US1377139A - Internal-combustion engine - Google Patents

Description

J. F. MURPHY.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 91 I919.

1",377,139, Patented May 3,1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

FIRING I J. F. MURPHY.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. APPLICATION FILED- APR. 9| 1919.

1,377,139. I mented May3,1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- -Illll I- l "I 151? Q T all whom it may concern:

; UNITED, STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN FRANCIS MURPHY, or LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.-

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE. V I

Be it known that I, JOHN F. Munrrrr,

- citizen of the United States, residing at Louisville, in the county of J eii'erson and State of Kentucky,- have invented certain new and usefullmprovements in Internal.

Combustion-Engines, of which the following is a specification.

T his. invention relates to internal combustion engines and has particular reference to an improvement in motors of the type which operate without automatic ignition.

A primary object of the invention is to secure greater thermal efficiency in a motor of a standard construction by increasing compression beyond the point of automatic ignition to enable the use of heavier and consequently cheaper fuels, while at the same time greatly simplifying the general motor structure. Although It has been heretofore proposed to operate an internal combustion motor by injecting the liquid fuel into a cylinder Where the air is compressed above the pressure generated by the combustion of fuel in the inclosed firing chamber (Diesel type), this injection of the fuel has only been possible by the use of a separate pump. And, furthermore, in engines of this type it is necessary that the cylinders be of relatively great thickness, and needless to say a power plant thus constructed is not only complicated, cumbersome, and expensive, but is impossible of embodiment in small units, and therefore impractical for general commercial use.

In internal combustion motors as. commonly built the thermal efliciency of the motor is in direct proportion to the amount ignition takes place. Recognizing this the present invention proposes an improvement susceptible of embodiment in all multiple cylinder engines of either two or four cycle type, wherein the size of the cylinders is such that the 'final compression of air is greater than that necessary where automatic ignition is employed, but less than the pressure created by the explosion of a similar fuel charge inan adjacent cylinder of similar capacity. Thus, the invention contemplates the provision of an engine of standard design wherein the construction and arrangement is such that a condition existing in-the normal operation of the engine'may be used to'cause the injection of the liquid fuel into a compressed atmosphere-for the purpose of being thereby ignited to give the.

desired working stroke to the piston.

Another object of the invention is to provlde a power plant which is susceptible "of embodiment in small units for vehicle use and requires no gearing to effect a reverse drive. That is to say, it is proposed to provide an engine of the type which may be conveniently used on automobiles, and which includes novel means for changing the firing order of the cylinders to reverse the direction of rotation of the crank shaft.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple, practical and. reliable means for controlling the speed of the engine under varying conditions of use without the aid of a carbureter, therby eliminating a further source of trouble and article of equipment.

With the aboveand other objects in view which will more readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in' the novel construction, combination and arrangement. of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated and claimed. -2

Apreferred and practical embodiment of Specification of Letters Patent. V Patent ed May 3, 1921.

Application filed April 9, 1919. Serial No. 288,763; i

the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which: V Figure 1 is a side elevation of a motor constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 2 is atop plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of a cylinder constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line H of Fig. 3.

- Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view showing the vposition of the control valves when the" motor is being operated to give a forward drive.

Fig. 6-is a view similar to Fig. 5 showing the position of the control valves when the motor is reversed. Sim1lar' reference characters deslgnate' corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

In carrying the present" invention into effect, it is proposed to eliminate the automatic electrical ignition system except possibly for starting purposes when the engine is cold. The invention therefore is directed to that type'of engine wherein the fuel is injected into a compressed atmosphere and there vaporized and exploded to give the dewith the type of engine wherein the fuel oil is injected into a volume of compressed air which is compressed above the pressure generated by thecombustion' of the fuel in the firing chamber of an adjacent cylindern Inengines where the compression is frequently brought as high as forty-five atmospheres,

it is necessary that the fuel oil be injected into this highly compressed body of air by means of a separate pump, and in this case the combustion is not instantaneous with the injection of the fuel into the compressed air but proceeds as the piston moves out to the end of its working stroke. The present invention however contemplates a novel con struction whereby the final compression of the air in the cylinder is less than the pres sure of combustion on the working stroke in an adjacent cylinder, this compression however being greater than that usually employed where an electrical spark automatically ignites the gaseous fuel charge near the end of the compression stroke.

