Patent ID: 8186160

Claim:
A thermal engine, comprising: a piston with a piston head and a piston crank; an engine block made crank case and a cylinder case and containing a tubular cylinder within which said piston head is slidably retained; a cylinder head comprising intake and exhaust valve port means and valve means and defining an expansion chamber within said cylinder between said piston head and said cylinder head; a crankshaft mechanically linked to said piston crank opposite said cylinder head by said piston crank; valve operating means; an expansion fluid tank; a heating means for heating expansion fluid in said expansion fluid tank; thermal insulation surrounding said expansion fluid tank; fluid delivery means for delivering an expansion fluid from said expansion fluid tank into said expansion chamber; a thermal battery comprising a thermal mass for storing heat and being in thermal communication with said expansion chamber for heating expansion fluid within said expansion chamber; a means of heating said thermal battery; thermal insulation surrounding said thermal battery for efficiently containing heat within said thermal mass for delivery into said expansion chamber; and engine starting means; such that when said engine starting means starts said engine, said valve means opens said intake and exhaust means, the expansion fluid delivery means delivers a quantity of expansion fluid into said expansion chamber and then closes, and the heat stored in said thermal battery one of: causes and assists the expansion fluid to expand within said cylinder, whether by phase change or combustion, pushing said piston head from a position substantially at top dead center to bottom dead center, thereby rotating said crank shaft and producing mechanical energy.