Variable compression ratio connecting rod for internal combustion engine
AssigneeFord Global Technologies, LLC
InventorJoshua P. Styron
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A variable compression ratio connecting rod for an internal combustion engine includes a large end adapted for attachment to a crankshaft and a small end adapted for attachment to a piston. An adjustable four-bar link system extends between and links the large end and the small end so as to permit the length of the connecting rod to be adjusted through the action of an adjustable toggle link and an eccentric which is driven by inertia forces acting upon the connecting rod.
Claims15
A variable compression ratio connecting rod for
- an internal combustion engine, comprising:
- a large end adapted for attachment to a crankshaft;
- a small end adapted for attachment to a piston;
- and
- an adjustable four-bar system extending between and linking said large end and said small end, so as to permit the length of said connecting rod to be adjusted, wherein said four-bar system comprises a primary link extending between said large end and said small end, with said primary link being pivotably attached to said large end, and an adjustable toggle link having a first end pivotably attached to said primary link and a second end pivotably attached to an eccentric journaled within said large end, such that the rotational position of said eccentric determines the length of said connecting rod.
A method for adjusting the length of a variable compression ratio internal combustion engine connecting rod having a small end or attachment to a piston and a large end for attachment to a crankshaft, with a primary link extending between said small end and said large end, with said method comprising the steps of:
- determining a desired compression ratio state for the connecting rod;
- detecting the contemporaneous compression ratio state of the connecting rod, and
- in the event that the detected state is not the desired state, unlocking a latch positioned between said large end and an adjustable toggle link extending between said primary link and an eccentric journaled to said large end, so as to allow inertia forces acting upon the connecting rod to cause the toggle link to change the rotational position of said eccentric, so as to cause the rotational position of the primary link with respect to the large end to change, thereby changing the effective length of the connecting rod;
- and
- re-locking said latch so as to maintain said connecting rod at the adjusted length.
A variable compression ratio connecting rod for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
- a large end adapted for attachment to a crankshaft;
- a small end adapted for attachment to a piston by a wrist pin;
- and
- an adjustable four-bar system extending between the linking said large end and said small end, so as to permit the length of said connecting rod to be adjusted, wherein said four-bar system comprises a fixed length primary link extending between said large end and said small end, with said primary link being pivotably attached to said large end, and an adjustable toggle link having a first end pivotably attached to said primary link and a second end pivotably attached to an eccentric journaled within said large end, such that the rotational position of said eccentric and the resulting position of said toggle link determine the rotational position of said primary link with respect to said large end, so as to determine the length of said connecting rod.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.