Robert Huber (engineer)
{{Short description|Swiss engineer (1901–1995)}}
Robert Huber (7 July 1901 – 7 April 1995) was a Swiss mechanical engineer.
Life
Robert Huber was born on 7 July 1901 in Freienstein, Switzerland. He attended a primary school in Freienstein from 1908 to 1914 and a secondary school in Freienstein from 1914 to 1916. From 1916 to 1920 he attended a high school in Zürich. From 1920 to 1924 he studied at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (now ETH Zurich) under Professor Aurel Stodola.{{cite web|url=http://www.freikolben.ch/37464/index.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120108185128/http://www.freikolben.ch/37464/index.html|archive-date=2012-01-08|url-status=dead|title=History|accessdate=2015-09-04}}
On 12 August 1942, Huber married Ursula Meyer. Huber wrote a biography in the 1980s. He died on 7 April 1995.
Career
In 1924, Huber became Technical Director of the Bureau Technique Pescara where he supervised the design of nearly 30 different sizes and types of free-piston engine and acquired the nickname "Mr Free Piston". The first was the AC-2,[http://www.freikolben.ch/media/DIR_117601/8f6d33385a507369ffff860d7f000101.jpg Image] freikolben.ch {{dead link|date=August 2023}} running on petrol (gasoline). The second was the AC-3, which was similar but ran on diesel fuel. Eighteen types of free-piston engine were built and tested.
In 1932, Huber read a book by Professor Lomonosov about diesel locomotives. He also heard of a proposal by Petro Shelest for turbines driven by compressed air. This information gave him the idea of developing the free-piston gas turbine. Several of these were designed but not built. Finally, in 1938–39, the world's first free-piston generator was built. It used two G-30 machines and drove an 800 kW alternator.
Huber stayed at Bureau Technique Pescara (which became Société d'études mécaniques et énergétiques{{in lang|fr}} [http://retro.seals.ch/cntmng?pid=sbz-002:1954:72::600 Les groupes électrogènes à turbines à gaz alimentées par générateurs à pistons libres] - R. Huber, October 1954 (SEME) in 1939) until 1962. During his time there, thousands of free-piston engines had been sold. Huber continued to work on free-piston engines until at least 1967.
Huber was a pioneer in the development of common rail fuel injection in the 1960s.{{cite web|url=http://www.enginebuildermag.com/2012/08/common-rail-injection-history-less-conspiracy-more-efficiency/|title=Common Rail Injection History: Less Conspiracy, More Efficiency - Engine Builder Magazine|date=20 August 2012|publisher=enginebuildermag.com|accessdate=2015-09-04}}
Patents
Robert Huber has about 40 patents related to free-piston engines. A few examples are listed below:
- US2452194 (A), published 1948-10-26, Free piston machine {{cite web|url=http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/originalDocument?CC=US&NR=2452194A&KC=A&FT=D&ND=3&date=19481026&DB=EPODOC&locale=en_EP|title=Espacenet - Original document|publisher=worldwide.espacenet.com|accessdate=2015-09-04}}
- US2645213 (A), published 1953-07-14, Free piston engine having hollow pistons {{cite web|url=http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/originalDocument?CC=US&NR=2645213A&KC=A&FT=D&ND=3&date=19530714&DB=EPODOC&locale=en_EP|title=Espacenet - Original document|publisher=worldwide.espacenet.com|accessdate=2015-09-04}}
- US2943438 (A), published 1960-07-05, Improvements in free piston engine and gas turbine power plant {{cite web|url=http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/originalDocument?CC=US&NR=2943438A&KC=A&FT=D&ND=3&date=19600705&DB=EPODOC&locale=en_EP|title=Espacenet - Original document|publisher=worldwide.espacenet.com|accessdate=2015-09-04}}
- US2990680 (A), published 1961-07-04, Devices for starting and stopping free piston machines and in particular free piston auto-generators {{cite web|url=http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/originalDocument?CC=US&NR=2990680A&KC=A&FT=D&ND=3&date=19610704&DB=EPODOC&locale=en_EP|title=Espacenet - Original document|publisher=worldwide.espacenet.com|accessdate=2015-09-04}}