Patents by Inventor Robert Kuchler

Robert Kuchler has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9500169
    Abstract: A lever device for a fuel injection valve includes a housing with a housing recess, at least one lever element arranged in the housing recess, a drive element arranged in the housing recess and coupled to the lever element(s) in order to act upon said at least one lever element in a direction of a force-action axis, and an output element arranged in the housing recess and coupled to the lever element(s) such that this output element is moveable in the force-action axis direction by the at least one lever element. Each lever element includes a coupling section designed or arranged such that the lever element is coupled to the housing, or to the output element, in a rotationally-fixed manner with respect to the force-action axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2016
    Assignee: CONTINENTAL AUTOMOTIVE GMBH
    Inventors: Stefan Lehmann, Hellmut Freudenberg, Stefan Kohn, Robert Kuchler, Manuel Hannich, Roland Feigl, Wolfgang Wechler, Matthias Wicke
  • Patent number: 9376993
    Abstract: A lever device for a fuel injection valve includes a housing with a housing recess, at least one lever element arranged in the housing recess and having a coupling section coupled to a section of the housing, a drive element arranged in the housing recess and coupled to the at least one lever element to act upon the at least one lever element in the direction of a force-action axis, and an output element arranged in the housing recess and coupled to the at least one lever element such that the output element may be moved in the force-action axis direction by the at least one lever element. The coupling section of the lever element has at least one recess that defines at least two coupling section contact surfaces spaced apart from one another and resting against the housing section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2016
    Assignee: CONTINENTAL AUTOMOTIVE GMBH
    Inventors: Stefan Lehmann, Hellmut Freudenberg, Stefan Kohn, Robert Kuchler, Manuel Hannich, Roland Feigl, Wolfgang Wechler, Matthias Wicke
  • Patent number: 9347412
    Abstract: A damping element implemented for damping a vibration transmitted between an injection valve and a cylinder head of an internal combustion engine may include a base body substantially shaped as a ring washer and at least one first contact segment fixedly coupled to the base body and protruding past the base body in a first axial direction and a second contact segment fixedly coupled to the base body and protruding past the base body in a second axial direction opposite the first axial direction. The first at least one contact segment has a radial offset from the longitudinal axis that is unequal to a radial offset of the second contact segment from the longitudinal axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2016
    Assignee: CONTINENTAL AUTOMOTIVE GMBH
    Inventors: Jens Fath, Joachim Wagner, Rainer Weber, Marco Haller, Robert Kuchler
  • Patent number: 8998104
    Abstract: An injection valve includes an injector component having an injector body including a recess hydraulically coupled to a high-pressure circuit of a fluid, and a nozzle needle moveably disposed injector body recess for preventing fluid flow through at least one injection opening in a closed position, and otherwise for releasing the fluid flow; an actuator unit disposed in the injector body recess and having an actuator element disposed in an actuator housing including an end face at an axial end facing the injection opening, which end face is mechanically coupled to a stage implemented in the injector body via a ring element disposed axially between the end face and the stage. At least two radial through passages are disposed opposite each other in the ring element, designed for hydraulically coupling between a ring interior disposed within the ring element and a ring exterior disposed outside of the ring element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2015
    Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH
    Inventors: Axel Burkhardt, Robert Kuchler, Joachim Wagner, Roland Wild
  • Publication number: 20150028135
    Abstract: A lever device for a fuel injection valve includes a housing with a housing recess, at least one lever element arranged in the housing recess, a drive element arranged in the housing recess and coupled to the lever element(s) in order to act upon said at least one lever element in a direction of a force-action axis, and an output element arranged in the housing recess and coupled to the lever element(s) such that this output element is moveable in the force-action axis direction by the at least one lever element. Each lever element includes a coupling section designed or arranged such that the lever element is coupled to the housing, or to the output element, in a rotationally-fixed manner with respect to the force-action axis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 19, 2012
    Publication date: January 29, 2015
    Inventors: Stefan Lehmann, Hellmut Freudenberg, Stefan Kohn, Robert Kuchler, Manuel Hannich, Roland Feigi, Wolfgang Wechler, Matthias Wicke
