Engine R&D – Scuderi Group Seek Miller Split-cycle Engine Patents

Scuderi Group announce publication of Miller-cycle patent application & technical papers

Scuderi Group an engine development company, announce the simultaneous publication by both the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) of its primary patent application covering Miller Cycle operation applied to a split-cycle engine.  The patent application is titled “Turbocharged Downsized Compression Cylinder For A Split-Cycle Engine.”

The patent application relates to a turbocharged split-cycle engine that divides the four strokes of a conventional Otto cycle engine over two paired cylinders. One cylinder, called the “compressor”, does the intake and compression strokes, while the other cylinder, called the “expander”, does the expansion (or power) and exhaust strokes. The compressor and expander are connected by a specially-designed crossover port to enable the transfer of compressed gas.  In a split-cycle engine, each of the four strokes is completed in one revolution of the crankshaft, as opposed to the four strokes requiring two revolutions in a conventional engine. The split-cycle engine requires the same number of cylinders as a conventional engine, but the compressor and expander cylinders must be equally paired.

“Applying the Miller Cycle to the Scuderi  Split-Cycle Engine is significant because it gives a split-cycle engine a significant advantage over a conventional engine when it comes to operating the Miller Cycle,” said Stephen Scuderi, vice president and patent attorney at Scuderi Group. “In this configuration, the compression cylinder can always run at or near maximum volumetric efficiency no matter how much it is downsized relative to the expansion cylinder; and achieving maximum volumetric efficiency keeps pumping losses across the intake valves to a minimum.”