Hydraulic supercharger system

Claim 2

An hydraulic supercharger system for supercharging an internal combustion engine defining a shaft comprising: (a) a supercharger comprising: i) a shaft defining a shaft axis and supported by supercharger bearings, ii) a high speed hydraulic radial inflow turbine drive comprising: (1) a turbine nozzle body defining a turbine nozzle body outlet surface and comprising a hydraulic fluid cavity and a plurality of nozzles each of said nozzles providing a passageway for hydraulic fluid to pass inwardly from said hydraulic fluid cavity to said outlet surface and defining a nozzle centerline, where each of said nozzle centerlines: (A) intersects said turbine body outlet surface at a point of intersection on a circle is concentric about said shaft axis and defines a nozzle exit circle and (B) forms an angle of about 8 to 30 degrees with a tangent to said nozzle exit circle at said point of intersection, (2) a radial in-flow hydraulic turbine wheel assembly comprising a plurality of radial flow turbine blades on a blade circle having a diameter of less than 2 inches; said turbine wheel assembly being arranged in relation to said shaft and said turbine body outlet surface such that hydraulic fluid discharged from said nozzles impinge on said blades to cause rotation of said turbine wheel and said shaft, iii) a compressor driven by said hydraulic turbine drive, (b) a first hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of a hydraulic fluid system to said supercharger, (c) a second hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of said hydraulic fluid system to an hydraulic device other than said supercharger, (d) an hydraulic venturi unit defining a main inlet, an outlet and a low pressure throat section, (e) an expansion tank, (f) a main hydraulic piping means providing an hydraulic circulation loop for hydraulic fluid to flow from said pump, to drive said hydraulic turbine drive, to said main inlet of said venturi unit, through said venturi unit, to said venturi outlet and back to said pump, (g) a supercharger bypass system comprising a controlled bypass valve and a piping means to permit a portion of said hydraulic fluid flow to bypass said supercharger turbine drive, and (h) a lubrication piping means providing a lubrication route for a portion of said hydraulic fluid flow from said turbine drive to said bearings to said expansion tank and to said low pressure throat section of said venturi unit.

Claim 3

A system as in claim 1 wherein said hydraulic device other than said supercharger is a power steering mechanism.

Claim 4

A system as in claim 1 and further comprising a clutch for engaging and disengaging said first pump from said shaft.

Claim 5

A system as in claim 3 and further comprising a controller for controlling the operation of said bypass valve and said clutch.

Claim 6

A system as in claim 1 and further comprising an oil cooler located within said hydraulic circulation loop.

Claim 7

A hybrid supercharger system as in claim 4 and further comprising a second hydraulic pump for providing hydraulic fluid to said supercharger bearings.

Claim 8

An hybrid supercharger system as in claim 5 and further comprising a second hydraulic pump for providing hydraulic fluid to said supercharger bearings.

Claim 9

An hybrid supercharger system for supercharging an internal combustion engine defining an engine shaft and engine exhaust comprising: (a) a hybrid supercharger comprising: i) a supercharger shaft defining a supercharger shaft axis and supported by supercharger bearings, ii) a high speed hydraulic radial inflow turbine drive driven by hydraulic fluid pressurized by said first pump, said hydraulic inflow turbine drive being mounted on said shaft in order to rotate said shaft, iii) an engine exhaust turbine drive driven by said engine exhaust, said engine exhaust turbine drive being mounted on said supercharger shaft in order to rotate said supercharger shaft, and iv) a compressor mounted on said supercharger shaft and driven by said hydraulic turbine drive and said engine exhaust turbine drive, (b) a first hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of a hydraulic fluid system to said supercharger, and (c) a second hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of said hydraulic fluid system to an hydraulic device other than said supercharger.

Claim 10

An hybrid supercharger system for supercharging an internal combustion engine defining an engine shaft and engine exhaust comprising: (a) a hybrid supercharger comprising: i) a supercharger shaft defining a supercharger shaft axis and supported by supercharger bearings, ii) a high speed hydraulic radial inflow turbine drive driven by hydraulic fluid pressurized by said first pump, said hydraulic inflow turbine drive being mounted on said shaft in order to rotate said shaft, iii) an engine exhaust turbine drive driven by said engine exhaust, said engine exhaust turbine drive being mounted on said supercharger shaft in order to rotate said supercharger shaft, and iv) a compressor mounted on said supercharger shaft and driven by said hydraulic turbine drive and said engine exhaust turbine drive, (b) a first hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of a hydraulic fluid system to said supercharger, and (c) a second hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of said hydraulic fluid system to an hydraulic device other than said supercharger.

