Engine Coolant Passage Sizing for Uniform Cylinder Flow
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cooling systems for internal combustion engines fail to ensure uniform coolant flow and pressure across cylinders, leading to potential overheating and sealing issues due to non-uniform coolant distribution.
Innovation Solution
The engine design incorporates varying passage diameters between cylinder jackets and lower cylinder head jackets to achieve uniform coolant flow, with larger diameters in specific passages to balance coolant distribution and reduce flow impedance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional cooling systems use uniform passage diameters, then the system structure is simple, but coolant flow and pressure vary significantly from cylinder to cylinder
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by varying the passage diameters at different locations within the cooling system. Specifically, different passages have different diameters tailored to the local coolant flow requirements of each cylinder, ensuring uniform coolant distribution while addressing the non-uniform thermal loads across the engine.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the geometric parameter of passage diameter to optimize coolant flow distribution. By adjusting the diameter parameter of individual passages, the system achieves more uniform coolant flow and pressure across all cylinders, directly addressing the reliability issue.
2Productivity
If larger diameter passages are used to reduce flow impedance, then coolant circulation efficiency improves, but the passage size increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of uniformly increasing all passage diameters, the patent applies local quality by selectively enlarging specific passages where flow impedance is highest. This targeted approach improves overall coolant circulation efficiency while minimizing the total volume occupied by passages.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling system passages are segmented into different zones with different diameter specifications. This segmentation allows optimization of coolant flow in critical areas without unnecessarily increasing the volume of all passages, thereby improving circulation efficiency while controlling overall passage volume.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design enhances coolant uniformity, reducing overheating risks and sealing issues by up to 40% and improves coolant circulation efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a diameter of the one or more passages in fluid communication with one of the plurality of cylinder jackets differs from diameters of the one or more passages in fluid communication with others of the plurality of cylinder jackets
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatuses, systems and methods are disclosed including an internal combustion engine. The internal combustion engine can include an engine block and a cylinder head. The engine block can define an inlet passage and a plurality of cylinder jackets in fluid communication in series. The engine block can include one or more passages from each of the plurality of cylinder jackets. The cylinder head can be mounted to the engine block and can include an outlet passage and a plurality of lower cylinder head jackets. The one or more passages can be in fluid communication with respective ones the plurality of lower cylinder head jackets. A diameter of the one or more passages in fluid communication with one of the plurality of cylinder jackets differs from diameters of the one or more passages in fluid communication with others of the plurality of cylinder jackets.