NORTH MAHARASHTRA UNIVERSITY,

JALGAON.
AN
SEMINAR REPORT
AT
HYDRAULIC FREE PISTON ENGINES
SUBMITTED BY
Mr. KALPESH D. PATIL
DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICALENGINEERING
(*N.B.A.* ACCREDITED)
P.S.G.V.P.MANDALS
D.N.PATEL COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
SHAHADA, DIST: NANDURBAR (M.S.) 4!4"#
(ACADEMIC YEAR "$"%"$$)
1
P.S.G.V.P. MANDALS
D.N.PATEL COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
SHAHADA, DIST. NANDURBAR (M.S.) 4!4"#
CERTIFICATE
This is to be certify that the seminar report at
HYDRAULIC FREE PISTON ENGINES
SUBMITTED BY
Mr. KALPESH D. PATIL
As a part of syllabus of
NORTH MAHARASHTRA UNIVERSITY, &ALGAON
For the partial fulfillment
FINAL YEAR OF ENGINEERING IN ME!ANIAL IN T!E AA"EMI
YEAR #$1$%#$11
H.O.D. GUIDE PRINCIPAL
Pr'(. S. U. PATEL Pr'(. S. U. PATEL Pr'(. P. D. PATIL
#
ABSTRACT
The !IRON is a hy&raulic free piston en'ine &e(elope& by the "utch companies
NOA) an& Innas* In the !IRON the ener'y of the combustion process is almost &irectly
con(erte& into hy&raulic ener'y* The !IRON features a &irect electronic control of the
in+ection parameters, the flo- an& the compression ratio* The flo- output is controlle& by
means of .ulse .ause Mo&ulation of the piston fre/uency* The !IRON is &esi'ne& for
application in common pressure rail systems* In these systems the hy&raulic ener'y is
supplie& throu'h a common rail* This paper &escribes the &esi'n of the !IRON* 0pecial
attention -ill be pai& on the specific characteristics of the !IRON compare& to
con(entional en'ines an& pumps*
1
ABSTRACT
The !IRON is a hy&raulic free piston en'ine &e(elope& by the "utch companies
NOA) an& Innas* In the !IRON the ener'y of the combustion process is almost &irectly
con(erte& into hy&raulic ener'y* The !IRON features a &irect electronic control of the
in+ection parameters, the flo- an& the compression ratio* The flo- output is controlle& by
means of .ulse .ause Mo&ulation of the piston fre/uency* The !IRON is &esi'ne& for
application in common pressure rail systems* In these systems the hy&raulic ener'y is
supplie& throu'h a common rail* This paper &escribes the &esi'n of the !IRON* 0pecial
attention -ill be pai& on the specific characteristics of the !IRON compare& to
con(entional en'ines an& pumps*
2
INTRODUCTION
A Free .iston En'ine % almost e(erybo&y has some i&ea -hat it coul& be, but -hat are typical
features of the free piston en'ines3 There are t-o &efinitions, -hich are typical for all free
piston en'ines4
A combustion en'ine, -hich piston motion is not restricte& by any mechanical
lin5a'es*
The po-er is ta5en out by me&ia, not by shaft
The reason -hy en'ineers ha(e been intereste& in free piston en'ines since &eca&es is the
basic i&ea of a (ery simple en'ine* The simple &esi'n enables minimum amount of ener'y
transformations from fuel ener'y into form, -hich is use& by actuators*
The research in free piston en'ines has recently concentrate& on hy&raulic (ersions but some
&e(elopment in electric (ersion has also been reporte&* !y&raulic free piston en'ine &esi'ns
are possible an& are &i(i&e& into three cate'ories accor&in' to the number an& location of the
pistons4
0in'le piston
Oppose& piston
"ual piston
The basic operation principle of each concept is similar i*e* the ener'y of the fuel is
