A high pressure, common rail, fuel injection system for injecting metered amounts of highly pressurized fuel into the cylinder of a diesel engine, comprising:
- a first body adapted to receive fuel from a source;
- a rotatable camshaft supported in the first body so as to be rotatable about an axis, and having a pair of cam lobes including a first cam lobe and a second cam lobe disposed 180 degrees apart and adapted to rotate in an annular path about the axis of rotation of the camshaft;
- at least one pair of reciprocating pumping elements mounted in the first body perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the camshaft, each of said pumping elements including an elongated plunger having an axial passage, including a first end and a second end, the first end being connected to a source of liquid fuel, a structure slideably mounted on the plunger so as to form an expandable chamber at the second end of the axial passage, and being movable either to enlarge or reduce the volume of the chamber depending upon the direction of relative motion of said structure and said plunger, tappet means connecting the camshaft to said structure such that as said chamber is being enlarged in volume, fuel is received therein, and as said chamber is being reduced in volume, fuel is discharged therefrom;
- means for fluidly connecting the pumping elements to common rail means for passing fuel under pressure thereto in response to rotation of said camshaft;
- the common rail means including a second body having a longitudinal central chamber adapted to receive fuel under pressure from said first body and one or more side chambers adapted to discharge fuel under pressure;
- cross-drilled passage means connecting said central chamber with said side chambers to eliminate the pumping stroke effect and the wave reflection effect in fuel under pressure and to provide a constant pressure and fuel distribution in fuel discharged from said side chambers;
- means for fluidly connecting the common rail means to fuel injection means for passing fuel under pressure thereto in response to rotation of said camshaft;
- the fuel injection means including an injector body having an upper portion and a lower portion, and having an internal passage means with a first end in said upper portion for receiving pressurized fuel and a second end in said lower portion for passing pressurized fuel from the passage;
- a solenoid-actuated first valve slideably mounted at the first end of said passage means having a pressure balanced annulus openable between a solenoid-energized position in which high pressure fuel is delivered through said annulus to said passage means, and a solenoid de-energized position in which high pressure fuel is blocked by said annulus from passing to said passage means;
- a needle valve movable in the injector body to control the flow of pressurized fuel through the second end of said passage means, said needle valve being movable in a first direction toward an open position for passing pressurized fuel through the second end of said passage means when said solenoid-actuated valve is in said solenoid-energized position, and an opposite, second direction toward a closed position for blocking pressurized fuel from passing through the second end of said passage means when said solenoid-actuated valve is in said solenoid de-energized position;
- a spring cage forming a seat for said needle valve in the injector body adjacent the second end of said passage and biasing said needle valve in said second direction in fluid communication with said passage means, and having an upper balancing chamber and a lower balancing chamber, and a first sized orifice therebetween;
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- an adjustable pressure balanced second valve slideably mounted on said lower portion of said injector body and having means openable to open said second valve when said solenoid-actuated valve is in said solenoid de-energized position to communicate pressurized fuel into said spring cage to aid the spring cage in biasing said needle valve in said second direction to a closed position to thereby obtain a sharp end of injection;
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- a second sized orifice in said lower balancing chamber in fluid communication with means to maintain a residual fuel pressure within said spring cage when said solenoid-actuating valve is in said solenoid de-energized position to thereby slow the movement of said needle valve in said first direction toward an open position when said solenoid-actuated valve is next in said solenoid-energized position.