JP2011252420A - Air cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air cleaner allowing the work of storing a cleaner element to be easily performed and allowing the element to be stably held at a predetermined position inside a case.SOLUTION: A second case 13 is openably/closably connected to a first case 11 through a hinge mechanism. A cleaner element 14 is stored inside the first case 11 and second case 13. A first end plate 11e and a second end plate 11i are integrally formed at both ends of the first case 11, and an annular groove 11h for engaging a seal ring 23 of the cleaner element 14 is formed in the first end plate 11e. A third end plate 13d of the second case 13 is interposed between the second end plate 11i and a seal plate 24 of the cleaner element 14. The seal plate 24 is pressed in the axial direction by an inclined cam face 13f provided in the third end plate 13d to press the seal ring 23 onto the side of the first end plate 11e.

Description

  The present invention relates to an air cleaner used for an intake system of an internal combustion engine.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an air cleaner, a cylindrical cleaner element is accommodated in a covered cylindrical first case, a bottomed cylindrical second case is joined to the opening of the first case, and the first case and the second case. The thing of the structure which connects the joining edge part of a case with a clamp is known. An air suction pipe is provided on the outer peripheral wall of the first case, and an air outlet is formed at the center of the lid plate of the first case. The air sucked into the case from the air suction pipe passes through the element and is supplied from the air outlet to the combustion chamber of the internal combustion engine.

  Moreover, what was disclosed by patent document 1 is proposed as a conventional air cleaner. This air cleaner is configured as shown in FIG. An opening 30 is formed in the upper side wall of the case 31 that houses the element 32. A cover 34 is joined to the opening 30 so as to be openable and closable. A holding bar 35 having an inclined cam surface 35 a is connected to the inner surface of the cover 34. When the cover 34 is joined to the opening 30 of the case 31, the cleaner element 32 is pressed to the left by the inclined cam surface 35 a of the holding bar 35, and the seal ring 33 of the element 32 is attached to the case 31. The end plate 31a is pressed.

JP-A-8-128366

  However, in the former air cleaner, the opening of the end portion of the first case is often located on the lower side, so that it is difficult to see the assembly position of the element when the element is inserted into the first case. Therefore, since it is difficult to visually confirm the assembly position, there is a problem that the assembly work is troublesome. Further, when the second case is assembled in a state where the seal ring is not properly inserted into the first case, there is a problem that the clamping operation cannot be easily performed because the load on the clamp increases.

  Since the air cleaner described in Patent Document 1 can visually check the accommodation state of the cleaner element 32 from the opening 30 of the case 31, the assembly operation of the cleaner element 32 can be easily performed. However, since the gap g is formed between the end plate 31b of the case 31 and the holding bar 35, the holding bar 35 is elastically deformed in the axial direction, and the cleaner element 32 can be stably held at a predetermined position. There was a problem that it was difficult.

  The present invention provides an air cleaner that solves the above-described problems of the prior art, can easily assemble the element to the case, and can stably hold the element in a predetermined position. There is.

  In order to solve the above problems, the invention described in claim 1 is characterized in that a semi-cylindrical second case is rotatably connected to a semi-cylindrical first case by a hinge mechanism, and the inner circumferences of the two cases are connected. A cylindrical cleaner element is accommodated on the surface via a spacer, an end plate is provided at an end of the first case, and an end plate of the second case is slid on an inner surface of the end plate of the first case. The gist of the invention is that an end plate that is in dynamic contact is provided, and that the end plate of the second case is provided with an inclined cam surface that can press the seal plate joined to the end of the element in the axial direction.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, an annular groove that engages with the seal ring of the cleaner element is formed on the inner surface of the end plate opposite to the inclined cam surface of the first case. It is a summary.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, the end plate on the inclined cam surface side of the second case is formed with an engagement groove that engages the leading edge of the end plate of the first case. It is a summary.

(Function)
In the present invention, the cleaner element is accommodated inside the first case in a state where the first case and the second case are opened. In this state, the second case is rotated toward the first case with the hinge mechanism as a center, and the first case and the second case are joined in a cylindrical shape. In the joining process of both cases, the outer surface of the end plate of the second case is brought into sliding contact with the inner surface of the end plate of the first case, and the seal plate joined to the end surface of the cleaner element is axially moved by the inclined cam surface. And the seal ring joined to the end surface of the cleaner element is pressed into contact with the inner surface of the end plate opposite to the inclined cam surface of the first case. For this reason, the state of the cleaner element accommodated in the first case can be visually confirmed, and the assembly work of the element to the case becomes easy. In addition, since both end plates on the inclined cam surface side are in contact with each other in the assembled state of both cases, the rigidity of the both end plates is increased and the cleaner element pressed in the axial direction by the inclined cam surface is placed in a predetermined position. It is held stably.