transforme& into hy&raulic ener'y by means of linearly mo(in' piston assembly* "ifferences
bet-een the concepts are the number of combustion chambers an& hy&raulic pistons an&
compression stro5e reali6ation* The schematic &ra-in's of the concepts are sho-n in fi'ure
on the ne7t pa'e*
8
The hydraulic free i!"#$ e$%i$e c#$ce"!& a'#(e) The !i$%le i!"#$& *iddle) The ##!ed
i!"#$& 'el#+) The dual i!"#$, Par" $u*'er!) -) C#*'u!"i#$ cyli$der& .) C#*re!!i#$
cyli$der& /) Pu* cyli$der,
The combustion en'ine part is a t-o%stro5e &iesel en'ine because this 5in& of an en'ine
re/uires po-er stro5e once per each cycle* In or&er to achie(e hi'h combustion of the en'ine
units un&er efficiency, &iesel process -ith &irect fuel in+ection is utili6e&* The po-er le(els
&e(elopment are 18 9 8$ 5:, the total po-er is possible to raise by increasin' the number of
the en'ine units* The &iameter of the combustion piston is ;$ 9 18$ mm an& operation
fre/uency is up to 8$ !6*
<
FREE PISTON ENGINE V) CONVENTIONAL ENGINES
Reasons, -hy there are research an& &e(elopment acti(ities concernin' the hy&raulic free
piston en'ine, are base& on the benefits -hich coul& be achie(e& by the free piston concept*
The !F.E=!y&raulic Free .iston En'ine> has some fascinatin' a&(anta'es o(er the
con(entional cran5shaft en'ine 9 hy&raulic pump combination, 0E.=ran5 0haft .iston
En'ine>
The po-er &ensity of the !F.E is hi'her than the 0E.? this means less -ei'ht an&
less space re/uire& by the en'ine*
Lo-er friction losses, because of fe-er parts an& piston has no si&e forces, -hich are
in&uce& by cran5 mechanisms*
The last but not least is the price of the en'ine because of pro&uction costs, -hich are
much lo-er in the !F.E because of simple &esi'n*
The efficiency of the !F.E is in the same le(el as in 0E. or e(en better* The lac5 of cran5
mechanism creates some &isa&(anta'es as -ell, the control system ha(e to be more
complicate& than in the con(entional en'ines* The compression ratio is in&efinite an& it
&epen&s on the ener'y balance of each stro5e* The lo- emission le(el an& efficient burnin'
re/uire controlle& piston motion* On the other han& reliable compression ratio control enables
the optimi6ation of the compression ratio in &ifferent operation con&itions, -hich is not
possible -ith con(entional en'ines* The other &isa&(anta'e of the !F.E is the lac5 of
controllability of the output of the !F.E compare& to con(entional en'ine%pump
combination because the pump is constant &isplacement or step -isely (ariable &isplacement
pump*
@
A BRIEF INTRODUCTION*
This seminar mainly &iscusses the stu&y of the !IRON =.ronunciation 5yArahn>
Free .iston En'ines, -hich is a hy&raulic free piston en'ine* !IRON in Gree5 mytholo'y
-as a centaur? neither a horse nor a man but a synthesis of both* 0imilarly, the !IRON
&iscusse& in here is neither an en'ine nor a pump? but an inte'ration of an en'ine an& a pump*
In !IRON the combustion ener'y is &irectly con(erte& into hy&raulic ener'y* The !IRON
features &irect electronic control of the in+ection parameters, the flo- an& the compression
ratio* The !IRON is &esi'ne& for ommon .ressure Rail =.R> systems* In these systems,
the hy&raulic ener'y is supplie& throu'h a common rail* 0pecial attention -ill be pai& to
specific characteristics of the !IRON compare& to con(entional en'ines an& pumps.
