JPH1089484A - Manufacture of metal gasket material - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To manufacture a high performance product of a metal gasket material such as the one having a heat resistant rubber layer on both surfaces of a metallic sheet in a simple process by partially applying organic high polymer paint to both surfaces of a continuously traveling long size metallic sheet. SOLUTION: Heat resistant metal, particularly, iron type metal is preferable as a long size metallic sheet 4 sent out of a sending-out drum 3, and its both surfaces are cleaned by water and an organic solvent while passing through a cleaning device 5, a primer processing tank 6 and a drier 7, and reach a paint applying device 8 after being dried by hot air. This is composed of coaters 81 and 82 arranged on the left and right of the metallic sheet 4. A material composed of various organic high polymers is used as paint, and it is partially applied at regular intervals so as to correspond to predetermined acquired design. An applying layer is dried in a drying chamber 91, and next, it is heated and cross-linked at a high temperature in a cross-linking chamber 92. A gasket hole is punched in a continuous process by reaching a punch 10.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for producing a metal gasket material suitable as a cylinder head gasket for an automobile engine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 2 is a plan view of a typical metal cylinder head gasket (hereinafter, CHG) of an automobile engine, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line XX of FIG.
CHG is composed of two stainless steel plates 1 having a flat stainless steel plate 2 having a swelling portion (hereinafter, bead) P.
A number of gasket holes penetrating the three-layer structure, that is, a combustion chamber hole B1, a bolt hole B2, and other holes are formed. Although other holes include water holes and oil holes, in FIG. 2, the holes and beads around the holes are omitted in FIG. 2 to avoid complication of the drawing. The stainless steel plate 1 generally has a bead P around each gasket hole, and layers R1 and R2 of heat-resistant rubber such as fluororubber are formed on both surfaces of the bead P and its vicinity. The bead P and the rubber layers R1 and R2 function to enhance the sealing function of CHG. The CHG may be composed of a single stainless steel plate 1 alone, or may be composed of a two-layer structure of a stainless steel plate and a single stainless steel plate 2.

[0003] In any case, the CHG has the stainless steel plate 1, which has conventionally been manufactured through an extremely complicated process including the following coating process of a paint. That is, a combustion chamber hole B1 and a bolt hole B are formed in a long stainless steel plate.
2. Other holes 1; forming a bead P around each combustion chamber hole B1; 2. punching a stainless steel plate 1 as shown in FIG. 2 from a long stainless steel plate; Step 4 of applying and drying a heat-resistant rubber coating to form a heat-resistant rubber layer R1; Step 5 of performing the same action as Step 4 again; and Step 5 of forming a heat-resistant rubber coating to form a heat-resistant rubber layer R2. And drying the heat-resistant rubber layers R1 and R2.

Generally, it is extremely difficult to form heat-resistant rubber layers R1 and R2 on both sides of a curved surface portion such as a bead P to a uniform thickness by applying a paint. The reason for this is that, unlike the flat portion of the plate, the curved surface portion has poor applicability of the heat-resistant rubber paint, and the degree of difficulty in applying the paint is different inside and outside the curved surface portion.

In CHG, the heat-resistant rubber layers R1 and R2 formed on both sides of each gasket hole generally have the same pattern shape, thickness, pattern forming position, and the like. In some cases, the thickness of both layers may be different. The meaning that the formation positions of the two-sided patterns are the same as each other means that, for example, when the patterns on both sides are the same shape (mirror-symmetric shape), they have a cut-out relationship with each other. The relation of the cut picture is a relation in which if the sheet is cut along the pattern on one side, the pattern on the other side is cut at the same time without excess or shortage. As for the center point of the pattern, when a through hole is formed perpendicularly to the sheet at the center point of the pattern formed on one side, the through hole reaches the center point of the pattern formed on the other side.

[0006] Usually, if the formation positions of the respective patterns on both sides of the CHG are shifted from each other, there is a problem that the gasket performance is deteriorated. Therefore, it is required that the formation positions are highly identical to each other. The conventional manufacturing method requiring multiple steps is insufficient to solve this problem.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to convert a high-performance metal gasket material having a heat-resistant rubber layer on both sides of a metal sheet, such as the stainless steel sheet 1, into a simpler process. It is to propose a manufacturing method.

