310results about "Engine ignition" patented technology

Sequenced pulses of light from an excitation laser with at least two resonator cavities with separate output couplers are directed through a light modulator and a first polarzing analyzer. A portion of the light not rejected by the first polarizing analyzer is transported through a first optical fiber into a first ignitor laser rod in an ignitor laser. Another portion of the light is rejected by the first polarizing analyzer and directed through a halfwave plate into a second polarization analyzer. A first portion of the output of the second polarization analyzer passes through the second polarization analyzer to a second, oscillator, laser rod in the ignitor laser. A second portion of the output of the second polarization analyzer is redirected by the second polarization analyzer to a second optical fiber which delays the beam before the beam is combined with output of the first ignitor laser rod. Output of the second laser rod in the ignitor laser is directed into the first ignitor laser rod which was energized by light passing through the first polarizing analyzer. Combined output of the first ignitor laser rod and output of the second optical fiber is focused into a combustible fuel where the first short duration, high peak power pulse from the ignitor laser ignites the fuel and the second long duration, low peak power pulse directly from the excitation laser sustains the combustion.

In the apparatus of the invention, a first excitation laser or other excitation light source is used in tandem with an ignitor laser to provide a compact, durable, engine deployable fuel ignition laser system. Reliable fuel ignition is provided over a wide range of fuel conditions by using a single remote excitation light source for one or more small lasers located proximate to one or more fuel combustion zones.In the embodiment of the invention claimed herein, the beam from the excitation light source is split with a portion of it going to the ignitor laser and a second portion of it being combined with either the first portion after a delay before injection into the ignitor laser.

An internal combustion engine is provided that basically comprises a combustion chamber, an electric discharge unit and a controller. The combustion chamber receives a mixture of fuel and air that is caused to undergo compression self ignition. The electric discharge unit is provided inside the combustion chamber to generate an electric discharge for conducting combustion inside the combustion chamber. The controller is configured to control a voltage applied to the electric discharge unit. The controller is configured to control the electric discharge unit such that a non-thermal plasma can be formed without incurring a transition to arc discharging, and to control the quantity and distribution of an activated air-fuel mixture inside the combustion chamber in accordance with an operating condition of the internal combustion engine.

The invention relates to an annular discharge based transient state plasma igniter. An insulation sleeve is located in an insulation protection sleeve, and one end of the insulation sleeve is located in a cathode. An anode conduction rod is located in the insulation sleeve, and one end of the anode conduction rod is arranged in a center hole of the cathode. One end of the insulation protection sleeve is arranged in a fixing base. The anode is located in the cathode. The transient state plasma igniter is provided with a mixed gas channel. According to the invention, high-energy nanosecond pulse is used to discharge electricity to form a local high temperature area, and a large quantity of active particles are activated to ignite combustible mixed gas in an extremely short period of time. The ignition area is large, and the mixed gas can be ignited by multiple points; the ignition time is extremely short, and the ignition delay time is shorter; the ignition energy can be well coupled with the gas mixture, macromolecule hydrocarbon fuel in the ignition area is ionized as active particles with low activation energy, so that the chemical reaction of the mixed gas is faster, the reaction time is shorter, and the ignition success rate is high.

A laser based ignition system for stationary natural gas engines, a distributor system for use with high-powered lasers, and a method of determining a successful ignition event in a laser-based ignition system are provided. The laser based ignition (LBI) system for stationary natural gas engines includes a high power pulsed laser providing a pulsed emission output coupled to a plurality of laser plugs. A respective one of the plurality of laser plugs is provided in an engine cylinder. The laser plug focuses the coherent emission from the pulsed laser to a tiny volume or focal spot and a high electric field gradient at the focal spot leads to photoionization of the combustible mixture resulting in ignition.

Disclosed is an elongating arc plasma jet ignition device. A swirler is fixed to the bottom of an inner cavity of a shell; a positive pole is located in the shell and fixedly connected with the swirler; the lower end of an insulation sleeve is installed in a central hole of the swirler, and an air chamber is formed in the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the middle of the insulation sleeve and the inner surface of the shell. A negative pole is embedded on a negative pole installation base, and the arc end of the negative pole extends out of the lower end of the insulation sleeve to be located in the positive pole. An arcing distance 2-8 mm long is kept between the arc end of the negative pole and a nozzle of the positive pole; an air inlet pipe is located at the upper end of the shell and communicated with the space of the air chamber formed between the insulation sleeve and the shell. The taper angle beta of the arc end of the negative pole is 40 degrees. The taper angle alpha of a contraction section of the positive pole is 60-90 degrees. Eight swirling holes with the spiral angle of 45 degrees are evenly distributed in an end surface of the swirler, and work media passing through the swirler generate swirling flow. The elongating arc plasma jet ignition device has the advantages of being high in flame spreading speed, high in penetrating power and rich in active air plasma.

An igniter (20) of a corona ignition system emits a non-thermal plasma in the form of a corona (30) to ionize and ignite a fuel mixture. The igniter (20) includes an electrode (32) and a ceramic insulator (22) surrounding the electrode (32). The insulator (22) surrounds a firing end (38) of the electrode (32) and blocks the electrode (32) from exposure to the combustion chamber (28). The insulator (22) presents a firing surface (56) exposed to the combustion chamber (28) and emitting the non-thermal plasma. A plurality of electrically conducting elements (24) are disposed in a matrix (26) of the ceramic material and along the firing surface (56) of the insulator (22), such as metal particles embedded in the ceramic material or holes in the ceramic material. The electrically conducting elements (24) reduce arc discharge during operation of the igniter (20) and thus improve the quality of ignition.

