Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
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ELECTRONIC FUEL CONDITIONING DEVICE
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a fuel conditioning device for improving the
fuel efficiency and lowering pollution emissions of a fuel combustion machine.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
At about the beginning of this century, Nicolai Tesla discovered the
relationship between the polarization of combustible matter and the quality of
the combustion. Since then, some apparatus for improving combustion
efficiency have been proposed in the market, but have enjoyed very limited
success if any.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a fuel conditioning device
for
improving the combustion efficiency and lowering pollution emissions of a
combustion machine, such as a vehicle combustion engine or a heating
system, compared to prior art fuel conditioning devices of similar kind.
According to the present invention, there is provided an electronic fuel
conditioning device for attachment to a fuel line of a fuel combustion machine
to improve combustion efficiency thereof, the device comprising:
a frequency controlled signal generator powered by a power supply, the
frequency controlled signal generator having a first output being connected to
a first output wire coiled around the fuel line for producing a first shark
dorsal
waveform voltage signal oscillating at a predetermined frequency, and a
second output being connected to a second output wire coiled around the fuel
line for producing a second shark dorsal waveform voltage signal oscillating
at
the predetermined frequency, the second shark dorsal voltage signal being an
inverted mirror signal of the first shark dorsal waveform voltage signal.
The invention, its use and its advantages will be better understood upon
reading of the following non-restrictive description of preferred embodiments
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thereof, made with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like
numbers refer to like elements.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is a side partially sectional view of a vehicle provided with an
electronic fuel conditioning device according to a preferred embodiment of the
present invention.
Figure 2 is a more detailed side view of the electronic fuel conditioning
shown
in Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a conceptual block diagram of a fuel conditioning device according
to the present invention.
Figure 3A is a block circuit diagram of internal elements of a fuel
conditioning
device according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3B is a block circuit diagram of internal elements of a fuel
conditioning
device according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3C is a block circuit diagram of internal elements of a fuel
conditioning
device according to a third preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3D is a block circuit diagram of internal elements of a fuel
conditioning
device according to a fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing output voltage curves at the output
wires of a fuel conditioning device according to a preferred embodiment of the
present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring to Figure 1, there is shown a vehicle 10 provided with an internal
combustion engine (not shown). The vehicle 10 has a fuel tank 6 that is
connected to a fuel line 5 which is in turn connected to the combustion
engine.
A fuel conditioning device 1 according to a preferred embodiment of the
present invention is installed on the existing fuel line 5 of the vehicle 10.
The
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fuel conditioning device 1 is preferably powered by a 12 V battery 2 of the
vehicle 10. The fuel conditioning device 1 may alternatively be powered by
other means as persons skilled in the art will understand.
It will also be understood by those skilled in the art that the fuel
conditioning
device 1 according to the present invention may be used in different
applications to improve fuel consumption efficiency of fuel combustion
machines. For example, a fuel conditioning device according to the present
invention may also be installed in a fuel supply line of a heating system.
Referring figure 2, the fuel conditioning device 1 according to a preferred
embodiment of the present invention has an electronic control box or housing
11 powered by the battery 2 in the case of the vehicle 10 shown in Figure 1,
or by any other suitable power supply in the case of a heating system for
example. Two conductor wires 8 and 9 come out from the housing 11 and are
wound around the fuel line 5. It should be noted that the number of turns and
the direction of rotation are dependent of the particular application. In case
of
a vehicle, the number of turns preferably ranges from 7 to 22. In terms of
transformer terminology, the windings 8 and 9 can be seen as a transformer
primary, the fuel line 5 can be seen as the transformer core and the fuel 7
flowing through the fuel line 5 can be seen as the transformer secondary.
Referring to Figures 2 and 3, the electronic fuel conditioning device 1
according to the present invention includes a frequency controlled signal
generator 14 powered by a power supply 2. The frequency controlled signal
generator 14 has a first output being connected to the first output wire 8
coiled
around the fuel line 5 for producing a first shark dorsal waveform voltage
signal 15 oscillating at a predetermined frequency. The frequency controlled
signal generator 14 also has a second output connected to the second output
wire 9 coiled around the fuel line 5 for producing a second shark dorsal
waveform voltage signal 16 oscillating at the predetermined frequency. The
second shark dorsal waveform voltage signal 16 is an inverted mirror signal of
the first shark dorsal waveform voltage signal 15.
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Preferably, as mentioned above, the power supply 2 includes a vehicle battery
2 providing an input d.c. voltage of about 12 V. The frequency controlled
signal generator 14 is housed in the housing 11 attached to the fuel line 5.
The housing 11 may be attached or secured to the fuel line or placed in an
adjacent position. The housing 11 may be provided with a light indicator 12
for
providing an indication of operation of the electronic fuel conditioning
device 1.