[0008] The present invention has the following features. 1. A method for producing a metal gasket material, comprising a partial application step of partially applying an organic polymer paint to both sides of a continuously running long metal sheet. 2. The method according to the above 1, wherein in the partial application step, the organic polymer paint is applied so as to draw the same pattern at the same position on both sides of the long metal sheet by each paint application device installed on each side of the both sides of the long metal sheet. Production method of metal gasket material. 3. In addition to the partial application step, a coating curing step of curing the partially applied organic polymer paint, a hole making step for drilling holes required as a metal gasket material, beads around at least a part of the drilled holes 3. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to the above item 1 or 2, comprising a bead forming step of forming a metal sheet and a punching step of punching a metal gasket material from a metal sheet. 4. 4. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to the above item 3, wherein the partial coating step is performed before the bead forming step. 5. 5. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to the above item 3 or 4, wherein the partial coating step is performed before or after the punching step. 6. 6. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to any one of the above items 1 to 5, wherein the organic polymer paint used in the partial coating step is a heat-resistant rubber paint. 7. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to any one of the above 1 to 5, wherein the long metal sheet is a long steel sheet. 8. 8. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to any one of the above 1 to 7, wherein the metal gasket material is a cylinder head gasket of an automobile engine.

[0009]

According to the present invention, a long metal sheet is installed on each side of the metal sheet piece, instead of separately applying the organic polymer paint partially on both sides of the metal sheet piece in a batch manner as in the conventional method. The continuous running between the paint application devices is performed, and the organic polymer paint is partially applied to both surfaces of the long metal sheet at once in each paint application device. As a result, the shapes and formation positions of the patterns applied to both surfaces are easily made to be highly the same, and a metal gasket material such as CHG can be manufactured in a continuous process.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an example of a top view of the steps for performing the method of the present invention. In FIG. 1, 3 is a delivery drum,
4 is a long metal sheet, 5 is a cleaning device, 6 is a primer treatment tank, 7 is a dryer, 8 is a paint application device, 9 is a crosslinking device, 10 is a gasket punching machine, 11 is a bead setting machine,
12 is a gasket punching machine. The metal sheet 4 delivered from the delivery drum 3 is set up vertically on both sides of the metal sheet 4, and the above devices 5 to 11 are continuously operated in a state where the entire metal sheet 4 is parallel to the ground surface. To the gasket punching machine 12 at last.

As the metal sheet 4, a long sheet made of various metals, for example, iron-based metal, aluminum, copper, nickel or other metals can be used. In particular, when the metal gasket material to be manufactured is CHG as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 or parts thereof, the constituent metal of the sheet is preferably a heat-resistant metal, particularly an iron-based metal. Examples of iron-based metals include Fe-C alloys, ferritic stainless steels, martensitic stainless steels, stainless steels such as austenitic stainless steels, ferromanganese, ferrosilicon,
Ferronickel, ferrochrome or other iron-based, especially at least 80% by weight iron
Is a ferroalloy. Among such iron alloy sheets, stainless steel sheets, particularly SUS301-CSP,
SUS304-CSP, SUS420J2-CSP, S
A stainless steel strip for springs such as US631-CSP is preferred. The suitable thickness of the metal sheet is 0.05 to 1 mm, particularly 0.1 to 0.5 mm.

The metal sheet 4 is cleaned on both sides with water or an organic solvent while passing through a cleaning device 5, a primer treatment tank 6, and a dryer 7, and is treated with a primer such as a silane coupling agent. After being dried with warm air, it reaches the paint application device 8. The paint application device 8 includes coaters 81 and 82 installed on the left and right sides of the metal sheet 4. Examples of the coaters 81 and 82 include a screen coater, a dispenser, and a rotary coater. The coaters 81 and 82 may be of the same type as each other,
Alternatively, different types of combinations may be used.

As the coating material, a coating material composed of various organic polymers is used depending on the use of the metal gasket material to be manufactured. When the metal gasket material is CHG, a paint such as a heat-resistant rubber such as a fluorine rubber, a silicone rubber, an acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber, or a hydrogenated acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber is preferable. These heat-resistant rubbers are, for example, dissolved or uniformly dispersed in a parent solvent for each rubber to form a coating.

