JPS61108850A - Engine - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to heat engines, and more particularly to an improved lubricant control assembly for a piston rod of a heat engine.

In some types of engine construction, it is necessary to include a lubricant control assembly around the reciprocating piston rod. For example, in engines with pressurized crankcases, this assembly prevents oil from entering from the crankcase into the thermodynamically cycling region within the cylinder in which the piston attached to the piston rod reciprocates. used for the purpose of Oil that enters the cylinders from the crankcase can then be carried to other components, reducing engine performance or causing permanent damage.

Various lubricant control assemblies have been proposed in the past.

A known type of lubricant control assembly is located on the engine housing and includes a scraper in the form of a tube that fits tightly onto the piston rod. The scraper is assembled with additional components to forcefully engage the scraper with the piston rod. This component may be a clamp ring. For example, the clamp ring may be circular and fit over one end of the tubular scraper to forcefully press the end of the scraper against the piston rod. When the piston rod reciprocates, it passes through the scraper back and forth, and one end of the scraper and the piston rod are strongly engaged to prevent oil from entering the cylinder from the crankcase.

Furthermore, the separation between the crankcase and the cylinder may be controlled by a special device so that the scraper controls the pumping action of the oil. For example, it is desirable to pump oil with an L opening stroke to provide a very thin oil film on the piston rod.

The scraper often acts in a downward stroke in the manner of a check valve to prevent fluid from flowing back from the cylinder into the crankcase.

Due to the nature of the particular construction of such engines, the piston rod may be subjected to forces having not only an axial component but also a radial component. For example, in a case where the rotating swash plate is rotatably supported on the housing and driven by a piston that reciprocates in the axial direction and a crosshead connected to the piston rod, the force acting on the piston rod is the axial component force. and the radial component force.

The present invention stems from the recognition that such radial forces on the piston rod have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the piston rod lubricant control assembly. In other words, if a large radial force is applied to the piston rod, undesirable situations such as oil leaking from the crankcase into the cylinder or fluid entering the cylinder from the cylinder resulting in fluid loss may occur. There is a high possibility that In other types of engines, radial forces may be applied to the reciprocating piston rod that have similar detrimental effects on the lubricant control assembly.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an improved lubricant control assembly that has a number of advantages over prior art devices.

An important advantage of the invention is that the radial movement of the piston rod can be limited to a certain extent without significantly reducing the effectiveness of the control action. Therefore, the presence of such radial forces can be tolerated.

This limited radial movement is made possible by a deformable housing that mounts the control assembly on the engine housing. This deformable housing is suitably selected in structure and arrangement in such a way that it can be slightly flexed and the scraper, which engages strongly on the piston rod, can follow the slight radial displacement of the piston rod, and at the same time exert an effect on the piston rod. so as not to lose its effectiveness. Advantageous features of the invention include the use of a crown spring to apply force to the scraper.

Additionally, assemblies based on the principles of the present invention are relatively compact and have mechanisms and arrangements that allow for easy installation in engines of known construction as well as new construction.

Further, the present invention can effectively control the piston rod,
For example, when the piston is on its upward stroke, a thin film of lubricant from the crankcase flows down the entire surface of the piston rod to provide the desired lubrication.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The exemplary heat engine shown in FIG. 1 is equipped with a lubricant control assembly in accordance with the present invention. Before describing this assembly in detail, a general explanation of the engine structure will be provided.

Engine 10 has a housing 12, which in the illustrated engine is assembled from multiple parts.

An actuation mechanism 14 located within the housing 12 converts the reciprocating motion of the piston into rotation of the drive shaft. The piston is reciprocated by working fluid flowing in and out of the cylinder that houses the piston.

The mechanism 14 is mounted on the housing 1 for rotation about an axis 20.
The rotary swash plate 16 is attached to a shaft 18 which is pivotally supported by the rotary swash plate 16. Shaft 18 forms a first portion of the engine drive shaft, and second portion 22 of the drive shaft includes a spline connection 24.
It is interlocked and connected to the shaft 18 by.

The rotating swash plate 16 is rotated by a piston 26 having a piston rod 28.
energizes the piston rod 28 at a position radially outwardly spaced from the axis 20, such as the slider 3 in FIG.
Acts on the rotating swash plate at a certain position. A rotating swash plate 16 is mounted on a shaft 18 for rotation about an axis 20.

