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US 11,408,329 B2Granted
Engine turbulent jet ignition system
AssigneeBoard of Trustees of Michigan State University
InventorsHarold J. Schock, Thomas R. Stuecken
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An engine system employs a pre-assembled and/or removable cartridge. In another aspect, an ignitor, a fuel injector and an air inlet valve are all accessible from a top of a cartridge even after assembly of the cartridge to an engine cylinder head. A further aspect positions centerlines of an ignitor, a fuel injector and an air inlet valve angularly offset from each other and also angularly offset from a vertical centerline of a cartridge to which they are mounted.
Claims25
An engine ignition system comprising:
- (a) an engine cylinder head including an upwardly facing surface and a receptacle configured to be accessible to a piston cylinder;
- (b) a preassembled cartridge comprising:
- (i) a body including openings therein;
- (ii) a pre-chamber coupled to a bottom portion of the body, the pre-chamber including a pre-combustion cavity and at least one combustion exit aperture configured to be accessible to the piston cylinder;
- (iii) an ignitor located in a first of the body openings, the ignitor having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in or adjacent to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (iv) a fuel injector located in a second of the body openings, the fuel injector having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in or adjacent to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (v) an air inlet valve located in a third of the body openings, the air inlet valve having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in or adjacent to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (vi) the centerlines of the ignitor, the fuel injector and the air inlet valve being angularly offset from each other and being angularly offset from a vertical centerline of the body and the pre-chamber;
- (vii) the ignitor, the fuel injector and the air inlet valve being secured within their respective body openings and being accessible, from a top of the body;
- (c) a fastener removably securing at least a portion of the cartridge within the receptacle of the engine cylinder head, and the fastener being removably fastened to the upwardly facing surface of the engine cylinder head.
7 more elements
An engine ignition system comprising:
- (a) a preassembled cartridge comprising:
- (i) a body including openings therein;
- (ii) a pre-chamber coupled to a bottom portion of the body, the pre-chamber including at least one combustion exit aperture configured to be accessible to a piston cylinder;
- (iii) an ignitor located in a first of the body openings, the ignitor having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in the pre-chamber;
- (iv) a fuel injector located in a second of the body openings, the fuel injector having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in the pre-chamber;
- (v) an air inlet valve located in a third of the body openings, the air inlet valve having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in the pre-chamber;
- (vi) the centerlines of the ignitor, the fuel injector and the air inlet valve being angularly offset from each other and being angularly offset from a vertical centerline of the body and the pre-chamber;
- (vii) the ignitor, the fuel injector and the air inlet valve being secured within their respective body openings and being accessible from a top of the body;
- (b) a fastener configured to removably secure at least a portion of the cartridge to an upwardly facing surface of an engine cylinder head;
- (c) an incoming air conduit connected to the cartridge body, the cartridge body including multiple straight air passageways connected to the third opening of the body to be controlled by the air inlet valve, at least two of the straight air passageways being offset angled from each other at their intersection located internal to the body between the air conduit and the third opening of the body;
- and
- (d) a heater coupled to the air conduit.
9 more elements
An engine ignition system comprising a cartridge comprising:
- (a) a body including openings therein;
- (b) a pre-chamber coupled to a bottom portion of the body, the pre-chamber including a pre-combustion cavity and at least one combustion exit aperture;
- (c) an ignitor located in a first of the body openings, the ignitor having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in or adjacent to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (d) a fuel injector located in a second of the body openings, the fuel injector having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in or adjacent to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (e) an air inlet valve located in a third of the body openings, the air inlet valve having a longitudinal centerline and a distal end in or adjacent to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (f) the ignitor, the fuel injector and the air inlet valve being secured within their respective openings and being accessible, from a top of the body;
- (g) a flange located adjacent an upper portion of the body above the pre-chamber, and including at least one fastener hole through the flange;
- and
- (h) the cartridge having a periphery with a substantially triangular top view shape and at least one curved peripheral section thereof.
6 more elements
An engine ignition system comprising a cartridge comprising:
- (a) a body including openings therein;
- (b) a pre-chamber coupled to the body, the pre-chamber including a cavity and at least one combustion exit aperture;
- (c) an ignitor located in a first of the body openings;
- (d) a fuel injector located in a second of the body openings;
- (e) an air inlet valve located in a third of the body openings;
- (f) a mounting flange projecting from the body;
- (g) the body of the cartridge having a largest longitudinal dimension greater than a largest longitudinal dimension of the pre-chamber;
- (h) a largest lateral dimension of the body being greater than a largest lateral dimension of the pre-chamber;
- and
- (i) a portion of the body adjacent to the flange being laterally enlarged further away from a longitudinal centerline of the pre-chamber as compared to an opposite side of the body.
7 more elements
An engine ignition system comprising a cartridge comprising:
- (a) a pre-chamber including a pre-combustion cavity, combustion exit apertures and a longitudinal centerline;
- (b) an ignitor located in the cartridge with a distal end accessible to the pre-combustion cavity, the ignitor being one of:
- a spark plug or glow plug;
- (c) a fuel injector located in the cartridge with a distal end accessible to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (d) an air inlet valve located in the cartridge with a distal end accessible to the pre-combustion cavity;
- and
- (e) an air flow path of at least one of the exit apertures of the pre-chamber being offset angled from the longitudinal centerline of the pre-chamber such that air flowing back from a piston cylinder causes swirling of the air within the pre-chamber to assist in evaporation of any of the fuel remaining therein a fuel combustion in the pre-chamber, the air flowing back being configured to occur when a piston upwardly strokes toward the pre-chamber such that some compressed combustion charge is forced back through the exit apertures.
4 more elements
An engine ignition system comprising a cartridge comprising:
- (a) a pre-chamber including a pre-combustion cavity, combustion exit apertures and a longitudinal centerline;
- (b) an ignitor located in the cartridge with a distal end accessible to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (c) a fuel injector located in the cartridge with a distal end accessible to the pre-combustion cavity;
- (d) an air inlet valve located in the cartridge with a distal end accessible to the pre-combustion cavity;
- and
- (e) an air flow path of at least one of the exit apertures of the pre-chamber being offset angled from the longitudinal centerline of the pre-chamber;
- (f) the air inlet valve is a purge valve including an actuator which is one of:
- (i) a hydraulic actuator, (ii) a pneumatic actuator, (iii) an actuator including an electric coil and a moving armature, or (iv) a piezo-electric actuator;
- (g) an upper portion of the actuator extending above the cartridge when assembled thereto;
- (h) an incoming air conduit externally connected to a same end of the cartridge body as the ignitor, the fuel injector and the air inlet valve;
- (i) heater coupled to the air conduit, the heater being external to the body of the cartridge;
- and
- (j) the ignitor, the fuel injector, the air inlet valve and the air conduit are preassembled to the cartridge prior to the cartridge being removably fastened to an engine cylinder head.
10 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.