A housing of an exhaust valve is provided for an exhaust port communicating with a combustion chamber. The housing has a plate-shaped portion formed with a plurality of fixed slits radially extending from the central axis of the port. A valve element is provided adjacent to the plate-shaped section, is rotatable around a central axis, and has formed with a plurality of movable slits radially extending from the central axis. Due to the action of electromagnets and a permanent magnet attached to an annular member, the valve body is rotationally displaced around the central axis of the port, and the relative positional relationship between the fixed slits and the movable slits is changed to open and close the exhaust valve. The same is also true for an intake valve.

An apparatus comprises a first circuit and a second circuit. The first circuit is structured to determine that a combustion cylinder is operating in a transition period between an exhaust stroke and an intake stroke of the combustion cylinder. The second circuit is structured to provide an injection command during the transition period to a fuel injector associated with the combustion cylinder, the injection command being to inject fuel into a combustion chamber of the combustion cylinder such that at least a portion of the fuel escapes from the combustion chamber through an exhaust port of the combustion cylinder.

A driving rotor is rotational about a rotational shaft center in conjunction with a crankshaft. A driven rotor is rotational about the rotational shaft center in conjunction with the camshaft. A deceleration mechanism is configured to change a relative rotational phase between the driving rotor and the driven rotor by using a driving force of an electric motor. The deceleration mechanism includes an internal gear portion, which includes an internal tooth formed inward in a radial direction, and an external gear portion, which includes an external tooth formed outward in a radial direction and engages with the internal tooth. A linear expansion coefficient of the external gear portion is larger than a linear expansion coefficient of the internal gear portion.

A high efficiency uniflow steam engine with automatic inlet and exhaust valves rather than camshaft operated valves includes an electromagnet and cooperating armature that actuates a cutoff control valve for closing a steam inlet valve at any time selected to stop the flow of steam to the cylinder. Approaching the end of the exhaust stroke typically 0.12 inch before TDC the cylinder is sealed thereby compressing the remaining residual steam down to a minute clearance approaching zero, for example, 0.020 inch to raise cylinder steam pressure enough to open the steam inlet valve without physical contact between the piston and the steam inlet valve thereby eliminating tappet noise, shock and wear.

Linear actuators are disclosed. The linear actuator comprises a thruster and a stator. The thruster includes a thruster winding, and the stator includes a stator winding. The stator is disposed about the thruster. The linear actuator also includes a sheath disposed about the stator and the thruster. The thruster is configured to translate within the sheath relative to the stator upon application of an electrical current to the stator winding, the thruster winding, or a combination thereof. The stator winding and the thruster winding each comprise a nonpermanent magnet.

A head assembly for an internal combustion engine includes an electromagnetic valve actuation system. The head has an intake or exhaust passage defined therein. A valve is disposed in the passage and is operable to selectively open and close the passage. The head has a cooling passage defined therein for passage of a cooling fluid. An electromagnetic actuator has a piston in mechanical communication with the valve and a coil in fluid communication with the cooling passage. The electromagnetic actuator is operable to move the valve between a closed and an open position.

A valve train assembly includes a rocker arm assembly, and axial shifting cam assembly, and a lost motion device. The axial shifting cam assembly is movable between a first axial position and a second axial position on a camshaft, the cam assembly having a first cam having a first lobe, and a second cam having a second lobe. The first and second lobes are configured to each selectively engage the rocker arm assembly to respectively perform a first and a second discrete valve lift event. The lost motion device is operably associated with the rocker arm assembly and configured to perform a third discrete valve lift event, distinct from the first and second valve lift events.

In one embodiment, an electromagnetic soft actuator includes a first soft outer member comprising a soft internal electrically conductive coil, a second soft outer member comprising a soft internal electrically conductive coil, and a soft inner shaft on which the first and second soft outer members are mounted, the first and second soft outer members being linearly displaceable along a length of the soft inner shaft, the soft inner shaft comprising a permanent magnet, wherein the first and second outer members linearly move under an electromagnetic force relative to the soft inner shaft and each other when an electric current is applied to the soft internal electrically conductive coils.

A PCM (100) selects one of a CI mode or an SI mode based on the operating conditions of the engine (1). In the CI mode, the engine (1) is operated by compression ignition combustion. In the SI mode, the engine (1) is operated by spark ignition combustion. if, while the engine (1) is being operated in the CI mode, a determination is made that an estimated value (Tc) of the catalyst temperature is lower than or equal to a warming start temperature (Ts), the PCM (100) further performs first warming control to assign four cylinders (18) as CI and SI cylinders, which perform the compression ignition combustion and the spark ignition combustion, respectively, such that the four cylinders (18) alternately perform the compression ignition combustion and the spark ignition combustion in accordance with the order of combustion of the cylinders.

Various methods of control of combustion knock are disclosed in relation to a spark ignition, internal combustion engine having active tappets, whereby an inlet poppet valve can be moved independently of the usual operating cam. In one embodiment the invention provides for combustion knock to be controlled solely by variation of inlet air charge.