WO2003087556A1

WO2003087556A1 - Internal-combustion engine

Info

Publication number: WO2003087556A1
Application number: PCT/BR2002/000116
Authority: WO
Inventors: Casimiro Moisés RODRIGUES
Original assignee: Rodrigues Casimiro Moises
Priority date: 2002-04-09
Filing date: 2002-08-15
Publication date: 2003-10-23
Also published as: AU2002331470A1; BR8200691U

Abstract

Patent Model of Utility for an internal-combustion engine comprising an engine block with combustion chamber(s) (1) inside cylinder(s) (2), where the piston(s) (3) moves/move alternately, impelled by combustion gases and the transference of movement and the force to power outlet shaft (7) of the engine is performed through the set of rack(s) (10) and free wheel(s) (6) assembled in stem(s) (5) with movement identical to that o piston(s) both in direction and way, positioned in parallel or in the cylinder axial shaft, thereby providing the full improvement of the force applied to the top of piston through cylinder gas pressure directly from the piston axial shaft, from where it is transmitted to the power outlet shaft through the free wheel(s), which receives/ receive the force tangentially to its/their circumference, thereby converting it into maximum torque without significant angular losses.

Description

"INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE"

The present utility model patent has as object a model of an internal-combustion engine for general use in industrial, agricultural, automotive, power generating, pumping and/or pressurization applications; to which an original construction has been aiming at the reduction of internal power losses derived from stresses in bearings and frictional forces in general, thereby enabling an increased mechanical effectiveness and a lower environment heating.

Internal -combustion engines with a 2- or 4-stroke cycles piston, driven by fossil and/or renewable fuels are already known, whose conversion of the reciprocating motion of pistons into rotary motion is performed by a set of spindle (crankshaft) and cranks (piston rods) .

Regardless of the wide use of such types of engine, some shortcomings may be attributed to them, such as internal power losses caused by bearing reaction and piston friction generating against cylinders, of cranks regarding pistons and cranks regarding their bearings at the crankshafts, derived from the angular motion of cranks, submitted to full motive power, which reduces the system mechanical output in a significant manner. Another problem is the heating caused by such losses obliging the use of high capacity cooling systems which, if in the one hand represent a significant percentage in production and maintenance costs, in the other they reduce mechanical output and add weight to the engine, which is the most significant drawback in vehicle applications.

In view of such problems, and aiming to minimize them, the arrangement in an internal- combustion engine, object of the present patent, has been developed, in which the improvement of force applied to top of piston by cylinder gas pressure is performed through a stem built-in to the piston, responsible for the transfer of movement and power tangentially to the engine's power outlet shaft, thereby discharging the use of a set of crank and spindle for such a purpose, A set of crank (s) and spindle can be used, however with utility limited to accessory functions, such as management of injection, ignition, valve control, motor start and balancing systems.

With the intent to convert the reciprocating motion of piston and stem into rotary unidirectional motion, the connection of stem with the engine's power outlet shaft is performed though a system of rack and free wheel, which can be located either internally or externally to the engine block, between the piston and the crank or in an opposite position to the spindle; or even parallel to piston axial shaft. Stem and rack motion is identical in both direction and way towards piston motion, to which the stem is solidly fixed, and the stem/piston set can be machined in a sole piece.

Such a way of constructing the engine object of the present patent reduces in a significant manner dynamic losses in crank bearings, piston pin and crankshaft bearing, since the power transmission in these elements of the present engine is reduced to that required to operation of accessory systems, reducing losses in the proportion of the power spent in the functioning of such systems .

Engine's lubrication needs are reduced, as the pistons are not submitted to side stresses and no sliding occurs among mobile parts submitted to high stresses, such as fixed and mobile bearings of the traditional spindle.

