JPH06147008A - Flexible member made oil pan for internal combustion engine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent collision with the path surface of a drain plug and completely discharge oil, by forming the peripheral wall of a base in the drain plug of an oil pan by a movable member, and retractably deforming vertically the peripheral wall following opening/closing the drain plug. CONSTITUTION:In an oil pan 2 fitted to the lower part of an engine block 1, the inner wall is formed by an elastic movable member 5, and the outer wall, except the bottom part middle, is formed by a hard oil pan guard 3. A stay 6 is suspended, with an engine block 1 as a supporting point, in the inside of the oil pan 2, and the locking means 7 of a drain plug 4 is arranged in the bottom middle of the inside. Consequently, when the plug 4 together with a base 8 is fitted to a locking means 7, the elastic movable member 5 in the circumference of the base 8 is deformed upward to closely rise the bottom part middle of the oil pan 2, preventing the collision of the plug 4 with a path surface. On the one hand, demounting the plug 4 deforms the elastic movable member 5 downward to position the base 8 in the lowest position, completely discharging oil 10.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an oil pan structure for an internal combustion engine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, the problems to be solved by the invention
In an internal combustion engine, in order to completely discharge old oil when replacing the oil in the oil pan, it is necessary to provide the position of the oil drain cock at the bottom of the oil pan. However, in a vehicle engine that moves on the ground like an automobile engine, when the drain plug is provided at the lowest position of the oil pan, the lower end portion of the drain plug 4 is provided as shown in FIG. 3A. May protrude downward, and the drain plug 4 may collide with and damage a protruding portion of the road surface during traveling. Therefore, the height of the oil pan 2 is restricted such as the minimum ground clearance, and the position of the drain plug 4 is Figure 2 (b)
As shown in, many of them are provided at a position higher than the lower end portion 2b of the oil pan wall.

However, in the oil pan 2 having the shape as shown in FIG. 3B, since the position of the drain plug base 8, that is, the position of the oil discharge port is higher than the bottom of the oil pan, a large amount of oil 10 is discharged when the oil is discharged. Remains in the oil pan 2, which leads to a problem that the oil deteriorates faster and the oil replacement pitch becomes faster.

In view of the above circumstances, in the present invention, when the drain plug is closed and the oil pan is filled with the drain plug, the drain plug is arranged at a position higher than the lowest position of the oil pan, Is unlikely to collide with the road surface.
When the drain plug is opened, the position of the drain plug base, that is, the position of the oil discharge port is moved to the lowest position of the oil pan to provide a structure of the oil pan that allows the old oil to be completely discharged. It is an object.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, a peripheral wall of a drain plug cap of an oil pan of an internal combustion engine is formed of a flexible member, and a stay is suspended in the oil pan. The drain plug base and the drain plug locking means for engaging with the drain plug are provided in the stay, and when the drain plug is closed, the lower end of the drain plug is located at the lower end of the oil pan wall. An oil pan made of a flexible member, which is located at a higher position than the above, and is configured such that, when the drain plug is opened, the drain plug cap is configured to remain at the lowest position of the oil pan.

[0006]

[Function] When the drain plug is closed and the oil pan is filled with oil, the drain plug engages with the drain plug locking means together with the drain plug locking means, and at this time, the lower end of the drain plug is located below the lower part of the oil pan. It does not project downward and is at a position higher than the lower end of the oil pan wall, so it will not collide with the road surface during traveling. When the drain plug is opened to drain the oil, the drain plug is disengaged from the drain plug locking means, and the drain plug base is lowered from the position of the drain plug locking means due to the deformation of the flexible member, and the drain pan locking means is moved to the top of the oil pan. It stays in the lower position and the oil in the oil pan is completely drained.

[0007]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment, and FIG. 1 (a) shows a drain plug 4
1 (b) shows the state when the valve is closed and when it is opened. In the figure, the inner wall of the oil pan 2 attached to the lower portion of the engine block 1 is entirely made of an elastic flexible member 5 such as rubber.
A hard oil pan guard 3 for protecting the oil pan 2 is provided as an outer wall of the oil pan 2 from the outer circumference to the bottom surface. A stay 6 is suspended in the oil pan 2 with the engine block 1 as a fulcrum, and a locking means (female screw in the figure) 7 for the drain plug 4 is arranged at the lower central portion of the stay 6.

