EP3001519B1 - Method for manufacturing spark plug for internal combustion engine - Google Patents

Method for manufacturing spark plug for internal combustion engine Download PDF

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Publication number
EP3001519B1
EP3001519B1 EP14801406.1A EP14801406A EP3001519B1 EP 3001519 B1 EP3001519 B1 EP 3001519B1 EP 14801406 A EP14801406 A EP 14801406A EP 3001519 B1 EP3001519 B1 EP 3001519B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
base member
discharge
joining
chip
electrode
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Active
Application number
EP14801406.1A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP3001519A4 (en
EP3001519A8 (en
EP3001519A1 (en
Inventor
Yuki Murayama
Nobuo Abe
Koichi Sakairi
Kunihiro Tanaka
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo KK
Denso Corp
Original Assignee
Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo KK
Denso Corp
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Publication date
Application filed by Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo KK, Denso Corp filed Critical Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo KK
Publication of EP3001519A1 publication Critical patent/EP3001519A1/en
Publication of EP3001519A8 publication Critical patent/EP3001519A8/en
Publication of EP3001519A4 publication Critical patent/EP3001519A4/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP3001519B1 publication Critical patent/EP3001519B1/en
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Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01T—SPARK GAPS; OVERVOLTAGE ARRESTERS USING SPARK GAPS; SPARKING PLUGS; CORONA DEVICES; GENERATING IONS TO BE INTRODUCED INTO NON-ENCLOSED GASES
    • H01T13/00—Sparking plugs
    • H01T13/20—Sparking plugs characterised by features of the electrodes or insulation
    • H01T13/39—Selection of materials for electrodes
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01T—SPARK GAPS; OVERVOLTAGE ARRESTERS USING SPARK GAPS; SPARKING PLUGS; CORONA DEVICES; GENERATING IONS TO BE INTRODUCED INTO NON-ENCLOSED GASES
    • H01T21/00—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for the manufacture or maintenance of spark gaps or sparking plugs
    • H01T21/02—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for the manufacture or maintenance of spark gaps or sparking plugs of sparking plugs

