Rotary vane machine with roller seals for the vanes

In a vane type rotory engine having a plurality of rotatable vanes supported at one end within a hollow rotor and extending through openings in the rotor wall to make sliding contact with the inside of a housing, a vane seal comprising:

• a pair of slots formed in the rotor wall on opposite sides of each opening through which a vane extends;
• a roller disposed in each slot;
• a passage extending from each slot, behind the contained roller, to the outside surface of said rotor;
• and,
• check valve means formed in said passage.

A rotory engine comprising:

• a housing;
• a stationary shaft supported within said housing;
• a plurality of vanes rotatably connected to said stationary shaft and extending in close proximity to the inside of said housing;
• said vanes having a taper from their connection end to their free end;
• a hollow cylindrical rotatable member disposed around said stationary shaft and positioned off center therefrom with a plurality of openings formed therein through which said plurality of vanes extend;
• a pair of slotted openings formed in the wall of said hollow cylindrical rotatable member on opposite sides of each opening;
• a roller disposed in each slotted opening and fitting within the associated opening with a close tolerance;
• biasing means for biasing each roll into contact with the associated vane to seal the outside of said hollow cylindrical rotatable member from the inside;
• and,
• a passage formed in each slotted opening, behind the associated roller, extending to the outside of said hollow cylindrical rotatable member.

A rotary engine comprising:

• a housing;
• a stationary shaft supported within said housing;
• a plurality of vanes rotatably connected to said stationary shaft and extending in close proximity to the inside of said housing;
• a hollow cylindrical rotatable member disposed around said stationary shaft and positioned off center therefrom with a plurality of openings formed therein through which said plurality of vanes extend;
• a pair of slotted openings formed in the wall of said hollow cylindrical rotatable member on opposite sides of each opening;
• a roller disposed in each slotted opening;
• biasing means for biasing each roll into contact with the associated vane to seal the outside of said hollow cylindrical rotatable member from the inside;
• a passage formed in each slotted opening, behind the associated roller, extending to the outside of said hollow cylindrical rotatable member;
• and,
• a check valve connected in said passage to restrict fluid flow from said slotted opening to the outside of said hollow cylindrical member.