Injection nozzle

An injector for use in an internal combustion engine, wherein the injector includes

• an injection nozzle comprising:
• a nozzle body disposed about a longitudinal axis, said nozzle body defining a seating surface and having at least one first nozzle outlet;
• a valve member received within the nozzle body and being engageable with an external seating defined by the seating surface so as to control fuel injection through the at least one first nozzle outlet, the valve member being provided with a blind axial bore and defining a passage extending radially from the outer surface of the valve member to the bore;
• and
• an insert received within the bore, wherein said insert comprises a stem portion and a part-spherical head portion with a transition region therebetween, wherein said stem portion is completely contained within the bore, wherein the part-spherical head portion extends axially beyond an end of the valve member and spans an internal diameter of the bore so as to maintain contact with an internal surface of the bore as the valve member moves, in use, so as to guide movement of the valve member, and wherein the part-spherical head portion has a larger diameter than the stem portion, the transition region including a shoulder surface that defines an internal seating for the valve member adapted to selectively permit or obstruct flow of a fluid therebetween;
• and
• an actuator for controlling movement of the valve member, wherein the actuator is a piezoelectric actuator.

An injection nozzle for an internal combustion engine, the injection nozzle comprising:

• a nozzle body disposed about a longitudinal axis, said nozzle body defining a seating surface and having at least one first nozzle outlet;
• a valve member received within the nozzle body and being engageable with an external seating defined by the seating surface so as to control fuel injection through the at least one first nozzle outlet, the valve member being provided with a blind axial bore and defining a passage extending radially from the outer surface of the valve member to the bore;
• and
• an insert received within the bore and spanning an internal diameter of the bore so as to maintain contact with an internal surface of the bore as the valve member moves, in use, so as to guide movement of the valve member, wherein the insert includes a surface that defines an internal seating for the valve member, wherein the valve member includes an annular member that is received within the bore so as to be engageable with the internal seating to selectively permit or obstruct flow of a fluid therebetween, and wherein the external seating and the internal seating are positioned along the axis of the nozzle body at approximately the same axial position at least when the valve member is seated.