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a spark plug for an internal combustion engine; in the spark plug, at least one of a center electrode and a ground electrode includes a discharge chip, the center and ground electrodes being opposed to each other with a spark discharge gap formed therebetween.
  • US 2007/114900 A1 discloses a spark plug having a multilayer firing tip including a discharge end and a weld end, with the weld end being connected to a center electrode, and more specifically to a base electrode on the center electrode.
  • the weld end has a coefficient of thermal expansion, which is not between the values for the coefficients of thermal expansion for the discharge end and the base electrode. More specifically, the weld end has a coefficient of thermal expansion which is greater than the coefficients of thermal expansion for the discharge end and base electrode.
  • the weld end is formed from Nickel and Chromium with a limited amount of additional elements.
  • the spark plug is assembled by providing a first elongated material formed from the material used for the discharge end and a second elongated material formed from a material used for the weld end. The two materials are then joined to form a single joined material and are severed to create a firing tip. The firing tip is welded to the center electrode of the spark plug and more specifically, the base electrode.
  • high-efficiency engines are required which, for example, have low emissions and perform supercharging.
  • high-performance spark plugs are employed which have a discharge chip in at least one of a center electrode and a ground electrode.
  • the discharge chip for securing the wear resistance, noble metals such as Pt, Ir, Ru, Rh, Pd, Os or the like, or rare metals are used.
  • the discharge chip is constituted of a clad material consisting of a base member-joining part joined to an electrode base member and a discharge part facing a spark discharge gap.
  • Patent Document 1 there is disclosed a method of manufacturing a discharge chip that is constituted of a clad material formed by joining a base member-joining part and a discharge part by both resistance welding and diffusion bonding.
  • the discharge chip (clad electrode) disclosed in Patent Document 1 involves the following problems. Specifically, since the discharge chip is obtained by joining the discharge part and the base member-joining part, it is easy for a step to be formed therebetween. Accordingly, it is easy for a sharp corner portion of the base member-joining part to appear at a side portion of the discharge chip. Thus, when the discharge chip is used in a ground electrode or a center electrode of a spark plug, the strength of electric field will be high in the vicinity of the sharp corner portion of the base member-joining part. Consequently, it will be easy for discharge sparks to fly to the sharp corner portion of the base member-joining part at the side portion of the discharge chip; thus it may be difficult to form a normal discharge spark.
  • the discharge chip is made by blanking a composite plate that is obtained by bonding the material of the discharge part and the material of the base member-joining part, it is possible to result in the discharge chip having no step between the discharge part and the base member-joining part.
  • the composite plate after the blanking process it is necessary to separate the two different materials; thus there is a problem that the recycling cost becomes high.
  • the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a method of manufacturing a spark plug for an internal combustion engine by which it is possible to suppress flying sparks to a base member-joining part.
  • the present invention provides a method of manufacturing a spark plug for an internal combustion engine.
  • a center electrode and a ground electrode are opposed to each other with a spark discharge gap formed therebetween, and at least one of the center and ground electrodes has a discharge chip joined to an electrode base member so as to protrude toward the spark discharge gap.
  • the method is characterized by comprising: a chip making step of making the discharge chip by joining a discharge part and a base member-joining part to each other, the discharge part being arranged on the spark discharge gap side, the base member-joining part being made of a material having a lower melting point than the discharge part and to be joined to the electrode base member; a temporary joining step of temporarily joining the discharge chip, at the base member-joining part, to the electrode base member by resistance welding; and a main joining step of joining, by laser welding, the discharge chip to the electrode base member so that a side surface of the discharge part and a surface of the electrode base member are smoothly connected by a connecting surface that has no sharp edge.
  • the discharge chip is joined, by laser welding, to the electrode base member by melting and solidifying part of the base member-joining part and part of the electrode base member, it is particularly easy to have the outline of the base member-joining part shaped along the side surface of the discharge part and the surface of the electrode base member. Therefore, it is possible to easily join the discharge chip to the electrode base member so that the side surface of the discharge part and the surface of the electrode base member are smoothly connected.
  • the discharge chip may be included in the center electrode, in the ground electrode or in each of the center and ground electrodes.
  • the spark plug may be used, for example, as an ignition means in a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine such as an automotive engine.
  • the diameter of the base member-joining part may be greater than the diameter of the discharge part. In this case, it is easy to stably perform the joining of the discharge part and the base member-joining part in the chip making step. However, in this case of the diameter of the base member-joining part being greater than the diameter of the discharge part, a step is formed between the two parts and a sharp corner portion of the base member-joining part appears. If the discharge chip was joined to the electrode base member so that the sharp corner portion remained appearing, it would be easy for discharge sparks of the spark plug to fly to the base member-joining part.
  • the sharp corner portion of the base member-joining part can be eliminated. Consequently, it is possible to effectively suppress flying sparks to the base member-joining part.
