Preliminary experiences in the design of an electromechanical valve actuator

The paper gives a short outline of experiences gained at IM in the design of an electromechanical valve actuator having two magnets and two balanced springs. This device works at fixed lift, fixed lifting time and variable valve event. Some of most relevant topics regarding the design of such a type of actuator have been analyzed. In particular, in the first part of the paper the problems of varying load have been tackled with the aid of a commercial one-dimensional code. Based on these results, the electromechanical design of the actuator has been started. Three axial-symmetric geometries have been compared using an electromagnetic CAD. The requirements of systems to perform the first lift at engine start up and the catching in operation have been analyzed. The evaluation of energy losses connected with these phases has been also done.