, 9, 13, 17)
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5. An engine, including:
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first and second coaxial and axially spaced flywheels operatively connected to a coaxial output shaft and respectively including first and second undulating cam surfaces facing each other; and
an expansible chamber device disposed between said flywheels and radially offset relative to said output shaft, said expansible chamber device including a stationary cylinder with air inlet, fuel inlet, and exhaust ports, and first and second opposed pistons movable in said cylinder in opposite directions between retracted positions and extended positions, said pistons each including on the outboard end thereof a cam roller for engagement with a corresponding one of said cam surfaces;
said pistons operating in cycles including power strokes from said retracted positions to said extended positions, and compression strokes from said extended positions to said retracted positions;
said power strokes urging said cam rollers of said first and second pistons against respectively said first and second cam surfaces to thereby rotate said first and second flywheels;
said compression strokes responsive to action of said first and second cam surfaces against said cam rollers of respectively said first and second pistons to move said pistons to said retracted positions. - View Dependent Claims (6, 10, 14, 18)
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Specification