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An Inline-twin, inline twin-cylinder, or in-line vertical-twin engine is an engine in which the axis of the crankshaft is inline with axis of the final drive or chassis of the vehicle. It is also written as "in-line" and known as a tandem twins. An Inline-twin engine differs from separate two cylinder engine design known as the parallel-twin engine which has its crankshaft at a transverse or right angle to final drive and the chassis of the vehicle and instead has its crankshaft parallel to the chassis, inline-twins are also described as longitudinal.

Applications

Such engines have commonly been used in snowmobile, ultralight aircraft, tractor, ATV, Superkart, motorcycle, marine, large scale flying model aircraft and automobile applications.

The design has been used for two-stroke, four-stroke and diesel engines aspirated by both carburettors and turbo-charges.

Advantages and disadvantages

Inline twins have the advantage of being compact and relative simple and cheap to make in comparison to V or flat twins. As with any twin cylinder engine, they have an imbalanced firing action which causes vibration but inline-twins suffer further from torsional vibration.

Tandem twins

In inline tandem twins the motor has two crankshafts, one for each cylinder.

Automobile

Inline-twins were used in the early days of motoring in models such as the 1898 Decauville Voiturelle ... using a pair of cylinders taken from a de Dion model mounted fore and after and mounted below the seat.

In 1955, engineer Aurelio Lampredi designed an experimental inline twin cylindered F1 engine on the theory that it was provide high levels of torque for tight race circuits. The result was the 2.5-liter Type 116 prototype. Unfortunately, it vibrated so badly it broke the testbench and never made it into production.

Marine

Inline twins are common in outboard motor use, such as the Suzuki 15 models, and as jet pump motors.

Motorcycling

• Inline-twin Motorcycles
• Dresch 500cc Monobloc
• Sunbeam S8
• Kawasaki KR 250

In motorcycling, the term "inline engine" is used more narrowly, for a straight engine mounted in line with the frame. The inline, twin cylinder, engine design has been used often during the history of motorcycling for both two-stroke and four-stroke engines. Examples include, the Dresch 500 cc Monobloc, the Sunbeam S7 and S8, Kork Ballington's world championship winning Kawasaki KR 250 and 350s and Aprilia's 1985 GP racing bikes, and the , and the CCM Armstrong 250cc, Waddon, EMC, Hejira, Decorite, Cotton racers which all used the Rotax model 256 inline twin engine. The Kawasaki KR models won 8 world championships.

Inline-twin engines have both advantages and disadvantages for motorcycle design. Although it is a narrow twin engine design which allows for a narrow motorcycle, as narrow as a single cylinder engine, they also create a longer engine. A significant disadvantage for air-cooled engines is that the rear cylinder is runs hotter than the front cylinder.

Ultralights

• Inline-twin Motorcycles
• A Rotax 503 engine A Rotax 503 engine
• A Rotax 582 engine

A popular inline twin two-stroke engines was the Cuyuna 430-D, a modified snowmobile unit>ref>Machine Design: Volume 54, Issues 1-6; Volume 54, Issues 1-6 1982 "A modified snowmobile power plant, the 30-hp inline twin has been detuned by lowering the compression ratio and modifying the carburetion" </ref> which produced 30 hp More modern Ultralights tend to use Rotax engines.

