JP2022056761A - Dipstick and vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a dipstick for an oil level gauge or the like whose user can easily and appropriately measure the oil level height of an oil storage part.SOLUTION: A dipstick 100 includes: a body part 120 to be inserted into a guide pipe 30 in which one end part 32 is in communication with an oil storage part and the other end part 31 is provided at a high position; a handle part 110 provided at an end part on the side opposite to the oil storage part side of the body part and detachably attached to the other end part of the guide pipe at the time of measurement; and an inclination detection part 130 provided in the handle part and detecting the inclination of the oil storage part at the time of measurement.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a dipstick of an oil level gauge for measuring the amount of oil (oil level height) in an oil storage unit, and a vehicle provided with an oil level gauge.

For example, in order to measure the amount of lubricating oil for an engine mounted on an automobile, a metal or resin plate-shaped member is inserted into a guide pipe that protrudes upward or diagonally upward from the oil storage section (oil pan), and the lower end. A dipstick type oil level gauge that detects the oil level height based on the adhesion range of the lubricating oil in the section is used.
As a conventional technique for measuring the oil level of an oil storage unit in a vehicle or other various machines, for example, in Patent Document 1, a leveling device is provided in an oil level measuring device for oil in a bearing housing in a pump or the like to measure the accuracy of the oil level. It is stated that it will be secured.
Patent Document 2 describes that in an oil amount meter of a fuel tank of an oil combustor, a leveling device is attached to a transparent lid provided so as to cover a pointer indicating the amount of oil.
In Patent Document 3, in the mechanism for measuring the amount of engine oil in a vehicle, in order to ensure measurement accuracy even when the vehicle is tilted, a tilt following mechanism using a copying plate that moves according to the tilt of the engine is provided. Is described.

Utility Model Registration No. 3208998 Jitsukaisho 57-11217 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-13448

The oil amount (oil level height) measurement using a dipstick type oil level gauge has a problem that the variation in the reading value of the oil amount becomes large depending on the inclination of the vehicle.
On the other hand, when a tilt following mechanism that corrects the reading value according to the tilt of the engine is used as in Patent Document 3, the structure becomes complicated.
Further, as in Patent Documents 1 and 2, it is conceivable to provide a spirit level so that the inclination can be read. However, depending on the installation location of the spirit level, the user may not visually check it, and the accuracy of oil amount measurement may be improved. In order to secure this, it is required to strongly urge the user to confirm the tilt detection unit.
In view of the above-mentioned problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a dipstick for an oil level gauge and a vehicle in which a user can easily and appropriately measure the oil level height of an oil storage unit.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems by the following solution means.
The dipstick according to one aspect of the present invention includes a main body portion in which one end communicates with an oil storage portion and the other end is inserted into a guide pipe provided at a position higher than the one end portion. A handle portion provided at the end of the main body portion opposite to the oil storage portion side and detachably attached to the other end portion of the guide pipe at the time of measurement, and a handle portion provided at the handle portion at the time of measurement. It is characterized by including an inclination detecting unit for detecting the inclination of the oil storage unit.
According to this, by providing an inclination detection unit on the handle portion that always touches the user's hand when measuring the oil level, the user can be surely aware of the inclination of the vehicle. The user can easily and appropriately measure the oil level.
Further, in the dipstick type oil level gauge according to the prior art, the above-mentioned effect can be easily obtained by applying the present invention by replacing only the dipstick.

In the above invention, the tilt detection unit is sealed together with the liquid enclosed in the liquid chamber and the liquid in the liquid chamber, and has a smaller specific gravity than the liquid, and the liquid is according to the inclination of the oil storage unit at the time of measurement. It has a low specific density portion whose position in the room changes, and a resin-based material constituting at least a part of the handle portion may be interposed between the main body portion and the liquid chamber.
According to this, for example, the heat transferred from a heat source such as an engine via a guide pipe is insulated by a resin-based material provided in the handle portion, so that the liquid (typically silicon) sealed in the liquid chamber is insulated. It is possible to prevent thermal deterioration of (typically, acrylic resin, etc.) and the members constituting the liquid chamber (typically, acrylic resin, etc.).

In the above invention, a cavity portion into which a user's finger can be inserted may be formed between the main body portion and the liquid chamber of the handle portion.
According to this, by providing the cavity portion, heat conduction from the guide pipe to the liquid chamber via the handle portion is suppressed, and thermal deterioration of the liquid and the liquid chamber component can be more reliably prevented. ..

