US2348236A - Ignition timer - Google Patents

Description

' May 9, 1944. I J. L. ARTHUR IGNITION TIMER Filed 28. 1941 INVENTOR div/v15: L Arr/10R I s ATTORNEYS Patented May 9,1944 i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE IS'iNITION TIMER James L. Arthur, Anderson, Ind., assiznor to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaware Application August 28, 1941, Serial No. 408,571

10 Claims. (Cl. 200-31) This invention relates to ignition timers for inwhich tends to urge the movable center bearing ternal combustion engines and more particularly member axially relativeto the stationary center to the type of timer having automatic means rebearing member while at the same time allowing sponsive to engine intake suction for varying the freedom of movement rotatively between the ignition timer. center bearing member without introducing un- An ignition timer adapted for automatic condue friction.

trol in response to variations of engine intake By resiliently urging the movable center. bearsuction is generally provided with a circuit breakings axially relative to' the stationary center or supporting plate which is adjustable by sue-a bearing the movable plate is caused to bear retion responsive means about an axis concentric l ii m y inthe ti n ry p a r y mwith the axis of rotation of the ignition timer viding freedom of movement between the plates cum. In producing an ignition timer which will not withstanding he existence of slight irr ll have thi feature, th problem, ha been that r larities in the contacting euriaces oi movable providing a suitable bearing for the adjustable stationery plates at the peripheral portions of breaker plate which will maintain concentricity these p with respect to the timer cam while at the some F objects d dv i e i e present time providing freedom of movement. It is an Milieu-flan w e apparent from the followin object of the invention to provide'a solution to vll p m to the accompem this problem by means of a simple construction e Whwi'fiiii c odiment of which is durable which can be manufactured lie the present invention 37 c e r n economically, the drawin in the disclosed embodiment of the invention i s u view oi timer em ot v e ore accomplish this object by providing within. the o a 2 a sectional view on the lip.

timer housing a stationary plate extending in a plane at right singles to the axle of rotation of 2 timer cam and having a central bearing whose axis is concentric with the axis oi rotation 61 of he timer 'lli'ie bearing" of the station 1 plate receives a tubular hearing attached to center of circuit breaker plate, The wi of the attached to the cireuit brook 21* ,1 is greater than, the width oi the hearing S, oyovideci at "the center of the stationary plate so looiune dire to permit a slight relative movement between I the bearing parts axially thereof. A device which is located between the stationary plates and hearing" sleeve attached to the movable plate driven. y the tends to urge the movable bearing axially relative tectively supports a e: whim: is chillingly to the stationary bearing in such direction cc to eonnectecl with the shaft by eoeerl reopen urge the movable plate towards the stationary sive device fi l which varies the relation. between plate; However, the movable plate does not come the cam the engine driven 2 in re tact all portions oi the stationary plate but only spouse the variations in engine speed. The t th p n of Support Provided y three cam 23 supports i'tlfld th ives oietrliouior rotor 0 is a sectional view on lin is a sectional view taken on the line Alma spaced bosses engaged by portions of the mov carrying a conducting member (not shown) for eble Plate near the periphery thereof. In other distributing sparking impulses to terminals (not words the movable plate is supported by the stashown) supported by e distributor cover 26.

tionary plate at three points of support located The timer housing an supports therein a sta near the periphery of the movable plate so as to tiouary plate or platform 21! at three points two produce a support without introducing friction in of which are diametrically opposite each other. amounts such as would interfere with the func- The plate 21 is suitably euppormol within the tioning oi the engine suction responsive means housing til by suitable devices 29. This is acwhich automatically rotates the plate in response complisheol by providing the plate 21 with ears to variations in engine suction. The movable 28 which are adapted to receive a free end of a plate is resiliently urged against the three points screw 29. The screw also secures brackets 88 on of supp r y a orrugated spring metal washer 6 the outside oi the housing it which have opene ings thru which the screws 23 project. These brackets hingediy support distributor cap clamps 31 which secure the distributor cover or cap 23 flrmly upon the top of the housing 23. The plate 21 is also secured at a third point within the.

housing 23 by a screw 32 extending thru the housing and having screw threaded engagement with an ear 33 on the plate 21.

