JP6108607B2 - Chain guide - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a chain guide including a guide shoe for slidingly guiding a traveling chain, and a guide body that supports the guide shoe along a chain traveling direction.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a chain guide that is incorporated in a timing system in an engine room of an automobile, slides and guides a chain that travels between sprockets, and appropriately maintains chain tension is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  Here, FIG. 14 shows an example of a conventional chain guide 500. The chain guide 500 includes a guide shoe 510 for slidingly guiding a traveling chain, and a guide body 520 that supports the guide shoe 510 along the chain traveling direction. The guide body 520 includes a shoe support portion 521 disposed on the guide shoe 510 side, a bottom portion 522 disposed away from the shoe support portion 521 in the guide height direction of the guide body 520, and the shoe support portion 521 and the bottom portion 522. And a central support wall 524 connecting the two. As shown in FIG. 14, the center support wall 524 connects the shoe support part 521 and the center part of the bottom part 522 in the guide width direction of the guide body 520 so that the cross-sectional shape of the guide body 520 becomes I-shaped. ing.

JP 2006-242357 A

However, as shown in FIG. 14, in the chain guide 500 in which the cross-sectional shape of the guide main body 520 is formed in an I-shape, the shoe support portion 521 and the bottom portion 522 are used only at the center portion in the guide width direction using the center support wall 524. Therefore, when the chain guide 500 receives a load from the chain, the chain guide 500 may bend or twist. When the chain guide 500 causes such bending and twisting, an appropriate chain running line is not formed, and not only a problem such as timing deviation occurs, but also the chain guide 500 stabilizes the damper force of the tensioner. There was a problem that noise could be generated because it could not be received and chain vibration and flutter could not be suppressed.
When the chain guide 500 is made of resin, the temperature of the chain guide 500 increases in a high-temperature engine atmosphere, and the elasticity of the chain guide 500 decreases. The problem of bending and twisting becomes significant.

  Further, in order to suppress the bending and twisting of the chain guide 500, the thickness of each part of the guide main body 520 is increased, or in addition to the central support wall 624 as in the chain guide 600 of Patent Document 1 shown in FIG. Measures such as providing a reinforcing rib 625 on the side surface of the support wall 624 can be considered. However, with these measures, there is a problem that, as the volume of the guide body 620 increases, it is difficult to reduce the weight of the chain guide 600 and the material cost increases.

  The present invention solves these problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a chain guide that improves the rigidity of the guide body against bending and twisting while avoiding an increase in the volume of the guide body. .

The invention according to claim 1 is a chain guide comprising: a guide shoe for slidingly guiding a traveling chain; and a guide body for supporting the guide shoe along the chain traveling direction. A shoe support portion that supports the guide shoe, a bottom portion that is spaced apart from the shoe support portion in the guide height direction of the chain guide, and a support wall that connects the shoe support portion and the bottom portion. The support wall has a wall portion extending along the guide height direction and connecting the shoe support portion and the bottom portion, and the wall portion is at least two locations separated in the guide width direction of the chain guide. is formed on the wall portion, the guide when seen in the height direction, the guide width direction apart from each other said chain first column in the running direction extends respectively and a second In each column of the column, by which a plurality of spaced intervals to each other in the chain traveling direction, is intended to solve the above problems.

In the invention according to claim 2 , in addition to the structure of the chain guide according to claim 1 , the plurality of wall portions are staggered toward the chain traveling direction in the first row and the second row. The problem is solved by being arranged alternately.
In the invention according to claim 3 , in addition to the structure of the chain guide according to claim 2 , the plurality of wall portions are formed so as not to overlap each other when viewed in the guide width direction. The problem is solved.
The invention according to the claims 4, in addition to the chain guide of the configuration according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first row is located at one edge of the guide body in the guide width direction The second row solves the problem by being the other end edge of the guide body in the guide width direction.
In the invention according to claim 5 , in addition to the structure of the chain guide according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , the support wall includes the wall portion of the first row and the wall portion of the second row. By further including a transverse wall portion that connects the wall portion, the above-described problem is solved.
In addition to the structure of the chain guide according to claim 5 , the invention according to claim 6 is configured such that the transverse wall portion is located between the transverse wall portion and the wall portion when viewed in the guide height direction. The problem is solved by extending obliquely with respect to the chain running direction and the guide width direction so that the angle becomes an obtuse angle.

