Rotary Wing Engine
AssigneeRotary Wing Engine, Inc.
InventorSimon E. Saba
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Embodiments relate to a rotary internal combustion engine with a sealing structure that enables a rotor and a plurality of wings within a housing to form a plurality of sealed chambers. The wings are connected to the rotor and can rotate about a first axis with reference to the rotor, and the rotor can rotate about a second axis with reference to the housing, the second axis parallel to the first axis. As the rotor rotates within the housing, the wings follow a predefined path, causing the sealed chambers to change in volume. In some embodiments, each sealed chamber undergoes the intake, compression, power, and exhaust cycles of a four stroke engine.
Claims20
A rotary internal combustion engine comprising:
- a housing extending longitudinally along a first axis, the housing comprising a cylindrical internal surface and formed with an intake port and an exhaust port;
- a rotor positioned inside the housing to rotate about the first axis, the rotor comprising a plurality of arms extending to the cylindrical internal surface;
- a plurality of wings, each of the wings attached to each of the arms to rotate with reference to the rotor along a second axis parallel to the first axis;
- and
- a plurality of sealing structures, each of the sealing structures mounted onto each of the wings, the sealing structure configured to isolate a first space between the cylindrical internal surface and each of the wings from a second space between each of the wings and the rotor, combustible gas received in the first space through the intake port for ignition, and exhaust gas discharged from the first space through the exhaust port.
A sealing structure comprising:
- a first member extending across a first length and having a first width shorter than the first length, the first member comprising:
- a first sub-member extending across the first length, a second sub-member extending across the first length in parallel to the first sub-member, and
- a first bridge connecting the first sub-member and the second sub-member, the bridge in conjunction with the second sub-member forming a cantilever structure to provide resilience to the first member in a direction of the width of the first member;
- and
- a second member intersecting with the first member to form an angle with respect to the first member, the second member having a second length and a second width shorter than the second length, the second member comprising:
- a third sub-member extending across the second length,
- a fourth sub-member extending across the second length in parallel to the third sub-member, and
- a second bridge connecting the third sub-member and the fourth sub-member, the second bridge in conjunction with the fourth sub-member forming a cantilever structure to provide resilience to the second member in a direction of the width of the second member.
A method of operating a rotary internal combustion engine, comprising:
- increasing a volume of a first space between a wing and an internal cylindrical surface of a housing to receive combustible gas in the first space by rotating a rotor about a first axis within a housing;
- decreasing a volume of a second space between the wing and the rotor by rotating the wing about a second axis parallel to the first axis with the first space isolated from the second space by a sealing structure;
- decreasing the volume of the first space to compress the received combustible gas;
- igniting the combustible gas received in the first space to exert force on the wing and form exhaust gas, responsive to decreasing the volume of the first space;
- increasing the volume of the first space responsive to igniting the combustible gas;
- decreasing the volume of the first space by rotating the wing about the second axis to discharge the exhaust gas from the first space, responsive to igniting the combustible gas;
- and
- increasing the volume of the second space by rotating the wing about the second axis with the first space isolated from the second space by the sealing structure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.