JP3309674B2 - Mounting structure of oil level gauge - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an oil level gauge mounting structure applicable to automobile engines and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art It is well known that a lubrication system for an automobile engine includes a so-called wet sump system in which lubricating oil is stored in an oil pan and a so-called dry sump system in which oil is stored in a dedicated tank when the engine is stopped. It is. Of the above, the former one, which is generally employed, is provided with a level gauge guide in a cylinder block, a chain cover, an oil pump or an oil pan which constitutes an engine. FIG. 5 shows an example.
To explain this, 1 is an automobile engine, 2
Is a cylinder block, 3 is a cylinder head, 4 is a cylinder head cover, and 5 is an oil pan.

[0003] A crankshaft 6 is rotatably supported on the cylinder block 2 by a bearing (not shown), and a crank sprocket 7 is attached to an end thereof. Two camshafts 8 and 9 are rotatably supported by bearings (not shown) at the joint between the cylinder head 3 and the cylinder head cover 4, and cam timing sprockets 10 and 11 are attached to the ends thereof. A timing chain 1 is provided between the crank sprocket 7 and the cam timing sprockets 10 and 11.
Two have been bridged.

[0006] A chain guide 1 is provided on a portion of the timing chain 12 which is to be driven by the cam timing sprocket 11.
3 are provided, along which the timing chain 12 moves. FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the portion. The chain guide 13 has a recess 13a facing the timing chain 12 side.
2 travels in a state fitted in the recess 13a. Also,
In FIG. 5, a chain tensioner 1 is provided at a portion between the crank sprocket 7 and the cam timing sprocket 10.
The timing chain 12 is provided with a predetermined tension. Reference numeral 15 denotes a chain adjuster for adjusting the position of the chain tensioner 14.

An oil level gauge guide 16 formed of a pipe material is provided on the side of the cylinder block 2 and the cylinder head 3, and the lower end thereof is connected to a lower portion of the cylinder block 2 (a portion called a crankcase). are doing. As shown in FIG. 7, the joint 17 has a step 17 with a hole 17 provided in the cylinder block 2. An O-ring 18 is interposed in the step, and this is pressed by a retainer 19. The guide 16 is press-fitted.

The upper part of the oil level gauge guide 16 is
It is fixed to the cylinder head 3 by fixing means (not shown). A rod-shaped oil level gauge 20 is inserted into the oil level gauge guide 16 from above, and its tip enters the oil pan 5 and is immersed in the stored lubricating oil 21. 22 is an oil filter, 23 is oil 2
1 is a pipe leading to an oil pump (not shown), and 20a is a finger hook of the oil level gauge 20.

In the conventional oil level gauge mounting structure having such a configuration, the oil 2 in the oil pan 5 is
When checking the amount of 1, the finger is put in the finger hook portion 20a, the oil level gauge 20 is pulled upward, pulled out from the oil level gauge guide 16, and the tip is wiped off with a dry cloth, and then inserted into the oil level gauge guide 16 again. .
Then, it is extracted again, and the amount of the oil 21 and the degree of contamination are detected from the state of the oil adhering to the tip.

[0008]

In this structure,
Since the oil level gauge guide 16 formed of a pipe material is manufactured separately from the cylinder block 2 and the cylinder head 3 and is fixed to the cylinder block 2 and the cylinder head 3, the number of parts increases, and There is a problem that the number of manufacturing steps is increased due to the necessity of complicated bending in order to avoid each accessory. Further, when the lower end of the oil level gauge guide 16 is press-fitted into the cylinder block 2 using the O-ring 18, oil leakage may occur when the O-ring 18 is deteriorated. For this reason, even if it uses for a long period of time, the O-ring which does not deteriorate easily is used, and it became expensive.

The mounting structure of the oil level gauge is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 62-71319 and Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No.
As described in JP-A-7314, there is an oil level gauge guide in which an oil level gauge guide is not provided and an oil return passage of a cylinder head and a cylinder block also serves as an oil level gauge guide. In this case, it is sufficient to insert the oil level gauge into the oil return passage, so that there is no need to separately provide an oil level gauge guide. However, if there is a step in the oil return passage, the oil level gauge cannot be smoothly inserted and removed. Therefore, it is necessary to process the oil return passage so that it can be smoothly inserted and removed, and the number of manufacturing steps increases.

The present invention has been made in view of this point, and uses a part of a cylinder block, a cylinder head, and the like as an oil level gauge guide, and does not separately provide an oil level gauge guide made of a pipe material. It is an object of the present invention to provide an oil level gauge mounting structure that can satisfy the above-mentioned requirements.

[0011]

Means for Solving the Problems To solve the above problems,
In order to mount the oil level gauge according to the first aspect of the present invention,
The structure is such that a timing chain is bridged between a crank sprocket attached to a crankshaft and a cam timing sprocket or an idler sprocket attached to a camshaft, and an engine provided with a chain guide for guiding the timing chain. A rod-shaped oil level gauge is inserted into the space of the timing chain chamber formed in the block and the cylinder head, and guided along the chain guide .