The housing 11 may be made of plastic or metal, and contains the circuitry of
the generator 14. This generator 14 rnay be split in three blocks which are
inter-linked. All of this may be built over a printed circuit of approximately
1" x
2" (2.5 cm X 5cm) using integrated circuits of regular size which are easily
available in the market. It may also be possible to use surface-mount type of
materials, thus resulting in a smaller electronic fuel conditioning device.
Referring to Figure 3A, there is shown a block circuit diagram of internal
elements of a fuel conditioning device 1 according to a first preferred
embodiment of the present invention.
A first element of the electronic fuel conditioning device 1 is a voltage
doubter
which has an input that is connected to a d.c power source 2. In the
present example, the input may be connected to the 12 V vehicle battery 2
through diode D1 at the positive input of the power supply to protect it
against
20 polarity reversal. The input feeds the positive supply of all circuitry and
is
filtered by capacitor C1, which has a value of 1wF in this example. The d.c.
voltage at this point is labeled Vcc and has a value of about +12 V. An
integrated circuit U1 (presently an LM555) is mounted as an astable
oscillator.
The resistors R1, R2 and capacitor C2 (having values of 101CoHm and 10~,F)
determine the frequency of this oscillator (approximately 3 kHz). A square
wave outputs at output pin 3 and couples via capacitor C3 at diodes D2 and
D3. This output signal feeds a stocking capacitor C4, which filters the so
created d.c. negative voltage, labeled Vss having a value of about -12 V.
A second element of the electronic fuel conditioning device 1 is a main
oscillator 22, which is built around circuit U2, which may be a LM555, (it may
also work with a CD4046). It is an astable oscillator which frequency is
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determined by resistor R3 and capacitor C5 (having values of 10 Kohm and
0.002p,F). A potentiometer R4 is used as a frequency adjustment so as to
adapt the generator 14 to the type of fuel, andlor the type of line on which
the
two output conducting wires 8 and 9 are wound. The wave produced
5 resembles a shark dorsal on an oscilloscope and will output at pin 2 of the
LM555 and sources a bi-polar amplifier 24, which is described below, via
capacitor C7 and registers to resistor R6 (having values of 0.001 p,F and 10
Kohm).
The third element of the electronic fuel conditioning device 1 is the bi-polar
amplifier 24. It is built around a dual operational amplifier composed of U3A
and U3B, which may be embodied by a TL082. It is fed on a positive side by
Vcc and on a negative side by Vss. The first amplifier is mounted as an
inverting amplifier and its gain is determined by resistors R9 and R10
(100Kohm and 1 Mohm), and feeds the negative output at coil L-, which
represents the output wire 9. The second amplifier is mounted as non-
inverting amplifier which gain is determined by resistors R7 and R8 (100Kohm
and 1 Mohm) and feeds the positive output at coil L+, which represents the
first output wire 8. Both resistors R11 and R12 are used as current limiters
to
protect against accidental short circuits.
As illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, if one takes a look on an oscilloscope to
the
waves 15 that the fuel conditioning device 1 produces on output wire 8, it is
seen that it resembles to a shark's dorsal. It exponentially rises to its
maximum and then reverses direction abruptly to its minimum. The inverted
mirror image is found on the opposite polarity on output wire 9. The preferred
frequency window of such waves ranges from about few kilohertz to nearly 60
kilohertz.
Referring to Figures 3B and 3C, one can appreciate that four modifications
have been added to the circuitry shown in Figure 3A to improve its
performance. First, an MOV (metal oxide semiconductor) is added to protect
the circuitry against voltage surge that can be present on the 12 volt power
supply. The second modification is the use of an IC dedicated to voltage
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doubling, an ICL7662. The ICl_7662 outputs a negative voltage that is more
proportional to the positive input supply than the LM555 (U1) shown in Figure
3A. More stable, the ICL7662 is able to feed up to 100 mA comparatively to
the configuration shown in Figure 3A that could give about 30 mA maximum.
The third modification is the adding of a voltage regulator REG1 feeding the
main oscillator circuit 22. The voltage regulator outputs 5 volts and is
regulated whatever the incoming supply since this supply can vary, such as in
the case of vehicle batteries, up to about 15 volts when the charging system
is
in function. The fourth modification is more of a practical order. It
eliminates
the use of the frequency adjustment's potentiometer R4 shown in Figure 3A.
As shown in Figure 3B, .four fixed value resistors in series R2, R3, R4 and R5
are installed with three of them being jumpers. When the unit is delivered,
its
frequency is 48 kHz. If one or more of the jumpers are cut, the frequency will
then be of a new value out of four. These values are 26 kHz, 32 kHz, 36 kHz
and 48 kHz.
Referring to Figure 3B, there is shown a second preferred embodiment of
internal elements of an electronic fuel conditioning device according to the
present invention. Once again, the circuitry is split in three blocks which
are
inter-linked. All of this is built over a printed circuit of approximately one
inch
by two. It should be noted that the use of a surface mount version of the
electronic parts eventually reduces the size of the resulting device. The
device
may be built on a malleable printed circuit looking more like a small credit
card
but more flexible so that it can be installed by just rolling it over the
conduit.
