Patents Assigned to ACHATES POWERS, INC.
  • PISTON COOLING FOR OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINE
    Publication number: 20170370273
    Abstract: Pistons for opposed-piston engines include an interior annular cooling gallery. The gallery is provided with inlet and drain passageways constructed to shield a jet of liquid coolant entering the gallery, thereby reducing interference between the incoming jet and liquid coolant circulating in the gallery.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 25, 2017
    Publication date: December 28, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventor: RYAN G. MACKENZIE
  • Placement of an opposed-piston engine in a heavy-duty truck
    Patent number: 9849770
    Abstract: An engine placement configuration for a heavy-duty truck includes a chassis having two spaced-apart frame rails running in a longitudinal direction of the chassis, between front and rear ends, and a front wheel assembly with an axle attached to the frame rails. An opposed-piston engine is supported on the frame rails and positioned between the front end and the axle. The opposed-piston engine includes a cylinder assembly with a longitudinal axis disposed between the frame rails and oriented vertically with respect to the longitudinal direction. Alternatively, the opposed-piston engine includes a row of cylinders disposed between the rails and running in the longitudinal direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventor: Kevin B. Fuqua
  • Cylinder liner for an opposed-piston engine
    Patent number: 9845764
    Abstract: A cylinder liner for an opposed-piston engine, and corresponding methods of extending engine durability and thermal management therewith, has opposite ends and a bore with a longitudinal axis for supporting reciprocating movement of a pair of opposed pistons. An intermediate portion of the liner extends between the opposite ends and includes an annular liner portion within which the pistons reach respective TC locations. A liner ring is seated in a portion of the bore in the annular liner portion, between the TC locations, for scraping carbon from top lands of the pistons and/or increasing the thermal resistance of the annular liner portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: John J. Koszewnik, Bryant A. Wagner
  • GEAR BACKLASH CONTROL FOR AN OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINE
    Publication number: 20170356542
    Abstract: An opposed-piston engine includes a backlash reducing gear with at least a first and second gear that move relative to each other because of a hydraulic pressure applied within the gear. A backlash control system that includes the backlash reducing gear can dynamically adjust backlash between at least two gears in the gear train of the engine during operation of the engine instead of setting backlash prior to operation of the engine. A method for adjusting backlash in a two-stroke-cycle, opposed-piston engine with a backlash reducing gear includes providing hydraulic fluid, such as oil, to the gear, and allowing the backlash reducing gear to adapt to changes in the engine that include temperature changes, torque reversals, changes in load and the like. The backlash reducing gear adapts to changes in the engine by controlled leaking and intake of oil.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 8, 2016
    Publication date: December 14, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: Abhishek B. Sahasrabudhe, Sumanth Kashyap, John J. Koszewnik
  • Skewed combustion chamber for opposed-piston engines
    Patent number: 9840965
    Abstract: A combustion chamber for an opposed-piston engine has a rotationally skewed shape in a longitudinal section that is orthogonal to a chamber centerline, between diametrically-opposed openings of the combustion chamber through which fuel is injected. The rotationally skewed shape interacts with swirl to generate a tumble bulk charge air motion structure that increases turbulence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventor: Rishikesh Venugopal
  • Load transfer point offset of rocking journal wristpins in uniflow-scavenged, opposed-piston engines with phased crankshafts
    Patent number: 9841049
    Abstract: Load transfer point offset of rocking journal bearings in uniflow-scavenged, opposed-piston engines with phased crankshafts includes differing offsets for the load transfer points of opposed pistons. More specifically, under the condition that a first crankshaft leads the second crankshaft, an angular offset of a rocking journal wristpin of a piston coupled to the first crankshaft proportional to an offset of the first crankshaft relative to the second crankshaft is made to ensure adequate oil film thickness to the wristpin when it experiences a peak combustion pressure during a power stroke.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventor: Clark A. Klyza
  • OPEN EXHAUST CHAMBER CONSTRUCTIONS FOR OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINES
    Publication number: 20170321591
