James Atkinson (inventor)

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}}

{{Use British English|date=April 2018}}

File:Atkinson-Gas-Engine.png

{{Infobox person

| name = James Atkinson

| birth_date = 1846

| death_date = 1914 (aged 67–68)

| nationality = British

| occupation = Engineer, inventor

}}

James Atkinson (1846 – 1914){{cite book |author=C. Lyle Cummins |title=Internal Fire: The Internal-Combustion Engine 1673-1900 |publisher=Carnot Press |location=Wilsonville, Ore |year=2000 |pages=218 |isbn=0-917308-05-0 }} of Hampstead was a British engineer who invented several engines with greater efficiency than the Otto cycle. The Atkinson cycle engines were named the "Differential 1882", "Cycle 1887" and "Utilite 1892". The most well-known of Atkinson's engines is the "Cycle 1887", patented in 1887.{{US patent reference | number =367496 | y = 1887 | m =08 | d = 02 | inventor =James Atkinson | title =Gas-Engine}} By use of variable engine strokes from a complex crankshaft, Atkinson was able to increase the efficiency of his engine, at the cost of some power, over traditional Otto-cycle engines. He was awarded the John Scott Medal of The Franklin Institute in 1889.