  According to the present invention, the element can be easily assembled to the case, and the element can be stably held at a predetermined position.

1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a central portion of an air cleaner embodying the present invention. FIG. 1 is a sectional view taken along line 1-1 of FIG. FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1. The sectional side view which shows the state which open | released the 1st case and 2nd case of the air cleaner. The top view of the state which open | released the 1st case and 2nd case of an air cleaner. The center part longitudinal cross-sectional view of the open state of the case of an air cleaner. The center part longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows another embodiment of the air cleaner of this invention. The center part longitudinal cross-sectional view of the conventional air cleaner.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of an air cleaner embodying the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the air cleaner of this embodiment is connected to a semi-cylindrical first case 11 and a side edge of the first case 11 via a hinge mechanism 12 so as to be opened and closed. A second case 13 having a semi-cylindrical shape and a cleaner element 14 accommodated in the first case 11 and the second case 13 are provided. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, on the opposite side of the hinge mechanism 12, the space between the first case 11 and the second case 13 is held in a closed state by a clamp fitting 21.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaner element 14 includes an element main body 22 in which a filter medium is formed in a zigzag shape and a cylindrical shape as a whole, and one end surface (the left end in the figure) of the main body 22 as shown in FIG. A rubber seal ring 23 joined to the other end face (right end face in the drawing) of the main body 22 and a disc-like seal plate 24 made of hard synthetic resin.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the semi-cylindrical portions 11a and 13a of the first case 11 and the second case 13 have protrusions 11b as spacers for holding the outer peripheral surface of the main body 22 of the cleaner element 14. 13b are integrally formed at two positions with a predetermined interval. A dust space R1 is formed between the outer peripheral surface of the cleaner element 14 and the inner peripheral surfaces of the first and second cases 11 and 13. As shown in FIG. 2, an air introduction cylinder portion 11d having an air introduction port 11c for introducing air (outside air) into the dust space R1 is integrally formed on the peripheral wall of the semi-cylindrical portion 11a of the first case 11. Is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a disc-shaped first end plate 11e is integrally formed at the left end of the first case 11 in the figure. An air outlet cylinder 11g having an air outlet 11f for leading the air in the clean space R2 inside the cleaner element 14 to the outside is integrally formed at the center of the first end plate 11e. An annular annular groove 11h for engaging the seal ring 23 is formed on the inner side surface of the first end plate 11e. A semi-disc-shaped second end plate 11 i is integrally formed at the right end of the first case 11 in the figure.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a locking protrusion 13c having an arc shape when viewed from the axial direction is integrally formed at the left end of the second case 13 as shown in FIG. 3, and as shown in FIG. It is formed so as to be in contact with the outer surface of the first end plate 11e. A third end plate 13 d that can contact the inner surface of the second end plate 11 i of the first case 11 is integrally formed at the right end of the second case 13. The third end plate 13d is formed in a disc shape. As shown in FIG. 1, an engagement groove 13e for engaging the end edge 11j of the second end plate 11i is formed on the outer surface of the third end plate 13d. An inclined cam surface 13f that can come into contact with the outer surface of the seal plate 24 of the cleaner element 14 is integrally formed on the inner surface of the third end plate 13d.

Next, the operation of the air cleaner configured as described above will be described.
When the engine is in operation, a suction airflow is generated in the intake system, air flows in the direction of the arrow from the air inlet 11c shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and the air is sucked into the dust space R1. This air is purified by permeating through the cleaner element 14, flows into the clean space R2 in the cleaner element 14, and flows into the combustion chamber of the engine from the air outlet cylinder 11g and piping not shown.

  Dust separated by the cleaner element 14 due to long-term use of the air cleaner adheres to the outer peripheral surface of the cleaner element 14, and the function of cleaning the air is deteriorated. For this reason, an operation of exchanging the cleaner element 14 with a new cleaner element 14 or cleaning it is performed. In this case, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, after releasing the clamp fitting 21, the second case 13 is opened from the first case 11, and the cleaner element 14 is moved from the inside of the first case 11. To separate. As described above, the cleaner element 14 is replaced with a new or cleaned one.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 6, with the first and second cases 11 and 13 opened, the cleaner element has been cleaned or is new as shown by a two-dot chain line on the protrusion 11b inside the first case 11. 14 and the seal ring 23 is made to correspond to the annular groove 11h. At this time, the seal ring 23 is separated from the annular groove 11 h so that a slight gap C is formed between the second end plate 11 i of the first case 11 and the seal plate 24. Thereafter, the second case 13 shown in FIG. 5 is rotated in the closing direction indicated by the arrow. In this way, the inclined cam surface 13f of the third end plate 13d enters the gap C. In the process in which the second case 13 is rotated to the closed state, as shown in FIG. 7, the outer side surface of the third end plate 13d is slidably contacted with the inner side surface of the second end plate 11i, and the inclined cam surface. The seal plate 24 of the cleaner element 14 is pressed to the left in FIG. 7 by the action of 13f, and the seal ring 23 is inserted into the annular groove 11h. The leading end edge 11j of the second end plate 11i is engaged with the engagement groove 13e on the third end plate 13d side. In a state where the second case 13 is closed to the first case 11, the first case 11 and the second case 13 are connected by the clamp fitting 21.