  According to the chain guide according to the first aspect of the present invention, the wall portion extending along the guide height direction and connecting the shoe support portion and the bottom portion is separated in the guide width direction without providing a central support wall as in the prior art. Further, by forming at least two locations, it is possible to improve the rigidity of the guide body against bending and twisting while avoiding an increase in the volume of the guide body.

  Further, in the chain guide according to the first aspect, as a secondary effect, the support wall is constituted by a plurality of wall portions, thereby increasing the surface area of the support wall while avoiding an increase in the volume of the guide body. Therefore, the heat dissipation efficiency of the guide body can be improved. As a result, an increase in the frictional resistance of the guide shoe due to the temperature rise of the chain guide can be suppressed to prevent the wear of the guide shoe from being promoted, and the fuel efficiency of the engine can be improved.

According to the chain guide according to the first aspect of the present invention, a plurality of wall portions are arranged at intervals in the chain traveling direction in each of the first row and the second row separated in the guide width direction of the guide body. As a result, the rigidity of the guide body against the above-described bending and twisting can be further improved.

According to the chain guide according to the second aspect of the present invention, the plurality of wall portions are alternately arranged in the first row and the second row in a staggered manner toward the chain traveling direction, thereby preventing the above-described bending and twisting. The rigidity of the guide body can be further improved.

According to the chain guide according to the third aspect of the present invention, the plurality of wall portions are formed so as not to overlap each other when viewed in the guide width direction, and thus are directed toward both outer sides in the guide width direction after the guide body is cured. Since the guide body can be injection-molded using two molds that are opened, the manufacturing burden of the guide body can be reduced.

According to the chain guide according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the plurality of wall portions are respectively formed at both end edges of the guide body in the guide width direction of the guide body, thereby further improving the rigidity of the guide body against the above-described bending and twisting. can do.

According to the chain guide of the fifth aspect , the rigidity of the guide main body against the above-described bending and twisting is formed by forming the transverse wall portion that connects the wall portion of the first row and the wall portion of the second row. Can be further improved.

According to the chain guide of the sixth aspect , the transverse wall portion extends obliquely with respect to the chain running direction and the guide width direction so that the angle between the transverse wall portion and the wall portion becomes an obtuse angle. Thus, when the guide body is manufactured by injection molding, it is possible to improve the filling property and release property of the molding material into the mold.

Explanatory drawing which shows the timing system incorporating the chain guide which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the chain guide which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the chain guide of 1st Embodiment seeing from an angle different from FIG. The fragmentary sectional view of the chain guide for demonstrating the arrangement configuration of the support wall in 1st Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the chain guide which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the chain guide of 2nd Embodiment seeing from an angle different from FIG. The fragmentary sectional view of the chain guide for demonstrating the arrangement configuration of the support wall in 2nd Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the chain guide which concerns on 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the chain guide of 3rd Embodiment seeing from an angle different from FIG. The fragmentary sectional view of the chain guide for demonstrating the arrangement configuration of the support wall in 3rd Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the chain guide which concerns on 4th Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the chain guide of 4th Embodiment seeing from an angle different from FIG. The fragmentary sectional view of the chain guide for demonstrating the arrangement configuration of the support wall in 4th Embodiment. The perspective view and sectional drawing which show the conventional chain guide. The perspective view which shows the other conventional chain guide.