Internal -combustion engine, object of the present patent, operates in the same manner as traditional engines, concerning to gas dynamics, and it can be equipped with equipment similar to that of traditional engines as to feeding (compressors, blowers, turbochargers , carburetors, injectors, special valve control, etc.), ignition, exhaustion, lubricating and cooling, however their mobile parts operates as shown below. Attached drawings show the arrangement and functioning of the internal-combustion engine, object of the present invention, where: figure 1 shows schematically the arrangement of components where the rack is positioned between the piston and the crank; figure 2 shows the same assembly as presented in figure 1, however in a 90 degree side cross-section; figure 3 shows an assembly where the rack is positioned opposite the spindle shaft; figure 4 shows a particular arrangement of figure 3, where stem and crank constitute a sole piece; figure 5 shows the laterally-assembled rack, so as to transmit force to the power outlet shaft, parallel to the piston axial movement shaft; figures 6, 7 and 8 show a particular arrangement of the internal-combustion engine, object of the present patent, where the use of crank and spindle is discharged. Figure 6 presents the plant cross- section, figure 7 the side cross-section in the plan of the cylinder axial shaft and figure 8 shows the side cross-section in the plan of power outlet shaft gearing; and figure 9 shows another arrangement free of cranks and spindle, where the cylinders are arranged in line.

As illustrated in above- mentioned figures, the model of internal-combustion engine, object of the present patent, consists of an engine block, comprising a combustion chamber 1 inside a cylinder 2 where the piston 3 moves jointly the stem 5. Such a stem-piston set slides vertically supported in the upper guide 4 and bottom guide 9. The rack 10, joint to the stem, transmits the piston motion tangentially to the free wheel outside ring 6 which, when in a counterclockwise rotation, connects with the free wheel inner ring 8, disconnecting when in clockwise rotation, that is, when the stem-piston set moves in ascending direction. In the expansion cycle, that is, when the stem-piston set moves in descendent direction, the free wheel connects, thereby transmitting its movement to the power outlet shaft 7, which rotates counterclockwise. In the bottom part of the stem, the crank pin 11 is fixed, where the force applied decomposes angularly at the crank 12, thereby allowing its axial component to be transferred to the mobile bearing 15, where the same component is decomposed again, generating a component tangential to spindle rotation 13, which transmits its movement to the auxiliary shaft 14, responsible for the control of ignition, injection, valve, etc.

Through the auxiliary shaft, startup is also enabled, upon a startup system fixed with the secondary flywheel (16 - figure 2) . Engine flywheel (17 - figure 2) , installed in the power outlet shaft, assures regularity of motion in the engine outlet shaft.

Engine performance has different characteristics according to the functioning cycle adopted. Thus, in 2 -stroke Otto or

Diesel cycles, with the engine submitted to a constant load, in starting expansion-exhaustion cycle with free wheel disconnected, the piston is submitted to a high initial acceleration until the speed balance of free wheel inside and outside rings. Then, an intermediate period of an almost null acceleration and effective work occurs in the power outlet shaft. At completion of the cycle, when the exhaustion occurs, there is no work performed in the power outlet shaft and, in contrast, free wheel uncoupling occurs, due to piston deceleration provided by inertia of piston- stem-crank- spindle set and the secondary flywheel which, in constant angular speed, causes a reduction in the linear speed of the piston.

Likewise a traditional engine, during the whole suction/compression cycle piston speed varies in a sinusoidal manner, as its movement is governed by the spindle and secondary flywheel . In 4-stroke cycles, either

Diesel or Otto, with loaded engine, the same sinusoidal behavior is noted in the suction, compression and exhaustion cycles. In expansion cycle, piston behavior is identical to the 2-stroke cycle, that is, a great acceleration followed by the free wheel coupling with movement in constant speed and free wheel uncoupling together with the speed sinusoidal decreasing.

Above-described behavior refers to single-cylinder engines. In multi-cylinder engines, the occurrence of expansion cycle together with another cycle in another cylinder causes the exhaustion cycle typical behavior to the entire set connected with the spindle.

