HCCI rotary engine with variable compression ratio control

A rotary engine that regulates compression ratio by varying combustion chamber volume, the rotary engine having a rotor piston within a stator that contains a piston chamber, the rotor piston rotatable about a stator axis within the piston chamber in an operating direction and having one or more lobe ends in slidable contact with an interior stator surface, the stator having defined therein one or more combustion chamber throughways equally spaced about the stator and communicating the piston chamber with an environment exterior to the stator, each combustion chamber throughway having first and second interior throughway walls, the rotary engine comprising:

• within each of the one or more combustion chamber throughways,
• an expansion gate slidably received within the respective throughway and slidably engaged with and adjacent to said first interior throughway wall, said expansion gate having an expansion gate piston-facing surface oriented toward the piston chamber,
• a combustion gate slidably engaged with and adjacent to the expansion gate, the combustion gate disposed adjacent the expansion gate in the operating direction and having a combustion gate piston-facing surface oriented toward the piston chamber, and
• a compression gate slidably engaged with and adjacent to both the combustion gate and said second interior throughway wall, the compression gate disposed adjacent the combustion gate in the operating direction and having a compression gate piston-facing surface oriented toward the piston chamber,
• each of said expansion, combustion and compression gates slidable longitudinally within the respective combustion chamber throughway, and each of said expansion and compression gates including a distally arranged roller bearing adjacent its piston-facing surface,
• wherein said stator and said respective expansion, combustion and compression gates include passages for the supply of lubricating fluid,
• and wherein rotation of the rotor piston, to a position where a respective one of said one or more lobe ends aligns with the combustion gate piston-facing surface of a respective one of said one or more combustion gates, forms a combustion chamber defined at least by a portion of interior walls of said respective expansion and compression gates, the combustion gate piston-facing surface of said respective combustion gate, a portion of the first and second throughway walls of said respective combustion chamber throughway, and said respective lobe end.

A rotary engine that regulates compression ratio by varying combustion chamber volume, the rotary engine having a rotor piston within a stator that contains a piston chamber, the rotor piston rotatable about a stator axis within the piston chamber in an operating direction and having one or more lobe ends in slidable contact with an interior stator surface, the stator having defined therein one or more combustion chamber throughways equally spaced about the stator and communicating the piston chamber with an environment exterior to the stator, each combustion chamber throughway having first and second interior throughway walls, the rotary engine comprising:

• within each of the one or more combustion chamber throughways,
• an expansion gate slidably received within the respective throughway and slidably engaged with and adjacent to said first interior throughway wall,
• a combustion gate slidably engaged with and adjacent to the expansion gate, the combustion gate disposed adjacent the expansion gate in the operating direction and having a combustion gate piston-facing surface oriented toward the piston chamber,
• a compression gate slidably engaged with and adjacent to both the combustion gate and said second interior throughway wall, the compression gate disposed adjacent the combustion gate in the operating direction, and
• an energy transfer mechanism to transfer kinetic energy from said compression gate to said expansion gate,
• each of said expansion, combustion and compression gates slidable longitudinally within said respective combustion chamber throughway,
• wherein each said expansion gate and compression gate of each of said one or more combustion chamber throughways moves synchronously with the rotation of the rotor piston,
• and wherein rotation of the rotor piston, to a position where a respective one of said one or more lobe ends aligns with the combustion gate piston-facing surface of a respective one of said one or more combustion gates, forms a combustion chamber defined at least by a portion of interior walls of said respective expansion and compression gates, the combustion gate piston-facing surface of said respective combustion gate, a portion of the first and second throughway walls of said respective combustion chamber throughway, and said respective lobe end.