According to the air cleaner of the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) In the above embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the cleaner element 14 is supported inside the first case 11 with the second case 13 being opened from the half-shaped first case 11. I did it. For this reason, it can be visually confirmed whether or not the cleaner element 14 supported by the first case 11 is in an appropriate position, and the cleaning operation of the cleaner element 14 can be performed appropriately and easily.

  (2) In the above embodiment, the second end plate 11 i is formed at the end of the first case 11, and the third end plate 13 d is formed at the end of the second case 13. An inclined cam surface 13f is formed on the third end plate 13d. When the second case 13 is closed, the seal plate 24 is inclined while the outer surface of the third end plate 13d opposite to the inclined cam surface 13f is brought into sliding contact with the inner surface of the second end plate 11i. The seal ring 23 is engaged with the annular groove 11h of the first case 11 by being pressed in the axial direction by the cam surface 13f. In the closed state of both cases, the second end plate 11i and the third end plate 13d are in contact with each other, and no gap is formed between them. The third end plates 11i and 13d can be appropriately held, and the cleaner element 14 can be stably held at a predetermined position in the first and second cases 11 and 13.

  (3) In the above embodiment, the outer side surface of the third end plate 13d is brought into contact with the inner side surface of the second end plate 11i, and the leading edge 11j of the second end plate 11i is brought into contact with the third end plate 13d. An engaging groove 13e to be engaged was provided. For this reason, the rigidity of the 2nd end plate 11i and the 3rd end plate 13d in an element accommodation state can be raised, and cleaner element 14 can be held more stably in a predetermined position.

  (4) In the above embodiment, the locking ridge 13c is formed on one end edge of the second case 13, and the locking ridge 13c is brought into contact with the outer surface of the first end plate 11e. Thus, the compression reaction force when the element 14 is pressed against the first end plate 11e can be shared.

In addition, you may change the said embodiment as follows.
As shown in FIG. 8, the outer peripheral edges of the seal ring 23 and the seal plate 24 are made larger than the diameter of the element body 22 so as to come into contact with the inner peripheral surfaces of the first and second cases 11 and 13. Also good. In this case, the protrusions 11b and 13b can be omitted, and air can be smoothly swirled in the dust space R1. Therefore, the seal ring 23 and the seal plate 24 have a function of a spencer between the first and second cases 11 and 13 and the element body 22.

-You may divide the said protrusion 11b, 13b into plurality. Moreover, you may change into many protrusions.
The engagement groove 13e of the third end plate 13d may be omitted.

-The air introduction cylinder part 11d provided in the said 1st case 11 may be abbreviate | omitted, and the air introduction cylinder part may be provided in the semi-cylindrical part 13a of the 2nd case 13.
Technical ideas other than the claims ascertained from the above embodiment will be described below.

The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the spacer is integrally formed on outer peripheral surfaces of the seal ring and the seal plate.
The present invention can smoothly swirl air in the dust space.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... 1st case, 11h ... Annular groove, 11j ... Tip edge, 12 ... Hinge mechanism, 13 ... 2nd case, 13e ... Engagement groove, 13f ... Inclined cam surface, 14 ... Cleaner element, 23 ... Seal ring, 24 ... seal plate.

Claims (3)

A semi-cylindrical second case is pivotally connected to the semi-cylindrical first case by a hinge mechanism, and a cylindrical cleaner element is accommodated on the inner peripheral surfaces of both cases via a spacer. An end plate is provided at the end of the case, an end plate is provided at the end of the second case so as to be in sliding contact with the inner surface of the end plate of the first case, and the end plate of the second case An air cleaner comprising an inclined cam surface capable of axially pressing a seal plate joined to an end of the element. 2. The air cleaner according to claim 1, wherein an annular groove that engages a seal ring of the cleaner element is formed on an inner surface of an end plate opposite to the inclined cam surface of the first case. 3. The air cleaner according to claim 1, wherein an engagement groove that engages a tip edge of the end plate of the first case is formed in the end plate on the inclined cam surface side of the second case.

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