Fuel Injector Pilot Valve Armature and Plunger Guide Arrangement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fuel injectors require high forces and complex internal configurations to manage high injection pressures, leading to increased manufacturing costs and a need for a more cost-effective design with improved pilot valve and armature arrangements.
Innovation Solution
A common-rail fuel injector design featuring an improved pilot valve inlet and outlet orifice arrangement, along with a unique armature and plunger guide system, including a solenoid-actuated armature assembly, a check ball, and a pilot valve seat with a central passage and angled shoulder, which reduces component count and manufacturing costs while maintaining high-pressure performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional fuel injector designs are used with high injection pressures, then fuel injection performance is improved, but manufacturing costs increase due to complex internal configurations and higher component requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the pilot valve seat and armature assembly into a single integrated component structure. The pilot valve seat is formed as an integral part of the armature assembly, eliminating the need for separate pilot valve components and reducing assembly complexity. This merging of components maintains high-pressure fuel injection performance while significantly reducing manufacturing costs through fewer parts and simplified production processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The armature assembly serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as both the armature for the solenoid actuator and houses the integrated pilot valve seat with inlet and outlet orifices. This multi-functional design eliminates the need for separate pilot valve components and reduces the overall component count, thereby lowering manufacturing costs while maintaining effective high-pressure fuel injection control.
2Reliability
If high forces are applied to manage high injection pressures, then sealing performance is improved, but component complexity and design costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The integration of the pilot valve seat into the armature assembly creates a unified structural design that simplifies the internal configuration. The single-piece construction maintains reliable sealing at high pressures through precision-engineered orifice interfaces while eliminating the complexity of multiple separate components and their associated sealing requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs precise local geometry at the orifice interfaces within the integrated armature assembly. The inlet and outlet orifices are specifically designed with optimized dimensions and positioning to maintain effective sealing under high pressure conditions, while the rest of the component maintains a simplified structure to reduce overall complexity.
3Ease of manufacture
If fewer component parts are used, then manufacturing costs are reduced, but maintaining high-pressure performance becomes more challenging
Solution Approach 1:
The armature assembly is designed to perform multiple critical functions: it serves as the electromagnetic actuator armature, houses the integrated pilot valve seat with controlled orifices, and provides the structural framework for high-pressure sealing. This multi-functional design maintains effective high-pressure fuel injection performance with fewer components, reducing manufacturing costs while preserving performance characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
By integrating the pilot valve seat directly into the armature assembly, the patent maintains precise control over fuel flow and pressure regulation through the combined structure. The integrated design ensures that high-pressure performance is achieved through the coordinated geometry of the merged components rather than relying on multiple separate parts, thereby reducing cost while maintaining performance.
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 design achieves reliable high-pressure fuel injection with fewer components, lowering production costs and maintaining performance characteristics, thus addressing the need for a cost-effective and efficient fuel injector system.
Implementation Method 1
a solenoid disposed adjacent the armature assembly and having an active state which causes the armature assembly to move to an upward position
Implementation Method 2
a hydraulic force acting on the needle valve primarily holds the needle valve in the closed position
Data Source
AI summary
A fuel injector device for injecting fuel into a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine is provided in which the fuel injector includes a body having an upper chamber and a lower chamber, an annular shoulder between the upper and lower chambers, an armature assembly disposed in the upper chamber, and a pilot valve seat having an inlet orifice disposed in the lower chamber and an outlet orifice disposed in the upper chamber. The pilot valve seat has a shaft extending between the outlet and inlet orifice and an angled shoulder between the outlet and inlet orifice. The angle shoulder of the shaft prevents fuel flow around the shaft between the upper and lower chambers. The armature assembly is configured to move to an upward position and to a downward position, the shaft also being disposed within the armature assembly to guide the armature assembly between the upward and downward positions.