    Abstract: A configuration for a uniflow-scavenged, opposed-piston engine reduces exhaust cross-talk caused by mass flow between cylinders resulting from one cylinder having an open exhaust port during scavenging and/or charging while an adjacent cylinder is undergoing blowdown. Some configurations include a wall or other barrier feature between cylinders that are adjacent to each other and fire one after the other. Additionally, or alternatively, some engine configurations include cylinders with intake and exhaust ports sized so that there is an overlap in crank angle of two or more cylinders having open exhaust ports of about 65 crank angle degrees or less.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2016
    Publication date: November 9, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: RODRIGO ZERMEÑO BENITEZ, BRIAN J. CALLAHAN, KEVIN B. FUQUA, CHRISTOPHER J. KALEBJIAN
  • Constructions for piston thermal management
    Patent number: 9810174
    Abstract: A piston construction with an end surface is equipped with a pattern of insulating cavities embedded in an upper end of the piston, between the end surface and interior portions of the piston that are cooled by circulating liquid coolant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: Michael H. Wahl, Ryan G. MacKenzie, James U. Lemke
  • TRANSMISSIONS FOR OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINES WITH TWO CRANKSHAFTS
    Publication number: 20170314646
    Abstract: A transmission for an opposed-piston engine with two crankshafts includes a crankshaft gear train that combines the torque inputs from the two crankshafts and a gear arrangement coupled to the gear train that is operable to obtain various speed ratios for an output torque drive.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2016
    Publication date: November 2, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: VADIRAJ KULKARNI, Balazs V. Palfai, Dnyandeo T. Sapkal, Fabien G. Redon, Sumanth Kashyap
  • PISTON COOLING FOR OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINES
    Publication number: 20170306832
    Abstract: Pistons for opposed-piston engines include an interior annular cooling gallery. The gallery is provided with inlet and drain passageways constructed to shield a jet of liquid coolant entering the gallery, thereby reducing interference between the incoming jet and liquid coolant circulating in the gallery.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2017
    Publication date: October 26, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: RYAN G. MACKENZIE, FABIEN G. REDON
  • Minimizing oil leakage from rocking journal bearings of two-stroke cycle engines
    Patent number: 9797436
    Abstract: A rocking journal bearing is provided in a piston coupling mechanism of a two-stroke cycle engine. The bearing includes a sleeve and a wristpin constructed with two sets of eccentrically-disposed bearing surfaces which alternate in accepting a compressive load during an operational cycle of the bearing. The sleeve includes a network of grooves to transport oil to the bearing surfaces. Lubricating oil flow through the bearing is minimized by limiting provision of pressurized oil from the wristpin to the network of grooves to portions of the cycle when one or the other of the sets of bearing surfaces receives the compressive load.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: John M. Kessler, Clark A. Klyza
  • Split gear assembly with one-way roller clutch for controlling backlash in opposed-piston engines
    Patent number: 9772030
    Abstract: Backlash is controlled in an opposed-piston engine that includes two crankshafts disposed in a parallel, spaced-apart relationship and a gear train coupling the first and second crankshafts, the gear train including a driving gear coupled to the first crankshaft and a split gear assembly engaged with the driving gear to transfer rotation from the driving gear to the split gear assembly. The split gear assembly includes first and second gears, a spring mechanism that acts to angularly offset the first gear relative to the second gear in a first direction, and a one-way clutch mechanism that prevents relative angular movement of the first gear relative to the second gear in a second direction opposite the first direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventor: Balazs V. Palfai
  • Piston cooling for opposed-piston engines
    Patent number: 9759119
    Abstract: Pistons for opposed-piston engines include an interior annular cooling gallery. The gallery is provided with inlet and drain passageways constructed to shield a jet of liquid coolant entering the gallery, thereby reducing interference between the incoming jet and liquid coolant circulating in the gallery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: Ryan G. MacKenzie, Fabien G. Redon
  • BARRIER RING AND ASSEMBLY FOR A CYLINDER OF AN OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINE
    Publication number: 20170254288
    Abstract: A barrier ring for a cylinder assembly for an opposed-piston engine fits into a groove fashioned into a portion of the cylinder liner that is adjacent to the top dead center location of the end surfaces of the pistons, in a volume of the cylinder liner that defines the combustion chamber. The barrier ring and groove are part of a barrier assembly that prevents heat generated during combustion from reaching the outer wall of the cylinder assembly, reducing the need for conventional cooling systems and increasing the amount of heat retained in the combustion chamber. The barrier assembly allows for increased engine efficiency because of the combustion heat retained in the combustion chamber, as well as a reduction in the overall size of the engine because of the reduction in engine cooling needed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 4, 2016
