GB1065001A - Improvements in or relating to rotary internal combustion engines - Google Patents

Abstract

1,065,001. Rotary I. C. engines. A. BRADLEY. Oct. 7, 1963 [July 6, 1962], No. 26121/62. Heading F1F. In a rotary I. C. engine of the nutating-disc and inclined-shaft type a spherical cavity 12 in a casing 11 contains a set of nutating pistons constituted by a circular disc 13 and semi-circular discs 14, 15 whose straight edges 14a, 15a are pivoted on either side of the disc 13 at rightangles to each other. Rotatable shafts 18, 19 are attached to the semi-circular discs 14, 15, respectively; and carry a chain-wheel 26 and a flywheel 27, respectively. Fuel-air mixture is drawn through an inlet port 21 and compressed between the discs before it is ignited by one or other of two spark-plugs 24, 25, the spent products of combustion being ejected through one or other of two exhaust ports 22, 23. The inlet and exhaust ports are controlled by valves (not shown), which may be operated by cams (not shown) driven by either of the shafts 18, 19, and the spark-plugs may be connected to a magneto, or an equivalent device, coupled to the chainwheel 26. In each of the four working spaces between the discs 13, 14, 15 a complete cycle of induction, compression, expansion and exhaust phases is performed during two successive revolutions of the shafts 18, 19. The engine may be modified so that the ports 22, 23 are replaced by slots or slit-like ports 31, these ports and the inlet port 21 being controlled by the discs 13, 14, 15 so that a complete cycle is performed in each of the working spaces per revolution of the shafts. The shaft 18 serves as a poweroutput-shaft. A rotary I.C. engine, which is generally similar to that shown, has rotatable shafts (40, 43), Figs. 5 and 6 (not shown), in place of the shafts 18, 19, rotary valve-members (42, 44) for controlling exhaust ports (47) being carried by said shafts, respectively. An inlet port (48) for fuel-air mixture is formed by notches in two mutually abutting halves (35, 36) of the casing. The shaft (40) serves as a power-output shaft and also carries a flywheel 41 whereas the shaft (43) also carries a so-called "rotor arm" (45) for controlling the ignition system. Spark-plugs are lodged in screw-threaded holes (72) in the casing. The pistons are constituted by a circular disc (60) and semi-circular discs (62, 63) attached thereto by mutually perpendicular pairs of pivot pins (68), the radially-outermost ends of the pins being in engagement with part-spherical caps (67) fixed to the semi-circular discs and lodged in recesses in the perimeter of the circular disc. The straight edge of each semi-circular disc engages with a V-shaped groove formed in a diametral bar (73) attached to the adjacent face of the circular disc. Sealing strips (69, 71) are provided on the caps (67) and the part-spherical portions (64) of the semi-circular discs respectively. Lubricating passages (58) in the shafts (40, 43) communicate with further passages (58a, 58b) in the pistons to effect lubrication of the peripheral portions of the discs. Passages (54) in the casing are supplied with cooling water through an inlet (55) in one half of the casing, the water being removed from said passages through an outlet (56) in the other half of the casing. A complete cycle is performed in each working space during two successive revolutions of the shafts.