Claim 11

An hydraulic supercharger system for supercharging an internal combustion engine defining a shaft comprising: (a) a supercharger comprising: i) a shaft defining a shaft axis and supported by supercharger bearings, ii) a high speed hydraulic radial inflow turbine drive comprising: (1) a turbine nozzle body defining a turbine nozzle body outlet surface and comprising a hydraulic fluid cavity and a plurality of nozzles each of said nozzles providing a passageway for hydraulic fluid to pass inwardly from said hydraulic fluid cavity to said outlet surface and defining a nozzle centerline where: (A) each of said nozzle centerlines: (i) intersects said turbine body outlet surface at a point of intersection on a circle is concentric about said shaft axis and defines a nozzle exit circle and (ii) forms an angle of about 8 to 30 degrees with a tangent to said nozzle exit circle at said point of intersection, and (B) each of said nozzles define an exit peripheral length on said nozzle exit circle and said peripheral length of each nozzle overlaps a peripheral length of an adjacent nozzle defining an exit overlap length, (2) a radial in-flow hydraulic turbine wheel assembly comprising a plurality of radial flow turbine blades on a blade circle having a diameter of less than 2 inches; said turbine wheel assembly being arranged in relation to said shaft and said turbine body outlet surface such that hydraulic fluid discharged from said nozzles impinge on said blades to cause rotation of said turbine wheel and said shaft, iii) a compressor driven by said hydraulic turbine drive, (b) a first hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of an hydraulic fluid system to said supercharger, (c) an hydraulic venturi unit defining a main inlet, an outlet and a low pressure throat section, (d) an expansion tank, (e) a main hydraulic piping means providing a hydraulic circulation loop for hydraulic fluid to flow from said pump, to drive said hydraulic turbine drive, to said main inlet of said venturi unit, through said venturi unit, to said venturi outlet and back to said pump, (f) a supercharger bypass system comprising a controlled bypass valve and a piping means to permit a portion of said hydraulic fluid flow to bypass said supercharger turbine drive, and (g) a lubrication piping means providing a lubrication route for a portion of said hydraulic fluid flow from said turbine drive to said bearings to said expansion tank and to said low pressure throat section of said venturi unit.

Claim 12

An hydraulic supercharger system for supercharging an internal combustion engine defining a shaft comprising: (a) a supercharger comprising: i) a shaft defining a shaft axis and supported by supercharger bearings, ii) a high speed hydraulic radial inflow turbine drive comprising: (1) a turbine nozzle body defining a turbine nozzle body outlet surface and comprising a hydraulic fluid cavity and a plurality of nozzles each of said nozzles providing a passageway for hydraulic fluid to pass inwardly from said hydraulic fluid cavity to said outlet surface and defining a nozzle centerline where: (A) each of said nozzle centerlines: (i) intersects said turbine body outlet surface at a point of intersection on a circle is concentric about said shaft axis and defines a nozzle exit circle and (ii) forms an angle of about 8 to 30 degrees with a tangent to said nozzle exit circle at said point of intersection, and (B) each of said nozzles define an exit peripheral length on said nozzle exit circle and said peripheral length of each nozzle overlaps a peripheral length of an adjacent nozzle defining an exit overlap length, (2) a radial in-flow hydraulic turbine wheel assembly comprising a plurality of radial flow turbine blades on a blade circle having a diameter of less than 2 inches; said turbine wheel assembly being arranged in relation to said shaft and said turbine body outlet surface such that hydraulic fluid discharged from said nozzles impinge on said blades to cause rotation of said turbine wheel and said shaft, iii) a compressor driven by said hydraulic turbine drive, (b) a first hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of an hydraulic fluid system to said supercharger, (c) an hydraulic venturi unit defining a main inlet, an outlet and a low pressure throat section, (d) an expansion tank, (e) a main hydraulic piping means providing a hydraulic circulation loop for hydraulic fluid to flow from said pump, to drive said hydraulic turbine drive, to said main inlet of said venturi unit, through said venturi unit, to said venturi outlet and back to said pump, (f) a supercharger bypass system comprising a controlled bypass valve and a piping means to permit a portion of said hydraulic fluid flow to bypass said supercharger turbine drive, and (g) a lubrication piping means providing a lubrication route for a portion of said hydraulic fluid flow from said turbine drive to said bearings to said expansion tank and to said low pressure throat section of said venturi unit.

Claim 13

A supercharger system as in claim 9 wherein said exit overlap lengths of each of said nozzles are about 20 percent of said exit peripheral lengths.

Claim 14

A supercharger system as in claim 9 and further comprising a second hydraulic pump driven by said shaft supplying hydraulic fluid of said hydraulic fluid system to an hydraulic device other than said supercharger.