Compact light weight diesel engine

• US 6,305,335 B1
• Filed: 08/07/2000
• Issued: 10/23/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Emeritus Corporation (Brookdale Senior Living Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Oʼtoole, Murray J.
• Inventors: OʼToole, Murray J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kamen, Noah P.
• Application Number:
  US09/634,878
• Time in Patent Office: 442 Days
• Field of Search: 123/56.1, 123/56.2, 123/56.3, 123/56.4, 123/56.5, 123/56.6, 123/56.7, 123/56.8, 123/56.9
• US Class Current: 123/56.3
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 2075/025 two
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 3/06 with compression ignition compression ignition engines using air or gas for blowing fuel into compressed air in cylinder F02B13/02
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 75/26 Engines with cylinder axes coaxial with, or parallel or inclined to, main-shaft axis; Engines with cylinder axes arranged substantially tangentially to a circle centred on main-shaft axis
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 75/282 the pistons having equal strokes
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 75/32 Engines characterised by connections between pistons and main shafts and not specific to preceding main groups

Abstract

A compact light weight diesel cycle engine has a barrel arrangement of opposed-piston cylinders surrounding a power shaft that is rotationally supported on a plurality of transverse circular diaphragms attached at their perimeters to a sheet material shell. The cylinders are attached to and extend through at least some of the diaphragms to provide longitudinal structural members of the engine. Dual opposed cams are mounted on the power shaft at opposite ends of the cylinders and are coupled to the pistons by connecting rods. The cams are constructed to convert linear movement of the pistons to rotational movement of the power drive shaft. Toward the end of a power stroke, high pressure air is admitted to the cylinders through inlet ports that are opened before exhaust ports are opened. Heat exchangers use exhaust gas to pre-heat the air. Special fuel injectors use intersecting fuel jets to provide a high level of fuel atomization, turbulence, and dispersion in the cylinders. Special ignitors provide both a glow plug and a spark plug.

Claims

1. A compact light weight internal combustion engine comprising:

a plurality of opposed-piston cylinders in a barrel arrangement about a central power shaft;

a plurality of diaphragms spaced along the length of the power shaft transversely thereto and having bearings supporting the power shaft for rotation, the cylinders extending through and being attached to at least some of the diaphragms;

a pair of opposed cams attached to the power shaft at opposite ends of the cylinders, each piston having a connecting rod coupled to one of the cams by a cam follower, each cam being constructed to convert linear movement of the pistons to rotational movement of the power shaft; and

a shell surrounding the perimeters of the diaphragms and attached thereto as an enclosure for the engine.

2. An internal combustion engine according to claim 1, wherein each cylinder has, on each side of a head portion thereof, an inlet port and an exhaust port disposed to be opened and closed by a corresponding piston within the cylinder, the inlet ports being connected to a source of compressed air and being closer than the exhaust ports to the head portion of the cylinders,

whereby during a power stroke the inlet ports are opened to admit high pressure air to the cylinders before the exhaust ports are opened, and during a compression stroke the exhaust ports are closed before the inlet ports are closed.

3. An internal combustion engine according to claim 2, further comprising heat exchangers using exhaust gas from the exhaust ports to heat compressed air supplied to the inlet ports.

4. An internal combustion engine according to claim 3, wherein each heat exchanger comprises a pipe divided by a longitudinal baffle traversed by a plurality of heat tubes extending through the baffle between an exhaust side of the baffle and an air inlet side of the baffle, each heat tube containing a low boiling point fluid in a boiler section of the heat tube at the exhaust side of the baffle and having a condenser section at the air inlet side of the baffle, the heat tubes being oriented so that the fluid therein returns from the condenser section to the boiler section by gravity flow.

5. An internal combustion engine according to claim 2, wherein each inlet port is connected to the source of compressed air via a check valve constructed to prevent back flow from the inlet port to the source.

6. An internal combustion engine according to claim 5, wherein the check valve is a Tesla type.

7. An internal combustion engine according to claim 2, wherein the compressed air is provided by a blower.

8. An internal combustion engine according to claim 1, wherein circular diaphragm corrugations accommodate stress-related movement of parts of the engine.

9. An internal combustion engine according to claim 1, wherein each cam defines a double sine wave configuration.

10. An internal combustion engine according to claim 1, wherein each cam comprises a hub attached to the power shaft and an undulating rim attached to the hub by a plurality of spokes.

11. An internal combustion engine according to claim 1, wherein each cylinder has a fuel injector at a head portion thereof.

12. An internal combustion engine according to claim 11, wherein each fuel injector has cross-flow nozzles oriented to cause intersection of fuel jets and atomization of fuel jets emitted from the fuel injector.

13. An internal combustion engine according to claim 1, wherein each cylinder has an ignitor at a head portion thereof, the ignitor being constructed to provide both a glow plug and a spark plug.

14. An internal combustion engine according to claim 1, wherein the engine is a two stroke diesel cycle engine.

15. An internal combustion engine according to claim 1, wherein the engine has a radiator at one end thereof and an accessory drive at the opposite end thereof.

16. An internal combustion engine according to claim 15, wherein the engine has a lubrication system including flow paths for oil in the power shaft and flow paths through the radiator.

17. An internal combustion engine according to claim 15, wherein the radiator comprises a spiral arrangement of finned turbulence tubing.