Internal-combustion engines – High tension ignition system – Electronic cylinder sequencing
Patent
1990-03-16
1991-03-26
Wolfe, Willis R.
Internal-combustion engines
High tension ignition system
Electronic cylinder sequencing
123652, F02P 7073, H03K 1778
Patent
active
050020340
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
PRIOR ART
The invention is based on a high-voltage switch according to the generic part of the main claim.
Ignition distributor arrangements are known which are constructed as so-called static high-voltage distributors and have no moving parts. These known arrangements use semiconductor elements for every spark plug to be controlled, an ignition coil being assigned to these semiconductor elements in each instance. These circuits are relatively costly and particularly expensive to produce because of the plurality of necessary ignition coils.
ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION
A high-voltage switch of the type named in the beginning with the characteristic features of the main claim, on the other hand, has the advantage that only one ignition coil is required for all spark plugs and that an ignition can be effected which is very accurate with respect to time. The semiconductor elements, which are in a cascade arrangement and are preferably constructed as high-voltage transistors or thyristors, are actuated by means of incident light radiation, i.e. the semiconductor elements connect through when irradiated with light and accordingly apply the ignition pulses supplied by the ignition coil to the subsequently arranged spark plug. Very good results were achieved with cascade circuits of three to fifty phototransistors or photothyristors connected in series.
A plurality of Darlington stages arranged in cascade connection can also be provided as optoelectronic high-voltage transistors.
The incident light radiation on the light-sensitive regions of the semiconductor elements proceeding from a light source can be effected directly or via light guide fibers. But, depending on the application, a light source, e.g. a light-emitting diode, can also be assigned to every semiconductor element, the light of the light-emitting diode serving in each instance to actuate one of the semiconductor elements arranged in cascade. In this latter construction, a number of light-emitting elements corresponding to the number of semiconductor elements of the cascade circuits is required.
A particularly advantageous development of the invention provides that the cascade connections of the optoelectronic semiconductor elements and the assigned light-emitting elements are constructed in each instance as a hybrid circuit in which a light permeable insulator is arranged between the optoelectric semiconductor elements and the adjacent light-emitting elements. In this way, a compact arrangement is achieved which can comprise a plurality of cascade circuits corresponding to the quantity of the spark plugs to be operated in an internal combustion engine. The cascade circuit and the respective light-emitting elements can be sealed in a common housing, so that an optimal insulation is achieved.
The light-emitting elements are preferably constructed as low-voltage elements and can be operated e.g. as light-emitting diodes with control voltages of less than 5 volts. A cascade circuit with three to fifty high-voltage transistors or thyristors can be used for connecting through 15 kV and also higher voltages, such as those occurring e.g. as ignition voltages in automotive engineering.
DRAWINGS
The invention is explained in more detail in the following by means of the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a high-voltage switch constructed as ignition distributor arrangement;
FIG. 2 shows the basic wiring of a high-voltage switch with light guide fibers;
FIG. 3 shows a high-voltage switch with a plurality of Darlington circuits and with separate light-emitting elements;
FIG. 4 shows a circuit arrangement of a high-voltage switch constructed using hybrid technology, in section;
FIG. 5 shows an ignition circuit with high-voltage switch; and
FIG. 6 shows a high-voltage switch with thyristors in cascade arrangement.
The circuit arrangement shown in FIG. 1 is an ignition voltage distributor which contains four cascade circuits 1 to 4 which comprise five optoelectronic semiconductor elements in each instance, which semiconductor elements are constructed in this instance as
REFERENCES:
patent: 3880132 (1975-04-01), Whatley, Jr.
patent: 4122814 (1978-10-01), Ford
patent: 4194480 (1980-03-01), Rado
patent: 4201173 (1980-05-01), Okada et al.
patent: 4223656 (1980-09-01), Hamley
patent: 4274135 (1981-06-01), Rosa et al.
patent: 4403593 (1983-09-01), Piteo
Benedikt Walter
Herden Werner
Krauter Immanuel
Robert & Bosch GmbH
Striker Michael J.
Wolfe Willis R.
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