  The present invention is a chain guide that includes a guide shoe for slidingly guiding a traveling chain and a guide body that supports the guide shoe along the chain traveling direction. The guide body is a shoe that supports the guide shoe. A support portion; a bottom portion spaced apart from the shoe support portion in the guide height direction of the chain guide; and a support wall connecting the shoe support portion and the bottom portion. The support wall extends along the guide height direction. And a wall portion connecting the shoe support portion and the bottom portion, and the wall portions are formed in at least two locations separated in the guide width direction of the chain guide, and avoid bending and twisting while avoiding an increase in the volume of the guide body. As long as the rigidity of the guide body is improved, the specific configuration thereof may be any.

  For example, the guide body and the guide shoe may be formed separately or integrally. Further, when the guide main body and the guide shoe are formed separately, any attachment manner between the guide main body and the guide shoe may be used. Further, as the material of the guide body and the guide shoe, a known appropriate material may be selected depending on rigidity, sliding characteristics, moldability, cost, etc., such as resin and metal.

  Below, chain guide 100 concerning a 1st embodiment of the present invention is explained based on Drawings 1-4.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the chain guide 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is used by being incorporated in a timing system installed in an engine room, and slides a chain CH traveling between sprockets S1 to S3. Guides and maintains chain tension properly. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the chain guide 100 guides the chain CH suspended between the sprockets S1 to S3 provided on each of the crankshaft and the camshaft to stabilize the running of the chain CH. At the same time, the tension is applied to the chain CH side by the tensioner T, so that the tension of the chain CH is properly maintained. In the present embodiment, the chain guide 100 is configured as a swing guide that is pivotably supported in the engine room. However, the chain guide 100 is installed in the engine room as shown in FIG. You may comprise as the fixed guide G installed in a fixed state.

  2 and 3, the chain guide 100 is attached to the guide shoe 110 and supports the guide shoe 110 along the chain running direction. A guide main body 120 is provided.

  The guide shoe 110 is made of a synthetic resin material, and has a travel guide surface 111 extending in the chain travel direction on the surface facing the engine room, as shown in FIG.

  The guide main body 120 is formed by injection molding from a synthetic resin material, and has a shape curved along the chain traveling direction as shown in FIGS.

  2 and 3, the guide main body 120 includes a shoe support portion 121 disposed on the guide shoe 110 side, and a bottom portion disposed away from the shoe support portion 121 in the guide height direction of the chain guide 100. 122 and a support wall 123 that connects the shoe support part 121 and the bottom part 122 in the guide height direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the support wall 123 of the guide main body 120 has a plurality of wall portions 123 a that extend along the guide height direction and connect the shoe support portion 121 and the bottom portion 122. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the plurality of wall portions 123 a includes one end edge (first row) of the guide main body 120 in the guide width direction of the chain guide 100 and the other end of the guide main body 120 in the guide width direction. In each row of the end edges (second row), they are spaced from each other in the chain travel direction.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, both end edges of the guide main body 120 in the guide width direction are the first row and the second row for arranging the wall portion 123a. However, the specific positions of the first row and the second row in which the wall portion 123a is disposed are not limited to both end edges of the guide body 120 in the guide width direction, and both ends of the guide body 120 in the guide width direction. You may arrange | position the wall part 123a inside an edge.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the plurality of wall portions 123a are alternately arranged in the first row and the second row in a staggered manner in the chain traveling direction. As shown in FIG. 4, the plurality of wall portions 123 a are formed with dimensions and positions that do not overlap each other when viewed in the guide width direction. The guide body 120 has a rectangular shape (rough shape) when the guide body 120 is cut in a plane defined by the guide height direction and the guide width direction and viewed in the chain travel direction.

  In the chain guide 100 of the first embodiment obtained as described above, the wall portion 123a that connects the shoe support portion 121 and the bottom portion 122 is provided with a guide width without providing the central support walls 524 and 624 as in the prior art. By arranging a plurality of the guide main bodies 120 at intervals in the chain running direction at intervals, the rigidity of the guide main body 120 with respect to bending and twisting is improved while avoiding an increase in the volume of the guide main body 120. be able to.

