With a slogan like “The Future is Ecclectic,” we’d anticipate some attention-grabbing issues from INNengine, a startup based mostly in Spain. The corporate is showcasing a “one-stroke” engine that works as an opposed piston with a wavy twist.
The “one-stroke” is in quotes because the engine is definitely a two stroke (by definition), in that it has two actions (strokes) in its combustion course of. In contrast to most standard two-stroke engines, nonetheless, the INNengine e-Rex doesn’t burn oil and even use a type of strokes to lubricate or cool itself. These occur individually as they’d with a traditional four-stroke automotive engine.
In these standard engines, consumption, compression, combustion, and exhaust strokes all happen individually. In a two-stroke engine, there may be solely compression and combustion, with consumption/exhaust taking place concurrently with these. Two-stroke engines are typically extra highly effective for his or her package deal measurement and extra thermodynamically environment friendly than four-stroke engines. However standard designs are additionally soiled and (most of the time) noisy.
With the INNengine e-Rex, the entire benefits of a two-stroke engine are there, however the disadvantages will not be. Making it a compelling possibility. It additionally outputs at one or each side with out a lot modification, which suggests it may be used to propel a couple of axle simply.
The INNengine design is an opposed piston setup during which there are 4 pistons on either side to make eight in all. The opposing pistons share a combustion chamber and have fastened rods behind them. These rods press on plates with an oscillating wave-like design in order that the rods press and launch the pistons in a easy, coordinated motion. Consumption and exhaust occurs as it could with a two-stroke engine, with the exhaust port being simply forward of the consumption port in order that it leaves and begins making a vacuum simply because the piston strikes previous the consumption port, to permit recent air in for the following cycle. Gasoline and spark are fed as they’d be with another piston-based engine.
INNengine
This opposed piston setup makes for easy operation with very low noise and vibration, whereas the packaging retains the entire engine small. What’s extra, controlling the hole between the pistons throughout compression by shifting one or the opposite finish plate barely permits for variable compression as nicely. Enhancing effectivity much more.
INNengine is showcasing its e-Rex design as a working prototype in a Mazda MX-5 Miata. The engine permits the automobile to develop into all-wheel drive and appears to take up about half the area (our assumption from visuals) that the traditional 1.8L engine occupied. It’s additionally far lighter in weight. But the 500cc e-Rex is alleged to be producing 126 horsepower, which is similar to the 1.8L’s output. INNengine didn’t specify torque output and didn’t reply to reply that query earlier than publication. It’s famous that their take a look at engine did have a pressured air setup on it. That’s prone to enhance the torque output, which we suspect is comparatively low in a design like this given the shortage of leverage from the pistons.
Because of this, we aren’t too positive concerning the INNengine e-Rex being succesful sufficient to be a direct drive for many automotive functions. Regardless of this being what the corporate is making an attempt to showcase. The engine may, nonetheless, be a really helpful possibility as an environment friendly generator in a hybrid or range-extension possibility. Utilized in an electrical automobile, the INNengine may cut back the battery measurement requirement and supply decrease weight and a greater lengthy distance driving possibility – particularly if it may run as a multi-fuel possibility, which INNengine says it’s able to doing. On condition that batteries are (and can seemingly lengthy be) the heaviest and costliest a part of an EV, that could possibly be a boon.
Contemplating that the battery electrical mannequin of a automobile is often 30% heavier (or extra) versus its customary gasoline combustion counterpart, this engine possibility may current a solution to mitigate the security and street put on danger related by downsizing batteries in favor of an environment friendly combustion generator. On condition that most individuals drive 30-40 miles (48-64 km) a day on common, this discount in weight wouldn’t solely give longer vary to the batteries left on board, however it could enable the combustion to solely be used when the automobile goes additional than regular. And it could make the automobile safer, as crash testing is exhibiting that heavier autos imply extra accidents for folks in different autos in a wreck – and that’s a problem that’s most unlikely to go away anytime quickly.
INNengine
The INNengine e-Rex is an attention-grabbing innovation that would discover a residence in automotive. It’s additionally ripe to be used in different sectors akin to marine and off-grid energy era. A number of questions on its capabilities nonetheless stay unanswered, nevertheless it’s one of the attention-grabbing designs we’ve seen in a while.
Supply: INNengine
