Patent ID: 8365702

Claim:
An internal combustion engine, comprising: at least one cylinder that delimits a combustion chamber, wherein a piston can be adjusted with regard to stroke, wherein at least one cylinder has at least one intake opening, wherein the intake opening is associated with an intake valve that works with an associated valve seat to control the intake opening, wherein the at least one intake opening is provided with a guide mask that laterally encloses the respective valve seat on a side that is opposite the respective combustion chamber along a delimited circumferential section, wherein the intake opening is associated with an intake canal, wherein at least one intake canal leading to a masked intake opening is associated with an additional valve for controlling the intake canal; wherein a valve control is provided for actuating the respective additional valve, said valve control selectively driving the additional valve at pre-determined operational states of the internal combustion engine in order to open and block the respective intake canal as a function of the stroke of the intake valve associated with the respective masked intake opening; and wherein the valve control selectively drives the additional valve as a function of the current operational state of the internal combustion engine in order to block the respective intake canal as long as the intake valve associated with the respective masked intake opening has a stroke that is larger than a pre-determined switching stroke.