Sturman Industries, Inc.

Other

Sturman Digital Systems, LLC

Ara4 Consulting LLC

Tibor Kiss

John Mathew Quinlan

James A Pena

James A Peña

Randall James Strauss

Oded Eddie Sturman

Steven E Massey

Timothy P Kranz

Will Weldon Mathews

Harry Bruce Crower

Daniel Donald Giordano

David Drury

A hydraulic valve actuation system with controlled valve seating velocity and method therefor are proposed. The system includes an actuator with a housing and a drive assembly formed from a drive piston within the housing and an adjustment pin. In an internal combustion engine application, the adjustment pin contacts and moves an engine valve that controls air and fuel entering an engine cylinder. The actuator provides velocity dampening of the drive piston, via an annulus-shaped fluid communication path defined by at least one surface of the drive piston and at least one opposing surface of a damping chamber formed within the housing. The dampening hydraulically cushions the impact of a bottom of the drive piston against a bottom stop of the actuator during opening of the engine valve, which reduces noise and engine wear. In another example, the system is configured to control an engine valve seating velocity.

Hydraulic valve actuation system with controlled valve seating velocity and method therefor

A hybrid internal combustion engine having a cylinder, a piston disposed within the cylinder, the piston constructed and arranged to reciprocate within the cylinder, and a combustion chamber defined by the cylinder and the top of the piston. The hybrid internal combustion engine also includes an exhaust manifold and a heat exchanger disposed within the exhaust manifold. A pump disposed between the heat exchanger and a fluid reservoir is provided to deliver fluid from the reservoir to the heat exchanger, whereby the fluid in the heat exchanger is heated and turned into high pressure gas (HPG) when the combustion gases are exhausted from the combustion chamber via the exhaust manifold. The resulting HPG may then be introduced into the combustion chamber to provide a HPG power stroke.

Hybrid combustion energy conversion engines

Method and apparatus for controlling needle seat load in very high pressure diesel injectors. In accordance with the method, a needle control piston responsive to hydraulic forces for controllably forcing the injector needle against the needle seat is provided, as is a stop for the needle control piston to limit the needle control piston movement toward the needle seat. This provides a stop for the needle control piston, so that the compressive deflection between the needle control piston and the needle seat limits the force of the injector needle on the needle seat against increasing hydraulic forces on the needle control piston once the needle control piston reaches the needle control piston seat.

Method and apparatus for controlling needle seat load in very high pressure diesel injectors

Hydraulic internal combustion engines having at least one combustion piston not mechanically connected to a crankshaft or any other combustion piston, but instead acting on hydraulic plungers through valving that is electronically controlled to control the piston position and velocity, typically through an intake stroke, a compression stroke, a combustion or power stroke and an exhaust stroke. Electronically controlled fuel injection and electronically controlled engine valves provided great flexibility in the operating cycles that may be used, with the engine pumping hydraulic fluid to a high pressure accumulator for use in hydraulic motors or other hydraulic equipment. Embodiments using high pressure air injection to sustain combustion are also disclosed.

Hydraulic internal combustion engines

Oil intensified common rail injectors that combine a common-rail non-intensified injector with an oil-intensified injector. The invention also uses fuel (common rail) pumps that are commercially available since the injector does not rely on this pump for intensification function. Also, since the pressure of the fuel pump is limited to lower than the intensified pressure, the injected pressure is limited to the unit injector; this eases the rail and tube requirements to this lower fuel rail pressure. The injector operates up to this limited pressure with no intensification. Also a separate oil system is configured to operate a hydraulic intensifier. Thus the system is able to achieve very high injection pressure without common rail pump, rail, fitting and jumper tube limits. The oil system does not need to operate or run unless these elevated pressures are required. Embodiments using direct needle control are disclosed.

Oil intensified common rail injectors

Three-way valves having reduced leakage and fuel injectors using the same. Three-way spool poppet valves are disclosed having a spool with a poppet valve thereon cooperating with a seat on the valve housing to provide a substantially leak free valve closing in one direction characteristic of a poppet valve while preserving the advantages of a spool valve. Three-way ball valves are also disclosed having substantially leak free valves closing in both directions, but further including reduced short circuit losses due to direct flow from a high pressure source to a low pressure vent during transition of the ball from one position to the opposite position. Fuel injectors with direct needle control using the three-way valves of the present invention are also disclosed.

Three-way valves and fuel injectors using the same

Three-way valves having reduced leakage and fuel injectors using the same. Three-way spool poppet valves are disclosed having a spool with a poppet valve thereon cooperating with a seat on the valve housing to provide a substantially leak free valve closing in one direction characteristic of a poppet valve while preserving the advantages of a spool valve. Three-way ball valves are also disclosed having substantially leak free valves closing in both directions, but further including reduced short circuit losses due to direct flow from a high pressure supply to a low pressure vent during transition of the ball from one position to the opposite position. Fuel injectors with direct needle control using the three-way valves of the present invention are also disclosed.

Three-way poppet valves having a poppet valve body, first and second poppet valves disposed in a valve guide within the body for motion between first poppet valve open and first poppet valve closed positions, a first poppet valve seat disposed in the poppet valve body so as to have freedom in a plane perpendicular to the poppet valve axis, the first poppet valve, when moving to the closed position, engaging the first poppet valve seat and centering the first poppet valve seat with respect to the first poppet valve, and when in the closed position, holding the first poppet valve seat against the poppet valve body, and a second poppet valve connected with the first poppet valve, the poppet valve body having a second poppet valve seat, the second poppet valve being in the closed position when the first poppet valve is in the open position and being in the open position when the first poppet valve is in the closed position.

Three-way poppet valves with floating seat

Direct needle control fuel injectors and methods disclosed. The preferred embodiment injectors have a needle within a needle chamber for movement between a closed position preventing injection of fuel and an open position allowing injection of fuel, a source of high pressure fuel coupled to the needle chamber to provide fuel for injection and to hydraulically urge the needle to the open position by pressurizing a first hydraulic area associated with the needle, a needle control hydraulic area having a second hydraulic area disposed to urge the needle to the closed position when the second hydraulic area is exposed to fuel under pressure, and valving coupled to the source of high pressure fuel and a vent to controllably couple the hydraulic area of the needle control member to the high pressure fuel or to the vent.

Direct needle control fuel injectors and methods

Herein disclosed is a combustion cell adapted for an internal combustion engine, comprising i) a hydraulic engine valve actuation portion capable of providing a selection of two different and stable engine valve lift (i.e., open) positions per engine valve or per coupled engine valves and ii) a fuel injection portion capable of providing a selection of comprising i) a hydraulic engine valve actuation portion capable of providing two stable engine valve lift positions and ii) a fuel injection portion capable of providing a selection of one, two or three injection pressure levels for injection fuel. The combustion cell provides more flexibility in control of incoming intake air, outgoing exhaust gas, and/or incoming injection fuel relative to an engine combustion chamber so as to better match engine operating conditions that may change over time.

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Manitou Springs, CO, United States of America

Tibor Kiss