The vehicle according to one aspect of the present invention is characterized by including the oil storage unit, the guide pipe, and the dipstick according to any one of the above.
According to this, the same effect as the effect of each of the above inventions relating to the dipstick can be obtained.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a dipstick for an oil level gauge and a vehicle in which a user can easily and appropriately measure the oil level height of an oil storage unit.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an engine having an oil level gauge comprising an embodiment of a dipstick to which the present invention has been applied. It is a schematic perspective view of the dipstick of an embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of a dipstick and a vehicle to which the present invention is applied will be described.
In an embodiment, the vehicle comprises, for example, an engine having a wet sump type lubricating device provided with an oil storage portion (oil pan) in which lubricating oil (engine oil) is stored in a lower portion of a cylinder block.
The dipstick of the embodiment cooperates with a guide pipe provided on the vehicle side (engine side) to form an oil level gauge that detects the oil level height in the oil pan.

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an engine having an oil level gauge including a dipstick of the embodiment (vehicle engine of the embodiment).
The engine 1 includes a crankcase 10, an oil pan 20, a guide pipe 30, a dipstick 100, and the like.
The guide pipe 30 and the dipstick 100 jointly form an oil level gauge for measuring the oil level height of the oil storage unit (oil pan 20 and the lower part of the crankcase 10).

The crankcase 10 is a main body of the engine 1 that houses a crankshaft and the like (not shown), which is an output shaft of the engine.
The crankcase 10 is formed by, for example, casting an aluminum alloy and then performing a predetermined machining process, and the inside thereof is hollow.
An opening 11 to which the oil pan 20 is attached is formed in the lower portion of the crankcase 10.

The oil pan 20 is formed, for example, by pressing a sheet metal into a container shape having an open upper portion, and is a portion in which engine oil O is mainly stored.
The oil pan 20 is attached to the lower part of the crankcase 10 and communicates with the inside of the crankcase 10 through the opening 11.
The oil pan 20 functions as an oil storage unit of the present invention in cooperation with the lower part of the crankcase 10.

The guide pipe 30 is a cylindrical member into which the main body portion 120 of the dipstick 100 is inserted, and guides the gauge portion 121 of the main body portion 120 to the vicinity of the oil level.
The guide pipe 30 is configured to have an upper portion 31, a lower portion 32, and a bent portion 33 integrally formed by bending a round metal pipe.

The upper portion 31 is provided on the front side of the engine 1, for example, and is a portion on the inlet side into which the dipstick 100 is inserted. The upper portion 31 is arranged so that its central axis is along the vertical direction.
The lower portion 32 is formed so as to extend into the inside of the engine 1 via a bent portion 33 provided at the lower end portion of the upper portion 31.
The lower portion 32 is arranged so as to be inclined with respect to the vertical direction and the horizontal direction so that the upper end portion is on the front side with respect to the lower end portion, for example.
The lower portion 32 penetrates the wall portion on the front side of the vehicle of the crankcase 10 and communicates with the oil pan 20.

The dipstick 100 is a measuring instrument that measures the oil level height of the engine oil O from the state in which the engine oil O adheres to the tip portion by inserting the dipstick 100 into the guide pipe 30 and then pulling it out again.
FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the dipstick of the embodiment.
FIG. 2A is an exploded view showing a state before incorporating the spirit level, and FIG. 2B is a completed view showing a state after incorporating the spirit level.
The dipstick 100 includes a handle portion 110, a main body portion 120, a spirit level 130, and the like.

The handle portion 110 is a portion that the user holds with his / her fingers to insert and pull out the dipstick 100, and is formed by injection molding a heat-resistant resin material such as polypropylene or nylon. There is.
The handle portion 110 is configured by integrally molding an annular portion 111, a plug portion 112, a stopper portion 113, a connecting portion 114, a cylindrical portion 115, and the like.

The annular portion 111 is a portion formed in an annular shape (ring shape) such as a rectangle or a circle.
The annular portion 111 has a hollow portion 111a formed in the central portion thereof so that a user can insert a finger into the guide pipe 30 when the dipstick 100 is attached to or detached from the guide pipe 30.