By Wayof illustrating one practical structure for carrying the present invention into effect, reference 1 may be had to the drawings which showa motor'of the four cylinder type which operates on the two cycle principle. The cylinders of this motor are preferably of the general structure and arrangement shown in Fig. t of the drawings, and although shown as a water:

cooled unit, it will of course be understood that the invention may be adapted with equal efliciency to an air cooled unit, or to a four cycle motor having sufficient cylinders to maintain continuity ofoperation.

-- The individual cylinders 1, 2, 3, and 4 are of duplicate construction and the operative connections between the same are also identical. Therefore,'a description of -one will suffice for the others, and by reference to Fig. 4 it will be observed that within the cylinder C slides piston P, the same coiiperating with the closed crank case 5 to operate as a compressor to transfer compressed air at the end of the working stroke through the port 6 to the working chamber of the cylinder and not only scavenge the same of the dead gases which pass through the exhaust port 7, but at the same time furnishes a fresh air-charge to 'be compressed for the next working stroke. ment described, obviously when the piston P reaches its upward limit of movement at the upper end of the compression stroke air will be sucked into the crank case 5 through the intake port 8 to be compressed on the worklng stroke of the piston and then re-' With the arrangecylinder is provided with a dead gas outlet port'10 at a suitable point above the exhaust 7. This port 10 opens into a flaring recess 11 in the well of the cylinder which may be provided with a screen 12 and a cover plate 13 which provides a conduit 14 leading back into the body of the cylinder C to establish communication with the opening or passage 15, also covered by a screen 16, which like the screen 12, prevents the transmission of flame from the combustion chamber of the cylinder through the passages 14 and 15.

The said opening 15 discharges into a passageway 17 of the valve-unit 9, which latter passageway is a part of a two-way control valve which includes the plug 18 operated by an exterior handle 19. This plug 18 is adapted to control communication between the cylinder on which it is mounted and an adjacent cylinder, and to this end has fitted thereto a discharge pipe 20 and intake pipe 21 which leads from the combustion chamber of an adjoining cylinder, while the said pipe20 leads to the fuel supply valve of the cylinder on the opposite side. For instance assuming that the cylinder described is cylinder No. 1, the pipe 20 will lead to the fuel supply valve of cylinder No. 2 as will be obwill flow through pipe 21 to supply cylinder 1 with the proper fuel charge in the particular manner hereafter referred to, while as cylinder 1 completes its working stroke the exploded gases will pass out through port' 10 and passages 14, 15 16 and 17 to and through pipe 20 to supply cylinder No. 2 with its fuelcharge at the proper point of the cycle, namely near the end of the compression stroke ofthat cylinder.

Referring to the means for supplying the fuel oil to thecylinder itis to be observed .that the valve-unit casting 9 is also provided with the'passage-way 22 leading to a sleeve 22 which provides an enlarged fuel accumulating chamber 23 that is normally closed by a puppet valve 24 held to its seat against the mouth of the chamber under tension of the spring 25. This fuel accumu lating chamber 23 is in communication with a fuel passage 26 whose discharge end is guarded by ball valve 27 for preventing back-pressure in the fuel supply system.' The upper end of the passageway-- 26 is formed with a suitable seat 28 for accommodating the headof a needle valve 29 which is fitted with' an exterior operating handle 30 and controls the supply of fuel entering the supply passage of the casting 9 from a fuel supply tube 32 leading from a fueltank wherein the fuel is stored under pressure.

