A study of the Armstrong Whitworth swing beam engine for automotive application

The introduction of ceramics to those parts suffering high thermal loading was successfully demonstrated, and there is no question that the 100 kw (134 hp) naturally aspirated engine of the future will be developed to produce up to 300 kw (402 hp) by the application of turbocharging or its equivalent. However, at the 60 - 80 kw (80 - 107 hp) size needed for the economic automotive engine, scaling down the 300 kw (402 hp) is beset by the laws of scale. The conventional four stroke diesel was not shown to be successful at the small high speed engine size. The opposed piston two stroke engine does not suffer the same laws of scale and engines in the low power range have already been marketed successfully. The half liter/cylinder Armstrong Whitworth Swing Beam Engine is the latest to be designed with the automotive market in mind. Its low noise structure and balanced linkage system coupled with advantages for easy start and potential use of low grade fuels, derived from its variable compression ratio and slow piston motion, qualifies it for the application.