The stationary plate or platform 21 is provided with a central opening defined by a flange 34 provided with a bearing surface concentric with the bearing 2 I. The plate 21 is deformed to provide an annular groove 33 between the flange 34 and a shoulder 33 which marks an off-set between essential and peripheral portions of the plate 21. In Fig. 1 the shoulder 33 is indicated by the dash-line circle. The groove 33 receives a felt washer 31 which when saturated with lubricating oil will be substantially flush with the top surface of the flange 34.

The center bearing flange 34 provides a journal for a rotary center bearing 43 having a width substantially greater than the width oi the stationary bearing 34, this width being the distance between a flange 4| of the bearing 43 and a shoulder 42 against which a movable plate 43 bears when the plate 43 and bearing 43 are assembled. However, before these parts are assembled there is placed around the bearing 43 a corrugated washer 44 ofthin resilient metal preferably spring steel having a non-stressed width substantially greater than the distance between the flange 4| and the plate 21 when assembled as shown in Fig. 2. After the washer 44 has been placed around the bearing 43 the bearing 43 is placed thru the bearing 34 also thru a central opening in movable plate 43 until the latter rests upon the shoulder 42 of thebearing 43. While the bearing 43 is supported with its flange 4| resting upon a fixed supporting block the upper edge portion of the bearing 43 is swedged over as indicated at 43 to secure the plate 43 to the bearing 43. The operation of swedging the edge 43 against the plate 43 causes the spring washer '44 to be compressed so that it is caused resiliently to urge the bearing flange 4| downwardly as viewed in Fig. 2 in order to cause the plate 43 to be urgeddownwardly against bosses 43, 41, and 43 provided by the plate 21 and extending a slight distance above the peripheral portion of the plate to the extent of something like .010". It is to be understood that the bosses 43, 41 and 43 could be provided by the plate 43.

Thus the plate 43 is caused to bear resiliently upon the bosses 43, 41 and 43 by the resiliently urged spring washer which urges the bearing 43 downwardly with respect to the bearing flange 34. However, there are spaces between the upper edge of the flange 34 of the plane surface of the plate 43 so that the lower surface of the plate 43 does not touch the plate 41 except at the bearing bosses.

The plate 43 is supported by plate 21 in a manner affording greater stability since the plate 21 provides a three point support for the plate 43 said point support being near the periphery of the plate 43 thereby resisting any tendency of the movable bearing 43 to wobble or sway with respect to the stationary bearing 34. Lost motion between the bearing 34 and 43 is taken up by the resilient washer 44 which causes pressure to be applied resiliently upon the bearing bosses 43, 41 and 43. Therefore as the plate 43 slides across these bosses the frictional resistance will not become excessive altho there may be slight irregu- 7 5 larities in the contacting surfaces of the plate 43 and the bosses 43, 41 and 43. The oil saturated felt washer 31 provides lubrication between bearings 34 and 43 and also at the plate receiving bosses, 41 and 43.

After the assembly of plates and bearings has been made in the manner described the assembly is mounted within the timer housing thru the use of screws 23 and 32. The circuit breaker comprises a movable contact 33 engageabie with a stationary contact 31. The movable contact 33 is flxed to the free end of a circuit breaker lever 32 having an insulating hub 33 mounted on a pivoted stud 34 tilted 'to the plate 43. The stationary contact II is attached to an ear 53 of the bracket 33. This bracket is pivoted on the stud 34 and is secured to the plate 43 by a screw 31 extending thru an arcuate slot 33 provided in the bracket 33. The screw 31 has threaded engagement with a tapped hole provided by the plate 43. The bracket 33 may be turned about its pivot by an eccentric 33 the shank of which is pivotally mounted in the plate 43 (Fig. 4). Bracket 33 has an ear 33 upon which is mounted the free end of a spring H, the ear 33 supports an insulating block 32 to which the free end of the spring 3] is secured by a screw 34 and a nut 33. The other end of the spring 3! is attached to ears 33 together with a rubbing block 31 which is urged toward the cam 23 by the spring 3|.

