Power plants – Motor operated by expansion and/or contraction of a unit of... – Unit of mass is a gas which is heated or cooled in one of a...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-16
2001-08-07
Nguyen, Hoang (Department: 3748)
Power plants
Motor operated by expansion and/or contraction of a unit of...
Unit of mass is a gas which is heated or cooled in one of a...
C060S523000, C060S524000, C060S515000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06269639
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a heat engine.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The heat engine is an alternate engine to the internal combustion engine. Various designs for heat engines have been developed in the past. Despite its potential for greater thermodynamic efficiency compared to internal combustion engines, heat engines have been used in only limited applications in the past due to several factors including the complexity of the designs, the weight of the engine per unit of horse power output as well as the difficulty in starting a heat engine.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the instant invention, an improved design for a heat engine is disclosed. In one embodiment, the heat engine is made from lightweight sheet metal. By using a plurality of cylindrical containers, one nested inside the other for the displacer, the combustion and cooling chambers as well as to create an air flow path between the heating and cooling chambers, a rugged durable lightweight construction is achieved.
In another embodiment, the heat engine utilizes a power piston which is biased to a first position. By biasing the piston, several advantages are obtained. First, the heat engine may be self starting provided the power piston is biased so as to be initially positioned in the cooling chamber. A further advantage is that by using an electrical means (eg. a solenoid, an electromagnet or the like) and preferably a magnetic drive member (eg. an electromagnet) to move the displacer, preferably in response to the position of the power piston, a complicated mechanical linkage between the power piston and the displacer is not required thus simplifying the design. Further, by using an electrical linkage, the phase angle between the displacer and the power piston may be adjusted.
The heat engine of the instant invention may be combined with a fuel source (eg. butane), a linear generator and an electrically operated light emitting means to create a flashlight or other portable light source. It will be appreciated that due to the simplicity of the design of the instant invention, the heat engine as well as the linear generator are each adapted to be scaled up or down so as to produce greater or lessor amounts of power. Accordingly, in another embodiment, the heat engine together with a linear generator and a fuel source may be used as a generator. It will further be appreciated that by connecting a linear generator to a source of electricity (eg. standard electrical outlet) the electricity from a power grid may be used to run the linear generator as a motor whereby the power piston effectively drives the displacer. In such a case, the heat engine may be used as a refrigerator or a cryogenic cooler. In such an embodiment, the heating and cooling chambers of the heat engine are effectively reversed and no combustion chamber is required.
In accordance with one aspect of the instant invention, there is provided an apparatus comprising:
(a) a heat engine comprising:
(i) a container defining a sealed region within which a working fluid is circulated when the heat engine is in use, the sealed region having a heating chamber and a cooling chamber, the heating and cooling chambers being in fluid flow communication via a working fluid passageway;
(ii) a variable heat source thermally connected to the heating chamber whereby the variable heat source provides variable heat levels to the working fluid;
(iii) a displacer movably mounted in the sealed region between a first position and a second position to define a displacer cycle profile;
(iv) a piston movably mounted in the sealed region between a first position and a second position to define a piston cycle profile, one of the displacer and the piston has an adjustable drive member associated therewith for moving the one of the displacer and the piston in response to a signal and the other of the displacer and the piston is movable in the sealed region due to forces applied thereto by the working fluid;
(b) a power output member drivenly connected to the piston and having an output for supplying work; and,
(c) an adjustable signal generator for modulating the signal provided to the adjustable drive to adjust the cycle profile of the one of the displacer and the piston.
In one embodiment, the power output member comprises an electric generator drivenly connected to the heat engine and having an output for supplying electric power to a load and the piston comprises a portion of the electric generator and the displacer is driven by the adjustable drive member.
In another embodiment, the adjustable signal generator comprises a signal modulator and the piston whereby the movement of the piston generates a signal that is sent to the signal modulator. Preferably, the piston includes at least one magnet and the generator includes at least one coil and the piston is mounted in the heat engine for movement relative to the at least one coil and the movement of the at least one magnet relative to the at least one coil produces the signal that is sent to the adjustable signal generator.
In another embodiment, the power output member comprises an electric generator drivenly connected to the heat engine and having an output for supplying electric power to a load and the piston moves at a phase angle with respect to the displacer and the adjustable signal generator modulates the signal provided to the adjustable drive member to also adjust the phase angle.
In another embodiment, the heat engine has a thermal efficiency that varies under varying load conditions and the adjustable signal generator is responsive to power demand from the power output member to modulate the signal sent to the adjustable drive member to maintain the thermal efficiency of the heat engine in a preset range.
In another embodiment, the power output member comprises an electric generator drivenly connected to the heat engine and having an output for supplying electric power to a load and the piston comprises a portion of the electric generator and the displacer is driven by the adjustable drive member.
In another embodiment, the adjustable signal generator comprises a signal modulator and the piston whereby the movement of the piston generates a signal that is sent to the signal modulator.
In another embodiment, the piston includes at least one magnet and the generator includes at least one coil and the piston is mounted in the heat engine for movement relative to the at least one coil and the movement of the at least one magnet relative to the at least one coil produces the signal that is sent to the signal modulator.
In another embodiment, the displacer moves between a first position adjacent the variable heat source and a second position distal to the variable heat source and has a dwell time in each of the first and second positions, and the cycle profile describes the velocity of the displacer as it moves between the first and second positions and the dwell time of the displacer when it is in each of the first and second positions, and the adjustable signal generator modulates the signal provided to the adjustable drive member to adjust at least one of the velocity of the displacer, the dwell time of the displacer when in the first position and the dwell time of the displacer when in the second position.
In another embodiment, the sealed region has a cooling chamber for the working fluid and the piston moves between a first position wherein it is positioned in the cooling region and a second position wherein it is positioned out of the cooling chamber and has a dwell time in each of the first and second positions, and the cycle profile describes the velocity of the piston as it moves between the first and second positions and the dwell time of the piston when it is in each of the first and second positions, and the adjustable signal generator modulates the signal provided to the adjustable drive member to adjust at least one of the velocity of the piston, the dwell time of the piston when in the first position and the dwell time of the piston when in the second position.
In an
Bereskin & Parr
Fantom Technologies Inc.
Mendes da Costa Philip C.
Nguyen Hoang
LandOfFree
Heat engine does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Heat engine, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Heat engine will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2520881