GB1152324A - Improvements in or Relating to Internal Combustion Engines - Google Patents

Abstract

1,152,324. Lubricating. MIRRLEES NATIONAL Ltd. 23 March, 1967 [1 April, 1966; 17 March, 1967], Nos. 14428/66 and 12509/67. Heading F2A. In an internal combustion engine having means for circulating lubricant while the engine is stationary and having at least one inverted piston, means are provided for extracting lubricant from said inverted piston when the latter is at rest. In an embodiment, a pipe 14, Fig. 3, is positioned so that the lower end thereof is at all times below the top of a skirt of an inverted piston 10a. A suction-pipe 16 of an ejector 15 is connected to the pipe 14 so that, when the ejector is in operation, lubricant is sucked from within the inverted piston 10a. In a general arrangement for the lubricating system of a multi-cylinder opposed piston internal combustion engine, an upper crankshaft 18, Fig. 4, is lubricated by means of a pump 17a which is driven by an electric motor 19a. A control-pump 20 is coupled to the upper crank-shaft 18 and is connected by means of a pipe 20a to a bobbin-valve 21, the pump 20 forcing the valve 21 against a spring 22 and allowing the pump 17a to supply lubricant to the upper crank-shaft 18. Similarly, a lower crankshaft (not shown) is supplied with lubricant from a pump 17b, driven by an electric motor 19b, being connected by means of the valve 21 and a pipe 21a. When the engine stops, the pump 20 no longer forces the valve against the spring 22 and the latter moves the valve so as to connect the pump 17a to the pipes 21a and 21b; thus lubricant continues to be supplied to the upper and lower crank-shafts for a limited period of time controlled by a delay switch (not shown). At the same time the pump 17b supplies ejectors 23 which suck out the lubricant from inverted pistons 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d. In a modified arrangement, the pump 20 and valve 21 are omitted; a pump 17b, Fig. 7, supplies pipes 21a and 21b; a pump 17a supplies a pipe 21c which connects to ejectors 23; and a time switch is provided for motor 19a. In another arrangement, a manifold 17c, Fig. 8, connects pipes 21a, 21b to a pump 17b; and connects to a change-over valve 17d by means of a pipe 17e. The change-over valve 17d is connected by a pipe 20a to a control-pump 20 and is connected by a pipe 21c to ejectors 23. In operation, when the pump 20 holds the valve 17d in position, a pump 17a supplies lubricant to the manifold 17c and the pump 17b also supplies lubricant to the manifold 17c. Thus both upper and lower crank-shafts are supplied by the pumps 17a and 17b. When the engine stops, the valve moves to its change-over position and connects the pump 17a to the ejectors 23 so as to extract the lubricant from inverted pistons 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d; at the same time the pump 17b supplies lubricant to both upper and lower crank-shafts via the manifold 17c and pipes 21b, 21a.