The screw 34 and the nut 33 also secure to the block 32 a terminal clip 1| attached to a wire 12 which is electrically connected with a foil of the condenser 13. The condenser 13 is attached to the plate 43 by a bracket 13 which is secured to the plate 43 by a screw13, one foil of the condenser is grounded to the plate 43 thru the condenser casing 13 and a bracket 15 to the plat 43.

A terminal clip 11 is also attached to the block 32 by the bolt 34 and the nut 33 having a wire 13 passing thru a bracket 13 attached to the plate 43. The end of the wire 13 has a clip 13a electrically connected to an insulating terminal 33. This terminal is insulatingly supported by the housing 23 by an insulating washer 3l having a projection 32 extending into an opening 33 in the housing 23. An insulating washer 33 having a projection 33 projects into the opening 33 and abuts the projection 32 of the washer 3|. The projections 32 and 33 insulatingly support the terminal 33 from the housing 23. The washer 33 is provided with an extension 31 which projects downwardly into a slot 33 in the plate 21. A nut 33 cooperates with the terminal 33 to secure the wire terminal clip 13 and also to clamp the insulating washers 3| and 33 against opposite sides of the wall of the housing 23. The washer 3| is mounted around the knurled portion 33 of the terminal 33 so that. after the nut 33 is tightened rotation of the terminal 33 is effectively resisted. Therefore a screw 3| used to attach a wire to the terminal 33. can be turned, but the terminal 33 will not be rotated.

In order that the plate 43 may be turned relative to the housing 23 without hindrance by reason of electric connections, wire 13 connecting the spring 3| with the terminal 33 is provided with a certain amount of slack. Therefore this wire is supported intermediate its end by the bracket 13 attached to plate 43. The plate 43 is rotated by a suction responsive device I33 comprising a housing made up of shells IM and I32 having their peripheries clamped together and against a diaphragm I33. The diaphragm is connected with one code! a link llll by rivet I" the other end of the link is attached to a boltllli which is non-rotatably attached. to the plate 43 (Fig. 3). The lower end of the'bolt I08 extends into an arcuate opening III! to permit rotative movement oi! the plate 43 relative to the plate 21. A screw I08 secures a terminal clip N18 to the bolt I06. The clip I! is electrically connected to a wire H0, This wire is also connected to a clip ill which is soldered to the housing 20 forming a ground connection between plate 43 and the housing 20.

Shell llll supports asleeve H2 carrying a bushing ll: having recesses ill to receive a compression spring H disposed between a bushing H3 and a rivet Hi5, The spring H5 urges the dia-m form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, all coming within the scope of the claims which follow.

What is claimed is as follows:

i. In an ignition device for an internal combustion engine having a housipg; a cam rotatably supported by the housing; a circuit breaker operated by the cam; and a plate for supporting the circuit breaker, the combination with said plate, of means laterally supporting the plate near its periphery; means rotatably supporting the plate at its central portion; and means about the rotatable supporting means resiliently urging the plate against its peripheral supporting means.

in an igntion device for an internal combustion engine having a housing; a cam rotatably supported by the housing; a circuit breaker oper= ated by the cam; and a plate for supporting the circuit breaker, the combination with said plate, of a three point support for laterally supporting the plate near its periphery; means rotatably supporting the plate at its central portion; and means about the rotatable supporting means'resiliently urging the plate against the three point supporting means.

3. In an ignition device for an internal combustion engine having a housing; a cam rotatably supported by the housing; a circuit breaker operated by the cam; and a support assembly for the circuit breaker, the combination with said support assembly of a pair of relatively movable plates one oi which is fixed relative to the housing means for supporting the other plate centrally of the fixed plate and permitting relative angular movement therebetween one of said plates providing bosses engageable with the other plate substantially at its periphery; and resilient means about the supporting means for urging the movable plate toward the fixed plate whereby the movable plate is prevented from wobblihg relative to the fixed plate.

i. in an ignition device for an internal combustion engine having a housing; a cam rotatably supported by the housing; a circuit breaker operated by the cam; and a plate for supporting the circuit breaker, the combination with said plate, of three bosses provided by a stationary plate for laterally supporting the circuit breaker plate near its periphery, one of the bosses being wider than the other two, said wider boss being portion; and means about the rotatable supporting means resiliently urging the circuit breaker plate against the three bosses of the stationary plate.