A slider 30 mounted on a crosshead that slidably connects the piston rod 28 to the rotating swash plate 16 reciprocates the piston to rotate the rotating swash plate 16 and, therefore, the shaft 18.

Gears 32, 34 form part of a mechanism that rotates the swash plate 16 and shaft 18 relative to each other to change the angle of the swash plate 16 to change the piston stroke and, therefore, the engine output.

The illustrated engine further has a pressure shell 36 which cooperates with the housing 12. As shown in FIG.
6 is attached to one end in the axial direction of the engine and has an end flange 38, which flange is attached to a removable fastener 4 for attachment.
2 and is attached to the flange 40 of the housing 12 in a sealed manner.

The interior space defined by the cooperation of the pressure shell 36 and the housing 12 is provided with a pressure different from the pressure outside the engine. Appropriate seals (not numbered) are therefore provided between the various parts where the drive shaft passes through the hemispherical left end of the pressure shell in FIG. The drive shaft side is journalled to the engine housing by a suitable bearing assembly (not numbered).

External splines 44 are provided on the drive shaft to connect the drive shaft to a service device (not shown) that is to provide engine power.
Equipped with

This engine has several piston rods and pistons that act on a rotating swash plate. Figure 1 shows one of them.

The cylinder housing the reciprocating piston 26 is shown at 46. The hole 48 in the housing 12 extends from the left end of the cylinder 46 to the crankcase as shown in FIG. Extends to TJ area 50.

A lubricant control assembly 52 is provided in the housing 12 at the bore 48 for cooperation with the piston rod 28. This assembly is designed to prevent lubricant from entering the cylinder 46 from the crankcase 50 through the hole 48 and to prevent fluid in the cylinder 46 from leaking through the hole 48 into the crankcase 50. 52 has the function of separating the cylinder 46 from the crankcase 50 and reciprocating the piston rod in the axial direction.

Details of the lubricant control assembly 52 will now be described with reference to FIG. 2.3.4.

The preferred embodiment of this assembly consists of a plurality of assembled components including a deformable housing 54, a scraper 56 and a crown spring 58. Additional structural members include an internal member 60 extending from housing 54 to scraper 56;
A ring 62 between the inner member 60 and the scraper 56, a crown spring 58, and an outer member 6 that fits over the inner member 60.
4 is included. This assembly further includes an O-ring seal 66.
67 and 68, the preferred structure includes a buffer 70 acting between the crown spring 58 and the scraper 56 and a cap seal 72 acting between the deformable housing 54 and the piston rod 28.

As can be seen, the various members of this lubricant control assembly 52 have central openings through which the piston rod 28 passes through the assembly.

Assembly 52 is mounted to housing 12 within bore 48 by deformable housing 54 . Therefore, the deformable housing 5
4 has a circumferential thread 74. This thread 74 screws the assembly into the mating threaded portion 76 of the bore 48 . O
A ring seal 66 seals the hole 4 around the entire circumference of the deformable housing 54.
Form a leak-proof sole for 8.

Deformable housing 54 is suitably constructed so that when screwed into hole 48 it assumes a shape slightly different from its free, unconstrained shape.

An unconstrained free shape is a shape that is substantially uniform about the central axis 77 of the assembly, ideally coaxial with the piston rod. In the illustrated example of a deformable housing 54, the deformability can be provided by the particular shape of the housing and the material from which the housing is made.

The illustrated deformable housing 54 is constructed from a suitable plastic, such as nylon. The shape of the nylon member can be thought of as a series of three axially extending concentric ring sections of different diameters. The largest diameter ring portion is indicated by 78, the next largest diameter by 80, and the smallest by 82. It is the outer ring portion 78 that has threads 74 that screw into the bore 48 and the inner ring portion 82 that is in close contact with the piston rod 28. Ring portion 80 thus forms an intermediate ring radially located between outer and inner ring portions 78 and 82.

One end of intermediate ring portion 80 connects to a corresponding axial end of outer ring 78 and the opposite end of portion 80 connects to a corresponding axial end of portion 82. Thus, in the illustrated example, a radially extending connecting portion 84 connects rings 78 and 80, and a radially extending connecting portion 86 connects rings 80 and 80.
Connect 2. In this arrangement, the connection between the intermediate ring part and its intermediate outer ring part and the connection between the former and its inner ring part take place at staggered axial ends.

