Patent ID: 6612285
Filing Date: 2003-09-02
Classification: F02B,F02F,F02P,Y02T

Abstract:
A combustion system for a four-stroke reciprocating internal combustion engine having at least one cylinder, comprising:means for inducting air and fuel into said one cylinder of the engine to thereby generate two-layer barrel stratification in said one cylinder, said stratification having a zone of sharp air-fuel ratio transition separating a relatively richly fueled barrel swirl layer in said one cylinder and a relatively lean or substantially unfueled barrel swirl layer in said one cylinder, a geometric plane passing through the geometric axis of said one cylinder being contained substantially within said air-fuel transition zone, a first ignition source positioned in the combustion chamber of said one cylinder in a location offset from said geometric plane into said relatively richly fueled barrel swirl layer of said one cylinder, a second ignition source positioned in the combustion chamber of said one cylinder in a location substantially on said geometric plane of said one cylinder, and ignition activation means effective, with combustion cycle to combustion cycle consistency during operation of said one cylinder with said barrel stratification, to (a) initiate combustion in said offset location of said one cylinder by activating said first ignition source and then (b) initiate combustion substantially on said geometric plane of said one cylinder by activating said second ignition source only after said activation of said first ignition source has initiated combustion to thereby create sufficient expansion to push said air-fuel transition zone past said location of second ignition source of said one cylinder, whereby during fully barrel stratified operation of the engine both of said first and said second ignition sources of said one cylinder consistently initiate combustion in relatively richly fueled mixture originally enveloping said first ignition source, but not said second ignition source.