The hiron free piston en'ine is an inte'rate& combination of an internal combustion en'ine
an& a hy&raulic pump* The core of this en'ine is a combustion piston &irectly couple& to a
hy&raulic plun'er* The piston is not connecte& to any mechanism but is free to mo(e -ithin
the limitations of the cylin&ers* In this -ay the ener'y of the combustion process is almost
&irectly con(erte& into hy&raulic ener'y* ompare& to a con(entional combination of a pump
an& a combustion en'ine, the number of parts is re&uce& to appro7imately 2$B*
;
Fi'* Cie- of !IRON =len'th, -i&th D hei'ht of en'ine is $*;#mm, $*1mmD$*18mm>
1> ylin&er !ea&*
#> ombustion ylin&er D sca(en'e pump*
1> .iston*
2> 0ealin' rin' bet-een hy&raulic D combustion part*
8> !y&raulic part*
E
+ORKING PRINCIPLE

A cycle starts -ith the piston9plun'er combination in the bottom &ea& centre4 most to
the ri'ht* The electronic control opens the fre/uency control (al(e* This increases the
pressure in the compressor cylin&er, mo(in' the piston%plun'er to the left* 0imultaneously, air
is compresse& in the combustion cylin&er an& oil is suc5e& into the po-er cylin&er*
:hen the piston%plun'er arri(es in the top &ea& centre the fuel is in+ecte& an& i'nites,
the e7pan&in' 'ases -ill force the piston plun'er to mo(e bac5 to the bottom &ea& centre* Oil
is pumpe& to the hi'h pressure si&e*
The burne& 'ases are replace& by fresh air &ue to the loop sca(en'in' process* In the
bottom &ea& centre the piston%plun'er -ill -ait until the electronic control 'i(es a ne-
startin' si'nal to the fre/uency control (al(e*
1$
FUEL INJECTION
The !IRON is t-o%stro5e &iesel en'ine D &irect fuel in+ection system* For the
hiron a !EFI =!y&raulic%Electronic Fnit In+ector*> of aterpillar Inc* -as chosen* The
control of the in+ector is inte'rate& in the control mo&ule of the hiron* The !EFI in+ector is
hy&raulically actuate& an& the ener'y is ta5en from the hy&raulic ener'y &eli(ere& by the
hy&raulic pump part*
The use& !EFI in+ector pressures up to 1<$ Mpa* Fuel can be in+ecte& -ithin
1 millisecon& an& is atomi6e& into (ery small &roplets*
Fi'4 Fuel In+ection of ylin&er Gloc5 in !IRON en'ine*
11
CONTROL
The control of the hiron is reali6e& by means of sensors, actuators an& electronics*
0ynchroni6ation of piston mo(ement an& fuel in+ection can only be reali6e& by electronic
control* T-o simple an& robust in&ucti(e sensors are use& to &etermine the position of the
plun'er* The control har&-are is built aroun& an off the shelf 0IEMEN0 2$ M!6 1< bit
processor*
The compression ratio is controlle& by chan'in' the pressure le(el in the
compression accumulator? the G"%position of the piston is 5ept as constant as possible* A
pilot operate& &i'ital (al(e is use& to start each pump cycle* This (al(e initiates the po-er
control -hich is calle& .ulse .ause Mo&ulation*

1#
PULSE PAUSE MODULATION (PPM) F,'- C'./r',:
The principle of pulse%pause%mo&ulation can be illustrate& by loo5in' at the piston
&isplacement cur(es4 at ma7imum fre/uency an& at re&uce& fre/uency*
At ma7imum fre/uency, each pulse =mar5e& yello-> is &irectly follo-e& by a ne- pulse* At a
re&uce& fre/uency, e7actly the same pulses can be seen, but in bet-een these pulses, a pause
is intro&uce&* The &uration of this perio& can be (arie&* Gy increasin' the pause the number
of pulses -ill be re&uce&, thus &ecreasin' the flo- output of the hiron* Gy re&ucin' the
pause%perio& -e can increase the fre/uency an& therefore also increase the flo- output* In