Because the deformable housing is made of a material such as nylon, it can be fabricated as a unitary member by machining, molding, or other manufacturing methods. This construction of the housing 54 forms two circular slots extending axially into the housing from axially opposite sides at different radii. These slots are designated 88 and 90, with 90 indicating the smaller diameter slot.

An inner ring portion 82 extends axially from the deformable housing beyond a connecting portion 84 so that this portion 82 has a free end. This end is threaded at 92 to allow threads 93 on member 60 to screw the right axial end of member 60 into the deformable housing. 0
A ring seal 68 seals between the two.

The member 60 has an axially extending wall 94 that mates with the circular base 96 of the crown spring 58.
collide with.

Crown spring 58 has an axially extending portion 98 that extends from base 96 and has a short, radially inwardly directed portion 10 at an axial location slightly beyond the end of axial wall 94 .
Ends with 0. A buffer 70 is placed between this portion 100 and the scraper 56.

Ring 62 is suitably shaped to cooperatively fit with buffer-70° scraper 56 and axial wall 94 to maintain these components in the desired assembly. The outer member 64 fits over these assembly members and has an inner thread 102 at its right end to allow the outer member 60 to
It is designed to be screwed into the upper external thread 103. O-ring seal 67 seals between members 60 and 64 when they are threaded together.

The scraper 56 is located at an internal shoulder 104 within the axial wall 94.
and by the right end of the scraper 56 abutting the ring 6
It is axially positioned by a shoulder 106 that engages 2.

The inner diameter of the scraper 56 is sized closely to the outer diameter of the piston rod 28. Crown spring 58 acts through portions 98 and 100 to apply a strong radially inward force through buffer 70 to the circumference of scraper 56 at the left axial end of the scraper. As a result, the scraper 56 hits the piston rod 28 at the left end of the scraper and is strongly contracted in the circumferential direction. This force is necessarily much greater than the other radial forces acting between the scraper and the piston rod along the remainder of the scraper's inner diameter.

The magnitude of this force is a function of the spring characteristics of crown spring 58. Therefore, an extremely large force can be applied to the scraper.

When the engine is equipped with a lubricant control assembly and the engine is operated, the piston rod 28 reciprocates axially back and forth through the assembly 52, causing the two
The two contact points are the scraper 56 and the gear.

occurs via busheal 72. Since this primary action is performed through the scraper 56, the cap seal 72
However, it is not necessarily necessary.

The interaction between the crosshead and the slider 30 exerts a force on the piston rod that withstands not only axial forces but also radial components. The radial force applied to the piston rod tends to reciprocate the piston rod not only by an axial motion component but also by a small radial displacement component. In other words, these components tend to bend the piston rod slightly.

The lubricant control assembly of the present invention provides excellent performance despite the limited radial motion components imparted to the piston rod as it reciprocates axially. This property is provided by the deformable housing 54. It will be appreciated that in the illustrated embodiment, howling 54 can cause inner ring portion 86 to follow small radial displacements of the piston rod with outer ring 78 firmly attached to housing bore 48. In other words, the throfts 88 and 90 slightly change the shape of the deformable housing to cause the inner ring portion 82 to follow small radial displacements of the reciprocating piston rod to keep the scraper 56 coaxial with the piston rod. It is thought that it will be possible to do this. Because of the deformable housing 54, the lubricant control assembly components mounted at the left end of the inner ring portion of this housing can follow small radial displacements of the piston rod and thereby reduce the effect of the scraper 56 on the piston rod 28. It can be maintained substantially fully effective.

Thus, the present invention improves the performance of lubricant control assemblies in applications where the radial forces acting on the piston rod are pre-reduced by the effects of the lubricant control assembly.

It is clear that the structure shown is compact and is suitable for both existing and new institutions.

Fabrication and assembly of the lubricant control assembly components may be accomplished using conventional fabrication and assembly techniques. The various components on the left end are assembled and attached to the left end of the deformable housing to create an assembly as a unitary structure. This unit assembly is then screwed into the hole, for example from the right end in FIG. 1, before assembling the piston. In this regard, the right axial surface of the housing is provided with a suitable wrench engaging surface for engaging a suitable tool for installing and removing the lubricant control assembly.

Preferably, buffer 70 is an elastomeric member that transmits force from crown spring 58 to scraper 56 and also serves to provide a seal. However, there is no need to be limited to this material.

The particular construction of crown spring 58 includes portions 98 and 10 in the form of a continuous construction of individual finger-like elements extending from base 96.
Consists of 0.