The plug portion 112 is a columnar member provided below the annular portion 111.
The plug portion 112 is inserted into the inner diameter side of the guide pipe 30 when the dipstick 100 is attached to the guide pipe 30, and abuts on the inner peripheral surface of the guide pipe 30 to position the main body 120 with respect to the guide pipe 30 in the radial direction. In addition, it has a function of sealing the upper part of the guide pipe 30 to prevent the engine oil O from scattering during traveling.
A sealing member such as an O-ring (not shown) may be provided on the outer peripheral surface of the plug portion 112.

The stopper portion 113 is a portion that protrudes from the upper end portion of the plug portion 112 on the outer diameter side of the plug portion 112 in a brim shape.
The stopper portion 113 has a function of regulating the insertion depth of the dipstick 100 into the guide pipe 30.

The connecting portion 114 is a portion that connects the lower portion of the annular portion 111 and the upper portion of the stopper portion 113, and is thinner than the other portion of the handle portion 110, for example (the cross section is small when cut in a horizontal plane). It is formed in a shaft shape.

The cylindrical portion 115 is provided on the upper portion of the annular portion 111, and is a portion to which the spirit level 130 is attached.
The cylindrical portion 115 is arranged so that the central axis is along the vertical direction in a state where the dipstick 100 is attached to the guide pipe 30 (a state in which the stopper portion 113 is inserted until it comes into contact with the upper end portion of the guide pipe 30). ..

The main body portion 120 is provided so as to project downward from the lower end portion of the handle portion 110, and is a portion inserted into the oil storage portion via the guide pipe 30 when the dipstick 100 is attached to the guide pipe 30 (vehicle side). ..
The main body 120 is integrally formed by using a flexible strip-shaped metal plate.

Due to its flexibility, the main body 120 bends and bends according to the shape of the guide pipe 30 when the dipstick 100 is attached to the guide pipe 30 (when inserted).
The lower end of the main body 120 comes out of the guide pipe 30 at the time of insertion and is arranged inside the crankcase 10.

A gauge portion 121 is provided at the lower end portion of the main body portion 120.
The gauge portion 121 is configured so that at least a part of the gauge portion 121 is immersed in the engine oil O in the oil pan 20 when an appropriate amount of the engine oil O is contained during measurement or normal use of the vehicle.
The gauge unit 121 has, for example, an index (not shown) indicating the position corresponding to the oil level height of the maximum oil amount and the minimum oil amount of the engine oil O in the normal state of the engine 1.

The level 130 is, for example, a disk-type level (tilt detection unit) in which a liquid such as silicone oil is sealed in a disk-shaped transparent container-shaped housing (liquid chamber).
The housing of the spirit level 130 is made of a transparent material such as an acrylic resin.
Bubbles 131 (low specific density portion) are enclosed in the liquid chamber of the spirit level 130.
Instead of such a bubble 131, a member such as a ball made of a material having a specific density lower than that of a liquid may be suspended as a low specific density portion.
The upper surface of the spirit level 130 is a convex surface having a relatively small curvature protruding upward.
When the level 130 is tilted with respect to the horizontal plane, the bubbles 131 are displaced relative to the upper surface of the level 130.
For example, when the vehicle is installed on a horizontal road surface and the level 130 is viewed from above, the bubble 131 is located at the center.

As shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), the spirit level 130 is inserted into, for example, a cylindrical portion 115 provided at the upper end of the handle portion 110, and a part of the material of the cylindrical portion 115 is heat caulked. It is fixed to the handle portion 110 by welding, snap-fitting, or the like.
At this time, the posture of the spirit level 130 with respect to the handle portion 110 indicates that the spirit level 130 is in a horizontal state when the dipstick 100 is attached to the guide pipe 30 while the vehicle is stationary on a horizontal road surface (air bubbles). 131 is located in the center of the level 130).

