Alternating piston engine

Claim 1

AN ALTERNATING PISTON TYPE ENGINE, COMPRISING: A HOUSING HAVING AN ANNULAR CHAMBER THEREIN HAVING INLET AND OUTLET PORTS; A PLURALITY OF PISTONS IN SAID CHAMBER; CONNECTING MEANS INTERCONNECTING PAIRS OF SAID PISTONS FOR SIMULTANEOUS ROTARY MOVEMENT IN SAID CHAMBER; A POWER SHAFT; AND TRANSMISSION MEANS FOR TRANSLATING NONUNIFORM MOVEMENT OF SAID INTERCONNECTED PAIRS OF PISTONS TO UNIFORM ROTATION OF SAID POWER SHAFT AND VICE VERSA, SAID TRANSMISSION MEANS COMPRISING ARTICULATED LINK MEANS PIVOTALLY JOINED TO SAID CONNECTING MEANS TO CONTROL MOVEMENTS THEREOF WHEREBY WHEN SAID PISTONS ROTATE IN THE SAME DIRECTION ONE INTERCONNECTED PAIR MAY ACCELERATE WHILE ANOTHER PAIR IS DECELERATING, AND VICE VERSA, TO ALTERNATELY CONTRACT AND EXPAND THE SPACE BETWEEN SUCCESSIVE PISTONS; FIXED NON-CIRCULAR GUIDE MEANS CARRIED BY SAID HOUSING, A PLURALITY OF FOLLOWER MEANS CARRIED BY SAID ARTICULATED LINK MEANS AND ENGAGING SAID GUIDE MEANS; AND A MEMBER FIXED ON SAID POWER SHAFT, SAID FOLLOWER MEANS DRIVINGLY ENGAGING SAID MEMBER; SAID MEMBER HAVING CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED MEANS ENGAGEABLE WITH SAID FOLLOWER MEANS TO ESTABLISH SUBSTANTIALLY POSITIVE DRIVE RELATIONSHIP THEREBETWEEN ONLY AT THE POSITIONS OF SAID CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED MEANS.