Oh my...

[wolfwings]

...I thought to poke around Revetec again, see about any new tidbits on the site, and they've done the math to make something even niftier.



This is an engine design that shows the true power of getting away from the crankshaft-based systems that prevent multiple overlapping centerlines for the pistons without sacrificing reliability. Initially meant to be in a 2.4l system, I'm staring at that and drooling. Though it's easier to see how things work if you manually slideshow through the frames. They estimate the core longblock will be around 160mm (<7in) deep. Sure, piping will add to that a bit, but the core engine being thinner than most one-use compact spare tires used on cars today. Just amazing.

Comments

Well the largest difference is...

[wolfwings.livejournal.com]

...there's almost zero lateral movement to begin with, since they're using paired cams with split roller-followers so the pistons are being pushed almost purely straight up and down. And since opposite pistons have direct mechanical linkages, this means the pistons are braced against each other and the linkages are run in guides to keep them aligned.

That's the theory at least. It runs, they've proven that. And unlike the Wankel engine it's able to run at high compression ratio's and uses all the latest designs in valvetrains and cylinders for fuel effeciency and economy and emissions. It's a novel way of laying out the core shortblock, but unlike the Wankel it's much more evolutionary than revolutionary as far as I can tell since it doesn't prevent the use of numerous other components.