Patent ID: 8561591

Claim:
An injector for introducing fuel into a combustion chamber and igniting fuel, the injector comprising: an injector body including a base portion having a fuel inlet for receiving fuel into the body; a nozzle portion coupled to the base portion and positioned to inject fuel; and an enclosure member at least partially defining a fuel flow channel for transporting fuel from the base portion to the nozzle portion, wherein the enclosure member includes a fuel exit port; an ignition electrode at the nozzle portion for generating an ignition event to at least partially ignite fuel; a flow control valve at the nozzle portion, wherein the flow control valve is radially expandable from a closed position covering the fuel exit port to an open position exposing the fuel exit port; and a piezoelectric force generator operably coupled to the flow control valve, wherein activation of the piezoelectric force generator expands the flow control valve from the closed position to the open position.