Double-rotor rotary engine and turbine

A rotary internal combustion engine has a base and a housing rotatably mounted to the base and forming a radial cylinder. An output shaft is rotatably mounted concentrically with the housing and has an arm rigidly extending therefrom. A piston slides in the cylinder for forming a combustion chamber, the piston being operatively connected to the arm. Relative rotational movement between the housing and the output shaft causes the piston to reciprocate in the cylinder. Rotation of the housing is caused by expansion of exhaust gases from the cylinder passing through a turbine which is fixedly connected to the housing. Adjustable stator blades are mounted to the base downstream of the turbine. Stop means are arranged on the shaft for limiting the relative movement between the shaft and the housing. Brake means are arranged on the base and the housing for facilitating starting and stopping sequences of the engine.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
Conventional engines need a transmission to obtain output power. In order 
to simplify the complicated structure of the engine, the invented 
transmission mechanism can use the two-times satisfaction of Newton' Third 
Law in the double-rotor rotary engine end turbine to adjust the output 
power relative to the speed of engine, which is caused by a 
velocity-pressure change of the combustion products passing through the 
turbine of the engine. 
The double-rotor rotary engine and turbine, which was patented in U.S. Pat. 
No. 4,912,923, has the most important feature that the output power is 
produced by two-times satisfaction of Newton's Third Law in each explosion 
stroke. This feature can be caused by the combustion products to move the 
piston relative to the cylinder and also to make the turbine produce a 
tangential-force on the rotatable housing which, in turn, takes the role 
of base to react on the shaft of the engine. Hence, the speed of the 
engine is in response to the torque reaction between the rotatable housing 
and the base of the engine as produced by the exhaust turbine, and between 
the rotatable housing and the shaft of the engine as produced by the 
expansion of combustion products in the cylinder. 
Therefore, the invented transmission mechanism uses said features of the 
engine to change the speed and pressure of combustion products passing 
through the turbine for adjusting the output power relative to the speed 
of the engine without the transmission of conventional engines.

As can be seen from FIGS. 1 to 5, the engine 10 makes use of the combined 
advantages of the internal combustion engine and the turbine. The two 
rotors, i.e., housing 14 and shaft 19, of the engine rotate with respect 
to each other and also relative to the base of the engine, housing 14 
having cylinder 13 in it and shaft 19 transmitting the power. The relative 
angular motion between these two rotors can be held by stoppers 25A and 
25B to less than 90.degree.. 
FIG. 1 shows the exterior of the double-rotor rotary engine and turbine 10 
which has the rotating part and the base. The rotating part consists of 
the housing 14 and the shaft 19. Base 22 consists of the cover 11 and the 
sump 12. Cover 11 is partially cut in order to show the cylinder 13. All 
of the cylinder 13 is fixed within the housing 14. 
FIG. 2 shows that the housing 14 has two hollow cases, one of which is 
indicated by the shell plates 15, 15A and 15B. The cylinder 13 is 
installed between these two hollow cases and rotates together with them. 
Each cylinder 13 has an inlet 18 which communicates with openings 17 and 
26, and an outlet 39 which communicates with openings 17B and 36. Openings 
17B and 36, formed by the blades 17A and 36A, take the role of the exhaust 
turbine. Mixture of fuel-air enters the cylinder 13 from the openings 17, 
26 and the inlet 18, and exhausts from the cylinder 13 by the outlet 39 
and the openings 17B, 36. The shaft 19 has the arms 27 and is supported by 
bearing 20 on the base 22. The housing 14 is supported by bearing 20A on 
the shaft 19. The piston 23 moves relative to the cylinder 13 for forming 
the combustion chamber and is connected to the shaft 19 by connecting rod 
24 and the arm 27. Base 22 has protuberant-parts 21A and 21, the part 21A 
forms the opening 36 and the part 21 the opening 26. Protuberant-parts 16A 
and 16 of the housing 14 engage slidingly with the base 22; the part 16A 
forms the opening 17B and the part 16 the opening 17. 
FIG. 3 shows that the stoppers 25A and 25B limit the relative rotation of 
the shaft 19 and the housing 14 as well as the motion of the piston 23. 
Hence, two positions of the piston 23 can be adjusted, i.e., piston 23 
being at the top dead point and being at the bottom dead point. 
FIG. 4 shows a detailed drawing of the piston 23. A number of gaskets 31 
are attached to the piston 23 by the bolts 32. By changing the number of 
gaskets, the compression ratio can be adjusted for different fuels. 
FIG. 5 shows the structure of the openings 17B and 36 which form the 
exhaust turbine. 
