The Ogle Carburetor
Photo credit: craveonline.com
Everyone would like to get more mileage per fill-up, and some of the more recent hybrid cars have been able to do a great job of getting you farther with less gas. Unfortunately, we have yet to attain anything quite like the documented successes of mechanic Tom Ogle.
In the 1970s, this inventor created a new type of carburetor, the likes of which had never been seen. Much like today, gas and oil companies back then had a monopoly in the market. Although Ogle’s carburetor was tested and shown to travel up to 48 kilometers per liter (113 mpg), his invention was never produced commercially.
The revolutionary component worked by pressurizing gasoline into a vapor cloud, which was then injected into the firing chambers. Licensing setbacks and hurdles ensured that the carburetor was never mass-produced for use in vehicles, and Ogle died with its design information.
Does anyone besides me find it interesting that folks like Tom, who was blocked by forces we can only guess at, ended up dying with their design secrets unshared? Sadly, this happens more often than we might like to admit. After all, look what happened to Tesla and his design for free energy for all!
Coffee out on the patio again this morning!