this -ay the flo-%output can be (arie& bet-een 6ero an& ma7imum flo- output, only by
controllin' a small electronically operate& pilot (al(e* The result is a (ery fle7ible, hi'hly
&ynamic electronic control of the flo- output*


Fi'* !y&ro pneumatic bla&&er
accumulator*
11
DIGITALLY CONTROLLED VALVE
To (ary the en'ineAs po-er output, the stro5e fre/uency is (arie& by the fre/uency
control (al(e* Innas &e(elope& a lar'e (al(e -ith an e7tremely fast openin' response time*
The (al(e is pilot operate&* The main (al(e consists of t-o (al(e bo&ies* After s-itchin' the
pilot (al(e the main (al(e opens -ithin 1*8 millisecon&s*
12
COMBUSTION
The combustion part of the hiron is t-o%stro5e naturally aspire& &iesel en'ines -ith
a simple port controlle& sca(en'e process =loop sca(en'in'>* The bac5si&e of the combustion
piston is use& as the sca(en'e pump* This results in a compact an& cost%effecti(e
construction* If the combustion in !IRON en'ine ha(e a &uration of 8 millisecon&s, -hich
-oul& ha(e normal for an en'ine of this si6e*
on(entional compression is starte& -ith an electrical starter motor, at a spee& of 1$$%
18$ rpm* This spee& 'i(es t-o problems4 'as lea5a'e throu'h the 'aps of the piston rin's an&
slo- piston mo(ement lea&in' to hi'her heat losses* Goth effects lea& to a &ecrease of the
cylin&er pressure an& temperature at the en& of the compression, an& therefore startin'
problems*
18
Fi'* onstruction of the ompression section in the hy&raulic part of the !IRON*
In the hiron the compression accumulator pro(i&es the ener'y to the 'ases of the
combustion cylin&er* At a col& start, the hy&ro%mechanical losses are hi'her* This can be
compensate& by choosin' a hi'her pressure in the accumulator* The pressure is e(en ele(ate&
e7tra to raise the compression ratio a little more at col& start* This compensates the effect of a
lon'er i'nition &elay as an effect of the col&er combustion air* Asi&e from this compensation,
the piston mo(ement at col& start is the same &urin' normal operation* ol& start problems as
mentione& abo(e are not rele(ant for the hiron4 the en'ine starts -ithout startin' ai&*
1<
COOLING
The combustion cylin&er an& cylin&er hea& are li/ui& coole&* The coolin' channels
are inte'rate& in the castin's* The li/ui& is supplie& at the bottom si&e, coolin' the e7haust
ports first* :ater can be use& as coolin' me&ium
1@
CHARACTERISTICS
EFFICIENCY

This graph of efficiency (%) Vs Flow (liter/min) compares the CHIRON with the
reglar !iesel engine"
1;
APPLICATIONS
The
hiron free
.iston
En'ine is
&e(elope& as a po-er source for all 5in&s of mobile machinery li5e for e7ample lift truc5s,
e7ca(ators etceteras* The a&(anta'es of the hiron are put to an optimal effect -hen
applie& in a ommon .ressure Rail =.R>* This .R is a ne- approach in the &esi'n of
hy&raulic net-or5s* In these systems all hy&raulic loa&s can be connecte& to a sin'le
pressure rail* !y&raulic transformers =I!T> enable the control of the loa&s almost -ithout
ener'y loss* In these systems, the po-er source only has to maintain a certain =semi%>
constant pressure in the po-er line* "ue to its hi'h &ynamic control possibilities, the
hiron is the i&eal lo-%cost ener'y source for .R systems*
1E
COMMON PRESSURE RAIL (CPR)
The ommon pressure Rail or .R can be seen as a hy&raulic e/ui(alent of the
electricity 'ri&* It is easy to attach an& a&& &ifferent loa&s to the po-er 'ri&* The common
