# US 2014/0360446 A1 · Hybrid Vehicles with Radial Engines > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2014/0360446 A1 - Document ID: US20140360446A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 14/288,383 - Filed: 2014-05-27 - Published: 2014-12-11 - Earliest claimed: 2013-06-05 - Assignees: Thien Ton Consulting Services Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Thien Ton Consulting Services Company Limited - Inventors: Tai Dung Nguyen; Tue Nguyen; Donald James Duncalf - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140360446A1 ## CPC - F01B 9/06: the piston motion being transmitted by curved surfaces - B60K 6/24: characterised by the combustion engines - B60K 6/42: characterised by the architecture of the hybrid electric vehicle - F02B 75/22: with cylinders in V, fan, or star arrangement - F01B 2009/061: {by cams} - F02B 2275/36: Modified dwell of piston in TDC - Y02T 10/62: Hybrid vehicles - F01B: MACHINES OR ENGINES, IN GENERAL OR OF POSITIVE-DISPLACEMENT TYPE, e.g. STEAM ENGINES (of rotary-piston or oscillating-piston type F01C; of non-positive-displacement type F01D; internal-combustion engines F02B; combustion-product engine plants F02G; machines or engines, other than of positive-displacement type, for liquids F03B; positive-displacement engines driven by liquids F03C; wind motors F03D; positive-displacement machines for liquids F04B; rotary-piston, or oscillating-piston, positive-displacement machines for liquids F04C) - B60K: ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES - F02B: INTERNAL-COMBUSTION PISTON ENGINES; COMBUSTION ENGINES IN GENERAL (gas-turbine plants F02C; hot-gas or combustion-product positive-displacement engine plants F02G) - Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION ## Abstract A radial cam engine with an optimized cam configuration can provide improve performance over crankshaft internal combustion engines. The cam configuration can include a flat-top or flat bottom piston motion, multiple lobe cam configurations, matching piston force with torque/force ratio in combustion phase, asymmetry piston motions for improved power transfer during combustion phase, and/or offset piston and cam configurations. The radial cam engine can be used in vehicles, such as hybrid vehicles. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An engine comprising a piston, a cam coupled to a camshaft, wherein the cam is configured to provide a substantially flat-bottom piston motion. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the cam is configured to provide a substantially flat-top piston motion. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the substantially flat-bottom piston motion comprises an x3 or higher polynomial dependency. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the cam is configured to provide a symmetric piston motion. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the cam is configured to provide an asymmetric piston motion. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the cam is configured to provide a force profile of the piston that is substantially similar to a torque/force ratio profile of the camshaft at least in a first duration, wherein the first duration is between a top-dead-center position of the piston to an inflection point of the piston motion, ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the cam is configured to provide a force profile of the piston that is substantially zero at a top-dead-center position of the piston motion. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the cam is configured to provide a force profile of the piston that is substantially zero at an inflection point of the piston motion ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the engine is powered by natural gas. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) An engine as in claim 1 wherein the substantially flat-bottom portion of the piston motion is less than 30% of the full cycle of the piston motion. ### Claim 11 An engine comprising a piston, a cam coupled to a camshaft, wherein the piston is coupled to the cam to provide a piston motion with substantially no side force on the piston, wherein the cam comprises three or more lobes. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) An engine as in claim 11 wherein the cam is configured to provide a piston motion having an x3 or higher polynomial dependency. ### Claim 13 (depends on 11) An engine as in claim 11 wherein the cam is configured to provide a force profile of the piston that is substantially similar to a torque/force ratio profile of the camshaft at least in a first duration, wherein the first duration is between a top-dead-center position of the piston to an inflection point of the piston motion, ### Claim 14 (depends on 11) An engine as in claim 11 wherein the combustion phase of the radial cam engine is limited to a flat-top portion of the piston motion. ### Claim 15 (depends on 11) An engine as in claim 11 wherein the cam is configured to provide a bottom portion of the piston motion having less than 30% of the full cycle of the piston motion. ### Claim 16 An engine comprising a piston, a cam coupled to a camshaft, wherein the piston is coupled to the cam to provide a piston motion with substantially no side force on the piston, wherein a piston motion is offset from the rotational center of the cam. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) An engine as in claim 16 wherein the cam is configured to provide a piston motion having an x3 or higher polynomial dependency. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) An engine as in claim 16 wherein the cam is configured to provide a force profile of the piston that is substantially zero at a top-dead-center position of the piston motion. ### Claim 19 (depends on 16) An engine as in claim 16 wherein the cam is configured to provide a force profile of the piston that is substantially zero at an inflection point of the piston motion ### Claim 20 (depends on 16) An engine as in claim 16 wherein the cam is configured to provide a bottom portion of the piston motion having less than 30% of the full cycle of the piston motion.