It will be appreciated that when this assembly is mounted on an engine for radial displacement, the outer member 64 will have a certain clearance relative to the wall of the bore 48.

The outer member 64 has a radial wall at the end which serves to form an axial boundary for the internally assembled member by radially overlapping the end of the crown spring 58, the buffer 70 and the scraper 56. . When transmitting the crown spring force to the scraper 56 through the buffer 70, the buffer is sealed against both the radial wall of the outer member 64 and the end of the ring 62. The mutual fit of scraper 56, ring 62 and inner member 94 allows action of scraper 56 by crown spring 58 in the manner previously described.

Deformable housing 54 can also have a variety of different constructions. These structures may differ in shape and/or material from those shown. The assembly may be constructed from a series of concentric tubes of varying diameter, eg made of aluminum, eg having an innermost tube and an outermost tube. 1
It has one or more intermediate tubes, connecting the tubes at alternate axial ends in the manner described above for the illustrated nylon construction of the deformable housing 54. An important feature is that, regardless of the structure, other members attached to the deformable housing follow the radial displacement of the reciprocating piston so that the crown spring is always fully effective in forcing the scraper into engagement with the piston rod. It is to do so. A deformable housing differs from a rolling diagram in which this housing essentially cannot be displaced axially.

The illustrated construction allows a very thin film of lubricant coming from the crankcase to effectively pass through the scraper, but this does not have significant consequences and is desirable in practice. Of course, the lubricant control assembly is fully effective in holding the crankcase away from the cylinders.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a valuable improvement in lubricant control assemblies.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a heat engine having a piston rod lubricant control assembly of the present invention; FIG. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the assembly of FIG. 1; and FIG.
A perspective view in the direction of arrow 3-3 in the figure, Figure 4 is arrow 4 in Figure 2.
- It is a perspective view of four directions. 10...Heat engine 12...Housing I
6... Rotating swash plate 18... Shaft 26.
...Piston 28...Piston rod 30...
- Slider 36... Pressure shell 46... Cylinder 48... Hole 50... Crankcase 52... Lubricant control assembly 54... Deformable housing 56... Scraper 58... Crown spring 60...Internal member 64...External member
66.67.68...0 ring seal 70...
Buffer 72...cat 7''', i -
)Lt78...Outer ring part 82...Inner ring part 88, 90...Circular slot 94...Wall 96...Circular head