pressure rail separates the hy&raulic po-er plants =the pumps> from the loa&s =motors an&
cylin&ers>* Loa&s &o not influence each other* Gy means of hy&ro pneumatic accumulators the
pressure le(el of the common pressure rail can be (arie& in a controlle& -ay* The ener'y that
is store& in these accumulators can be use& for po-er mana'ement an& ener'y recuperation*
The pressure &oes not necessarily ha(e to be constant, as !y&raulic Transformers are use& as
control &e(ices* The transformers can transform hy&raulic ener'y almost -ithout ener'y loss*
.R technolo'y enables a much simpler an& more fle7ible Hplu'%an&%playA approach of
hy&raulic circuits, in analo'y to the ease of use of an electricity 'ri&*
Actually, any type of pump can be use& for the .R system* !o-e(er, for mobile
applications, the !IRON offers most effecti(e Hpo-er plantA* This en'ine can also utili6e
the same techni/ue as use& by the cran5shaft en'ines li5e the hi'h%pressure in+ection,
alternati(e fuels, superchar'in' an& the after treatment of e7haust 'ases* Abo(e all, the
!IRON pro(i&es controlle& compression ratio as -ell as intrinsically &ifferent
combustion processes*
#$
FORKLIFTS
In or&er to &emonstrate an& test the technolo'ies Innas an& NOA) fitte& a Lift
truc5 -ith a .R system* T-o transformers -ere use& in this &ri(e system, one four%
/ua&rant transformer for the hy&rostatic -heel &ri(e, an& a #%/ua&rant for the control of the
lift cylin&ers* Throttle (al(es are use& for the other cylin&ers* Althou'h this results in some
ener'y losses, the ener'y consumption of these loa&s is lo- compare& to the liftin' an&
&ri(e functions* The po-er source consists of a hiron Free .iston En'ine &eli(erin' 1@
5: net hy&raulic ener'y* Grea5in' ener'y an& ener'y of lo-erin' the loa& are recuperate&*
This combine& -ith po-er mana'ement =pea5 sha(in'> ma&e it possible to re&uce the
installe& En'ine po-er -ith 1$B*
The .R%system has a&(anta'e only if multiple hy&raulic loa&s ha(e to be
controlle& in the hy&raulic system* This a&(anta'e is use& in the for5lift truc5* This system
has been foun& to -or5 effecti(ely, in this t-o hy&raulic transformers are use&, one for the
hy&rostatic -heel &ri(e an& one for the lift cylin&er* Althou'h this results in ener'y losses,
#1
the ener'y consumption of these loa&s is lo- compare& to the other loa&s, an& the throttle
losses -ill not ha(e a lar'e effect on the total fuel consumption of the lift truc5*
CONCLUSION
Althou'h much -or5 still has to be &one, it has been pro(en that it is possible to a(oi& the
mechanical comple7ity of the current cran5shaft en'ines an& hy&raulic pumps an& to buil& a
ne- hy&raulic unit -ith e7tra electronic control possibilities* These en'ines allo- a better
optimi6ation to-ar&s lo-er fuel consumption an& re&uce& e7haust emissions than the current
&ri(e lines* Lea&in' companies in the fiel&s of construction machines an& hy&raulic
components no- continue the &e(elopment of these Free .iston En'ines* These Free .iston
En'ines -ill turn out to be the best alternati(e for the I en'ine &ri(en pumps an& -ill
re(olutioni6e the ol& concept of usin' a rotatin' shaft or pump -here a much simpler piston
an& plun'er arran'ement can suffice*
##

REFERENCES
1* Achten .*A*I* JA re(ie- of .iston En'ine onceptsK 0AE paper E21@@<
#* J!orse po-er -ith brainsK 9"esi'n of !IRON free piston en'ine 0AE paper%
#$$$%$1%#828
1* ---*iha*tut*fiLresearchLmoreMinfoMonMhfpe*shtml
2* ---*innas*com
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