ROTARY INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE WITH PILOT SUBCHAMBER AND IGNITION ELEMENT
First Claim
1. A rotary engine comprising:
- an outer body having walls defining an internal cavity;
a rotor rotatable within the internal cavity in sealing engagement with the walls of the outer body;
an insert having a pilot subchamber defined therein, the pilot subchamber communicating with the internal cavity;
a pilot fuel injector having a tip in communication with the pilot subchamber; and
an ignition element extending into an element cavity defined through the insert adjacent the pilot subchamber, the element cavity in communication with the pilot subchamber through a communication opening defined in the insert between the element cavity and the pilot subchamber, the communication opening being smaller than a portion of the ignition element adjacent the communication opening such as to prevent the portion of the ignition element from completely passing through the communication opening upon breaking off of the portion of the ignition element from a remainder of the ignition element.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A rotary engine includes an insert having a pilot subchamber defined therein and communicating with the internal cavity of the engine. A pilot fuel injector has a tip in communication with the pilot subchamber. An ignition element extends into an element cavity defined through the insert adjacent the pilot subchamber. The element cavity is in communication with the pilot subchamber through a communication opening defined in the insert between the element cavity and the pilot subchamber. The communication opening is smaller than a portion of the ignition element adjacent the communication opening such as to prevent the portion of the ignition element from completely passing through the communication opening upon breaking off of the portion of the ignition element from a remainder of the ignition element. An outer body for a rotary engine and a method of combusting fuel in a rotary engine are also provided.
2 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A rotary engine comprising:
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an outer body having walls defining an internal cavity; a rotor rotatable within the internal cavity in sealing engagement with the walls of the outer body; an insert having a pilot subchamber defined therein, the pilot subchamber communicating with the internal cavity; a pilot fuel injector having a tip in communication with the pilot subchamber; and an ignition element extending into an element cavity defined through the insert adjacent the pilot subchamber, the element cavity in communication with the pilot subchamber through a communication opening defined in the insert between the element cavity and the pilot subchamber, the communication opening being smaller than a portion of the ignition element adjacent the communication opening such as to prevent the portion of the ignition element from completely passing through the communication opening upon breaking off of the portion of the ignition element from a remainder of the ignition element. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. An outer body for a rotary engine comprising:
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interconnected walls cooperating to define an internal cavity for receiving a rotor; an insert having a subchamber defined therein in communication with the internal cavity, the insert configured to define a fluid communication between a tip of a pilot fuel injector and the subchamber; and an ignition element received in the insert, the ignition element in communication with the subchamber through an opening smaller than corresponding dimensions of a portion of the ignition element extending in the insert adjacent the opening sized such as to prevent a portion of the ignition element adjacent the opening from completely passing through the opening upon breaking off of the portion of the ignition element from a remainder of the ignition element. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of combusting fuel in a rotary engine having a rotor rotating in a cavity, the method comprising:
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injecting a minor portion of the fuel into a subchamber defined in an insert of the engine; activating a portion of an ignition element received in the insert, the portion of the ignition element located adjacent a communication opening defined through the insert and communicating with the subchamber, the communication opening being sized to prevent the portion of the ignition element from completely passing therethrough upon breaking off of the portion of the ignition element from a remainder of the ignition element; igniting the minor portion of the fuel in the subchamber by exposing the portion of the ignition element to the minor portion of the fuel through the communication opening; circulating the ignited minor portion of the fuel from the subchamber to the cavity; and injecting a remaining portion of the fuel into the cavity. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification