Internal-combustion engines – Transmission mechanism from piston
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-26
2001-03-27
Kwon, John (Department: 3747)
Internal-combustion engines
Transmission mechanism from piston
C123S197400, C123S052100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06205972
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an engine generally and, more particularly, to a displacement engine using reciprocating pistons coupled to at least one crankshaft.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Internal combustion engines are used in a wide variety of applications relating to transportation, generation of electricity and other industrial applications. A chamber is generally filled with a combustible gas which is ignited causing a piston to move inside a cylinder in a direction outward from the direction of the ignition.
A connecting rod is generally used to transfer the energy from the piston to a crankshaft. The crankshaft is then used to perform work such as turning an electrical generator or driving the wheels of an automobile. As the crankshaft turns, the piston oscillates between two positions. As a result, the connecting rods generally move from side to side about the rotation of the driveshaft. This side to side motion causes stresses in the cylinder, the piston and between the piston rings and the cylinder wall.
To compensate for these stresses, previous approaches have extended the height of the piston in order to provide greater surface area contact between the piston and the cylinder wall. As a result, the side to side forces are reduced, but at the expense of greater friction and additional wear upon the piston rings.
Certain previous approach engines, such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,435,232, have shown a single piston connected to two or more connecting rods. However, such an arrangement does not provide the benefits of the present invention, such as reducing the side to side forces, reducing friction and reducing additional wear upon the piston rings. Other such previous approaches are generally limited to a single piston driving one or more connecting rods.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention concerns an internal combustion engine comprising an engine block having two opposed guide slots on an interior surface. The guide slots are typically parallel to the direction of movement of the engine pistons. At least one pair of cylinders may be formed in the engine block. The pistons may each be moving in a linear direction perpendicular to the inside of a respective one of the cylinder walls in response to energy forces in a respective chamber positioned at one end of each cylinder. A stabilizer (which may be formed as a single piece with the pistons) may have a main body portion. The main body portion may have two main body ends, connected to a lower portion of each piston, a guide rod portion having first and second guide rod ends, where each of the guide rod ends engages one of the guide slots in the housing, and a pair of gears. A respective one of the pair of gears may be connected to each end of the stabilizer and may be configured to engage each other. The guide rod portion and the gears maintain the linear direction of movement of said pistons. At least one pair of connecting arms may each be pivotally connected to a respective one of the first and second ends of the stabilizer. A first crankshaft may be connected to a first connecting arm of the pair of connecting arms. A second crankshaft may be connected to a second connecting arm of the pair of connecting arms. The first and second crankshafts transfer energy to one or more external devices.
Objects, features and advantages of the present invention include providing an internal combustion engine that may (i) reduce the wear on the piston rings, (ii) reduce the amount of area of a piston ring that needs to be in contact with the cylinder wall, (iii) provide a generally linear motion of the pistons in a direction parallel to the cylinder walls, (iv) drive two or more independently rotating crankshafts, (v) reduce the overall size of the engine, and/or (vi) increase the overall efficiency of the engine, improve the overall performance of the engine, and allow the engine to operate cleanly.
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Cypress Semiconductor Corp.
Kwon John
Maiorana P.C. Christopher P.
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