An oil level gauge according to the second aspect of the present invention.
2. The mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein
The space of the mining chamber is located on the side of the cylinder head.
Includes a protruding oil level gauge receiver,
Note that the oil level gauge was inserted through the gauge receiver.
Sign. The oil level gauge according to the third aspect of the present invention.
The mounting structure of the page is the same as that of the above-mentioned claim 1 or 2.
Te, wherein forming the guide portion of the oil level gauge on the chain guide, characterized by being inserted through the oil level gauge inside the guide.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG.
The same parts as those in FIG. 5 are denoted by the same reference numerals and described. In this structure, the oil level gauge 20 is inserted into the space 24 of the timing chain chamber (the portion where the timing chain 12 is located) at the end of the cylinder block 2 and the cylinder head 3. Since the oil level gauge 20 is inserted from above, an oil level gauge receiver 25 is formed in a part of the cylinder head 3 communicating with the space 24.

The oil level gauge receiver 25 protrudes from the side of the cylinder head 3 and is provided with a hole (not shown) for inserting the oil level gauge 20 in a vertical direction. An oil level gauge 20 is inserted into this hole. The oil level gauge 20 passes through the space 24 on the side of the chain guide 13, and the lower end is immersed in the oil 21 in the oil pan 5.

When checking the amount of oil 21 in the oil pan 5 in the oil level gauge mounting structure configured as described above, a finger is put into the finger hook 20a, and the oil level gauge 20 is pulled upward to pull the cylinder block 2 and the oil level gauge 20 upward. Pull it out of the space 24 of the cylinder head 3, wipe off the tip with a dry cloth, and then
From the space 24. Then, it is extracted again, and the amount of the oil 21 and the degree of contamination are detected from the state of the oil adhering to the tip. That is, there is no difference in the operation from the conventional one shown in FIG. In terms of structure, there is no need to separately provide an oil level gauge guide made of a pipe material, and the cylinder block 2 and the cylinder head 3 are not required.
Since the space 24 can be formed during the casting process, the number of manufacturing steps can be reduced.

FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the present invention, which is a modified example of the one shown in FIG. This embodiment differs from that of FIG.
In addition, the cylinder head 3 is manufactured slightly larger, the space 24 is formed larger, and the insertion portion of the oil level gauge 20 is formed.
(Oil level gauge receiver) is independent of the timing chain chamber. Then, the oil level gauge 20 is inserted into the space 24. In this structure, the space 24
An oil return passage 26 communicates with the upper portion of the oil pan, and the oil from the oil return passage 26 is guided to the oil pan 5 through the space 24 to reduce oil bubbling.

FIG. 3 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. The shapes of the cylinder block 2 and the cylinder head 3 and the space 24 in this embodiment are substantially the same as those shown in FIG. The differences are
The cross-sectional shape of the chain guide 13 is changed as shown in FIG.
A concave guide portion 13b (see FIG. 4) is formed in a part of the inside thereof, and the oil level gauge 20 is passed through the guide portion 13b. By doing so, the oil level gauge 20 is connected to the guide portion 13 of the chain guide 13.
Since it is guided to b, the removal and insertion can be performed smoothly.

The embodiment described above relates to the chain guide of the timing chain which is bridged between the crank sprocket and the cam timing sprocket. However, the crank sprocket does not directly drive the cam timing sprocket, and the idler sprocket is used. In the case of an engine that is driven via a shaft, a portion of a chain guide provided therebetween is used for an oil level gauge guide.

[0019]

According to the present invention, there is provided an oil level gauge mounting structure constructed as described above.
In the invention described in, supposed to need without providing the level gauge guide consisting of conventional pipe, on which it is possible to reduce the number of parts, considering the handling of the oil level gauge in the engine room Since there is no need, the degree of freedom in design is improved. With an oil level gauge guide made of a pipe material, there is a possibility that oil may leak at a portion where the pipe is inserted into the cylinder block, and it is necessary to enhance the sealing performance. However, such consideration is not required at all.

In the invention described in claim 2,
The oil level gauge checks the oil level on the side of the cylinder head.
Guided through the bell gauge tray. Further, in the invention described in claim 3, in addition to the above effects, the chain guide also serves as the level gauge guide, so that space can be saved and the chain guide can be saved. The shape makes it easy to insert and remove the oil level gauge.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of the present invention with a chain cover of an engine removed.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing another embodiment of the present invention similarly to FIG.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing still another embodiment of the present invention, similarly to FIG.

FIG. 4 is a partial sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a conventional oil level gauge guide in the same portion as FIG.

6 is a partial sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 5;

[Description of Signs] 1 Engine 2 Cylinder Block 3 Cylinder Head 5 Oil Pan 12 Timing Chain 13 Chain Guide 13b Guide 20 Oil Level Gauge 21 Oil 24 Space

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. An engine in which a timing chain is bridged between a crank sprocket mounted on a crankshaft and a cam timing sprocket or idler sprocket mounted on a camshaft, and a chain guide for guiding the timing chain is provided. A rod-shaped oil level gauge is inserted into a space of a timing chain chamber formed in a cylinder block and a cylinder head, and guided along the chain guide. . 2. The space of the timing chain chamber is
Oil level gauge receiver protruding from the side of the cylinder head
The oil level gauge receiver includes the oil level gauge.
2. The oil according to claim 1, wherein
Mounting structure for level gauge. 3. A forming the guide portion of the oil level gauge on the chain guide, mounting of the oil level gauge according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that inserting the oil level gauge inside the guide Construction.