Injector Seat Plate Web Segmentation for Compact Engine Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
In internal combustion engines, the limited installation space prevents the direct control of nozzle needles in injectors due to high injection pressures, requiring alternative control mechanisms like servo valves, which necessitate a compact and efficient seat plate design to manage the movement of the nozzle needle effectively.
Innovation Solution
A seat plate with a plate-like base body featuring a recess region with webs that support the closure element, reducing contact area and wear, and a rotationally symmetrical design allowing multiple installation orientations, along with angled surfaces to enhance fatigue strength and prevent tilting, facilitates efficient control of the nozzle needle movement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the outer diameter of the seat plate is reduced to achieve a more compact engine design, then the installation space and weight ratio are improved, but the structural strength and stability of the closure element placement are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The seat plate is segmented into multiple webs (typically 3-6 radial webs) extending from the center toward the outer periphery. These webs divide the plate structure into multiple triangular or sector-shaped segments, which collectively provide enhanced structural strength and stiffness while maintaining a reduced overall outer diameter. The segmentation allows the plate to resist deformation more effectively without increasing its size.
Solution Approach 2:
The webs are designed with optimized local geometry, including specific thicknesses, lengths, and angular distributions, to concentrate structural strength where needed. The local quality of the web structures provides enhanced rigidity and support for the closure element placement area, while the remaining areas of the seat plate maintain minimal diameter for compact installation.
2Reliability
If the contact area between the closure element and the seat plate is reduced to minimize wear, then the wear resistance is improved, but the stability and positioning accuracy of the closure element are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure for the closure element is divided into multiple discrete webs rather than a continuous large contact area. Each web provides a localized support point, distributing the closure element's weight and operational forces across multiple discrete contact zones. This segmentation reduces the total contact area and associated wear while maintaining stability through the distributed support architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The stability of the closure element is achieved not through increased contact area in the planar dimension, but through the three-dimensional geometry of the webs, including their thickness, height, and angular orientation. The webs provide lateral support and positioning constraints in multiple spatial dimensions, ensuring stable closure element placement without requiring large planar contact areas.
3Ease of operation
If the seat plate design is made rotationally symmetrical to allow multiple installation orientations, then the ease of installation is improved, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
While the overall seat plate maintains rotational symmetry for installation flexibility, the individual webs and their associated features are designed with specific asymmetric geometries optimized for their functional roles. Each web may have different thicknesses, lengths, or angles tailored to its specific structural and sealing requirements, allowing customized manufacturing of each feature while maintaining the symmetric arrangement.
Solution Approach 2:
The rotationally symmetrical design with multiple identical or similar webs allows the seat plate to function correctly in multiple rotational orientations, providing universal installability without requiring precise orientation alignment. This multi-functionality in terms of installation orientation reduces installation complexity and time, while the underlying web structures can be manufactured using standardized processes repeated around the circumference.
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
The compact seat plate design reduces the outer diameter, enabling a more compact engine design, improved weight ratio, and stable placement of the closure element, while minimizing wear and ensuring efficient fuel flow and pressure management.
Implementation Method 1
The recess region here has a plurality of webs formed in the first planar side, with the ratio of length to width of each web being in the range from 2.5-3.5:1... The claimed embodiment of the webs reduces the contact area of the closure element of the opening and thus also provides reduced wear at the contacting areas
Implementation Method 2
angled surfaces to enhance fatigue strength and prevent tilting
Implementation Method 3
a passage that extends through the plate-like base body from the first planar side toward the second planar side... This outflow throttle is arranged in the seat plate here. If the fuel escapes, the pressure in the control space and the closure force acting on the nozzle needle is reduced
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a seat plate for an injector, comprising: a planar main body having a first flat side and a second flat side; a passage, which extends through the planar main body from the first flat side to the second flat side; and an indentation region in the first flat side, which indentation region surrounds an opening of the passage. The seat plate is characterised in that a plurality of webs are formed in the first flat side through the indentation region, the ratio of length to width of each web lying in the range of 2.5-3.5:1, preferably in the range from 2.7-3.3:1, more preferably in the range from 2.9-3.1:1.