Controlled Combustion Engine (CCE) is a type of internal combustion engine designed by Brad Howell-Smith in 1995. It uses two counter-rotating three lobed cams instead of a crankshaft driving two horizontally opposed pistons [1] (see Boxer engine). Aside from being between 60-75% more mechanically efficient it is around a quarter the size and weight of a conventional engine of similar output, and doesn't experience a gyroscopic "twist" when revved up. The engine can be set up to run in a two or four stroke cycle; for a four stroke cycle there are three power strokes for every two revolutions per cylinder.
The CCE design can be used with cams of any odd number of lobes, allowing more or fewer strokes to be made per revolution. According to Revetec Limited, each cylinder can fire 3 to 9+ times per revolution, with 3-lobed cams primarily used on automobiles.
Background:
The idea came to Howell-Smith, an automotive engineer residing in Australia, during REM sleep. He designed five different engine layouts with variations on each and established Revolution Engine Technologies Pty Ltd in 1996 with a budget of A$2000. The first working prototype was built by father in law Peter Koch in Howell-Smith's Garage. Howell-Smith founded a company named Revetec Limited and set up a research and development site in Sydney. The prototype was displayed at the 1996 Sydney International Motor Show which brought public awareness to the design. Work began on a second prototype intended for use in generators and pumps, however interest expressed by the Middle East automotive market shifted focus towards automotive applications. Revetec partered with Chinese auto manufacturer Osman in developing a third prototype with the aim of producing CCE engines for cars sold on the domestic Chinese market.
Diesel and CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) CCE engines are being developed mainly for Indian auto manufacturers, and two undisclosed Japanese carmakers have expressed considerable interest in the technology.
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