Pumps – Three or more cylinders arranged in parallel – radial – or...
Reexamination Certificate
2001-04-12
2003-02-25
Tyler, Cheryl J. (Department: 3746)
Pumps
Three or more cylinders arranged in parallel, radial, or...
C091S499000, C092S012200
Reexamination Certificate
active
06524079
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a variable-capacity swash-plate type compressor, which is used in vehicle air-conditioning apparatuses.
BACKGROUND ART
As a conventional variable-capacity swash-plate type compressor (hereinafter, simply referred to as a compressor), a compressor has been known which is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (KOKAI) No. 7-91,366. In this compressor, as illustrated in
FIG. 11
, cylinder bores
8
are formed in a cylinder block
1
, inlet chambers
30
and an outlet chamber
31
are formed in a rear housing
3
, and a crank chamber
5
is formed in the front housing
2
. These front housing
2
, cylinder block
1
and rear housing
3
are bonded with each other to constitute a housing.
In the crank chamber
5
, a driving shaft
6
is held rotatably by the front housing
2
and the cylinder block
1
by way of bearings
7
a
,
7
b
. Onto the driving shaft
6
, in-between the front housing
2
, a rotor
10
is supported synchronously rotatably by way of a bearing
2
a
, and, in-between the rotor
10
, a swash plate
11
is supported synchronously rotatably by way of a pair of hinge mechanisms K, K. The respective hinge mechanisms K, K include a supporting arm
17
, which protrudes rearward from the rotor
10
and in which a guide hole
17
a
is drilled through, and a guide pin
16
, which is fastened to a bracket
15
, being disposed integrally and protrudingly in front of the swash plate
11
, and which has a sphere portion
16
a
, being fitted idly into the guide hole
17
a
reciprocatably, at the leading end. The respective hinge mechanisms K, K are disposed oppositely so as to cross over the top-dead-center position T of the swash plate
11
. Between the rotor
10
and the swash plate
11
, an inclination-angle reducing spring
12
is interposed, and the inclination-angle reducing spring
12
urges the swash plate
11
toward the rear housing
3
in such a direction that the inclination angle reduces from the maximum inclination angle to the minimum inclination angle.
Further, in the swash plate
11
, a through hole
20
, into which the driving shaft
6
is fitted, is drilled through. This through hole
20
, as illustrated in
FIG. 12
, is formed so as to permit an inclination-angle displacement of the swash plate
11
over an entire control range about a swing-shaft center Y, which is set beyond a side of the driving shaft
6
, side which faces the hinge mechanisms, K, K, while interposing a shaft center X of the driving shaft
6
therebetween. Namely, this swash plate
11
, as illustrated in
FIG. 11
, is inhibited from further inclining in the inclination-angle reducing direction by contacting a rear end surface
11
b
, which is formed as a concaved-shape at the trailing end of the through hole
20
, with a circlip
13
, which is engaged with the driving shaft
6
, when the inclination-angle reducing spring
12
is put into the most extended state. On the contrary, the swash plate
11
is inhibited from further inclining in the inclination-angle enlarging direction by contacting a front end surface
11
a
, which is formed at the bottom in a slanted manner, with a rear end surface
10
a
of the rotor
10
when the inclination-angle reducing spring is put into the most contracted state.
And, pistons
9
are engaged with this swash plate
11
by way of a pair of shoes
14
, which serve as a connecting mechanism for transforming the to-and-fro swinging movement according to the inclination angle into the reciprocating movements, and the respective pistons
9
are accommodated in the respective cylinder bores
8
.
Between the cylinder block
1
and the rear housing
3
, a valve plate
4
, etc., are interposed. In the valve plate
4
, inlet ports
32
and outlet ports
33
are formed to open correspondingly to the respective cylinder bores
8
, and compression chambers, which are formed between the valve plate
4
and the pistons
9
, are communicated with inlet chambers
30
and an outlet chamber
31
by way of the inlet ports
32
and the outlet ports
33
. On the respective inlet ports
32
, inlet valves, not shown, are disposed which open and close the inlet ports
32
in accordance with the reciprocate movements of the pistons
9
, and, on the respective outlet ports
33
, outlet valves, not shown, are disposed which open and close the outlet ports
33
in accordance with the reciprocate movements of the pistons
9
while being regulated by retainers
34
.
Moreover, in the cylinder block
1
, an air-bleeding passage, not shown, is disposed which communicates the crank chamber
5
with the inlet chambers
30
, and this air-bleeding passage is opened and closed by a control valve, not shown.
In this compressor, when the rotor
10
and the swash plate
11
are rotated at a predetermined angle, accompanied by the driving of the driving shaft
6
, the pistons
9
are reciprocated in the cylinder bores
8
. Thus, a refrigerant gas is sucked from the inlet chambers
30
into the compression chamber, and, after the refrigerant gas is compressed, it is discharged into the outlet chamber
31
. And, the inclination angle of the swash plate
11
is displaced by adjusting the pressure in the crank chamber
5
by the control valve, and thereby the outlet capacity of the refrigerant gas, which is discharged into the outlet chamber
31
, is controlled.
At this moment, as illustrated in
FIG. 12
, when the swash plate
11
is put into the maximum inclination angle, a front lower surface
20
c
and rear upper surface
20
d
of the through hole
20
do not contact with a peripheral surface of the driving shaft
6
. Moreover, when the swash plate
11
is put into the minimum inclination angle, a rear lower surface
20
e
and front upper surface
20
f
of the through hole
20
do not contact with the peripheral surface of the driving shaft
6
. Namely, the through hole
20
does not define the maximum inclination angle and the minimum inclination angle, and the clearance between the through hole
20
and the driving shaft
6
is enlarged.
And, in this compressor, since a supporting portion
20
b
in the through hole
20
is formed as an arc shape, the peripheral surface of the driving shaft
6
always keeps a linear contact with the supporting portion
20
b
, and the supporting portion
20
b
is less likely to be worn. Moreover, since the moments, which result from the compression reaction force, etc., can be received almost by the pair of hinge mechanisms K, K, regulatory surfaces
20
a
,
20
a
of the swash plate
11
are also less likely to be worn. Hence, in this compressor, the inclination angle of the swash plate
11
is secured reliably, and a good durability can be effected.
However, not only in the swash-plate type compressor set forth in the aforementioned publication, but also in variable-capacity swash-plate type compressors involving wobble type ones widely, in a case where a compression operation is not carried out or in a case where a compression operation is carried out at a small outlet capacity regarded as zero substantially, it has been found out that such drawbacks take place in that noises and vibrations arise and colliding portions wear when a large vibration is applied from the exterior, drawbacks which result from the clearance of the inclination-angle variable swash plate.
Namely, in the variable-capacity swash-plate type compressors involving wobble type ones widely, the swash plate is supported by providing clearances of certain extent in-between the other members, such as the driving shaft, a sleeve, etc., so that the postures and positions, accompanied by the inclination-angle displacement, can be varied, and thereby the swash plate varies the inclination angle so that the variable capacity is realized.
Here, in a case where the compressor carries out a compression operation at a large outlet capacity, since a compression load acts onto the swash plate from the pistons, regardless of the clearances in-between the other members, the swash plate keeps contacting with the other members by the compression lo
Fukanuma Tetsuhiko
Kimura Kazuya
Kumazawa Shingo
Mera Minoru
Morishita Atsuyuki
Kabushiki Kaisha Toyoda Jidoshokki Seisakusho
Morgan & Finnegan , LLP
Tyler Cheryl J.
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