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A cylinder having an engine housing and housing a reciprocating piston; a piston rod extending from the piston through a hole extending in the housing from the housing to the cylinder; a lubricant control assembly disposed within the bore for cooperation with the piston rod, the lubricant in the assembly separating the cylinder from the crankcase and in forceful contact around the piston rod; An engine configured to operate to axially reciprocate a piston rod through a control portion, the deformable housing having a lubricant control assembly mounted on the engine housing, the deformable housing being in lubrication with the engine housing. The lubricant control portion is operatively disposed between the lubricant control portions to cause the lubricant control portion to be radially displaced relative to the bore to follow radial displacement of the reciprocating piston, and the lubricant control portion is substantially disposed on the piston rod. An institution characterized by its structure so that it continues to function fully effectively. 2. The deformable housing has an axially extending inner ring portion disposed around the circumference of the piston rod and an axially extending outer ring portion, whereby the deformable housing is mounted on the engine housing. an outer ring portion for mounting; connecting means for connecting the inner ring portion and the outer ring portion such that the inner ring portion is radially displaced relative to the hole; and connecting means for connecting the lubricant control portion to the inner ring portion; An engine according to claim 1, comprising attachment means for attaching to. 3. said connecting means comprises one or more axially extending intermediate ring portions disposed between said inner and outer ring portions, each intermediate ring portion being connected at one end thereof to the immediately adjacent radially outer ring portion; 3. An engine according to claim 2, which connects to one ring part and at its axially opposite end to the immediately adjacent radially inner ring part. 4. The engine of claim 3, wherein said outer ring portion has threads by which the deformable housing is screwed into opposing threads of said hole to attach the engine housing to the deformable housing. 5. a cap seal disposed on the inner ring portion to seal around the reciprocating piston rod;
The organization set forth in claim 3. 6. The engine according to claim 3, wherein said deformable housing is comprised of one unitary element. 7. said inner ring portion includes a free end extending axially from said deformable housing, said attachment means for attaching said lubricant control portion to said deformable housing to attach said lubricant control portion to an interior of said deformable housing; 4. An engine according to claim 3, including means for attaching to the free end of the ring portion. 8. The lubricant control portion includes a tubular scraper that fits tightly onto the piston rod, and the means for attaching the lubricant control portion to the free end of the inner ring portion of the deformable housing is attached at one end to the inner ring portion of the deformable housing. 8. An engine as claimed in claim 7, including an axially extending member attached to the free end of the holder and fitted into the tubular scraper at the axially opposite end. 9. A force applying means is provided which is separate from the scraper but acts to press the scraper into strong contact around the piston rod, and the force applying means acts on the base supported on the member and the scraper. 9. An engine as claimed in claim 8, including means extending from said base for urging it into forceful contact about the piston rod. 10. The scraper and the member fit together in the axial direction, the scraper has an end that extends beyond the member in the axial direction, and the force applying means applies a force to the scraper near the end that extends beyond the member in the axial direction. configured and arranged so as to add
The organization set forth in claim 9. 11. The force applying means includes a crown spring, the base is a base of the crown spring and has a circular shape that fits into the member, and the crown spring extends axially from the base and applies a force to the scraper. 11. An engine according to claim 10, having an axial portion extending into a radially inwardly directed portion used for adding. 12. a buffer disposed between the radially inwardly facing portion of the crown spring and the scraper;
The organization according to claim 10. 13. an outer member that fits over the first-mentioned member, the crown spring and the scraper, the outer member including an axial wall used to attach to the first-mentioned member, the scraper and the crown; 13. The engine of claim 12, having a radial wall radially overlapping the spring, the buffer being in sealing contact with the radial wall. 14, for fitting over the scraper and cooperating with both the first-mentioned member and the scraper to assist in axially positioning the scraper with respect to the first-mentioned member; Including rings placed in
The organization according to claim 13. 15. The deformable housing is made of polymer material 1
The device according to claim 3, which comprises a body unit element. 16. The one unit element includes an intermediate ring part between the outer ring part and the inner ring part, and the inner ring part has a free end projecting in the axial direction from the one unit element. the one intermediate ring portion is connected at one axial end to an axial end of an inner ring portion opposite said end, and the axially opposite end of the one intermediate ring portion is connected to an outer ring portion; 16. The engine of claim 15, wherein the means for connecting the ring portion and attaching the lubricant control portion to the deformable housing includes means for attaching the lubricant control portion to the free end of the inner ring portion. 17. a cylinder having an engine housing and containing a reciprocating piston; a piston rod extending from the piston through a bore extending into the housing from the housing to the cylinder; and a lubricant control assembly. and said assembly is disposed within said bore to cooperate with said piston rod, said piston rod being passed through a lubricant control portion of said assembly that separates the cylinder from the crankcase and makes forceful contact around the piston rod. In an engine configured to function for axial reciprocation, a tubular member fitted over the piston rod and the lubricant control portion are cooperatively connected to the tubular member, the lubricant control portion being coupled to the tubular member. means for disposing at least a portion axially spaced from said tubular member; and a lubricant for forcefully pressing a base and lubricant control portion supported on said tubular member into forceful contact about a piston rod. a crown spring extending from said base for acting on a lubricant control portion when said control portion is axially spaced from said tubular member; The tubular member is disposed in the engine housing so as to be displaceable to follow the radial displacement of the reciprocating piston rod and to maintain a substantially fully effective force of the lubricant control portion about the piston rod. An engine characterized in that it is provided with means for elastic attachment. 18. The engine of claim 17, wherein said lubricant control portion includes a tubular scraper that fits tightly onto the piston rod and axially fits with said tubular member. 19. a cylinder having an engine housing and containing a reciprocating piston; a piston rod extending from the piston through a bore extending from the housing to the cylinder; and a lubricant control assembly; and said assembly is disposed within said bore to cooperate with said piston rod, said piston rod being passed through a lubricant control portion of said assembly that separates the cylinder from the crankcase and makes forceful contact around the piston rod. In an engine configured to function for axial reciprocation, a crown spring is provided, said crown spring being lubricated to force the base and the lubricant control portion into forceful contact around the piston rod. means extending from said base for acting on a fluid control portion and adapted to allow said crown spring to be radially displaceable relative to said bore to follow radial displacement of a reciprocating piston rod and to provide lubrication. An engine characterized in that it includes means for resiliently attaching the base of said crown spring to the engine housing for maintaining substantially fully effective forceful compression of the agent control portion about the piston rod.