    Publication date: September 7, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: BRYANT A. WAGNER, PATRICK R. LEE, ABHISHEK SAHASRABUDHE
  • MULTI-LAYERED PISTON CROWN FOR OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINES
    Publication number: 20170248099
    Abstract: A piston crown for a piston of a pair of pistons in a two-stroke, opposed-piston, compression ignition combustion engine has a barrier layer and a conductive layer. The barrier layer at least partially surrounds a combustion chamber formed by the piston crown and an end surface of an opposing piston. The conductive layer connects the crown to the rest of the piston body. The barrier layer and the conductive layer are joined either through welding or through the fabrication process. Optionally, the piston crown includes an insulating layer between the barrier and conductive layers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 29, 2016
    Publication date: August 31, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: BRYANT A. WAGNER, RYAN G. MACKENZIE
  • CONTROL OF AIRFLOW IN A UNIFLOW-SCAVANGED, TWO-STROKE CYCLE, OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINE DURING TRANSIENT OPERATION
    Publication number: 20170204801
    Abstract: Control of airflow in a uniflow-scavenged, two-stroke cycle, opposed-piston engine during transient operation includes monitoring at least one operating parameter of the engine to recognize a transition to a transient state of engine operation. If a transient state of operation is detected, fuel injection and airflow into to the cylinders of the engine are controlled to optimize combustion and limit emissions. Airflow into cylinders of the engine may be controlled by increasing a scavenging ratio of the engine or by increasing a trapping efficiency of the engine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 3, 2016
    Publication date: July 20, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: ARUNANDAN SHARMA, Nishit Nagar, Suramya D. Naik, Daniel Schum
  • FUEL LIMITER FOR A UNIFLOW-SCAVANGED, TWO-STROKE CYCLE, OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINE
    Publication number: 20170204790
    Abstract: Control of fuel flow in a uniflow-scavenged, two-stroke cycle, opposed-piston engine includes limiting an amount of torque or fuel in response to a torque demand, based upon a comparison and a selection of fuel delivery options derived from a global airflow parameter and/or a trapped airflow parameter.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 7, 2016
    Publication date: July 20, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: Nishit NAGAR, Arunandan SHARMA
  • Air handling control for opposed-piston engines with uniflow scavenging
    Patent number: 9708989
    Abstract: In an air handling system of a uniflow-scavenged, two-stroke cycle opposed-piston engine, one or more engine operating state parameters are sensed, numerical values of air handling parameters based on trapped conditions in a cylinder of the engine at the last port closing of an engine operating cycle are determined in response to the sensed parameters, the numerical values are evaluated, and one or more of the numerical values is adjusted in response to the evaluation. The adjusted numerical values are used to control charge air flow and EGR flow in the air handling system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: Randy E. Herold, Nishit Nagar, Fabien G. Redon
  • FUEL INJECTION STRATEGIES IN OPPOSED-PISTON ENGINES WITH MULTIPLE FUEL INJECTORS
    Publication number: 20170198632
    Abstract: In an opposed-piston engine, two or more fuel injectors are mounted to a cylinder for direct side injection into the cylinder. The injectors are controlled so as to inject either a single fuel pulse or a plurality of fuel pulses per cycle of engine operation in order to initiate combustion during varying engine speeds and operating conditions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 28, 2017
    Publication date: July 13, 2017
    Applicant: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: CLARK A. KLYZA, Fabien G. Redon
  • Air handling control for opposed-piston engines with uniflow scavenging
    Patent number: 9695763
    Abstract: In an air handling system of a uniflow-scavenged, two-stroke cycle opposed-piston engine, one or more engine operating state parameters are sensed, numerical values of air handling parameters based on trapped conditions in a cylinder of the engine at the last port closing of an engine operating cycle are determined in response to the sensed parameters, the numerical values are evaluated, and one or more of the numerical values is adjusted in response to the evaluation. The adjusted numerical values are used to control charge air flow and EGR flow in the air handling system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2017
    Assignee: ACHATES POWER, INC.
    Inventors: Randy E. Herold, Nishit Nagar, Fabien G. Redon