It should be noted that the work in the power outlet shaft provided by the almost full transmission of force generated by gas expansion, produces a work which is quite higher than that generated in the power outlet shaft of traditional engines, whose work in the shaft is a function of the angle cosine product between the cylinder shaft and crank shaft, multiplied by the spindle rotating angle sine regarding the top dead center, resulting in a value which is quite lower than that of the work provided by the gas expansion to the piston. Figures 3 and 4 show examples for assembly of the internal-combustion engine, object of the present patent, where the rack 10 is positioned opposite to the spindle shaft 13. In figure 4, the crank 12 and the stem 5 compose a sole part 18 in which crank bottom eye comprises a cursor 19, where the spindle 15 mobile bearing 13 moves, thereby preventing the piston-crank-stem set from side and allowing it to have a reciprocating vertical motion directed by both cylinder 2 and the guides (4 and 9) .

Figure 5 shows the rack 10 positioned so as to transmit force in parallel to the piston axial-movement shaft.

Figures 6 , 7 and 8 show an arrangement of opposite-cylinder engine, where the continuity of reciprocating motion is provided by the alternated occurrence of the expansion cycle among cylinders, eliminating the use of cranks and spindle set. In such a configuration, pistons have free movement, making the ignition to be spontaneous, caused by heating of gases derived from its compression. The free movement of pistons prevents the occurrence of damages derived from self- ignition and converts it into a better improvement of the mixture which is compressed until the ignition occurs in a spontaneous manner, thereby producing an increased work without prejudice of accentuated wear in the bearings, as it occurs in traditional engines when submitted to high compression rates. Moreover, the free movement of pistons allows the use of fuels with varied octane rating (multi- fuel engine) without any change in engine geometry. Obviously, the number of cylinders depends on the cycle (two or four strokes) , where the 2-stroke cycle requires the assembly of sets of two opposite cylinders and the 4-stroke cycle requires sets of four cylinders, opposite on a two by two arrangement .

The example shown in figures 6, 7 and 8 shows an assembly for the two-stroke cycle, normally sucked in, whose construction, as in happens with traditional engines, needs bottom chambers 21, one for each cylinder, aiming to assure admission gas flow. In this assembly, such bottom chambers are separated from the crankcase 20, where the sets of gears, rack and free wheel are housed.

Figure 8 shows a gear arrangement applicable to assembly demonstrated in figures 6 and 7, where the movement of free wheel internal rings is transmitted alternately and respectively to the upper intermediate gear 23 and to the bottom intermediate gear 24, which, also rotating clockwise, transfer their movement to the power outlet shaft gear 22, responsible for power outlet shaft, counterclockwise movement.

Figure 9 presents the same free piston concept contained in figures 6, 7 and 8, however in line and coordinated by gears connected to stem racks.

Auxiliary control systems

(ignition, injection, etc.), in assembly without crank and spindle set, can be governed either directly or indirectly by the stem movement, through cams, trigger system, electromechanical, optical, electronic or mixed systems.

Obviously, the internal- combustion engine, object of the present patent, can be obtained in several sizes and configurations (in line, "V"-, "W"-shaped, radial, opposite cylinders, etc.) as well as traditional internal-combustion engines.

Claims

CLAIM

1. "INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE" comprising an engine block with combustion chamber (s) (1) inside cylinder(s) (2), where the piston(s) (3) moves/move alternately, impelled by combustion gases; characterized by the construction geometry, where the transference of movement and the force to the power outlet shaft (7) of the engine is performed through a set of rack(s) (10) and free wheel (s) (6) assembled in stem(s) (5) with movement identical to that of piston (s) both in direction and way, positioned in parallel or in the cylinder (s) axial shaft (s), which provides the almost full improvement of forces applied to the top of piston through cylinder gas pressure directly from the piston axial shaft, from where it is transmitted to the free wheel (s), which receives/receive the force tangentially to its/their circumference, thereby converting it into maximum torque without significant angular losses.