Editing Otto cycle (section)

==History==
The four-stroke engine was first patented by [[Alphonse Beau de Rochas]] in 1861.<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Sport Aviation|title=150-Year-Old Technology|author=Mike Busch|page=26}}</ref> Before, in about 1854–57, two Italians ([[Eugenio Barsanti]] and [[Felice Matteucci]]) invented an engine that was rumored to be very similar, but the patent was lost.{{citation needed|date=February 2023}}

The first person to build a working four-stroke engine, a stationary engine using a coal gas-air mixture for fuel (a [[gas engine]]), was [[Germany|German]] engineer [[Nicolaus Otto]].<ref>{{cite book |title= Development of Piston Aero Engines|last= Gunston |first= Bill |edition=2 |year=1999|publisher= Patrick Stephens Ltd|location= Sparkford, UK|isbn=978-0-7509-4478-6|page=21 }}</ref>  This is why the four-stroke principle today is commonly known as the Otto cycle and four-stroke engines using [[spark plug]]s often are called Otto engines.