초록 ▼

A rotary internal combustion engine comprising a generally cylindrical stator member having two pairs of sockets located in the periphery thereof, and a rotor member mounted to rotate about the stator member. Two pairs of opposing wedges are pivotally mounted at their vertices on the periphery of th

A rotary internal combustion engine comprising a generally cylindrical stator member having two pairs of sockets located in the periphery thereof, and a rotor member mounted to rotate about the stator member. Two pairs of opposing wedges are pivotally mounted at their vertices on the periphery of the stator member to pivot in and out of respective ones of the sockets as the rotor member is caused to rotate about the stator member. The rotor member has side walls and an interior peripheral wall which, in cooperation with the periphery of the stator member and the two pairs of pivotal wedges, define a combustion cavity and a compression cavity there between. The combustion cavity and compression cavity are disposed on opposite sides of the stator member adjacent the periphery thereof. A cam track is defined in the side walls of the rotor member to guide cam followers extending from the sides of each wedge such that the wedges are caused to pivot in and out of the sockets and to maintain sliding contact with the interior peripheral wall of the rotor member. As the rotor member rotates and the wedges pivot in and out of the sockets, the compression cavity and the combustion cavity successively increase and decrease. A fuel mixture is introduced into the compression cavity as it enlarges. As the rotor member continues to rotate, this cavity and the fuel mixture therein is compressed. The fuel mixture is ignited at or just prior to the time the mixture is fully compressed, to achieve high power efficiency. Igniting the fuel mixture causes the rotation by creating unbalanced tangential components of pressure upon inclined portions of the interior peripheral wall of the rotor member. Shortly after combustion of the fuel mixture, the combustion products are exhausted from the combustion chamber. The compression and the combustion of the fuel mixture always occurs between the opposing bases of the wedges, which bases are each configured to direct the pressure force to a pivotal pin at the opposite vertex of each wedge. Thus, all bending stresses and flexural deformations of the wedges are virtually prevented, thus substantially eliminating the traditional major problem of vane wear and distortion in rotary engine design.

대표청구항 ▼

A rotary engine comprising a generally annular stator member having a first and second pair of spaced apart sockets located in the periphery thereof and having a shaft extending from one side thereof; a first and second pair of wedges each pivotally mounted at one of their vertices on the periphery

A rotary engine comprising a generally annular stator member having a first and second pair of spaced apart sockets located in the periphery thereof and having a shaft extending from one side thereof; a first and second pair of wedges each pivotally mounted at one of their vertices on the periphery of the stator member to pivot in and out of respective ones of said sockets as said rotor member rotates about the stator member, said wedges being mounted relative to said stator member such that a base of each wEdge pivots along an arc generally towards the center of the stator member, and such that each of said bases of the wedges in each pair face each other so that a space is formed by said bases of each pair of wedges, a rotor member having side walls and an interior peripheral wall and mounted to rotate about said stator member, said rotor member formed to define a combustion cavity and a compression cavity between the portions of the periphery of the stator member between the bases of the wedges and the interior peripheral wall of the rotor member, said combustion cavity and compression cavity being disposed substantially 180°apart about the periphery of the stator member, said peripheral wall having two innermost portions thereof substantially parallel to the outer periphery of the stator member, said portion extending at least the distance between the bases of the wedges of each pair thereof, and said portions being disposed substantially 180°apart, said portions of the peripheral wall being joined tangentially by two curved portions thereof which each first curve convexly and outwardly away from the stator member and then curves concavely and inwardly toward the stator member, a cam track defined in at least one side wall of said rotor member, cam followers extending from at least one side of each wedge and guided by said cam track to cause said wedges to pivot in and out of said sockets and to maintain sliding contact with the interior peripheral wall of said rotor member, means for introducing a fuel mixture into the spaces between each pair of wedges. means for igniting the fuel mixture between each pair of wedges, means for timing the ignition of the fuel mixture to selectively coincide with or slightly precede the time the said portions of the rotor peripheral wall are each disposed substantially entirely across the spaces defined between each pair of wedges, means for exhausting the combustion products from the spaces between each pair of wedges.