Internal Combustion Engine Cylinder Resting Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Internal combustion engines face issues with white smoke during transitions from reduced-cylinder to all-cylinder operations due to lubricant oil accumulation and limited operational ranges, especially when the cylinder number is odd, leading to inefficient fuel consumption and discontinuous output.
Innovation Solution
An internal combustion engine with a control system that alternates the operating and resting states of all cylinders, allowing for flexible cylinder operations by adjusting fuel injection and valve states, enabling reduced-cylinder operations even with odd cylinder counts and reducing white smoke by burning lubricant oil.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If a specific cylinder is maintained in a resting state during reduced-cylinder operation, then fuel consumption is reduced, but lubricant oil accumulates in the combustion chamber causing white smoke when switching to all-cylinder operation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the resting state temporary and rotating among different cylinders. Instead of keeping one cylinder permanently at rest, the system dynamically switches which cylinder rests and which operates, ensuring no single cylinder accumulates excessive lubricant oil while still achieving fuel savings during reduced-cylinder operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements periodic action by cycling through different cylinders for the resting state. Each cylinder alternates between operating and resting states in a periodic manner, allowing lubricant oil to be burned off during operating phases while maintaining fuel efficiency during resting phases, thus preventing white smoke accumulation.
2Device complexity
If only a specific cylinder is maintained in the resting state, then the structure is simple, but the operation range is limited and cannot be performed with odd number of cylinders
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing a control system that can universally handle any cylinder configuration, including both even and odd numbers of cylinders. The rotating resting state mechanism works regardless of the total cylinder count, making the system adaptable to various engine types while maintaining a relatively simple control structure.
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 approach prevents long-term lubricant oil accumulation, reduces white smoke, expands the operational range of reduced-cylinder modes, and improves fuel efficiency by allowing flexible cylinder state changes during reduced-cylinder operations.
Implementation Method 1
a combustion cycle is always performed in some cylinders less than the cylinder number
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is an internal combustion engine including a control device 40 configured to adjust fuel injection valves 12 and a resting mechanism 30 and thereby executing a control of switching between an all-cylinder operation Oa and a reduced-cylinder operation Or, the all-cylinder operation Oa being an operation in which a combustion cycle is always performed in all of the cylinders 11, and the reduced-cylinder operation Or being an operation in which a combustion cycle is always performed in some cylinders 11 less than a cylinder number Nc, wherein in the reduced-cylinder operation Or, all of the cylinders 11 perform a partial operation in which an operating state and a resting state thereof are repeated.