Spherical internal combustion engine

Details Spherical internal combustion engine Spherical internal combustion engine

2000-01-18

2001-12-04

Nguyen, Hoang (Department: 3748)

Internal-combustion engines

Rotary

With compression, combustion, and expansion in a single...

C418S068000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06325038

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND
1. Field of the Invention
This invention is directed to internal combustion engines, in general, and to spherical internal combustion engines, in particular.
2. Prior Art
Internal combustion engines are well known. These engines have various sizes and shapes, as well as a variety of numbers of displacement members and/or operating cycles.
One such engine is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,404,849 by Fenton. However, this engine, together with the engines cited therein, has various drawbacks, including but not limited to, the size/weight ratio as well as the cost to manufacture the engine.
Another spherical engine is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,336,067 by Lim. This engine uses a nutating member and is purported to increase the seal between the rotor and the engine head.
Other such engines are known in the art. However, none of the known engines have the advantages of the engine shown and described herein.
SUMMARY OF THE INSTANT INVENTION
A rotary displacement device, typically an internal combustion engine, comprises a housing of virtually any exterior configuration but which includes a generally spherical cavity therein. A displacement member (akin to a piston in a conventional engine) with a generally spherical configuration is mounted within the cavity in the housing. The displacement member also includes a generally spherical opening therein. A drive mechanism comprising a drive shaft with a nutating member mounted thereto includes a spherically shaped mounting portion positioned intermediate the ends of the drive shaft. The mounting portion is disposed within the inner spherical opening of the displacement member. The displacement member travels in an arc within the cavity in the housing as the result of internal combustion operations. The axis of the arc passes through the center point of the engine. The displacement member drives the nutating member through a defined movement path, the axis of which also passes through the center point. The nutating member, in turn, drives the drive shaft in a rotational path the axis of which passes through the center point. Thus, the drive mechanism, displacement member and spherical cavity share a common, fixed center point which operation distinguishes this engine from all other known nutating and/or spherical internal combustion engines. Of particular interest to this invention is a spherical engine which produces a significant amount of displacement relative to the weight and size thereof and does not apply any bearing forces to the surfaces that form the displacement chambers. Such an engine has many uses.


REFERENCES:
patent: 3809025 (1974-05-01), Harper
patent: 3934559 (1976-01-01), Cohen
patent: 5993182 (1999-11-01), Beldy et al.
patent: 6135743 (2000-10-01), Keikov et al.

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