Rotor and seal combination for rotary mechanisms

Claim 1

A ROTOR AND SEAL COMBINATION FOR USE IN A ROTARY MECHANISM HAVING AN OUTER BODY COMPRISING A PERIPHERAL HOUSING HAVING A LONGITUDINAL AXIS AND A PAIR OF END WALLS SPACED ALONG SAID AXIS AND FORMING A CAVITY WITHIN WHICH SAID ROTOR AND SEAL COMBINATION IS RECEIVED, SAID ROTOR BEING ROTATABLE RELATIVE TO SAID OUTER BODY ABOUT AN AXIS DISPLACED FROM AND PARALLEL TO SAID OUTER BODY AXIS, AND ROTOR AXIS PLANETATING ABOUT SAID OUTER BODY AXIS TO FORM A PLURALITY OF VARIABLE-VOLUME WORKING CHAMBERS BETWEEN SAID ROTOR AND SAID OUTER BODY WHEREIN HIGH GAS PRESSURES CYCLICALLY OCCUR; SAID ROTOR AND SEAL COMBINATION COMPRISING A ROTOR HAVING PARALLEL END FACES RESPECTIVELY DISPOSED ADJACENT TO SAID END WALLS AND PARALLEL THEREWITH, SAID ROTOR HAVING A PLURALITY OF APEX PORTIONS SWEEPING THE INNER SURFACE OF SAID PERIPHERAL WALL IN SEALING RELATION THERETO, AT LEAST ONE OF SAID END FACES HAVING A SEAL GROOVE THEREIN ADJACENT TO THE PERIPHERY OF SAID ROTOR AND GENERALLY PARALLEL THERETO AND EXTENDING BETWEEN EACH PAIR OF ADJACENT APEX PORTIONS, AND A SEAL STRIP MEMBER DISPOSED IN EACH OF SAID SEAL GROOVES, EACH OF SAID SEAL STRIP MEMBERS HAVING AN AXIALLY OUTWARD PLANE SEALING FACE SWEEPING ONE OF SAID END WALLS IN SEALING RELATION THERETO DURING ROTATION OF SAID ROTOR, EACH OF SAID SEALING FACES HAVING A RADIALLY OUTWARD EDGE AND A RADIALLY INWARD EDGE AS POSITIONED BY SAID ROTOR, EACH OF SAID SEALING FACES HAVING THEREIN A PLURAWLITY OF GAS-LUBRICATION RECESSES COMMUNICATING WITH SAID WORKING CHAMBERS AT SAID RADIALLY OUTWARD EDGE OF SAID SEALING FACE AND CLOSED AT SAID RADIALLY INWARD EDGE WHEREBY SAID HIGH-PRESSURE GAS CYCLICALLY ENTERS SAID RECESSES TO PROVIDE GAS-LUBRICATION BETWEEN SAID SEAL STRIP AND SAID END WALL.