The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Aug. 01, 1978
Filed:
Dec. 27, 1976
Robert P Ernest, Dearborn Heights, MI (US);
Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (US);
Abstract
A rotary internal combustion engine is disclosed having an apex seal assembly of the type that allows for lateral length adjustment. The assembly has an unexposed seal body portion received in a slot of the rotor, the body portion has a depth at least three times the height of the seal crown (exposed portion of seal) and is configured relative to the slot to provide a gas flow throat area to the underside of the body which is critically regulated. Grooves are defined in the leading and trailing sides of the unexposed body to reduce body portion mass by at least 20%, to reduce the uninterrupted body side wall contact area with the slot side wall by at least 40% thereby to increase unit sealing pressure and to create lands along the sides of said unexposed body portion which are short in depth to create a short flow throat equal to or less than 0.04 inch in depth. Symmetrical means is disposed in said rotor for communicating chamber pressure on the opposite sides of said seal through said rotor with the respective grooves for applying a vector force sufficient to stably move the seal body to or from the leading or trailing slot position with substantially no time lag in the variance of pressure beneath the seal and that of the highest pressure on either side of the seal. The seal configuration eliminates gas leakage that would occur if the seal crown were allowed to leave the epitrochoid chamber surface during a seal shift, (b) eliminates gas leakage between the side of the seal body and a slot side wall that are intended to be sealingly engaged, and (c) reduces gas leakage that travels under the seal between chambers during a seal shift.