Kinematic Structural and Functional Analysis of Wobble-Plate Engines

Abstract

This paper concerns the development of a procedure for systematic searching for mechanisms, classifying them, and screening for the optimum mechanism structure for wobble-plate engines. It includes two parts. The first part is on kinematic structural analysis, including the development of a procedure for the structure classification of 150 mechanisms obtained as a result of an exhaustive search from the prior arts, as disclosed in nearly 1000 patents between 1874 and 1982, and other publications. The second part is on functional analysis, which screens for an optimum design based on a set of judgment criteria. Such optimization criteria are developed in this paper and applied to a group of representative mechanisms derived from the structure analysis. Recommendations such as design guidelines are presented. The general nature of the approach—following the method of separation of kinematic structure and function [1] and combining mathematical approach and design heuristics—is demonstrated here in the case of wobble-plate engine mechanisms and is believed to be useful in type synthesis and design of mechanisms of realistic complexity.