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Winner 2005

Piezo-Injektoren

Piezo Injectors: New technology for clean and economical diesel and gasoline engines

Dipl.-Ing. Friedrich Boecking (Spokesperson)
Dr.-Ing. Klaus Egger
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Hans Meixner*
Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart
*Siemens VDO Automotive AG, Regensburg

(f.l.t.r.) Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Hans Meixner, Dipl.-Ing. Friedrich Boecking, Dr.-Ing. Klaus Egger

Vehicles with diesel engines are becoming ever more popular. They are low on fuel consumption and much cleaner than cars with spontaneous ignition from earlier years of manufacture. What is behind this incredible progress in diesel engines?

The key to success is in a highly precise injection of fuel. This is an area in which Friedrich Boecking, Klaus Egger, and Hans Meixner have set new standards. The three nominated researchers work at suppliers to the automotive industry – although at two directly competing companies: Friedrich Boecking heads the development division Common Rail Injectors Car at the Stuttgart firm Robert Bosch GmbH, Klaus Egger is a member of the board at Siemens VDO Automotive AG in Regensburg, and Hans Meixner is an authorized agent of the department for sensor and actuator technology (ZT) at Siemens Research in Munich.

Pressure and dosage are decisive
Approximately one in two vehicles registered in Germany in 2004 runs on diesel fuel. Diesel vehicles owe their popularity above all to direct fuel injection. It makes engines efficient and quiet – and provides economical fuel consumption.

In direct injection systems, a pump pressurizes the fuel and injects it through an injection valve into the cylinder’s combustion chamber. The higher the pressure and more precise the injection time and quantity, the more efficient combustion is.

The piezo injectors developed independently by research and development teams both at Bosch and Siemens VDO are especially precise. In these valves, regulators open and shut the fuel injectors making use of the piezo electric effect that occurs in certain crystalline materials: If an current is applied to them, the material yields instantaneously. This produces forces which can be exploited to control fuel injection.

High speed provides precision
The advantage of piezo technology: it opens and closes the injection value up to five times as fast as conventional solenoid valves. This improves metering accuracy, thereby producing fewer pollutants during fuel combustion and reducing nitrous oxide emissions by up to 20 percent. The same is true for the particulate matter found in diesel exhaust. Fuel consumption drops, and the engine runs quiet.

Boecking, Eggert, and Meixner had great market success with the development of the piezo electric injectors. The first injectors went into production in 2000. By the end of 2006, Bosch and Siemens VDO had together manufactured around 25 million units. For manufacture of the injectors alone, the two companies employ around 14,000 people worldwide, 6,400 of them in Germany.

The right to nominate outstanding achievements for the German Future Award is incumbent on leading German institutions in Science and Industry as well as foundations.

The Project "Piezo injectors: A new technology for clean diesel and gasoline engines" was nominated by the Stiftung Werner-von-Siemens-Ring .

more details

Resumes

Dipl.-Ing. Friedrich Boecking

Dipl.-Ing. Friedrich Boecking

08.06.1961
geboren in Trier
1989 – 1995
Studium des Maschinenbaus an der Technischen
Hochschule Karlsruhe
1989 – 1995
Entwickler von Düsen und DHK bei der
Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart
1995 – 1998
Leitung Forschungsprojekt Einspritzverlaufsformung von
Dieseleinspritzinjektoren mittels Piezo-Aktoren bei der
Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart
1998 – 2003
Abteilungsleitung Entwicklung Piezo-Injektoren
bei der Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart
seit 2003
Entwicklungsbereichsleiter Common-Rail-Injektoren Pkw,
Entwicklungsverantwortung für Common-Rail-Injektoraktivitäten
Pkw bei der Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart
 
 

Dr.-Ing. Klaus Egger

Dr.-Ing. Klaus Egger

22.06.1951
geboren in Graz / Österreich
1969 – 1975
Studium des Maschinenbaus an der Technischen
Universität Graz
1976
Institut für Verbrennungskraftmaschinen, Technische
Universität Graz
1976
Promotion
1975 – 1978
Assistent an der Technischen Universität Graz
1978 – 1980
Ingenieur in der M1-Motorenentwicklung bei der
AVL LIST GmbH, Graz
1980 – 1982
Gruppenleiter Einspritzung, Vorentwicklung bei der
BMW Motoren GmbH, Steyr
1982 – 1983
Abteilungsleiter Einspritzung, Vorentwicklung bei der
BMW Motoren GmbH, Steyr
1983 – 1984
Entwicklungsleiter bei der Voest-Alpine Friedmann GmbH,
Linz
1984 – 1990
Geschäftsführer bei der Voest-Alpine Automotive GmbH,
Linz und Wien
1990 – 1994
Geschäftsführer des Bereichs Dieseleinspritzausrüstung
bei der Robert Bosch AG, Wien
1994 – 1995
Leiter Systembereich Common Rail bei der Robert Bosch
GmbH, Stuttgart
1996
Leiter des Bereichs Automobiltechnik, Referat Zentrale
Technik, Strategische Planung bei der Siemens AG,
Regensburg
1996 – 1998
Leiter Geschäftszweig Dieselsysteme bei der
Siemens AG, Regensburg
1998 – 2001
Leiter Geschäftsgebiet Antriebsstrang bei der
Siemens AG, Regensburg
seit 2001
Vorstandsmitglied der Siemens VDO Automotive AG, Regensburg

Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Hans Meixner

Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Hans Meixner

06.10.1939
geboren in Marl / NRW
1961 – 1970
Studium der Chemie, Mathematik und Physik an der
Universität Hamburg und der Technischen Universität
München
1970
Doktorand am Physik Department der Technischen
Universität München
1970 – 1972
Tutor am Mathematischen Institut der Ludwig-Maximilians-
Universität München
1972
Promotion
1972 – 1973
Wissenschaftlicher Assistent am Physik Department der
Technischen Universität München
1973 – 1980
Angestellter in der Zentralen Forschung und Entwicklung
bei der Siemens AG, München
1980 – 1985
Laborleiter für Anwendungstechniken, Bereich ZT,
Forschung bei der Siemens AG, München
1985 – 1991
Gruppenbevollmächtigter Bereich ZT, Forschung
bei der Siemens AG, München
1991 – 1992
Unterschriftsberechtigung i.V. Bereich ZT, Forschung
bei der Siemens AG, München
1992
Leiter der Kerntechnologie: Sensorik, Mess-, Steuer- und
Regelungstechnik Bereich ZT, Forschung bei der Siemens
AG, München
seit 1992
Abteilungsbevollmächtigter für Sensor- und Aktuatortechnik
Bereich ZT, Forschung bei der Siemens AG, München

Weitere Tätigkeiten:

 
Industrial Advisory Board Member of Berkeley Sensor and Actuator Center,University of California
Editorial Board Member of Institute of Physics Publishing, UK
Kurator der Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft
Beirat des Forschungszentrums Karlsruhe
Beirat Linz Center of Mechatronics GmbH
Beirat EnOcean
Beirat First Sensor
Mitglied der Programm- und Steering Committees:
European Material Research Society
Eurosensors
Chemical Sensors
Sensortagung Bad Nauheim/Ludwigsburg des Arbeitsausschusses
„Chemische Grundlagen und Anwendungen der Sensortechnik“
in der Dechema
Vorsitzender des Arbeitsausschusses „ADAPTRONIC“ des VDI
(Physikalische Technologien)
Vorstand bei Anakon

Contact

Spokesperson

Dipl.-Ing. Friedrich Boecking
Entwicklungsbereichsleiter Common-Rail-Injektoren Pkw
Robert Bosch GmbH
Wernerstr. 51
70469 Stuttgart
Tel.: +49 (0) 711 / 81 14 51 52
E-Mail: friedrich.boecking@bosch.de

Press

Thomas Knoll
Media and Public Relations Kraftfahrzeugtechnik
Robert Bosch GmbH
Wernerstr. 51
70469 Stuttgart
Tel.: +49 (0) 711 / 81 17 088
Fax: +49 (0) 711 / 81 17 656
E-Mail: thomas.knoll@bosch.com

Johannes Winterhagen
Corporate Communications
Siemens VDO Automotive AG
Sodener Str. 9
65824 Schwalbach
Tel.: +49 (0) 6196 / 87 23 48
Fax: +49 (0) 6196 / 87 41 94
E-Mail: johannes.winterhagen@siemens.com

A description provided by the institutes and companies regarding their nominated projects

Vehicles with diesel engines are becoming ever more popular. They are low on fuel consumption and much cleaner than cars with spontaneous ignition from earlier years of manufacture.

What is behind this incredible progress in diesel engines?

The key to success is in a highly precise injection of fuel. This is an area in which Friedrich Boecking, Klaus Egger, and Hans Meixner have set new standards. The three nominated researchers work at suppliers to the automotive industry – although at two directly competing companies: Friedrich Boecking heads the development division Common Rail Injectors Car at the Stuttgart firm Robert Bosch GmbH, Klaus Egger is a member of the board at Siemens VDO Automotive AG in Regensburg, and Hans Meixner is an authorized agent of the department for sensor and actuator technology (ZT) at Siemens Research in Munich.

Pressure and dosage are decisive

Approximately one in two vehicles registered in Germany in 2004 runs on diesel fuel. Diesel vehicles owe their popularity above all to direct fuel injection. It makes engines efficient and quiet – and provides economical fuel consumption. In direct injection systems, a pump pressurizes the fuel and injects it through an injection valve into the cylinder’s combustion chamber. The higher the pressure and more precise the injection time and quantity, the more efficient combustion is.

The piezo injectors developed independently by research and development teams both at Bosch and Siemens VDO are especially precise. In these valves, regulators open and shut the fuel injectors making use of the piezo electric effect that occurs in certain crystalline materials: If an current is applied to them, the material yields instantaneously. This produces forces which can be exploited to control fuel injection.

High speed provides precision

The advantage of piezo technology: it opens and closes the injection value up to five times as fast as conventional solenoid valves. This improves metering accuracy, thereby producing fewer pollutants during fuel combustion and reducing nitrous oxide emissions by up to 20 percent. The same is true for the particulate matter found in diesel exhaust. Fuel consumption drops, and the engine runs quiet.

Boecking, Eggert, and Meixner had great market success with the development of the piezo electric injectors. The first injectors went into production in 2000. By the end of 2006, Bosch and Siemens VDO had together manufactured around 25 million units. For manufacture of the injectors alone, the two companies employ around 14,000 people worldwide, 6,400 of them in Germany.

The right to nominate outstanding achievements for the German Future Award is incumbent on leading German institutions in Science and Industry as well as foundations.

The Project „Piezo injectors: A new technologyfor clean diesel and gasoline engines“ was nominated by the Stiftung Werner-von-Siemens-Ring .

Nominee 2005 · TEAM 2