  • a center electrode 2 and a ground electrode 3 are opposed to each other with a spark discharge gap 11 formed therebetween.
  • the center and ground electrodes 2 and 3 respectively have discharge chips 4 and 5 joined to electrode base members 20 and 30 so as to protrude toward the spark discharge gap 11.
  • the discharge chip 5 in the ground electrode 3 is formed by joining a discharge part 51 arranged on the spark discharge gap 11 side and a base member-joining part 52 that is made of a material having a lower melting point than the discharge part 51 and joined to the electrode base member 30.
  • the discharge chip 4 in the center electrode 2 is not a composite member.
  • the manufacturing method of the spark plug 1 of the present example includes a chip making step, a temporary joining step and a main joining step which will be described hereinafter. That is, via the following steps, the discharge chip 5 is joined to the electrode base member 30 to form the ground electrode 3.
  • the discharge chip 5 is made by joining the discharge part 51 and the base member-joining part 52 to each other.
  • the temporary joining step as shown in FIG. 3 , the discharge chip 5 is temporarily joined, at the base member-joining part 52, to the electrode base member 30 by resistance welding.
  • the main joining step as shown in FIG. 4 , the discharge chip 5 is joined, by laser welding, to the electrode base member 30 by melting and solidifying part of the base member-joining part 52 and part of the electrode base member 30, so that a side surface 511 of the discharge part 51 and a surface of the electrode base member 30 are smoothly connected by a connecting surface 523 that has no sharp edge.
  • the electrode base member 30 of the ground electrode 3 extends distalward (i.e., downward in FIG. 1 ) from a distal end of a housing 12 of the spark plug 1 and is bent to a central axis side.
  • the electrode base member 20 of the center electrode 2 is held inside an insulator 13 that is held inside the housing 12.
  • Each of the housing 12 and the electrode base member 30 of the ground electrode 3 is made of a nickel alloy.
  • the electrode base member 20 of the center electrode 2 is also made of a nickel alloy.
  • the electrode base member 30 of the ground electrode 3 has an opposing surface 31 that opposes the center electrode 2 in an axial direction of the spark plug 1 (to be simply referred to as "plug axial direction " hereinafter).
  • the discharge chip 5 To the opposing surface 31, there is joined the discharge chip 5.
  • the discharge chip 4 of the center electrode 2 is constituted, not of a composite member, but of, for example, a noble metal chip of an iridium alloy or the like. That is, the discharge chip 4 constituted of a noble metal chip is joined, for example by welding, to the distal end of the electrode base member 20 of the center electrode 2.
  • the discharge chip 5 of the ground electrode 3 is constituted of a composite member that is obtained by joining the discharge part 51 and the base member-joining part 52 to each other.
  • the above-described chip making step, the temporary joining step and the main joining step are performed. An example of each step will be described in detail hereinafter.
  • the discharge part 51 made of a material having a relatively high melting point (e.g., the melting point being higher than or equal to 1700°C) and the base member-joining part 52 made of a material having a lower melting point than the discharge part 51 are prepared.
  • the material of the discharge part 51 it is possible to use, for example, Pt (Platinum), Ir (Iridium), Ru (Ruthenium), Rh (Rhodium), Pd (Palladium), Os (Osmium) or the like.
  • the material of the base member-joining part 52 it is possible to use, for example, a Ni (Nickel) alloy.
  • Ni alloy it is possible to use one which has a melting point of, for example, 1400-1450°C.
  • Those metal members are processed, for example by blanking, to respectively form the cylindrical discharge part 51 and base member-joining part 52. Moreover, the diameter of the base member-joining part 52 is greater than the diameter of the discharge part 51.
  • the cylindrical discharge part 51 and base member-joining part 52 formed in the above manner are axially superposed with the central axes of the two parts coinciding with each other, as shown in FIG. 2 . Then, in a state of the two parts being pressed against each other, a heat treatment is performed to join the discharge part 51 and the base member-joining part 52 by diffusion bonding. Consequently, the discharge chip 5 is obtained as a composite member. Therefore, in the vicinity of the interface between the discharge part 51 and the base member-joining part 52 in the discharge chip 5, there is formed a diffusion layer (not shown) in which atoms of the materials of the discharge part 51 and the base member-joining part 52 are diffused to each other.
  • the diameter of the base member-joining part 52 is greater than the diameter of the discharge part 51. Therefore, in this stage, there is formed a step between the base member-joining part 52 and the discharge part 51; at the step, there exists a sharp corner portion 521 of the base member-joining part 52.
  • the discharge chip 5 obtained in the chip making step is temporarily joined to the opposing surface 31 of the electrode base member 30.
  • the temporary joining is performed by resistance welding. Specifically, the discharge chip 5 is made to abut, on its base member-joining part 52-side surface, a predetermined position on the opposing surface 31 of the electrode base member 30. Then, with the discharge chip 5 and the electrode base member 30 sandwiched between a pair of resistance welding electrodes, electric current is supplied to flow between the discharge chip 5 and the electrode base member 30. Consequently, by the Joule heat, the discharge chip 5 is welded and thus temporarily joined to the electrode base member 30.
  • the discharge chip 5 is joined to the electrode base member 30 by laser welding.
  • a laser beam L is irradiated to the discharge chip 5 temporarily joined to the electrode base member 30 from the vicinity of the joining portion.
  • the laser beam L is irradiated from a plurality of locations over the entire circumference of the joining portion with respect to the electrode base member 30.
  • the laser welding is performed at a temperature lower than the melting point of the discharge part 51. That is, in the main joining step, part of the base member-joining part 52 and part of the electrode base member 30 are melted without melting the discharge part 51. Consequently, as shown in FIG. 6 , on an outer periphery of the base member-joining part 52, there is formed an annular melt zone 522 where the base member-joining part 52 and the electrode base member 30 are melted together and solidified.