See also

• Two-cylinder engine
• Inline V-twin

References

1. ^ 487 cc Sunbeam. Walneck's Classic Cycle Trader, Dominion Enterprises, Dec 1996 reprinted from Classic Bike Magazine, 5 January 1950.
2. Automobile engineer: a technical journal devoted to the theory and practice of automobile and aircraft construction, Volume 43, Issue 569. Institution of Automobile Engineers. IPC Transport Press Ltd., 1953
3. Modern Motorcycle Technology. Edward Abdo. Cengage Learning, 3 Jan 2012
4. Modern Motorcycle Technology. Edward Abdo. Cengage Learning, 3 Jan 2012
5. Popular Mechanics, Oct 1968
6. Popular Science - May 1984 - Page 105
7. Snowmobile Service Manual Intertec Publishing - 1986 - 488 pages"Engines consist of two types; the axial fan, inline twin and the simultaneous firing opposed twin.
8. Popular Science May 1984
9. Berger-Burr's ultralight and microlight aircraft of the world, Volume 16. P.185. Alain-Yves Berger, Norman Burr. Haynes Publishing Group, 1 Jan 1983
10. The Art of the John Deere Tractor: Featuring Tractors from the Walter and Bruce Keller Collection. Lee Klancher. Voyageur Press, 13 May 2011
11. Rave Motorsport's Armstrong Superkart Engine
12. ^ Italian Racing Motorcycles. Mick Walker. Redline Books, 1 Jan 2000
13. Field & Stream, Dec 1971
14. 3W-150iR2 Inline Twin, Specifications Sheet
15. Classic Cars: 50 Years of the World's Finest Automotive Design. Brazendale - 1983 - 368 pages "They were vee-twin-cylinder engines designed by Daimler, which were replaced by the inline, twin-cylinder unit as used in the Phoenix of 1 895."
16. "They can't all be GTOs." Motor Trend Oct. 2007: 118. General OneFile. Web. 29 June 2012. "Not everything Ferrari touches turns to blazing scarlet. In 1955, for instance, engineer Aurelio Lampredi--working with Enzo and son Dino--creates an experimental inline-two-cylinder F1 engine (the theory being that two large cylinders would provide enormous torque for tight circuits like Monaco)."
17. Tata Motors Limited Files Patent Application for a Novel Inline Two Cylinder Multi Point Fuel Injection Four-Stroke Reciprocating Piston Internal Combustion Naturally Aspirated or Turbocharged or Turbocharged Intercooled Spark Ignition Engine.
18. "Emission-compliant diesel engines cover 83 to 1,350 bhp in 10 models." Oil, Gas, & Petrochem Equipment May 2006: 18. General OneFile. Web. 29 June 2012. "Cat petroleum diesels line includes eight inline two, three, and four-cylinder engines
19. PSA fires up two-cylinder turbo. Automotive Engineer, Oct 2008
20. The Internal-combustion Engine in Theory and Practice: Combustion, fuels, materials, design. Charles Fayette Taylor. MIT Press, 19 Mar 1985
21. ^ Light and Heavy Vehicle Technology. M J J Nunney. Routledge, 31 May 2012
22. Transactions of the International Engineering Congress, 1916
23. Cycle World, Volume 23. CBS Publications, 1984
24. Antique cars Michael Sedgwick, 1980 - 93 pages "The engine, an inline twin, lived in a box like a meat-safe at the rear."
25. The Secret History of Ferrari: Sixty years of cars, stars, and stories you've never heard, Arthur St. Antoine, Matt Stone. Motor Trend, October 1, 2007
26. Popular Mechanics - Feb 1989 - Page 109. Vol. 166, No. 2 - 136 pages - Magazine "Also new from Suzuki are the inline twin 15 and the inline 3-cylinder 25. Both are equipped with loop- charging, oil injection and external- mount tilt and trim. The 25 also has pre-atomized oil injection and an overrev limiter."
27. 2 Stroke International Marine Engines & Jet Pumps
28. Wilson, Hugo (1995). "Glossary" (in UK English). The Encyclopedia of the Motorcycle. London: Dorling Kindersley. pp. 309 – 310. ISBN 0-7513-0206-6. "in-line Engine layout in which the cylinders are arranged in a row, and in-line with the wheels of the machine."
29. Watanabe, Laurie. "That magnificent man on his riding machines." Dealernews Nov. 1996: 26+. General OneFile. Web. 29 June 2012. "If you press him, though, Jim is likely to expound on his 1947 S7 Sunbeam - "twin-cylinder, rubber-mounted engine. They were an inline two-cylinder, not crosswise in the frame, like conventional twins are.""
30. Japanese Production Racing Motorcycles - Page 130. Mick Walker - 2004 - 336 pages "... the KR750 and its KR250/350 inline twin cylinder Grand Prix racers."
31. Mick Walker's European Racing Motorcycles. Mick Walker. Redline Books, 1 Mar 2000
32. Italian Racing Motorcycles. Mick Walker. Redline Books, 1 Jan 2000
33. Motorcycle Design and Technology Handbook. Gaetano Cocco. MotorBooks International, 1 Aug 2004
34. Ultimate History of Fast Bikes. Roland Brown. Parragon, 1 Sep 2003
35. Ultralight aircraft Michael A. Markowski - 1982 - 320 pages - "The Cuyuna 430-D is an inline twin cylinder of 30 hp."

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