Stephen Scuderi, patent attorney for The Scuderi Group, talks about today’s announcement,

Scuderi Split-Cycle Engine Secures Patent Protection in Key Global Markets

Comprehensive Patent Portfolio Attracts Investors and Licensees

WEST SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – June 27, 2006 –The Scuderi Group has secured patent protection for its revolutionary Split-Cycle Engine in key global markets including Japan, Taiwan, China, and Russia, the company announced today. The patents are a major step toward complete worldwide protection of the revolutionary Scuderi air-hybrid engine
design.

The Scuderi patent portfolio now includes seven issued U.S. patents, five U.S. patents pending, and multiple international patents pending in over 45 countries.

“Scuderi’s global patent portfolio provides protection for our investors and will enable licensees to establish dominate market positions for the next 15-20 years,” said patent attorney Stephen Scuderi, legal counsel for The Scuderi Group. “Because the split-cycle engine technology can be applied to a wide variety of applications, from automobiles to airplanes to generators, we are determined to protect our intellectual property on a global basis.”

To read the full press release, click here.

To learn more about the Scuderi engine, watch the video on the company’s home page.

To listen to the Podcast, press play,

While much of the media coverage focuses on hybrid cars for consumers, some of the most promising applications of hybrid technology are on diesel trucks because of the potential mileage and environmental improvements.

For example,

EPA Unveils Unique Hydraulic Hybrid Diesel Delivery Truck with UPS

The EPA and UPS plan to evaluate the vehicle’s fuel economy performance and emissions during a series of tests in 2006. In laboratory testing, the EPA’s patented hydraulic hybrid diesel technology achieved a 60 to 70 percent improvement in fuel economy and more than a 40 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, compared to a conventional UPS vehicle.

“EPA and our partners are not just delivering packages with this UPS truck - we are delivering environmental benefits to the American people,” said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson

Read the whole press release here.

The potential impact of The Scuderi Air Hybrid Engine on the diesel market is staggering. Here’s why.

Today’s Diesel Engines

The diesel engine is the most energy efficient of all the internal combustion engines. This high efficiency results in good fuel economy and lower greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, diesel engines have proven reliability, durability and are better suited for carrying large heavy loads. However, diesel engines also have some significant drawbacks such as weight, noise, high emissions of NOx and particulate matter (soot), and high cost.

Despite these drawbacks, with today’s soaring oil prices and the demand for higher efficiency, the number of diesel engines is steadily growing. In fact, outside the US auto market, diesel engines are by far the predominant engine of choice.

With the diesel engine manufacturers trying to meet the growing demands for better performance, more power and cleaner sources of energy, diesel engines have become very sophisticated high tech systems.

Today’s diesel engine consists of multistage turbochargers, high pressure fuel injection systems and complex exhaust treatment systems. All of these systems work to either improve performance or reduce the emissions, but unfortunately they also significantly increase cost.

The Scuderi Engine Impact

The Scuderi Engine has an even bigger impact on diesel engines than on gasoline engines. Because the Scuderi Split-Cycle Technology not only improves the performance of the engine but reduces the complexity and cost of the engine, the impact is staggering.

The Scuderi Technology drastically reduces the cost of diesel systems by eliminating or dramatically reducing three of the most expensive and complex parts of a diesel system.

1.) Turbocharging: Because of the built-in supercharging capabilities of the Scuderi Engine, the need for turbochargers is eliminated. The cost of turbochargers alone can save thousands of dollars per system.

2.) Injectors: Because the Scuderi Engine fires only on half of its cylinders, only half of the fuel injectors are required. The cost of today’s high pressure injectors can amount to over 30% of the base engine cost. In addition, because of the high turbulence created by the air transferring into the power cylinder from our transfer passage, the Scuderi Diesel Engine will be able to use low pressure, low cost injectors instead of the expensive high pressure injectors.

3.) Exhaust: Perhaps the feature with the largest cost impact is the reduction or elimination of the exhaust treatment system. Because of the unique method of firing after top dead center and a very fast moving power piston, the two biggest emission problems for diesel engines (NOx and soot) are eliminated or drastically reduced.

Emission reduction has been the greatest challenge for today’s diesel engine manufacturers, with the sophistication and cost of the exhaust treatment systems growing rapidly. The newer urea based Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) exhaust treatment systems can add from $11,000 to over $50,000 to the cost of large diesel engines. In addition, the increased weight and complexity increases the cost of maintenance and repairs.

The Scuderi Split-Cycle Engine solves today’s biggest emission problems facing diesel engine manufacturers, while reducing cost and improving performance. The cost savings alone are so dramatic (40 to 50% cost reduction) that diesel engine and equipment manufacturers will be compelled to convert to Scuderi Engine Technology. The cost savings, reduced emissions and performance increase makes the Scuderi Engine Technology the diesel engine design of the future.

HybridCarBlog, a great web site for hybrid news and analysis, has an interesting article about today’s generation of hybrid cars. They are not saving the world from global warming, but driving innovation that will someday lead to technologies that will help address those environmental concerns.

Hybrid Cars: It’s the technology stupid

Ultimately, only innovation, particularly technological innovation, can help fight a problem like global warming, and Toyota is pushing the limits far more than any other auto company in this battle. One hybrid battery breakthrough could change the automobile landscape forever - that’s why hybrid technology is so important….

The importance of hybrids is not about global warming nor foreign oil dependency. Today, the importance of hybrids is purely about technology. Today’s hybrid technology won’t end foreign oil dependency or CO2 emissions, but investing in today’s hybrids will lead to the technology that can resolve these issues.

When it comes to today’s hybrid vehicles, it’s ALL about the technology.

Read the whole article here.

The Ban on `Rubbish’ in The New York Times
By Brian Akre, GM Corporate Communications

I’ve spent much of the past week trying to get a letter to the editor published in The New York Times in response to the recent Tom Friedman rant (subscription required) against GM (see “Hyperbole and Defamation at The New York Times,” June 1).

I failed. This is my story.

To read the whole post, click here.

For some insight into GM’s frustration, check out the email communications with the Times editors that they also posted on their blog.

Here is a rebuttal column on GM’s enviro policies from the San Jose Mercury News,

Actually, GM is working hard on energy independence

New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman recently suggested that by capping fuel prices at $1.99 for buyers of certain vehicles, General Motors was acting more like “a crack dealer looking to keep his addicts on a tight leash.'’ He then claimed that “the sooner this company gets taken over by Toyota, the better off our country will be.'’

Does the introduction of the Prius and other hybrids warrant the claim that a Toyota-managed GM would halt the building of SUVs and trucks? A quick review of the facts indicates otherwise.

Read the whole article.

Autoblog has a story on hydrogen fuel cells that demonstrates why advances to the internal combustion engine are critically important,

Hydrogen fuel cells are the wave of the future - just not the near future

Senior researchers from automakers around the world agree that internal combustion engines will dominate the automotive market for decades to come, even though hydrogen fuel cells are becoming an attractive replacement technology.

Read the whole article.