This device could be covered with some adhesive with a protective film that
may be removed just before the instalment so as to reduce the installation
time.
The first block is the voltage doubter 20. A diode D1 at the positive input of
the
power supply protects against polarity reversal. It feeds the positive supply
of
all circuitry and is filtered by capacitor C1. This voltage is labelled Vdd.
Parallel to this supply, the metal oxide semiconductor MOV1 is used to protect
the circuitry against surges that could be. present on the 12 volts supply
line.
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Capacitor C1 filters this Vdd line. A regulator REG1 outputs the 5 volts
regulated to supply the positive voltage feeding the main oscillator 22 and is
referred to as Vcc. This tension is stabilised by capacitor C6. An integrated
circuit UZ (ICL7662) is used as a voltage doubter. Its input supply is
stabilised
by capacitor C2 and its negative output is stabilised by capacitor C3. This
negative output is referred to as Vss.
The second block is the main oscillator 22. The main oscillator is built
around
U1, an LM555, which is an astable oscillator. Its positive supply is connected
to Vcc (5 volts regulated) and its negative supply goes directly to 0 volt,
ground. Its frequency is determined by the R1 resistor and capacitor C4 and
also the resistor network composed of R2, R3, R4 and R5. The three last
resistors are bypassed with three jumpers witch are labelled J1, J2 and J3,
meaning that the device, when delivered, is tuned to 48 kHz. To get it down to
36 kHz, one needs to cut jumper J1. If one wants 32 kHz, one needs to cut
also jumper J2 and for 26 kHz, then one also cuts jumper J3. This offers the
opportunity to adapt the device to the type of conduit and/or the type of
combustible treated. The wave produced resembles a shark dorsal on an
oscilloscope and outputs at pin 2 of the LM555 integrated circuit and sources
the bi-polarity amplifier 24 via capacitor C5 and registers to resistor R6.
Referring to Figure 3C, it should be noted that in some special cases, the
frequency needs to be higher. In those cases, a crystal oscillator is used so
that the output frequency. is as stable as possible. Integrated circuit U1, of
type «Fox crystal oscillator» feeds the clock input of U5, (CD4017) and its
output sources the bi-polar amplifier 24. The bi-polar amplifier 24 and the
voltage doubter 20 stay the same as the above.
Referring back to Figure 3B, the third block, or bi-polar amplifier 24, is
built
around a dual operational amplifier composed of U3A and U3B. The bi-polar
amplifier 24, which may be a TL082, is fed on positive side by Vdd (+12 volt
nominal) and negative side by Vss (-12 volt nominal). The first amplifier is
mounted as an inverting amplifier and its gain is determined by resistors R9
and R10 and feeds the negative output at coil L-, which is representative of
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output wire 9. The second one is mounted as non-inverting amplifier witch
gain is determined by resistors R7 and R8 and feeds the positive output at
coil
L+, which is representative of output wire 8. Both resistors R11 and R12 are
used as a current limiter to protect against accidental short-circuit. The
negative supply being more stable, the negative output completes more
accurately the positive.
Referring to Figure 3D, one other improvement consists in using a
microprocessor as the main oscillator 22. It should be noted that the power
supply 2, the voltage doubter 20 and the bi-polar amplifier 24 are not changed
from the design described above.
The microprocessor is referred to as U1: Its working frequency is 10 MHz and
is determined by crystal Y1. The 104 input is connected to the junction of R10
and OPT1. This ensemble is an infrared detector and is used as the exterior
world communication channel. Through this channel, one can input the choice
of parameter so that the system may be adapted to the environment as far as
the type of combustible and the type of piping used. It should be noted that a
handheld type of IR transmitter allows the installer to communicate with the
module so to adapt this module. Line 103 is connected to the junction of
capacitor C7, resistor R11 and temperature transducer TS1. This gives a
reference of the ambient temperature and, from the internal program, it allows
adjusting the parameter as far as frequency, waveform and amplification of
the shark dorsal waveform signals are concerned. The output labelled 102
drives transistor Q1 which is connected from resistor R8 to ground. This
circuit
adapts the impedance depending on output frequency. Transistor Q2 is
connected to capacitor C5. The 100 output tied to resistor R9, followed by C4
to ground corrects, with the preceding circuit, the waveform depending on pre-
programmed parameters. This ensemble becomes the output frequency which
sources the bi-polar amplifier.
The fuel conditioning device according to the present invention may be used
in many applications such as propane gas systems, natural gas systems,
water conditioning systems, air systems, hydraulic oil systems, etc. It has
also
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been observed that the fuel conditioning device may produce a counter effect
over rust in several components of a vehicle.
Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been
described in detail herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is
to
be understood that the invention is not limited to these precise embodiments
and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein without
departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention. ,