  In addition, since the support wall 123 is composed of a plurality of wall portions 123a, the surface area of the support wall 123 can be increased while avoiding an increase in the volume of the guide body 120. Can be improved. As a result, an increase in the frictional resistance of the guide shoe 110 due to the temperature rise of the chain guide 100 can be suppressed to prevent the wear of the guide shoe 110 from being promoted, and the fuel efficiency of the engine can be improved.

  Further, by forming the plurality of wall portions 123a so as not to overlap each other when viewed in the guide width direction, two molds that are opened toward both outer sides in the guide width direction after the guide main body 120 is cured. Since the guide main body 120 can be injection-molded using the above, the manufacturing burden of the guide main body 120 can be reduced.

Further, in the chain guide 600 shown in FIG. 15, the reinforcing rib 625 is provided in addition to the central support wall 624, so that the shape of the guide body 620 becomes complicated. Therefore, when the guide body 620 is formed by injection molding, The reinforcing ribs 625 may hinder the smooth flow of the molding material in the mold, resulting in non-uniform orientation of the molding material, which may cause dimensional errors, shape errors, internal distortion, and defects. In addition, there is a problem that the filling property (fluidity) and mold release property of the molding material to the mold are impaired, and the manufacturing cost increases.
In contrast, the chain guide 100 according to the first embodiment employs a simple configuration in which a plurality of wall portions 123a are provided at both end edges of the guide body 120 in the guide width direction without providing the central support walls 524 and 624. Therefore, smooth flow of the molding material in the mold can be realized, the orientation of the molding material becomes non-uniform, and the filling property (fluidity) and mold release property of the molding material to the mold It can avoid being damaged.

  Further, the chain guide 100 of the first embodiment employs a configuration in which a plurality of wall portions 123a are provided at intervals on both ends of the guide body 120 in the guide width direction without providing the central support walls 524 and 624. By doing so, the oil in the engine room can pass through the gap between the wall portions 123a, so that the fluidity of the oil in the engine room can be improved.

  Next, the chain guide 200 which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention is demonstrated based on FIGS. Here, in 2nd Embodiment, about structures other than a support wall, it is completely the same as 1st Embodiment mentioned above. Therefore, by replacing the reference numerals in the 100th series shown in the specification and drawings relating to the first embodiment with the reference numerals in the 200th series, the description of the configuration other than the support wall is omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the support wall 223 in the chain guide 200 according to the second embodiment extends along the guide width direction in addition to the wall portion 223 a configured similarly to the wall portion 123 a according to the first embodiment. It further has a transverse wall portion 223b that connects the wall portion 223a extending on one end edge and the wall portion 223a on the other end edge.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, each transverse wall 223 b includes a front end (or a rear end) of the wall 223 a in the chain travel direction and an oblique front (or oblique rear) of the wall 223 a. The rear end portion (or the front end portion) of the wall portion 223a located at is connected in the guide width direction. The angle between the wall 223a and the transverse wall 223b when viewed in the guide height direction is 90 °.

  In the chain guide 200 of the second embodiment obtained as described above, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the cross wall 223b that connects the wall portions 223a in the guide width direction is further provided, as described above. The rigidity of the guide body 220 against bending and twisting can be further improved.

  Next, the chain guide 300 which concerns on 3rd Embodiment of this invention is demonstrated based on FIGS. Here, in 3rd Embodiment, except the angle of the crossing wall part of a support wall, and the dimension of a wall part, it is completely the same as 2nd Embodiment mentioned above. Therefore, by replacing the reference numerals of the 200th series shown in the specification and the drawings relating to the second embodiment with the reference numerals of the 300th series, the explanation is omitted except for the angle of the transverse wall part of the support wall and the dimension of the wall part.