  • the sharp corner portion 521 (see FIGS. 3 and 5 ) of the base member-joining part 52 is eliminated in shape, and there is formed the connecting surface 523 that smoothly connects the side surface 511 of the discharge part 51 and the surface (i.e., the opposing surface 31) of the electrode base member 30.
  • the connecting surface 523 has, on a cross section taken along a plane passing through the central axis of the discharge chip 5, such a shape as to smoothly connect a curve and a straight line and have no sharp edge.
  • the discharge chip 5 is joined, by laser welding, to the electrode base member 30 by melting and solidifying part of the base member-joining part 52 and part of the electrode base member 30. Consequently, the discharge chip 5 is joined to the electrode base member 30 so that the side surface 511 of the discharge part 51 and the opposing surface 31 of the electrode base member 30 are connected by the connecting surface 523 that has no sharp edge. Therefore, in the obtained spark plug 1, no sharp corner portion 521 (see FIG. 3 ) of the base member-joining part 52 exists at a side portion of the discharge chip 5; thus it is possible to prevent a locally high-electric field strength portion from being formed in the base member-joining part 52. As a result, it is possible to suppress flying sparks to the base member-joining part 52.
  • the discharge chip 5 is joined, by laser welding, to the electrode base member 30 by melting and solidifying part of the base member-joining part 52 and part of the electrode base member 30, it is particularly easy to have the outline of the base member-joining part 52 shaped along the side surface 511 of the discharge part 51 and the opposing surface 31 of the electrode base member 30, as shown in FIG. 4 . Therefore, it is possible to easily join the discharge chip 5 to the electrode base member 30 so that the side surface 511 of the discharge part 51 and the opposing surface 31 of the electrode base member 30 are connected by the connecting surface 523 that has no sharp edge.
  • the diameter of the base member-joining part 52 is greater than the diameter of the discharge part 51. Consequently, it is easy to stably perform the joining of the discharge part 51 and the base member-joining part 52. That is, it is possible to easily have the whole of an end surface of the discharge part 51 abutting the base member-joining part 52; thus it is easy to make the joining area of the discharge part 51 to the base member-joining part 52 constant, thereby obtaining stable joining strength therebetween.
  • the sharp corner portion 521 of the base member-joining part 52 is eliminated by joining the discharge chip 5 to the electrode base member 30 so that the side surface 511 of the discharge part 51 and the opposing surface 31 of the electrode base member 30 are connected by the connecting surface 523 that has no sharp edge. Consequently, it becomes possible to smoothly connect, by the connecting surface 523 that has no sharp edge, the side surface of the discharge chip 5 from the side surface 511 of the discharge part 51 to a surface (i.e., the opposing surface 31) of the electrode base member 30. As a result, it becomes possible to effectively suppress flying sparks to the base member-joining part 52.
  • the laser welding is performed at a temperature lower than the melting point of the discharge part 51. Consequently, it is possible to sufficiently secure the volume and shape of the discharge part 51 that is made of a high-melting point material, thereby securing the wear resistance of the spark plug 1.
  • the discharge chip 4 of the center electrode 2 is also constituted of a composite member; the composite member is obtained by joining a discharge part 41 arranged on the spark discharge gap 11 side and a base member-joining part 42 that is made of a material having a lower melting point than the discharge part 41 and joined to the electrode base member 20.
  • a chip making step, a temporary joining step and a main joining step are performed as described in Example 1.
  • the discharge chip 4 is obtained by diffusion-bonding the discharge part 41 and the base member-joining part 42.
  • the temporary joining step as shown in FIG. 8 , the discharge chip 4 is temporarily joined, by resistance welding, to a distal end surface 21 of the electrode base member 20 of the center electrode 2.
  • a distal part of the electrode base member 20 of the center electrode 2 before joining the discharge chip 4 is substantially cone-shaped and has, at its distal end, a flat surface perpendicular to the axial direction. To this flat surface which constitutes the distal end surface 21, the discharge chip 4 is temporarily joined with the base member-joining part 42 abutting the distal end surface 21.
  • the discharge chip 4 is joined to the electrode base member 20 by laser welding.
  • an annular melt zone 422 is formed between the base member-joining part 42 of the discharge chip 4 and the electrode base member 20.
  • a sharp corner portion 421 (see FIG. 8 ) of the base member-joining part 42 is eliminated in shape, and there is formed a connecting surface 423 that smoothly connects a side surface 411 of the discharge part 41 and a surface (i.e., a side surface 22 of the substantially cone-shaped part) of the electrode base member 20.
  • the connecting surface 423 has, on a cross section taken along a plane passing through the central axis of the discharge chip 5, such a shape as to smoothly connect a curve and a straight line and have no sharp edge.
  • Example 1 The others are the same as in Example 1.
  • those which are the same as the reference signs used in Example 1 designate the same components as in Example 1.
  • the center electrode 2 in the center electrode 2 as well, it is possible to suppress discharge sparks from flying to the electrode base member 20. As a result, it is possible to more reliably generate normal discharge sparks between the discharge part 41 of the center electrode 2 and the discharge part 51 of the ground electrode 3.
  • Example 1 has the same advantageous effects as Example 1.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Spark Plugs (AREA)
EP14801406.1A 2013-05-21 2014-05-21 Method for manufacturing spark plug for internal combustion engine Active EP3001519B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP2013106942A JP6043681B2 (ja) 2013-05-21 2013-05-21 内燃機関用のスパークプラグの製造方法
PCT/JP2014/063507 WO2014189088A1 (ja) 2013-05-21 2014-05-21 内燃機関用のスパークプラグの製造方法