  • Publication number: 20150021418
    Abstract: A lever device for a fuel injection valve includes a housing with a housing recess, at least one lever element arranged in the housing recess and having a coupling section coupled to a section of the housing, a drive element arranged in the housing recess and coupled to the at least one lever element to act upon the at least one lever element in the direction of a force-action axis, and an output element arranged in the housing recess and coupled to the at least one lever element such that the output element may be moved in the force-action axis direction by the at least one lever element. The coupling section of the lever element has at least one recess that defines at least two coupling section contact surfaces spaced apart from one another and resting against the housing section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 19, 2012
    Publication date: January 22, 2015
    Inventors: Stefan Lehmann, Hellmut Freudenberg, Stefan Kohn, Robert Kuchler, Manuel Hannich, Roland Feigl, Wolfgang Wechler, Matthias Wicke
  • Patent number: 8800535
    Abstract: In an actuation method for a piezoactuator in an injector, an injection is triggered by controlling the piezoactuator to open and close the injection valve. An injection charge and discharge pulse each cause a change in length of the piezoactuator, which excites an oscillation system. After an idle time interval without injection, the steps for triggering an injection are repeated. At times t1 and t2 during the idle time interval tL, a damping charge current pulse and a damping discharge current pulse are applied, wherein the change in length which is generated by the damping charge and discharge current pulses are too small to activate the injection valve and to trigger an injection. The times t1 and t2 are selected such that excitation of the oscillation system by the pulses takes place in anti-phase with respect to the oscillation which is excited by the injection charge and discharge current pulse.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2014
    Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH
    Inventor: Robert Kuchler
  • Publication number: 20130146026
    Abstract: A damping element implemented for damping a vibration transmitted between an injection valve and a cylinder head of an internal combustion engine may include a base body substantially shaped as a ring washer and at least one first contact segment fixedly coupled to the base body and protruding past the base body in a first axial direction and a second contact segment fixedly coupled to the base body and protruding past the base body in a second axial direction opposite the first axial direction. The first at least one contact segment has a radial offset from the longitudinal axis that is unequal to a radial offset of the second contact segment from the longitudinal axis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 9, 2011
    Publication date: June 13, 2013
    Inventors: Jens Fath, Joachim Wagner, Rainer Weber, Marco Haller, Robert Kuchler
  • Publication number: 20130126636
    Abstract: An injection valve may comprise: an injector component having an injector body comprising a recess of the injector body extending in the direction of a longitudinal axis that can be hydraulically coupled to a high-pressure circuit of a fluid, and a nozzle needle axially displaceably disposed in the recess of the injector body, designed for preventing fluid flow through at least one injection opening in a closed position, and otherwise for releasing the fluid flow; an actuator unit disposed in a recess of the injector body and comprising an actuator housing in which an actuator element is disposed, and the actuator housing comprises an end face at an axial end facing the injection opening, said end face being mechanically coupled to a stage implemented in the injector body; and a ring element disposed axially between the end face and the stage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 3, 2010
    Publication date: May 23, 2013
    Inventors: Axel Burkhardt, Robert Kuchler, Joachim Wagner, Roland Wild
  • Publication number: 20120174896
    Abstract: In an actuation method for a piezoactuator in an injector, an injection is triggered by controlling the piezoactuator to open and close the injection valve. An injection charge and discharge pulse each cause a change in length of the piezoactuator, which excites an oscillation system. After an idle time interval without injection, the steps for triggering an injection are repeated. At times t1 and t2 during the idle time interval tL, a damping charge current pulse and a damping discharge current pulse are applied, wherein the change in length which is generated by the damping charge and discharge current pulses are too small to activate the injection valve and to trigger an injection. The times t1 and t2 are selected such that excitation of the oscillation system by the pulses takes place in anti-phase with respect to the oscillation which is excited by the injection charge and discharge current pulse.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2011
    Publication date: July 12, 2012
    Inventor: Robert Kuchler