Stirling cycle heat engines
AssigneeUnited Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority
InventorErnest Franklin
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A Stirling cycle heat engine comprises hot and cold variable volume chambers intercommunicating through a regenerator. Various components flexibly mounted to provide the variable volume chambers are tuned to resonate with a relationship compatible with operation of the engine. In one embodiment the whole engine is flexibly mounted for bodily oscillation. In another embodiment a gas-displacer member and a gas-actuated member are disposed in a closed vessel of cylindrical form.
Claims22
A Stirling cycle heat engine comprising hot and cold variable volume chambers intercommunicating through a regenerator through which gas is displaced between the chambers in a reciprocating manner, a closed vessel of cylindrical form, a gas-displacer member and a gas-actuated member disposed in tandem and located independently of one another so as to be free of frictional sliding movement relative to each other and with at least one of said [chambers] members disposed within the vessel, resilient supports for flexibly supporting the members so that they are out of frictional contact with the vessel and arranged so that at least one of the members is supported radially by the resilient supports , the resilience of said supports permitting working movement of the members by oscillation towards and away from each other, one of the hot and cold chambers being formed between one of said members and the adjacent end of the vessel and the other of said hot and cold chambers being formed between adjacent parts of the two members, and means for converting oscillating movement of one of the members into useful work.
A Stirling cycle heat engine comprising a hot chamber at one end of the engine and a cold chamber at the other end of the engine, each of the hot and cold chambers being of variable volume, at least one regenerator disposed between and connected to the hot and cold chambers to provide intercommunication through which, in operation of the engine, gas is displaced between the chambers in a reciprocating manner, means for flexibly supporting the engine radially so that in operation it is free to oscillate bodily along an axis passing through the hot and cold chambers and tuning means for constraining operating components of the engine to resonate with a relationship compatible with operation of the engine.
A Stirling cycle heat engine comprising hot and cold variable volume chambers intercommunicating through at least one regenerator through which, in operation of the engine, gas is displaced between the chambers in a reciprocating manner, each of the chambers comprising relatively rigid structure joined by relatively flexible structure capable of repetitive deflection, and resilient coupling means for converting some of the output of the engine into a force which maintains reciprocating displacement of gas between the chambers.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.