Overengineered ?

I present the rhombic drive and explain its advantages and disadvantages and why I use it in my powerful 300 watt Stirling engine.
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Thanks to Baptiste (alias Olympio) we now have a Discord server: https://discord.com/invite/TDABS5z2mT
It would be very nice if we could discuss there everything about Stirling engines, 3D printing and more, thank you very much Baptiste.
My rhombic Stirling engine is perfectly suited as the prime mover for a combined heat and power unit.
Its 300 watts of electrical power, in combination with the solar plant, is sufficient to make us independent of energy suppliers.
Unfortunately, it is too complex and therefore too expensive for economical power production and a limited commercial manufacturing.
But why do I use this overengineered and bulky drive, many of you ask here in the comments.
That is why I would like to present the rhombic drive in detail now, and also to find potential improvements or alternatives together with you.
Inspired by the Lanchester engine from 1900, Roelf Jan Meijer developed the rhombic drive at Philips in 1953.
This technical masterpiece converts a counter-rotating motion into the linear motion of two coaxial pistons.
It consists of two synchronized rotating gears with crankpins and four connecting rods that form a deforming rhombus.
This mostly symmetrical arrangement guides the inner and outer piston rods perfectly straight and without any side forces.
This is extremely important for the necessary dry running of the piston sliding surfaces in the Stirling engine.
At the same time, it allows for a complete balancing of all moving masses, which promises absolutely vibration-free running.
A hermetic seal of the crankcase via the connecting rods can be achieved and makes it possible to build large, highly pressurized engines.
The rhombic drive is an elegant example of beautiful engineering, but it also has some disadvantages:
Its crankshafts synchronized by two gears, six connecting rods, and at least twelve bearings require the highest standards of manufacturing precision.
This results in high costs, a lot of friction, wear, and large moving masses.
The drive requires a large space and demands complex synchronization of the counter-rotating crankshafts.
The gears actually need to be herringbone gears and hardened, which in turn drives up the costs.
I have been struggling with all these problems for a long time and have tried to optimize the drive in various ways.
But lightweight, low-maintenance, smooth-running, and inexpensive was not possible for me in any configuration.
Of course, I have also benefited from the many advantages.
Without the simple mass balancing and the absence of side piston forces, such a smooth operation and quite good durability would never have been possible.
According to recent findings in Stirling research, it is becoming increasingly clear how extremely important the consistent avoidance of mechanical losses in the engine is.
In the Stirling cycle, only very little energy is generated per cycle, and any friction dramatically minimizes power and efficiency.
My next design will definitely focus on the uncompromising minimization of friction and moving masses.
You can already tell, there are many new ideas even though the thermoacoustic engine is still in the middle of its development.
There will soon be interesting changes to report here as well, and the thermoacoustic will remain the focus of my work for a long time.
I still see a lot of potential in the thermoacoustic engine; the great interest from you is incredibly motivating, and all the help sustainably accelerates and improves the development.
As always, I look forward to your criticism, suggestions, and opinions in the comments, on Discord, or on ownenergy.org.
Your help is incredibly important for the further development work!
If you want to support the project even further, a membership on Patreon or YouTube helps a lot.
Every cent from this goes into the development of the open-source thermoacoustic Stirling engine.

Thank you very much for your interest!


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