At the end of the step shown in FIG. 1, a large number of metal gaskets having a structure such as the stainless steel plate 1 shown in FIGS.
Usually, an acquisition design of the metal gasket material is first determined so as to punch out the maximum number of metal gasket materials from the unit length of the metal sheet 4 so as to minimize the punch residue. Therefore, on both sides of the metal sheet 4,
Organic polymer paint is partially applied at regular intervals so as to correspond to the above-mentioned predetermined acquisition design. The coaters 81 and 82 are respectively installed on the left and right of the metal sheet 4 so as to perform such application. Coater 8
For example, both the coaters 81 and 82 will be described in connection with a case where a flat screen coater is used.
Are applied to the metal sheet 4 so as to face each other, and move left and right at a constant period following the line speed of the metal sheet 4 to partially apply the metal sheet 4 to both sides of the metal sheet 4.
The position of each screen coater and the coating pattern on the screen are set so as to match the predetermined positions and application patterns for partial application on the left and right side surfaces of the metal sheet 4. The left and right coaters 81 and 82 do not need to be simultaneously applied to each other as long as a desired pattern is formed on both surfaces of the metal sheet 4, and there may be a slight time shift. Also, there may be a deviation in the installation position.

The cross-linking device 9 comprises a drying chamber 91 provided on the inlet side and a subsequent cross-linking chamber 92. The coating layer partially applied to both the left and right surfaces of the metal sheet 4 is dried at a temperature of about 50 to 120 ° C. in the drying chamber 91. At this time, if there is no problem of foaming of the coating layer, the drying temperature is slightly increased to shorten the time required for the next heat crosslinking, for example, 100 to 150 ° C., and the preliminary crosslinking is generated after drying. It is preferable to tighten. The coating layer is then heated and cross-linked in the cross-linking chamber 92 at a high temperature of about 150 to 300 ° C, preferably about 180 to 250 ° C. Crosslinking of the coating layer may be performed by, for example, electron beam irradiation crosslinking, ultraviolet irradiation crosslinking, or other crosslinking methods other than heat crosslinking depending on the type of the organic polymer used or the type of the crosslinking agent. Of course.

On both sides of the metal sheet 4 having undergone the cross-linking step, a large number of ring-shaped or other pattern-shaped cross-linked organic polymer layers are formed. Various gasket holes such as holes are punched. The position of the gasket hole to be punched in the continuous process can be instantaneously determined by the imaging device every time before the start of each drilling, for example, using a punch having an imaging device. If the punching position can be determined instantaneously, a dancer roll can be installed between the cross-linking device 9 and the gasket puncher 10 to freely adjust the line speed of the metal sheet 4. it can.

A bead is formed by a beading machine 11 around each gasket hole formed in the metal sheet 4 by the gasket drilling machine 10. The metal sheet 4 finally reaches the gasket punching machine 12 and from there, FIG.
A gasket material such as the stainless steel plate 1 shown in FIG.

The present invention includes various modified embodiments other than the embodiment shown in FIG. For example, a metal sheet 4 via a cleaning device 5, a primer treatment tank 6, and a dryer 7
First, necessary gasket holes are punched out by a gasket punching machine 10, and thereafter, each of the above-described processes is sequentially performed by each device via a paint coating device 8, a crosslinking device 9, and a bead stand 11, and finally, the gasket It may reach the punching machine 12. In addition, bead setting may be performed after the gasket is punched by the gasket punching machine 12. Further, the metal sheet 4 may be run so that both surfaces thereof are parallel to the ground surface. In that case, a paint application device may be installed on the upper and lower sides of the metal sheet 4 and the heat resistant rubber paint or the like may be applied simultaneously or substantially simultaneously from each of them.

[0019]

The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the following examples.

