Spherical rotary valve assembly for use in a rotary valve internal combustion engine

Claim 1

An improved spherical rotary valve assembly for use in internal combustion engines of the piston and cylinder type, said spherical rotary valve assembly comprising: a removable two-piece cylinder head securable to the internal combustion engine, said two-piece removable cylinder head comprising an upper and lower cylinder head section; said upper and lower cylinder head sections, when secured to said internal combustion engine, define two cavities radially aligned with the cylinders of said internal combustion engine, said cavities defining a plurality of first drum accommodating cavities for receipt of radially-aligned rotary intake valves and second radially-aligned cavities defining a plurality of second drum accommodating cavities for receipt of a plurality of radially-aligned rotary exhaust valves, said lower cylinder head section and said plurality of first drum accommodating cavities having an inlet port in communication with said cylinder; said lower cylinder head section and said second drum accommodating cavities having an outlet port in communication with said cylinder; a sealing means associated with said inlet and said outlet ports; a first passageway for introduction of a fuel/air mixture into said cylinder head by way of a reservoir cavity adjacent both sides of said first drum accommodating cavity and said rotary intake valve and a second passageway for the evacuation of exhaust gases from said cylinder by way of an evacuation cavity adjacent both sides of said second drum accommodating cavity and said rotary exhaust valve; a first shaft means journaled on bearing surfaces within said first cavity, radially aligned with said cylinders of said internal combustion engine, said first shaft means having mounted thereon a plurality of said rotary intake valves; a second shaft means journaled on said bearing surfaces within said second radially-aligned cavity, said second shaft means having positioned thereon a plurality of said rotary exhaust valves; said rotary intake valve and said rotary exhaust valve each having a spherical section defined by two parallel planes of a sphere, said planes being disposed symmetrically about the center of said sphere, defining a spherical periphery and planer side walls, said rotary intake valves mounted on said first shaft means in said plurality of drum accommodating cavities in gas tight sealing contact with said inlet port, each of said rotary exhaust valves mounted on said second shaft means in said plurality of drum accommodating cavities in gas tight sealing contact with said outlet port, said rotary intake valve having a passageway on its spherical periphery for the introduction and interruption of fuel/air mixture into said engine, said passageway in communication with doughnut cavities formed in both of said sidewalls of said rotary intake valves, said doughnut cavities in communication with adjacent reservoir cavities formed in said upper and lower cylinder head sections, said adjacent reservoir cavities in communication with said first passageway for the introduction of said fuel/air mixture into said cylinder from both sides of said rotary intake valve, said rotary exhaust valve having a passageway positioned on its spherical periphery for the evacuation and interruption of evacuation of exhaust gases from said cylinder, said rotary exhaust valve having doughnut-shaped cavities formed in said planer sidewalls in communication with said passageway on said spherical periphery, said doughnut cavities in communication with adjacent evacuation cavities formed in said upper and lower cylinder head sections, said adjacent evacuation cavities in communication with said second passageway for the evacuation of exhaust gases from said cylinder.