Internal-combustion engines – Transmission mechanism from piston – Including clutch
Patent
1989-01-26
1989-12-05
Okonsky, David A.
Internal-combustion engines
Transmission mechanism from piston
Including clutch
F02B 7532
Patent
active
048845361
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to an apparatus for converting rotary motion to reciprocatory motion and vice versa.
One well-known form of such apparatus is known as the Crank and Slotted Cross-head or `Scotch Yoke` mechanism. A rotary member mounted for rotation about an axis carries a drive block rotatably mounted on an eccentric portion of the rotary member. The drive block is slidable in a transverse guide or slot in a reciprocatory member.
An object of the invention is to provide apparatus capable of operating at high speeds and under high loads, for example in connecting pistons to crankshafts in internal combustion engines.
According to the invention there is provided apparatus for converting rotary motion to reciprocatory linear motion and vice versa, comprising:
a rotary member mounted for rotation about a first axis,
a reciprocatory member guided for reciprocatory motion in a reciprocation direction transverse to the first axis,
a drive block rotatably mounted on an eccentric portion of the rotary member, the drive block having a slide surface slidably engaged with a guide surface carried by the reciprocatory member extending transversely to the reciprocation direction, and means for supplying liquid lubricant to the slide surface, wherein portions of the drive block supporting the portions of the slide surface are sufficiently elastically flexible in bending to follow deflections of the guide surface so as to maintain a load-bearing film of lubricant between the slide surface and the guide surface along substantially the whole length of the slide surface when under load. Conveniently, the end portions of the slide surface are more yielding than the central portions. Preferably, the stiffness of the end portions reduces progressively towards their outer ends.
Usually, the drive block will have two parallel slide surfaces facing in opposite directions each slidably engaged with a corresponding guide surface.
Advantageously, the slide surfaces of the drive block are shorter than the cooperating guide surfaces and are formed of a softer material than that forming the cooperating slide surfaces but of sufficient fatigue strength to withstand the cyclic loadings imposed thereon.
Advantageously, each slide surface of the drive block is formed on a plate of bearing material housed in a recess in the drive block and the lubricant supply means is arranged to supply lubricant to both faces of the plate. This form of construction both avoids the problem of fixing a body of expensive bearing material to the drive block (or depositing it thereon, which is not always possible for some desirable materials) and also provides an additional lubricant film clearance which is charged with lubricant from the supply during the part of a revolution of the rotary member during which the pad is not loaded.
An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a driving connection between a crankshaft and a piston of an internal combustion engine,
FIG. 2 shows part of FIG. 1 on an enlarged scale, and
FIG. 3 is a plan view on the line 3--3 of FIG. 2.
The internal combustion engine of which portions are shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 comprises a crankshaft 1 mounted for rotation (clockwise in FIGS. 1 and 2) in the normal manner about its axis 2 in appropriate journal bearings indicated at 3 in a crank case 4. The crankshaft 1 includes a pair of spaced webs 5 interconnected by a crank pin 6 the axis 7 of which is displaced from the axis 2 of the crankshaft by the `throw` distance of the crankshaft.
Journalled on the crank pin 6 is a drive block 8 having opposed parallel sliding surfaces 9 which cooperate with guide surfaces 10 on a reciprocatory yoke assembly 11.
A piston 12 is attached to one end of the assembly 11 by means of a conventional gudgeon pin 13 and slides in a cylinder 14, thereby guiding the one end of the assembly 11 for linear movement. In the case of an opposed-piston engine, the other end of the assembly 11 may be similarly guided by a
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Neale Michael J.
Polak Thomas A.
Collins Motor Corporation Limited
Okonsky David A.
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