When the drain plug 4 is closed and oil is contained in the oil pan 2 with the above-mentioned structure,
As shown in (a), the height of the stay 6 is the drain plug 4
The drain plug is set so that it will not be at the lowest position of the oil pan when the
Is screwed together with the drain plug mouthpiece 8 into the female screw of the locking means 7, the elastic flexible member 5 forming the peripheral wall of the drain plug mouthpiece 8 is deformed, and the bottom of the oil pan of this portion approaches and the drain plug. Since the position of 4 is high, even if the bottom of the oil pan touches the ground, the drain plug 4 does not collide with the road surface. When the drain plug 4 is removed when the drain plug is opened to drain the oil, the elastic flexible member 5 is deformed by the weight of the oil pan 2 and the weight of the oil 10, as shown in FIG. 1B. The bottom of the oil pan is detached from the stay 6, the drain plug cap 8 of the oil pan, that is, the oil discharge port, descends to the lowest position of the oil pan 2, and the oil 10 in the oil pan 2 remains in the oil pan. All are discharged.

Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The difference from the first embodiment is that the elastic flexible member 5 made of rubber or the like in the oil pan 2 is used only in the peripheral portion of the drain plug 4, and the other oil pan walls 9 are made of a hard material such as metal as in the conventional case. The elastic flexible member 4 formed of a member and also serving as the oil pan guard in the first embodiment is bonded to a hard oil pan wall 9 as shown in the drawing. The configuration and operation other than the above are the same as those of the first embodiment. When the drain plug 4 is closed and oil is stored in the oil pan 2, the drain plug locking means (female screw) formed on the stay 6 is formed.
The mounting position of the drain plug 4 is raised by engagement (screw engagement) between the drain plug 4 and the drain plug 4, and when the drain plug 4 is opened, the oil 10 is completely discharged without remaining in the oil pan 2.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention,
By skillfully utilizing the deformation of elastic flexible members such as rubber, it is possible to properly adjust the height of the drain plug mounting position, which could not be performed conventionally, depending on whether the oil is full or drained. This makes it possible to solve the conventional problems with a simple configuration. Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and for example, the fulcrum of the stay may be a hard oil pan wall or an oil pan guard, and instead of the elastic flexible member, a flexible member such as a waterproof sheet is three-dimensionally formed. It is also possible to cut and use.

[0011]

By implementing the present invention, the drain plug is set so as not to be located at the lowest position of the oil pan during normal use when the oil is held in the oil pan. When driving, the drain plug will not hit the ground, etc. and be damaged, and oil leakage will not occur.
Also, when the drain plug is removed, the drain plug cap goes down to the bottom position of the oil pan, and the oil is completely discharged without remaining in the oil pan, so old oil does not mix with newly replenished oil, The deterioration of oil is prevented, and the pitch of oil replacement becomes longer. The above configuration is realized with a simple structure, which is advantageous in terms of cost.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 (a) shows an oil pan made of an elastically flexible member when a drain plug is closed to contain oil, and FIG. It is a section explanatory view showing the state of each oil pan when a drain plug is opened and oil is discharged.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional explanatory view of an oil pan when a drain plug is closed and oil is contained in the oil pan according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 3 shows an oil pan according to the prior art, FIG.
Is an example of installing a drain plug at the lowest position of the oil pan,
FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional explanatory view of each oil pan in the example in which the drain plug is provided on the side surface of the oil pan.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Cylinder block 2 ... Oil pan 3 ... Oil pan guard 4 ... Drain plug 5 ... Elastic flexible member (rubber) 6 ... Stay 7 ... Drain-in plug locking means 8 ... Drain plug mouthpiece (oil discharge port) 9 ... Hard Oil pan wall 10 ... Engine oil

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A peripheral wall of a drain plug base (8) of an oil pan (2) of an internal combustion engine is formed by a flexible member (5), and a stay (6) is suspended in the oil pan (2). Then, a drain plug locking means (7) that engages with the drain plug base (8) and the drain plug (4) is provided in the stay (6), and the drain plug (4) is provided.
When the drain plug (4) is closed, the lower end of the drain plug (4) is located higher than the lower end of the oil pan wall, and when the drain plug (4) is opened, the drain plug base (8) keeps the oil. An oil pan made of a flexible member, characterized in that it is configured to remain at the lowest position of the pan (2).