  In the second embodiment described above, as shown in FIG. 7, the transverse wall portion 223b extends along the guide width direction. In contrast, in the third embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, when viewed in the guide height direction, the angle between the wall portion 323 a and the transverse wall portion 323 b is an obtuse angle (in this embodiment, , About 120 °), the transverse wall portion 323b extends obliquely with respect to the chain running direction and the guide width direction. Accordingly, the dimension of the wall portion 323a in the chain traveling direction in the third embodiment is shorter than that in the second embodiment.

  In the chain guide 300 of the third embodiment obtained in this way, in addition to the effects of the second embodiment, the transverse wall portion is set so that the angle between the wall portion 323a and the transverse wall portion 323b becomes an obtuse angle. 323b extends obliquely with respect to the chain running direction and the guide width direction, thereby improving the filling property (fluidity) and release property of the molding material to the mold when the guide body 320 is manufactured by injection molding. it can.

  Next, the chain guide 400 which concerns on 4th Embodiment of this invention is demonstrated based on FIGS. Here, in 4th Embodiment, except the dimension of the wall part of a support wall, it is completely the same as 3rd Embodiment mentioned above. Therefore, by replacing the reference numerals in the 300th series shown in the specification and drawings relating to the third embodiment with the reference numerals in the 400th series, explanations of the dimensions other than the dimensions of the wall portion of the support wall are omitted.

  In 4th Embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 11-13, the edge part of the cross wall part 423b extended diagonally forward of the wall part 423a, and the edge part of the cross wall part 423b extended diagonally back of the said wall part 423a are included. The dimension of the wall part 423a in the chain traveling direction is formed short enough to be connected. Accordingly, the support wall 423 is connected in a zigzag shape when viewed in the guide height direction.

  Note that the chain guide may be configured by arbitrarily combining the configurations of the first to fourth embodiments described above.

100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 ... Chain guide 110, 210, 310, 410, 510 ... Guide shoes 111, 211, 311, 411 ... Traveling guide surfaces 120, 220, 320, 420 520, 620 ... guide body 121, 221, 321, 421, 521, 621 ... shoe support part 122, 222, 322, 422, 522, 622 ... bottom part 123, 223, 323, 423 ... Support walls 123a, 223a, 323a, 423a ... Walls 223b, 323b, 423b ... Transverse walls 524, 624 ... Central support walls 625 ... Reinforcement ribs

Claims (6)

A chain guide comprising a guide shoe for slidingly guiding a traveling chain, and a guide body for supporting the guide shoe along the chain traveling direction,
The guide body includes a shoe support portion that supports the guide shoe, a bottom portion that is spaced apart from the shoe support portion in the guide height direction of the chain guide, and a support that connects the shoe support portion and the bottom portion. And have a wall
The support wall has a wall portion extending along the guide height direction and connecting the shoe support portion and the bottom portion;
The wall portion is formed in at least two locations separated in the guide width direction of the chain guide ,
When viewed in the guide height direction, the wall portions are spaced apart from each other in the guide width direction and extend in the chain travel direction in the first row and the second row, respectively, in the chain travel direction. A chain guide characterized in that a plurality of guides are arranged at intervals . 2. The chain guide according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of wall portions are alternately arranged in the first row and the second row in a staggered manner toward the chain traveling direction. The chain guide according to claim 2 , wherein the plurality of wall portions are formed so as not to overlap each other when viewed in the guide width direction. The first row is one end edge of the guide body in the guide width direction,
The second column, wherein the guide width direction guide body other of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that an edge of according to any chain guide. The supporting wall, of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that further includes a transverse wall portion connecting the wall portions of said first of said wall portion of the column the second column Chain guide as described in any one. When viewed in the guide height direction, the transverse wall portion is inclined with respect to the chain travel direction and the guide width direction so that an angle between the transverse wall portion and the wall portion is an obtuse angle. The chain guide according to claim 5 , wherein the chain guide extends.

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