Hereinafter, the measurement of the oil amount (oil level height) of the engine oil O in the dipstick 100 and the vehicle of the embodiment will be described.
The dipstick 100 uses the guide pipe 30 until the stopper portion 113 of the handle portion 110 comes into contact with the upper end portion of the guide pipe 30 except when the oil amount of the engine oil O is measured (for example, when the vehicle is operating or parked / stopped). It is in the state of being inserted inside.
Prior to the oil amount measurement, the user first visually checks the level 130 with the dipstick 100 attached to the guide pipe 30 to determine whether or not the bubble 131 is located in the central portion.
Here, when the bubble 131 deviates from the central portion by a predetermined value or more, it indicates that the vehicle is tilted and there is an obstacle in accurate oil amount measurement.
In such a case, the user moves the vehicle or uses a jack, a lift, a slope plate, or the like to change the posture of the vehicle so that the bubble 131 is located at the center.
After that, the user's finger is inserted into the annular portion 111 of the handle portion 110 and pulled out, and the engine oil O in the crankcase 10 and the oil pan 20 is based on the adhesion range of the engine oil O in the gauge portion 121 of the main body portion 120. Measure the oil level of.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) By providing a spirit level 130 on the handle 110 of the dipstick 100 that always touches the user's hand when measuring the oil level, the user can be sure that the vehicle is tilted. It can be recognized and the user can easily and appropriately measure the oil level.
Further, such a dipstick 100 can be easily applied by replacing only the dipstick in the dipstick type oil level gauge according to the prior art, and the above-mentioned effect can be obtained.
(2) As the level 130, a disk-shaped level having a liquid such as silicon oil and bubbles enclosed in a housing (liquid chamber) is used, and a handle 110 is configured between the main body 120 and the level 130. The heat transferred from the engine 1 through the guide pipe 30 is insulated by the resin material of the handle 110 by interposing the resin material, and the liquid (silicon oil, etc.) or acrylic resin of the spirit level 130 is insulated. It is possible to prevent thermal deterioration of manufactured parts and the like.
(3) By forming a cavity in the region between the main body 120 and the level 130 in the handle 110, heat conduction from the guide pipe 30 to the level 110 is transferred to the level 130. It is suppressed, and it is possible to more reliably prevent thermal deterioration of liquids such as silicon oil and components of the liquid chamber of the spirit level 130 such as a housing.

(Modification example)
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and changes can be made, and these are also within the technical scope of the present invention.
(1) The configuration of the dipstick and the vehicle is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be appropriately changed.
For example, the shape, structure, material, manufacturing method, and the like of the parts constituting the dipstick and the guide pipe can be appropriately changed from the configuration of the embodiment.
(2) In the embodiment, the dipstick measures the oil level height (oil amount) of the lubricating oil of the engine, but the present invention is not limited to this and is used for measuring the oil level height of other oils. Can also be applied.
For example, it can be applied to the measurement of the oil level of the lubricating oil of a power transmission device such as a transmission.
(3) In the embodiment, the tilt detection unit uses a disk-shaped spirit level capable of detecting tilts in a plurality of directions, but the configuration of the tilt detection unit is not limited to this and can be appropriately changed.
For example, a single or a plurality of bubble levels may be provided to detect an inclination in a single direction.
Further, instead of the bubbles, other substances or objects having a small specific gravity with respect to the liquid may be used.
Further, a tilt detection unit other than the bubble level, such as a laser level or a level using a weight, may be provided.
(4) In the embodiment, the upper portions of the main body of the guide pipe and the dipstick are arranged along the vertical direction in the longitudinal direction, but they may be inclined.
In this case, when the dipstick is inserted into the guide pipe to measure the amount of oil, for example, with respect to the longitudinal direction of the upper part of the main body of the dipstick so that the tilt detection unit such as a spirit level can detect the horizontal of the vehicle. The level may be tilted.

1 Engine 10 Crankcase 11 Opening 20 Oil pan O Engine oil 30 Guide pipe 31 Top 32 Bottom 33 Bending 100 Dipstick 110 Handle 111 Ankle 111a Cavity 112 Plug 113 Stopper 114 Connecting 115 Cylindrical 120 Main body 121 Gauge part 130 Level 131 Bubbles

Claims (4)

A main body portion in which one end communicates with the oil storage portion and the other end is inserted into a guide pipe provided at a position higher than the one end portion.
A handle portion provided at an end portion of the main body portion opposite to the oil storage portion side and detachably attached to the other end portion of the guide pipe at the time of measurement.
A dipstick provided on the handle portion and provided with an inclination detecting portion for detecting the inclination of the oil storage portion at the time of measurement. The tilt detection unit is sealed together with the liquid enclosed in the liquid chamber and the liquid, and its specific gravity is smaller than that of the liquid, and the position in the liquid chamber is determined according to the inclination of the oil storage portion at the time of measurement. Has a variable low density part,
The dipstick according to claim 1, wherein a resin-based material constituting at least a part of the handle portion is interposed between the main body portion and the liquid chamber. The dipstick according to claim 2, wherein a hollow portion into which a user's finger can be inserted is formed between the main body portion and the liquid chamber in the handle portion. With the oil storage section
With the guide pipe
A vehicle comprising the dipstick according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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