Example 1 SUS301-CSP having a thickness of 0.25 mm and a width of 40 cm
As shown in the example of FIG. 1, the sheet is continuously sent upright from the scroll roll to the surface of the ground, and a washing tank and a primer tank filled with a silane coupling-based primer (trade name Chemlock manufactured by Road Far East Co., USA) are filled. , And a drying chamber to form a primer layer on both clean surfaces. Subsequently, the SUS sheet was successively passed through a pair of flat screen coaters of the same structure in which the SUS sheet was installed on the left and right sides, a drying chamber, and an oven at about 200 ° C. in order, so that the SUS sheet was positioned on both sides at predetermined positions (around various gasket holes). Fluoro rubber paint described below is applied to both sides), and both applied layers are dried,
Crosslinked by heating. The SUS sheet is passed through a punch, beader, and CHG puncher sequentially through a line speed adjustment process using dancer rolls, and thus has three combustion chambers of about 36 cm in length, about 15 cm in width and in the center. A CHG material having the same structure as the stainless steel plate body 1 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 having holes, 8 bolt holes, 21 water holes, and 6 oil holes was continuously produced. The fluororubber paint used in this example was fluororubber (Viton, trade name, manufactured by DuPont, USA), 5 parts by weight of a bisphenol-based crosslinking agent per 100 parts by weight of the fluororubber, 20 parts by weight of carbon black (MT), A rubber composition consisting of 3 parts by weight of MgO and 6 parts by weight of Ca (OH) ₂ is dissolved in methyl ethyl ketone to give a fluororubber concentration of 40% by weight.

In the above embodiment, the crosslinked fluororubber paint layers formed on both surfaces around each gasket hole are ring-shaped, and the inner and outer dimensions of the ring are the same.
In addition, the center points of the rings were set to be formed at the same position with respect to each other, but the outer dimensions and the positions of the rings were identical for 100 CHG materials randomly sampled from the products obtained from the above examples. As a result of the measurement and evaluation, the average degree of mismatch was ± 0.3 mm. The average degree of inconsistency in the conventional manufacturing method is ± 0.5 mm. From this, according to the present invention, the degree of coincidence in the formation positions of the organic polymer layers on both peripheral surfaces of each gasket hole is reliably improved. It is clear that Method for measuring and evaluating the outer dimensions and position identity of the ring:
Six through holes are formed in the outer periphery of the ring, and the coincidence of the outer periphery of the ring on both surfaces is measured.

[0022]

As described above, the precision in forming the coating layers on both sides of the gasket is improved to a high degree, and continuous production of the gasket becomes possible. Therefore, according to the present invention, a high-performance product such as a metal cylinder head gasket of an automobile engine can be efficiently manufactured. As a means for avoiding the problem of precise formation of the coating layers on both surfaces of the gasket, it is conceivable to use a metal sheet in which an organic polymer layer has been applied on both surfaces in advance. By the way, in the production of gaskets, a large amount of punched waste is generally inevitably generated, and in the case of the above-described avoidance means, a large amount of organic polymer layer is contained in the punched waste and is disposed of, which is generally expensive. This leads to waste of the organic polymer layer forming paint. On the other hand, in the present invention, there is a great advantage that the coating material for forming the organic polymer layer can be effectively used only in the portion where the coating is necessary.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an example of a top view of the steps for performing the method of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a typical metal cylinder head gasket of an automobile engine.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 2;

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 3 delivery drum 4 metal sheet 5 cleaning device 6 primer treatment tank 7 dryer 8 paint application device 9 cross-linking device 10 gasket punching machine 11 beading machine 12 gasket punching machine

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A method for producing a metal gasket material, comprising a partial application step of partially applying an organic polymer paint to both surfaces of a continuously running long metal sheet. 2. In the partial application step, an organic polymer paint is applied by a paint application device installed on each side of the long metal sheet so as to draw the same pattern at the same position on both sides of the long metal sheet. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to claim 1, wherein the metal gasket material is applied. 3. In addition to the partial application step, at least one of a paint curing step of curing the partially applied organic polymer paint, a hole forming step for forming a hole required as a metal gasket material, and at least one of the holes formed. 3. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to claim 1, further comprising a bead forming step of forming a bead around the portion, and a punching step of punching a metal gasket material from a metal sheet. 4. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to claim 3, wherein the partial coating step is performed before the bead forming step. 5. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to claim 3, wherein the partial coating step is performed before or after the drilling step. 6. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to claim 1, wherein the organic polymer paint used in the partial coating step is a heat-resistant rubber paint. 7. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to claim 1, wherein the long metal sheet is a long steel sheet. 8. The method for producing a metal gasket material according to claim 1, wherein the metal gasket material is a cylinder head gasket of an automobile engine.