The invention provides a microwave plasma ignition combustion system of an internal combustion engine. The microwave plasma ignition combustion system comprises a microwave ignition device and a combustion chamber, wherein the microwave ignition device feeds microwave pulse with preset frequency into the combustion chamber; the microwave pulse is used for puncturing and igniting combustible mixed gas in the combustion chamber. The microwave plasma ignition combustion system provided by the invention has the advantages that since the microwave pulse with preset frequency is fed into the combustion chamber, the resonance effect is realized in the combustion chamber, and a strong-current magnetic field is generated, so that the combustible mixed gas in the combustion chamber is punctured and ignited, further the lean burn limit of the engine is expanded, the lean burn capability of the engine is improved and stable lean burning is realized.

A corona igniter 20 includes a central electrode 34 for receiving a high radio frequency voltage from a power source and emitting a radio frequency electric field to ionize a fuel-air mixture and provide a corona discharge 22. The corona igniter 20 includes an insulator 38 extending along the central electrode 34 longitudinally past the central electrode 34 to an insulator firing end 40. The insulator tiring surface 42 and the center axis A present an angle α of not greater than 90 degrees therebetween, for example the insulator firing surface may be concave. The central electrode 34 may also include a firing tip 50, in which case the insulator firing surface 42 surrounds all sides of the firing tip 50. The geometry of the insulator firing surface 42 concentrates and directs the corona discharge 22.

Internal combustion engine with at least one cylinder, in which the combustion of a homogeneous air/fuel mixture compressed in the cylinder by a piston is initiated by a time-controlled external ignition, the air/fuel ratio of the air/fuel mixture in the combustion chamber (25) being greater than 1.9 and, for the time-controlled external ignition, at least one laser light source (10), at least one optical transmission apparatus (11) and at least one coupling optic (12) for the focussing of laser light into a combustion chamber (25) being provided.

Methods and systems are provided for enabling engine diagnostics, including visual inspections of an engine cylinder, using existing hardware from a laser ignition system. Light pulses from a laser ignition device are received at a photodetector during non-combusting conditions and used to generate images of an inside of the cylinder that can be assessed by a service technician. An electric motor of the vehicle system can be used during a service mode of the vehicle to rotate the engine to, and hold the engine at, specified engine positions that enable the technician to perform selected diagnostic tests.

There is provided a semiconductor laser pumped solid-state laser device for engine ignition that can stably provide optical energy required for ignition across a wide temperature range. In the semiconductor laser pumped solid-state laser device for engine ignition, a plurality of semiconductor lasers 21, 22, 23, and 24 are used that have locking ranges, a temperature width thereof divided into a plurality of temperature ranges corresponding to a variation width of an ambient temperature, and that have the respective wavelengths falling within an absorption wavelength band of a solid-state laser medium 5 of the solid-state laser device in the temperature width of each locking range, to pump the solid-state laser medium 5 by multiplexing emitted lights from the plurality of semiconductor lasers 21, 22, 23, and 24 using a multiplexing mechanism to irradiate the solid-state laser medium 5.

A device and method for conditioning and/or volumetric heating fuel within an intermittent combustion engine in order to enhance fuel combustion and emission performance is provided. Such a device can include a fuel injector configured to eject a fuel spray having a trajectory within a combustion chamber, an energy source capable of emitting electromagnetic energy, and an optical fiber configured to transmit electromagnetic energy emitted from the energy source into the combustion chamber, and is also configured to cause fuel conditioning.

An ignition laser, includes a laser-active solid-state body, a housing and a combustion chamber window, the housing having an inner sleeve and an outer sleeve. An insert is provided between the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve, the insert and the combustion chamber window being joined sealingly and integrally.

A method is disclosed for producing a corona discharge for igniting an air/fuel mixture in an internal combustion engine. An igniter is provided having a discharge tip that protrudes into a combustion zone. During a first stage of a combustion process, a first primary winding of a RF transformer is driven at a first predetermined voltage level and at a first resonant frequency that is based on a first impedance in the combustion zone prior to onset of combustion, for generating a corona discharge at the tip of the igniter. During a second stage subsequent to the first stage, a second primary winding of the RF transformer is driven at a second predetermined voltage level and at a second resonant frequency that is based on a second impedance in the combustion zone at a time that is subsequent to onset of the combustion process.

The invention discloses a self-designed-and-constructed power supply device for performing plasma ignition with high-energy nanosecond pulse superposed high voltage direct current, which comprises a DC high voltage power supply, a nanosecond pulse power supply and a nanosecond pulse integrated DC circuit. High voltage DC output and nanosecond pulse output are superposed via nanosecond pulse integrated DC circuit to obtain a nanosecond pulse superimposed DC power supply, applied to the load. The self-designed-and-constructed nanosecond pulse superposed direct current power supply device for performing plasma ignition is small in size, compact in structure and low in cost. The high voltage DC power supply and the nanosecond pulse power supply are integrated, which has the advantages of high discharge energy and device miniaturization and facilitates the usage. In the practical application, the power supply device can be used for internal combustion engine ignition and supersonic-speed airspace engine ignition.