Publications (4)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP3001519A1 EP3001519A1 (en) 2016-03-30
EP3001519A8 EP3001519A8 (en) 2016-08-10
EP3001519A4 EP3001519A4 (en) 2017-01-25
EP3001519B1 true EP3001519B1 (en) 2019-05-01

Family

ID=51933640

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP14801406.1A Active EP3001519B1 (en) 2013-05-21 2014-05-21 Method for manufacturing spark plug for internal combustion engine

Country Status (4)

Country Link
EP (1) EP3001519B1 (enExample)
JP (1) JP6043681B2 (enExample)
CN (1) CN105247747B (enExample)
WO (1) WO2014189088A1 (enExample)

Families Citing this family (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP6528412B2 (ja) * 2015-01-16 2019-06-12 富士ゼロックス株式会社 画像形成装置用の管状体、管状体ユニット、中間転写体、及び画像形成装置
JP6702094B2 (ja) 2016-08-31 2020-05-27 株式会社デンソー スパークプラグ
JP6944429B2 (ja) * 2018-11-09 2021-10-06 日本特殊陶業株式会社 スパークプラグ

Family Cites Families (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN101536277B (zh) * 2005-11-18 2012-02-29 费德罗-莫格尔公司 具有多层点火尖端的火花塞
WO2007062353A2 (en) * 2005-11-18 2007-05-31 Federal-Mogul Corporation Spark plug with multi-layer firing tip
US7569979B2 (en) * 2006-04-07 2009-08-04 Federal-Mogul World Wide, Inc. Spark plug having spark portion provided with a base material and a protective material
JP2008077838A (ja) * 2006-09-18 2008-04-03 Denso Corp 内燃機関用のスパークプラグ及びその製造方法
CN101670488A (zh) * 2009-02-05 2010-03-17 株洲湘火炬火花塞有限责任公司 一种贵金属火花塞电极的激光焊接方法
WO2013015262A1 (ja) 2011-07-28 2013-01-31 田中貴金属工業株式会社 点火プラグ用クラッド電極及びその製造方法

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
None *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
EP3001519A4 (en) 2017-01-25
CN105247747A (zh) 2016-01-13
EP3001519A8 (en) 2016-08-10
JP6043681B2 (ja) 2016-12-14
WO2014189088A1 (ja) 2014-11-27
EP3001519A1 (en) 2016-03-30
CN105247747B (zh) 2017-08-29
JP2014229429A (ja) 2014-12-08

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