Patent ID: 7077115

Claim:
An internal combustion engine comprises a combustion chamber defined by a cylinder, a cylinder head covering one end of said cylinder, and a piston reciprocable within said cylinder and having a piston head facing said cylinder head, said engine comprising: (a) an intake port for introducing a charge into said combustion chamber; (b) an exhaust port for exhausting combustion products from said combustion chamber; (c) a fuel injection valve disposed in said cylinder head for introducing a fuel directly into said combustion chamber; and (d) an ignition assist apparatus disposed within said combustion chamber comprising an electric incandescent ignitor with a sleeve disposed around said ignitor and a catalytic alloy deposited on said sleeve, said catalytic alloy comprising a first catalytic element with a greater affinity for oxygen than that of a second catalytic element, and said second catalytic element having a greater affinity for said fuel than that of said first catalytic element.