Internal combustion engine with hydraulically-affected stroke

An internal combustion engine comprising:

• a cylinder block defining a cylinder;
• a crankshaft defining a crankpin, wherein the crankshaft is rotatably received by the cylinder block and rotates along a longitudinal axis, and the crankpin defines a longitudinal axis parallel to and offset by a distance with respect to the longitudinal axis along which the crankshaft rotates;
• a piston configured to reciprocate within the cylinder, the piston defining a longitudinal length between a proximal end and a distal end, and
• a connecting rod operably coupled to the piston and the crankpin, the connecting rod having a proximal aperture receiving the crankpin and a distal aperture operably coupled to the piston, the connecting rod defining a longitudinal length between a center of the proximal aperture and a center of the distal aperture,
• wherein the longitudinal length of at least one of the piston and the connecting rod is variable via hydraulic operation.

An internal combustion engine comprising:

• a cylinder block defining a cylinder;
• a crankshaft defining a crankpin, wherein the crankshaft is rotatably received by the cylinder block and rotates along a longitudinal axis, and the crankpin defines a longitudinal axis parallel to and offset by a distance with respect to the longitudinal axis along which the crankshaft rotates;
• a piston configured to reciprocate within the cylinder between spaced stroke termination points defining a stroke of the piston;
• and
• a connecting rod operably coupled to the piston and the crankpin,
• wherein a line extending between the longitudinal axis along which the crankshaft rotates and the longitudinal axis of the crankpin defines a radial axis of the crankshaft, and
• wherein the engine is configured such that as the crankshaft rotates, reversal of the direction of travel of the piston within the cylinder is delayed via hydraulic operation after the piston reaches at least one of the stroke termination points.

An internal combustion engine comprising:

• a cylinder block defining a cylinder;
• a crankshaft having a crankpin, wherein the crankshaft is rotatably received by the cylinder block and rotates along a longitudinal axis, and the crankpin defines a longitudinal axis parallel to and offset by a distance with respect to the longitudinal axis along which the crankshaft rotates;
• a piston configured to reciprocate within the cylinder;
• and
• a connecting rod operably coupled to the piston and the crankpin,
• wherein at least one of the piston and the connecting rod is configured such that a distance between a cross-sectional center of the crankpin and an upper surface of the piston is variable,
• wherein a line extending between the longitudinal axis along which the crankshaft rotates and the longitudinal axis of the crankpin defines a radial axis of the crankshaft, and
• wherein the engine is configured to selectively operate in two modes, comprising:
• a first mode, wherein the distance between the cross-sectional center of the crankpin and the upper surface of the piston is fixed regardless of a radial position of the radial axis of the crankshaft, and
• a second mode, wherein the distance between the cross-sectional center of the crankpin and the upper surface of the piston is varied based on the radial position of the radial axis of the crankshaft.

A connecting rod for an engine, the connecting rod comprising:

• a hydraulic cylinder comprising a piston portion and a cylinder portion,
• wherein at least one of the piston portion and the cylinder portion comprises a first aperture configured to couple the hydraulic cylinder to a crankshaft,
• wherein the other of the piston portion and the cylinder portion comprises a second aperture configured to couple the hydraulic cylinder to a piston, and
• wherein the hydraulic cylinder is configured to lengthen and shorten the connecting rod via operation of the hydraulic cylinder.