The needle valve 29 is preferably set to allow a certain quantity of liquid fuel under pressure to flow through the passage 26 in a unit of time, and hence there is a certain desirable governing actiondue to this feature. That is to say, should the load on the motor be suddenly increased so as to slow down the rotation of the crank shaft there is a longer interval of time betweencycles in each cylinder, and more fuel will have accumulated around the puppet valves between working strokes. This automatically causes greater pressure and consequently greater turning effort at slow speeds. In other words, the power output-is governed, the action being that as the speed is lowered by increased load or road conditions, as on approaching a hill, if the motor is used in a motor car, the effective turning effort or torque of the motor willbe increased so that the power developed will remain nearly constant within wide ranges of speed, and the thermal efliciency is greater than is possible with a motor using a carbureted mixture and low compression varying with every position of the throttle.

The needle valves 29 are preferably connected by a common actuating member 33, whereby all of the valves may be given a uniform setting and when the valves are raised a certain desired distance from the seat 28 in the upper end of the passage 26 it will be apparent that fuel under pressure will flow into the chamber 23 and there be held until released by the puppet valve 24;.

Now it will be recalled that the passage way 22 in the valve casting which leads to the chamber 23 is under control of the valve 18 and for the setting of the valve shown in Figs. 3 and 4 this passage 22 is in communication with the pipe '21 which leads from the working chamber of cylinder No. 3 that is of the same construction as cylinder 1 shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings. Therefore, as cylinder No. 3 performs its working stroke and its piston passes the port corresponding to 10 of the cylinder 1 shown in Fig. 3, the exploded gases will rush through the passage corresponding to 14, 15 and 17 of Fig.3 and to the valve corresponding to 18 on the top of cylinder No. 3 and thence through the pipe 21 to the valve .18 on cylinder No. 1 which will-deflect the same into the passage 22 and cause the puppet valve-24 to be unseated as the piston P in cylinder No. 1 reaches the'proper point of its com ression stroke to thereby'inject the liquid uel into the highly compressed air' in the combustion chamber. 'As the air has been previously heated by high compression to 'a point above the flash point of the fuel,

puppet valve 24 at once.

combustion begins immediately and the resulting increase in pressure in the combus i will direct the same into the pipe 20 leading to the fuel supply chamber of cylinder No. 2. This cycle is repeated in each cylindex as long as fuel is supplied to the cham ber above the puppet valves.

.lVith the foregoing arrangement it will be apparent that the distinctive feature of the present invention is the injection of a raw fuel charge into the highly compressed air of a cylinder wherein the piston is performing its compression stroke, whereby the fuel is automatically mixed and burned to cause the working stroke of the piston, which upon its" downward movement uncovers a port in communication with the fuel supply means of an adjoining cylinder whereby fuel will be released in that cylinder at the proper point of the cycle. The effect of the inert gasin the passages leading from the working cylinder of one chamber tothe fuel supply chamber of the next to fire is substantially that of a piston since it forces the liquid fuel accumulated around the puppet valve of each cylinder into the highly compressed air 7 in the cylinder whereupon it is instantaneously exploded. The effect of this immediate explosion is to close or seat the puppet valve to prevent continued movement of gases through the communicating passages, and furthermore, by the employment of a double screen 1n the passage leading from the working chamber of the cylinder, all possibility of flame being transmitted through the passage is eliminated. This safeguard prevents premature explosion of the fuel charge even if oxygen of the air is present.

In connection with the control valves 18 which have the operating handles 19, it is to be noted that for the setting of the same shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings, the firing. order of the cylinders will be 1--24-'3 which will give the proper rotation of the crank shaft for a forward drive. However, when the setting of the valve plugs 18 isreversedto the position shown in Fig. 6 of the. drawings, the firing order of the cylinder will also be reversed, namely, 134-2,

suitable operating bar 34 or' its equivalent.

When it is desired to start the motor, the fly wheel may be rocked back and forth or turned over after a cylinder has been primed with a small quantity of liquid fuel, or for the purpose of insuring easy starting of the motor, especially when cold, 'a spark plug inserted in the opening 35 may be utilized.

However, after one cylinder has fired the continued operation of the motor is assured.

