US 9,624,825 B1Granted

Orbital non-reciprocating internal combustion engine

OwnerJames Lockshaw, Joseph Gerondaleinventors

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Abstract

A combustible fluid-operated orbital engine having sets of cooperating cylinder and piston members with respective parallel axes of rotation. Respective cylinder and piston carrier wheels with respective axes of rotation parallel to the piston/cylinder axes of rotation carrying the pistons/cylinders orbitally and at all times in opposed relation on a common longitudinal axis along intersecting counter paths. Redundant belts/sprockets supported by the cylinder and piston carrier wheels rotate the pistons/cylinders counter to their circular motion direction to maintain their opposed relation for their periodic interfittment when their respective paths intersect. A combustible fluid supply is provided to the cylinder member for combustion coincident with the periodic interfittment. An air supply is provided to the cylinder member for purging exhaust gases and/or supercharging combustion gases. A sealing system that includes a non-metallic flexible seal is located either proximate the entry of each cylinder or proximate an end portion of each piston.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A combustible fluid-operated orbital engine, comprising:

one or more cylinders in which each cylinder has a longitudinal axis and is carried on a pair of rotating cylinder carrier wheels for orbital motion, the one or more cylinders are capable of receiving a combustible fluid therein, the pair of rotating cylinder carrier wheels being rotatable about an axle along an first axis of rotation;
one or more corresponding pistons carried on a pair of counter-rotating piston carrier wheels for opposite orbital motion, the pair of counter-rotating piston carrier wheels being rotatable about an axle along a second axis of rotation parallel to the first axis of rotation, each of the one or more pistons having a cooperating cylinder and having throughout its movement the same longitudinal axis as its cooperating cylinder to oppose and sequentially enter and completely withdraw from its cooperating cylinder on the same longitudinal axis;
a first belt which mechanically links a first one of the pair of rotating cylinder carrier wheels to a first one of the pair of counter-rotating piston carrier wheels such that the first one of the pair of rotating cylinder carrier wheels rotates in a first direction when the first one of the pair of counter-rotating piston carrier wheels rotates in a second direction opposite the first direction;
and
a second belt which mechanically links a second one of the pair of rotating cylinder carrier wheels to a second one of the pair of counter-rotating piston carrier wheels such that the second one of the pair of rotating cylinder carrier wheels rotates in the first direction when the second one of the pair of counter-rotating piston carrier wheels rotates in the second direction opposite the first direction.

2 more elements

A method of operating a combustible fluid-operated orbital engine, comprising:

disposing plural sets of cooperating cylinder and piston members having respective parallel axes of rotation at all times in opposed relation on a common longitudinal axis;
supporting the cylinder members on a pair of cylinder carrier wheels;
supporting the piston members on a pair of piston carrier wheels;
mechanically linking a first one of the pair of cylinder carrier wheels to a first one of the pair of piston carrier wheels by a first belt such that the first one of the pair of cylinder carrier wheels rotates in a first direction when the first one of the pair of piston carrier wheels rotates in a second direction opposite the first direction;
mechanically linking a second one of the pair of cylinder carrier wheels to a second one of the pair of piston carrier wheels by a second belt such that the second one of the pair of rotating cylinder carrier wheels rotates in the first direction when the second one of the pair of counter-rotating piston carrier wheels rotates in the second direction opposite the first direction;
rotating the pair of cylinder carrier wheels and the pair of piston carrier wheels circularly along intersecting counter paths about axes of rotation parallel to the members' axes of rotation while simultaneously rotating the members counter to their circular motion in orbital relation sufficiently to maintain their disposition on the common longitudinal axis, wherein the rotating causes periodically interfittment of each set of cooperating cylinder and piston members where their respective paths intersect;
and
supplying a combustible fluid in the cylinder member for detonation responsive to the members' interfittment in engine operating relation.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/957,256Filed 2 Dec 2015
Granted: 18 Apr 2017
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification14 codes

F02B 57/02
Internal-combustion aspects of rotary engines in which the combusted gases displace one or more reciprocating pistons: fuel or combustion-air supply
F01B 15/02
Reciprocating-piston machines or engines with movable cylinders other than provided for in group F01B13/00: with reciprocating cylinders
F01P 1/02
Air cooling: arrangements for cooling cylinders or cylinder heads, e.g. ducting cooling-air from its pressure source to cylinders or along cylinders
F01P 1/04
Air cooling: arrangements for cooling pistons