Sinusoidal Ramp Stirling Engine

This drawing needs more work, but there's enough to get you the basic idea of... well, my idea.  An alpha-type Stirling engine normally uses a reciprocating wheel to run two pistons 90 degrees out of phase with one another.  This reciprocating action wastes a certain amount of energy due to low-angle torque at some rotational placements.  I'd fretted about how to resolve this for several years when I ran across a patent description for a "barrel engine", an ICE engine design that never really got off the ground (the patent recently expired).

In an 8 hot cylinder (8 cold, 16 total) engine with a sinusoidal ramp (the wavy bit in the center), connecting the cylinders as shown would keep them operating at 90 degrees out of phase with no reciprocation.  The engine should be self-starting.  BTW, the ramp is the part that turns; the pistons move against the ramp, pushing it around.



I designed the engine to sit down in the top of the bell (at the top of the riser) on a rocket stove.  I have no idea if this would actually work, and have no idea how much power it would develop if it did.  However, with 900 deg. F on the hot side, and a water jacket cooling the cold side (generating hot water as a byproduct), it's reasonable to think that useful power could come out of this thing.  

What do you think?

hi jdray an interesting concept there

from memory i believe that there was a water engine built in this design but failed due to the dynamics of water friction and valves usage however could be implemented in creating electric power unit

I have to admire you JDRay something I loved about Albert Einstein, he was constrained most of his working hours in a patent office.

He said he would often do thought experiments and then later after working out possible problems and or improvements would then set out to build the experiments in real time.

What many may over look was his privilege to look over patents on a daily basis thus feeding his brilliant intellect daily with the very food for thought processes.

One must consider an entire idea though not proven or perfected and then possibly way ahead of its time even placement eventually will find is placement at the given moment one stumbles across what they have been developing and can plug it right in to what they are working on at the moment.

This is the beauty of open source, in my opinion it is the most over looked and highly valued tool the world loses out on a given daily basis.

Lets consider just a couple of Albert Einstein's theories he came up with at the time were laughed at and at the given time did not plug into the given status quo.

However today we are now finding out that some of this theories that were scoffed at were right on spot and completely correct and now have found their time and place.

Please by all means I ask you to share your ideas openly even if others cannot grasp them

As well I encourage any who would read this to consider what I have presented here.

Time and relevance all play a part in shared ideas and concepts.

What may not make sense today, just may plug right into a development years later that anyone of us may be working on.

Now that I've been a member for more than a week, I can post the link to the (external website) original patent.  Take a look at the double-ended pistons; that's what I mean to draw (eventually) for this engine.  I'm still not sure it will work out, but it's worth some thought.

http://www.google.com/patents/US6834636

Now that I am able to view the patent it gives me a better understanding of your drawing.

All this is above my abilities.

Will be nice to see if you build one and test it.

i like the concept, but just a thought for what you are wanting to accomplish would not a radial setup like an aircraft engine be better. it would be easier to fabricate and use more off the shelf components as well as easier to connect to power things. just a thought.

The drive shaft for a radial engine isn't exactly un-complicated.

true forgot that