Optimized high pressure internal combustion engines

An internal combustion engine comprising an engine housing including a cylinder with opposed pistons reciprocal in the cylinder, and at least one fuel injector for injecting fuel into the cylinder, the cylinder having:

• a central regional combustion chamber comprising a constricted portion of the cylinder with a central bore open to the opposed pistons for concentrating and mixing air compressed by the pistons and fuel injected by the injector,
• wherein the constricted portion of the cylinder is formed with a constriction collar having side faces, wherein the pistons each have a piston head with a top face portion that positions opposite and proximate one of the side faces when the pistons are at top dead center, wherein a squish of compressed air is forced from between the side face of the collar and the top face of the piston to improve turbulent mixing of fuel injected into the central regional combustion chamber, and wherein the cylinder has intake ports proximate the top face portion of the piston head of one of the pistons when that piston is at bottom dead center and the cylinder, has exhaust ports proximate the top face portion of the other piston when that piston is at bottom dead center, the cylinder, the intake ports, and the exhaust ports each having an effective cross sectional area, wherein the collar forms a central bore with a cross sectional area which is smaller than the effective cross sectional area of the cylinder and larger than the effective cross sectional area of the intake ports which in turn is larger than the cross sectional area of the exhaust ports.

An internal combustion engine comprising an engine housing including a cylinder with opposed pistons reciprocal in the cylinder, and at least one fuel injector for injecting fuel into the cylinder, the cylinder having:

• a central regional combustion chamber comprising a constricted portion of the cylinder with a central bore open to the opposed pistons for concentrating and mixing air compressed by the pistons and fuel injected by the injector,
• wherein the constricted portion of the cylinder is formed with a construction collar having side faces, wherein the pistons each have a piston head with a top face portion that positions opposite and proximate one of the side faces when the pistons are at top dead center, wherein a squish of compressed air is forced from between the side face of the collar and the top face of the piston to improve turbulent mixing of fuel injected into the central regional combustion chamber, wherein the internal combustion engine includes a first crank assembly connected to one of the opposed pistons and a second crank assembly connected to the other of the opposed pistons and the crank assemblies each have a cycle of operation with one cycle having a phase shift from the other cycle, wherein one piston has a top face portion that positions proximate the opposite side face of the constriction collar prior to the positioning of the top face portion of the other piston proximate to the other side face of the constriction collar wherein a sequential double squish of compressed air is forced from between the respective side faces of the collar and the top face portions of the pistons for further improved turbulent mixing of fuel injected into the central combustion chamber, and wherein the engine includes at least one additional fuel injector and means for sequentially injecting fuel into the central regional combustion chamber in timed coordination with the sequential double squish of compressed air in the cylinder with one fuel injector injecting fuel proximate the time of the first piston squish and with the other fuel injector injecting fuel proximate the time of the second piston squish.

An internal combustion engine comprising an engine housing including a cylinder with opposed pistons reciprocal in the cylinder, and at least one fuel injector for injecting fuel into the cylinder,

• a central regional combustion chamber comprising a constricted portion of the cylinder with a central bore open to the opposed pistons for concentrating and mixing air compressed, by the pistons and fuel injected by the injector, and comprising further a dual connecting rod assembly connected to each of the opposed pistons each connecting rod assembly having two connecting rods connected to counterrotating crank shafts, each connecting rod having a wrist pin which in a paired arrangement form dual, rolling contact, wrist pins engageable as a pair with each piston, wherein the pistons have a piston assembly including:
• an axially symmetrical piston head with a top face, a cylindrical side skirt and an internal, substantially spherical bearing surface;
• a bearing structure having a complimentary spherical bearing surface in part slidably engageable with the spherical bearing surface of the head and including an internal contact bearing thrust surface engaging side by side, dual wrist pins in rolling contact with one another, and having further, spaced bridge sections with a bearing surface seating end portions of the dual wrist pins;
• and,
• a cylindrical closing skirt connected to the piston head side skirt, with an internal bearing surface engageable with the spherical bearing surface of the bearing structure, wherein the bearing structure has limited articulation with reference to the piston head and the closing skirt, and, the connecting rod wrist pins are seated in mutual rolling contact within the bearing structure and are articulatable therein.

In an internal combustion engine having a piston cylinder, spaced first and second counter-rotating crank shafts, first and second connecting rods having first ends connected to the first and second crank shafts and second ends having dual cylindrical wrist pins connected thereto, an improved piston assembly reciprocal in the piston cylinder comprising:

• an axially symmetrical piston head having a top face, a cylindrical side skirt and an internal spherical bearing surface;
• a bearing structure having an upper spherical bearing surface in engagement with the spherical bearing surface of the piston head, a central bearing surface in engagement with the wrist pins arranged side by side in the bearing structure in mutual rolling contact with one another, and a lower spherical bearing surface;
• and,
• an axially symmetrical closing skirt having means for connecting the closing skirt to the piston head, the closing skirt having an outer cylindrical surface and an inner spherical bearing surface in engagement with the lower spherical bearing surface of the bearing structure, wherein the piston head and closing skirt are articulatable on the bearing structure and, in combination, are axially symmetrical for uniform deformation by thermal and structural stress.