Looking at a typical 4 cycle engine from the top with the cylinder head removed.
Think of the front of the crankshaft as the 12 o'clock position and the rear as the 6 o'clock position.
The greatest wear will occur at the 9 and 3 o'clock positions.
This is because of the pressure of combustion on the top of the piston pushes the piston straight down, but the different angles of the connecting rod, in relation to the piston and crank journal, create severe side loads on the piston. The piston skirts are there to spread out the side loads, but even then, after many miles the bore will wear in an oval pattern with the greatest wear at the positions that are 90 degrees from the center line of the crankshaft (3 and 9 o'clock).
When that wear reaches a certain amount, the rings can no longer seal properly and compression losses and oil consumption get to the point where a re bore and new pistons are necessary.
While I understand the concept of a rotating cylinder liner, I doubt very seriously that this solution is practical.
My engine design reduces the side loads by maintaining the alignment of the pistons and cylinders and eliminates the connecting rod as the source of the excessive side loads.
It also allows for variable compression and the elimination of the valve train.
http://www.youtube.com/user/Ride122609
You can see this in the video linked above. It's a simple pump driven by compressed air, but could be configured as a IC engine.
Instead of pursuing the engine design, I decided to work on a hydraulic in wheel drive.
regards
Mech