Patent ID: 8578898

Claim:
A valve train control device for use in a reciprocating piston internal combustion engine having a camshaft with a primary cam lobe defining a primary cam lobe profile constructed to directly or indirectly translate camshaft rotational motion into linear motion of a corresponding valve in accordance with the profile, the device comprising: a primary cam follower positioned in an operational path between the primary cam lobe and the corresponding valve, the primary cam follower constructed to follow the primary cam lobe; a secondary cam lobe projecting from the camshaft; a secondary cam follower constructed to follow the secondary cam lobe; and an auxiliary motion transfer device maintaining a continuous secondary operational path between the primary cam follower and the secondary cam follower, the auxiliary motion transfer device being operable to shift the primary cam follower through a plurality of alternative positions relative to the primary cam lobe during at least a portion of the camshaft rotation in response to at least one engine parameter to alter at least one valve operating parameter relative to a set of valve parameters defined by the primary cam lobe profile interacting with an unshifted primary cam follower.