Without further description it is thought that the construction of the present engine is such that the distinctive feature of utilizing the combustion of the gases on the working stroke to inject the raw fuel charge into a highly compressed atmosphere of an adjoining cylinder may be readily carried into effect without the use of separate compressors or other cumbersome accessories which add to'the cost and complexity of engine structure.

I claim:

1. An internal combustion engine includ ing a plurality of cylinders, means for supplying raw fuel directly to each cylinder, and means actuated by the pressure of gases performing the working stroke of one cylin der to release the fuel charge supplied by said means into'the' compressed atmosphere of the next cylinder to fire.

2. An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders, means for supplying a fuel charge to said cylinders, and means actuated by the pressure of gases performing the working stroke in one cylinder, to release the fuel charge near the end of the compression .period in an adjacent cylinder.

3. An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders, means for supplying fuel to each of said cylinders, means for controllingthe admission of fuel into .said cylinders, and a conduit leading from the combustion chamber ofseach cylinder'to the means for releasing the liquid fuel into the compressed atmosphere of the next cylinder to fire. I V

4. An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders, means for supplying fuel ,to each cylinder, a valve for controlling the admission of fuel to the cyl-' inder, a pipe line communicating with the line in communication with the space above the piston of a leading cylinder and also in communication with the means for collecting the fuel whereby the explosionv of gases in a leading cylinder will operate the said means. v

6. An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders each having intake and exhaust ports and a separate gas discharge port, fuel supply means, means for accumulating fuel furnished by said supply means including a chamber having an outlet and a spring pressed valve normally covering the said outlet, and a pipe line leading from the gas port of each cylinder to the chamber behind the valve of the next cylinder of the series to fire, the said pipe line conveying the compression of combustion to said chamber to unseat the valve near the end of the compression stroke of the. said next cylinder to fire.

7 An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders each having intake and exhaust ports and aseparate gas discharge port, fuel supply means, means for accumulating fuel furnished by said supply means including a chamber and a spring pressed valve normallycovering the entrance of the same, and a pipe line lead ing from the gas port of each cylinder to the chamber behind the valve of the next cylinder of the series to fire, and a valve plug in said pipe line for reversing the flow of gases to effect a reverse operation of the motor.

.8. An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders, means for sup-- plying fuel under pressure thereto, means for accumulating a fuel charge for each cylinder in proportion to the load including a fuel receiving chamber and a spring pressed valve operating to normally close the entrance of said chamber. and a pipe line leading from the space above the piston in a leading. cylinder to said fuel collecting chamber, wherebythe pressure of exploded gases of a leading cylinder will actuate the valve'of the following cylinder to fire to release a fuel charge into the compressed atmosphere of said following cylinder.

9. An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders, means for supplying fuel to each cylinder, means for collecting a fuel charge for each cylinder, and pipe connections between the successively firing cylinders and the means for collecting the fuel charge, and manually controlled valves in said pipe lines for effecting the reversal of gas flow in said pipe lines to reverse the engine.

10. An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders, .each cylinder having intake. and exhaust ports anda separate gas port, a valve casting fitted to the head of each cylinder and including a sleeve opening into the working chamber of the sages, a spring pressed valve mounted to normally close the end of the sleeve opening into the said working chamber-of the cylinder, a fuel supply inlet above said sleeve, and a needle valve for controlling the passage of fuel through said supply inlet.

11. An internal combustion engine including a plurality of cylinders having air intake and exhaust ports controlled by the pissignature in the tons, raw fuel supply means for each cylinder, means-for injecting an air charge into the cylinder at the beginning of the compression stroke, and means actuated by the pressure of the gases of combustion performing the Working stroke of one cylinder to inject the fuel charge furnished by said raw fuel supply means into the compressed atmosphere of the next cylinder to fire, near the end of the compression stroke.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aifix my resence of two witnesses. ,JOHN RA NGIS MURPHY. 'Witnesses:

- T. E. JAEGERs,-

S. M; HARRIS.

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