Air cooling for multi-unit rotary combustion engines

Claim 1

AN AIR-COOLED HOUSING FOR A MULTI-UNIT ROTARY COMBUSTION ENGINE INCLUDING TWO COAXIALLY ALIGNED ROTARY COMBUSTION ENGINE UNITS HAVING A COMMON CRANKSHAFT AND EACH SAID UNIT HAVING AN OUTER BODY INCLUDING A PAIR OF AXIALLY-SPACED END WALLS INTERCONNECTED WITH A PERIPHERAL WALL TO DEFINE A CAVITY, A MULTI-LOBED ROTOR SUPPORTED IN EACH CAVITY FOR ROTATION RELATIVE TO ITS ASSOCIATED OUTER BODY WITH SAID ROTOR BEING DISPOSED IN SEALING ENGAGEMENT WITH THE INNER SURFACE OF SAID OUTER BODY TO FORM A PLURALITY OF WORKING CHAMBERS THEREBETWEEN WHICH CHAMBERS, DURING RELATIVE ROTATION BETWEEN SAID ROTOR AND ITS OUTER BODY, VARY IN VOLUME, INTAKE MEANS FOR EACH UNIT DISPOSED IN A FIRST REGION OF ITS OUTER BODY FOR SUPPLYING AIR TO THE WORKING CHAMBERS THEREOF FOR COMBUSTION ADJACENT A SECOND REGION OF ITS OUTER BODY, AND EXHAUST MEANS FOR EACH UNIT DISPOSED IN SAID SECOND REGION OF ITS OUTER BODY FOR DISCHARGING THE COMBUSTION GASES FROM EACH SAID UNIT, SAID SECOND REGION OF EACH SAID UNIT HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY HIGHER HEAT INPUT THAN SAID FIRST REGION THEREOF, SAID AIR-COOLED HOUSING COMPRISING; A PLURALITY OF SPACED COOLING FINS PROJECTING FROM THE OUTER PERIPHERAL SURFACE OF EACH OUTER BODY WITH SAID FINS ON EACH UNIT EXTENDING IN A DIRECTION PARALLEL TO THE ENGINE AXIS AND BEING ALIGNED WITH FINS ON THE OTHER UNIT TO DEFINE A PLURALITY OF AXIALLY EXTENDING COOLING AIR PASSAGES FOR CONDUCTING AN AXIAL FLOW OF COOLING AIR ACROSS THE OUTER PERIPHERAL SURFACE OF EACH OUTER BODY OF SAID MULTI-UNIT ROTARY COMBUSTION ENGINE, AND SAID ROTARY COMBUSTION ENGINE UNITS BEING DISPOSED RELATIVE TO ONE ANOTHER, AS VIEWED IN THE AXIAL DIRECTION, WITH A FIRST REGION OF ONE OF SAID UNITS BEING ALIGNED WITH A SECOND REGION OF THE OTHER OF SAID UNITS SO THAT WHEN COOLING AIR IS DIRECTED AXIALLY ACROSS THE OUTER PERIPHERAL SURFACE OF SAID UNITS IT WILL FIRST FLOW ACROSS A RELATIVELY LOW HEAT INPUT REGION OF ONE OF SAID UNITS AND SUBSEQUENTLY ACROSS A RELATIVELY HIGH HEAT INPUT REGION OF THE OTHER OF SAID UNITS IN ONE PORTION OF THE OUTER PERIPHERAL SURFACE OF SAID ENGINE WHILE IN A PORTION CIRCUMFERENTIALLY-SPACED FROM SAID ONE PORTION THE COOLING AIR WILL FIRST FLOW ACROSS A RELATIVELY HIGH HEAT INPUT REGION OF SAID ONE UNIT AND SUBSEQUENTLY ACROSS A RELATIVELY LOW HEAT INPUT REGION OF SAID OTHER OF SAID UNITS WHEREBY A SUBSTANTIALLY BALANCED COOLING OF SAID ENGINE HOUSING OUTER SURFACE IS OBTAINED.