FIG. 2 also shows that on the surface of the shell plate 15, there is the 
brake device 29 and 30 for facilitating starting and stopping the engine. 
FIG. 6 shows that transmission mechanism of the engine consists of two 
parts, one part being formed by an adjustable blade 36A of the turbine and 
another part being formed by a turning wheel 40 which is operatively 
mounted on the shaft 19 and engaged with the blade 36A by a cog 42. The 
blade 36A has a pivot 43 mounted operatively to the opening 36 of the 
turbine so that gaps between the blades 36A can be adjusted by the turning 
wheel 40. The adjustable blade 36A acts as the stator of the turbine in 
response to flow of the combustion products. Handle 41 fixed to the 
turning wheel 40 controls the motion of transmission mechanism. 
FIG. 7 shows that blade 36A has the pivot 43 mounted relative to the 
opening 36 and works as the stator of the turbine. 
FIG. 8 shows that blade 36A engages with the cog 42 of the turning wheel 40 
and the gaps between the blades 36A can be adjusted. 
OPERATION 
When the engine is stopped, housing 14 is braked by the brake device 29 and 
30. When the shaft 19 starts, the piston 23 will move towards the bottom 
dead point and will open the inlet 18 so that the mixture of fuel-air 
flows into the cylinder 13. When piston 23 reaches the bottom dead point, 
the brake on the housing 14 is withdrawn. 
While the initial torque continues, the housing 14 begins to move because 
the piston 23 is positioned in the cylinder 13 which is fixed within the 
housing 14. As the movement of the engine continues, the housing 14 
achieves more momentum than the shaft 19 and will advance so that the 
piston 23, also with its own centrifugal-force, moves easily from the 
bottom dead point towards the top dead point. When the movement of the 
piston 23 closes inlet 18 and the outlet 39, the mixture of fuel-air is 
compressed. Hence, the compression stroke is completed while the piston 23 
reaches the top dead point. 
By the predetermined compression ratio which makes the mixture of fuel-air 
explode, the explosion stroke starts while the piston 23 reaches the top 
dead point. When the explosion of the mixture occurs as well as the 
initial torque is withdrawn, piston 23 will move from the top dead point 
towards the bottom dead point. But, before the exhaust process starts, the 
shaft 19 pushed by the piston 23 cannot generate effectively the output 
power. Because, at this time, no tangential-force is produced between the 
rotating part and the base of the engine so that rotating part is only 
freely rotating, i.e., Newton' Third Law being not satisfied. As the 
movement of the piston 23 opens the outlet 39 and the exhaust process 
starts, the combustion products then pass through the openings 36, 17B and 
react on the housing 14 with tangential-force because of the turbine 
effect between the blades 17A, 36A. Therefore, the conservation of 
momentum does not hold since the tangential-force acting on the housing 14 
is not equal to zero, i.e., Newton' Third Law being satisfied for the 
first time. Furthermore, the housing 14 acted on by the tangential-force, 
in turn, takes the role of another base to react on the shaft 19, i.e., 
Newton' Third Law being satisfied for the second time, so that the 
synthetic output of two-times satisfaction of Newton' Third Law is 
performed. So, the engine cannot operate effectively without one of these 
two-times satisfaction in each explosion stroke. 
Because of said-above important feature, the speed of the engine is in 
response to the torque reaction between the housing 14 and the base 22 of 
the engine as produced by the exhaust turbine, and between the housing 14 
and the shaft 19 as produced by the expansion of combustion products in 
the cylinder 13. Hence, a relative change between the speed and the torque 
of the engine will be opposite with respect to an equivalent speed of the 
exhaust. So, when a smaller gap between the adjustable blades 36A is 
caused by the turning wheel 40 through the cog 42, a lower speed but a 
higher pressure of the exhaust will react from the blade 36A to the blade 
17A so as to produce more tangential force but a lower speed on the 
housing 14. Vice versa, when a larger gap between the adjustable blades 
36A is caused, a higher speed but a lower pressure of the exhaust will 
produce less tangential-force but a higher speed on the housing 14. 
Because of the shaft 19 being reacted by the housing 14, the final 
synthetic output is in accordance with the varied tangential-force and the 
varied speed of the housing 14 so that the conventional transmission is 
not needed for the double-rotor rotary engine and turbine. 
When the explosion stroke finishes, the piston 23 has reached the bottom 
dead point and has opened the inlet 18. At this time, the piston 23, 
because of its own centrifugal-force as well as the greater momentum of 
the housing 14, moves again from the bottom dead point towards the top 
dead point, i.e., next compression stroke being proceeded. When the engine 
needs to stop, the brake device 29 and 30 can be used to help because the 
freely rotating part of the engine keeps a larger inertia momentum.