Disclosed is a fuel injection valve comprising: a fuel injection orifice provided in a downstream side of a valve seat which a valve body moves toward and away from; a swirl chamber having a swirl passage formed around the entry opening of the fuel injection orifice; and a transverse passage whose end is opened in an inner circumferential wall of the swirl chamber in order to provide a fuel into the swirl chamber, wherein a center of the entry opening is shifted from a first position where the velocity component in the swirl direction of the fuel can be maximized to a second position where the velocity component in the swirl direction is reduced, and where a velocity component in a center axis direction of the fuel injection orifice is enhanced. Thereby, it is possible to easily adjust a fuel injection amount and a spray angle.

A fluid atomizer and methods of atomizing fluids are disclosed. The fluid atomizer may comprise an inner member and one or more outer members. The inner member defines an interior conduit for providing a first-fluid flowpath from a supply end of the atomizer to a discharge end of the atomizer along a central axis. The one or more outer members are positioned radially outward of the inner member from the central axis. The inner and outer members define a second-fluid flowpath extending from a second-fluid supply conduit to a second-fluid discharge plenum. The second-fluid flowpath comprises a tangential conduit spiraling along the axis from the second-fluid supply conduit to a terminal end; an annulus downstream from and in fluid communication with the tangential conduit; and a second-fluid discharge plenum downstream from and in fluid communication with the annulus.

One passage for swirling is formed in an orifice plate fixed on a nozzle body. Two swirl chambers in which fuel is caused to swirl so that the fuel has swirling force are provided at an end of the one passage for swirling on the downstream side of the flow direction of fuel. Therefore, the collision between the swirling flow in the swirl chamber and the fuel flowing in the passage for swirling is mitigated, and the swirling flow can be smoothly produced to promote pulverization of sprays injected from fuel injection ports.

Fuel flows from first and second fuel guide channels into the swirl chamber and is guided to the nozzle hole while swirling in the swirl chamber in the identical direction. The nozzle hole is divided into an inlet portion near a fuel-inflow end and an outlet portion near a fuel-outflow end. The outlet portion has a flow passage cross-sectional area gradually increasing towards a fuel outflow-side opening end, and includes a curved surface formed by smoothly connecting an inner surface of the nozzle holes at an upstream end side in a fuel flow direction to an inner surface of the nozzle holes at the portion near the fuel-inflow end so as to smoothly and gradually increase the flow passage cross-sectional area. The curved surface ensures further thin film-like flow by expanding a flow of the fuel in the nozzle holes by the Coanda effect.

A nozzle hole of a nozzle plate is coupled to a fuel injection port of a fuel injection device via a swirl chamber and first and second fuel guide channels opened into the swirl chamber. The swirl chamber is formed by combining first and second elliptical-shaped recessed portions. The first fuel guide channel opens at a side of a short axis of the first elliptical-shaped recessed portion and a side of the short axis that does not overlap with the second elliptical-shaped recessed portion, and the second fuel guide channel opens at a side of a short axis of the second elliptical-shaped recessed portion and a side of the short axis that does not overlap with the first elliptical-shaped recessed portion. The first and second fuel guide channels have depths deeper than those of the swirl chamber and extend inside of the swirl chamber while gradually reducing cross-sectional areas.

A fuel-injection valve provided with a fuel filter (13) in a fuel supply unit into which fuel flows, wherein: the fuel filter (13) is provided with a filtering part (X1) that is disposed along the circumferential direction of the fuel filter (13) and along the central axis line (13x) thereof and that is provided with a net-like member (13c) which captures foreign objects mixed in with fuel flowing from the radially inner side to the radially outer side of the fuel filter (13); and the fuel filter (13) has, on the upstream side from the filtering part (X1), first fuel swirl generation units (13d-1, 13d-2, 13d-4) which generate swirl in the fuel that flows down along the inner circumferential surface of the filtering part (X1).

A nozzle plate has a plurality of blades in the area that surrounds the nozzle hole on the outer plane of the bottom wall part. When the fuel is injected from the nozzle hole and the pressure in the vicinity of the nozzle hole is reduced, the plurality of blades guide a flow of air from the radially outward side of the bottom wall part to the radially inward side of the bottom wall part and generates a swirling flow of the air about the center of the bottom wall part. The swirling flow of the air about the center of the bottom wall part changes to a helical flow by receiving kinetic momentum from fine particles of the fuel injected from the nozzle hole and the helical flow of the air transports the fine particles of the fuel.

The fuel injection timing IT is changed based operation and environmental condition of the engine. If the injection timing IT is changed, the rate of fuel passing through meshes of the mesh member (i.e., the mesh passing rate) changes. If the mesh passing rate changes, the set-off position (i.e., the ignition position of the air-fuel mixture) is extended or shortened. Based on this, under the condition of high ignition performance (i.e., the second condition), the mesh passing rate is controlled to increase thereby the set-off position is extended. On the other hand, under the condition of low ignition performance (i.e., the first condition), the mesh passing rate is controlled to decrease thereby the extension of the set-off position is suppressed or prohibited.

A fluid atomizer and methods of atomizing fluids are disclosed. The fluid atomizer may comprise an inner member and one or more outer members. The inner member defines an interior conduit for providing a first-fluid flowpath from a supply end of the atomizer to a discharge end of the atomizer along a central axis. The one or more outer members are positioned radially outward of the inner member from the central axis. The inner and outer members define a second-fluid flowpath extending from a second-fluid supply conduit to a second-fluid discharge plenum. The second-fluid flowpath comprises a tangential conduit spiraling along the axis from the second-fluid supply conduit to a terminal end; an annulus downstream from and in fluid communication with the tangential conduit; and a second-fluid discharge plenum downstream from and in fluid communication with the annulus.

A tip for a nozzle of a fuel injector and an associated method are provided. The tip includes a tip body and a swirler. The swirler includes a plurality of pre-swirl passages which fluidly communicate an internal cavity of the swirler with a feed annulus. The swirler also includes a plurality of swirl chamber passages which fluidly communicate a swirl chamber with the feed annulus. Methods include manufacturing at least a portion of the swirler by additive manufacturing.