5. In an ignition device io r an internal combustion engine having a housing; a cam rotatably supported by the housing; a circuit breaker operated by thecam; and a support assembly for the circuit breaker comprising a pair of relatively movable plates, one of which is fixed relative to the housing, the combination withcsaid support, 01' means for supporting the other plate centrally of the fixed plate and permitting relative angular movement therebetween; bearing means carried by the fixed plate and engageabie by the movable plate substantially at its periphery; and resilient means interposed between the.

plates for urgingthe movable plate against the bearing means whereby the movable plate is prevented from wobbling relative to the fixed plate.

ii. In an ignition device for an internal combustion engine having a housing; afpam operated bythe cam; and a movable plate ior supporting the circuit breaker, the combination with said movable plate, of means laterally supporting the plate near its periphery; a stationary bearing spaced from the plate; a bearing sleeve attached to the plate extending through the etationarybearing and having a bearing surface Wider than the stationary bearing and having a flange spaced from the stationary bearing: and an undulated annular spring about the sleeve and located between the flange and the stationary bearing for urging the plate against its peripheral supporting means.

7. In an ignition device for an internal cornbustion engine having a housing; a cam rotatably supported by the housing; a circuit breaker operated by the cam; and a movable plate tor supporting the circuit breaker, the combination "with said movable plate, of a stationary plate supported by the housing and having a plurality of spaced bosses for laterally supporting the mov I able plate; a, flange integral with the stationary plate spaced from the movable plate; a bearing sleeve attached to the movable plate extending through the flange of the stationary plate piv otally securing the movable sleeve to the stationary plate; a flange carried by the movable sleeve spaced from the flange oi the stationary plate; and spring means about the sleeve and interposed between the flanges for urging the movable plate against the bosses to prevent WOb= bling of the movable plate.

8. In an ignition device for an internal combustion engine having a housing; a cam rotatably supported by the housing; a circuit breaker operated by the cam; and a movable plate for supporting the circuit breaker, the combination With said movable plate, of a stationary platform carried by the housing having a plurality of bosses for laterally supporting the plate near its periphery, and having an integral flange spaced from the plate; a bearing sleeve attached to the plate extending through the flange, pivotally securing the plate to the platform, said sleeve having a bearing surface wider than the flange; retaining means including a part of the sleeve and spaced from the flange for maintaining the plate in assembled relation with the platform; and resilient means about the sleeve and interposed between the retainlng means of the sleeve and the platform for urging the plate against the bosses to prevent wobbling of the movable plate.

9. Inan ignition device for an internal combustion engine having a housing; a cam rotatably supported by the housing; a circuit breaker operated by the cam; and a plate for supporting the circuit breaker, the combination with said plate, of a stationary platform having three bosses for laterally supporting the plate near its periphery, one of the bosses being wider than the other two with the wider boss located near the circuit breaker, said platform also having an annular bearing flange at its central portion spaced from the plate; a movable bearing sleeve attached to the plate and extending through the flange and having a bearing surface wider than the flange, said sleeve also having a laterally extending rim spaced from the annular bearing flange of the platform; and resilient means about the sleeve and disposed between the rim and the bearing flange for urging the plate against the bosses of the platform to prevent wobbllng of the plate.

10. A bearing unit comprising a pair of parallel thin metallic plates one of which is adapted to be fixed. said plates having aligned openings in the central portions thereof a bearing sleeve extending through the openings of the plates. said,

of the movable plate; resilient means disposed between the flange and said other plate to thus resiliently bias the movable plate against the bosses to prevent the movable plate from 'wobbling; and means for actuating the movable plate. JAMES L. AR'I'I-IUR.

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