The invention relates to a cam follower for a valve train of an internal combustion engine, wherein this cam follower is constructed as a lever that is produced with a U-shape, viewed in cross section, from sheet steel in a non-cutting process and has a base wall and side walls projecting from this base wall, wherein, on one end of the lever, in a surface of the base wall turned away from the side walls, a valve stem support formed as a groove is provided whose side guiding walls are formed by a non-cutting shaping process, in opposite directions starting from the side walls, and are connected to a support wall forming a valve support surface, wherein the valve support surface extends in a first plane that is spaced apart from a second plane extending through an inner transition between the side walls and the adjacent guiding walls in the direction of ends of the side walls.
The invention further also relates to a method for the non-cutting production of a cam follower formed as a lever from sheet steel, wherein this lever is provided for a valve train of an internal combustion engine and has essentially a U-shaped cross section with a base wall and side walls extending essentially perpendicular to this base wall, wherein a valve stem support provided on one end of the lever is formed in the base wall as a groove whose side guiding walls are formed by a non-cutting shaping process, in opposite directions starting from the side walls, and are connected to a support wall forming a valve support surface, wherein this valve support surface extends in a first plane that is spaced apart from a second plane extending through an inner transition between the side walls and the adjacent guide walls in the direction of ends of the side walls.
Cam followers are used in valve trains of internal combustion engines to transfer, as part of the valve control, the cam lift of a cam of a camshaft to the corresponding gas exchange valve formed as an intake or exhaust valve, so that the gas exchange valve is moved against a valve spring into its open position due to this valve lift. The cam followers can be formed as, among other things, rocker arms, oscillating arms, or tilting arms, wherein they are usually formed as sheet-metal parts using non-cutting methods or as precision cast parts. The designation rocker arm or finger lever is used generally for one-arm levers, wherein, for the case of the rocker arms, one end is supported by a dome provided on this end by a support element on the cylinder head of the internal combustion engine, while for oscillating arms, the corresponding end is supported on an oscillating arm axis. Both lever types are used for valve trains with overhead camshafts, wherein the individual cams preferably contact the lever by cam rollers provided centrally in the lever.
Accordingly, rocker arms are formed as two-arm levers, i.e., the rocker arms have a rocker arm axis in the area of its center, wherein they can be used both for valve trains with underhead camshafts and also for valve trains with overhead camshafts. In a valve train with underhead camshafts, a tappet rod contacts one end of the rocker arm, while for a drive by an overhead camshaft, this contacts directly on the end of the rocker arm or similarly via a cam roller on this end.
Levers made from sheet metal in non-cutting processes are usually formed with a U-shaped profile, viewed in cross section. Here, these U-shaped sheet-metal levers are formed and arranged within the valve train so that the lever engages a valve stem end of the gas exchange valve with its U-shaped profile. To achieve a very compact valve train and to improve the stiffness of the lever, however, sheet-metal levers according to the class are used that are turned away from the valve stem end with the open section of their U-shaped form, so that a valve stem support must be formed on their base wall.
A cam follower of the class described in the preamble of independent is known from DE 41 33 033 C2. The corresponding rocker arm has, in this case, also a U-shaped cross section, wherein the area of the valve stem support is formed as a groove formed in the base wall of the U-profile. In this way, on both sides of the groove, parallel wall sections are formed by side walls of the lever and by guiding walls of the groove that are formed in opposite directions. A corresponding groove-like formation is produced by an indentation or extrusion pressing process. The groove for the valve stem support is here formed with a relatively large depth, i.e., the valve support surface is in a first plane that is spaced apart to a second plane extending through an inner transition between the side walls and the adjacent guiding walls in the direction of ends of the side walls. This leads to crimped fold formations that cause problems in terms of durability during operation in the area of each transition of the side wall to the adjacent guiding wall, which is deformed by 180°. In the previously known solution, the guiding wall is angled relative to the side wall by the previously specified 180°, i.e., after a fold the outer surface of each guide wall is on the inner surface of the side wall. As already mentioned, this angle leads to high stresses at the transition from each side wall to the guiding wall, so that after a relatively short operating period, cracks appear starting from this location of highest stresses.
Furthermore, from U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,245 A, a rocker arm is known that likewise has a U-shaped form and has, on its base wall, a valve stem support formed as a groove. This groove is formed according to that publication by a forming and embossing punch, wherein, in the forming process, material is deformed from the side walls into the base area. This produces a W-shaped profile of the rocker arm in the area of its valve stem support. However, the groove is formed with only a minimal depth, so that the wall sections cannot be doubled in this area.
The invention is based on the object of forming a cam follower of the specified class formed as a lever with a compact design, i.e., minimal width, and in this way avoiding high stresses and thus the formation of cracks in the area of the transition of the side walls to the guiding walls.
This object is achieved with one or more features of the invention. According to one embodiment, at the transition an inner radius R should be provided through which, between the side wall and guiding wall, a free space is created that narrows in the direction of one end of each side wall. Consequently, the guiding wall and the side wall adjacent to this do not form a contact in the area in which they are connected to each other. Instead they transition one into the other with a relatively large inner radius, so that in this region a crimped fold formation can be effectively prevented. Therefore, the stresses that occur can be reduced so that a crack formation is prevented. This inner radius R has the result that, in this area, a free space is produced, wherein this free space becomes narrower upward under consideration of the normal installation position of the lever, that is, in the direction of the end of each side wall. The stresses that occur and the reducing fractures of the lever in this area could also be prevented in that the side walls and the guiding walls are spaced apart from each other overall so that a relatively large inner radius is produced at the transition. In this way, however, the width of the lever would be considerably increased, which results in a corresponding increase of the installation space. In modern valve trains of internal combustion engines, however, the corresponding installation space for the arrangement of the cam follower is very limited, so that a corresponding widening of the lever is basically not possible. In addition, there would also be the disadvantage that the mass and mass inertial moment of the lever would be increased. The same disadvantages would then also occur if the side walls were tilted for creating a corresponding inner radius, so that the lever in the lower region adjacent to the base wall would be wider than in the area of the ends of the side walls.
In contrast, according to the invention the profile of the side walls relative to the adjacent guiding walls is maintained, that is, the width of the lever is maintained, although the inner radius and the free space are provided in the transition region. The maintained profile of these walls is understood to mean that the guiding surfaces of the guiding walls facing the valve stem end are essentially parallel to the outer surfaces of the side walls facing away from the guiding walls.
In contrast, in DE 41 33 033 C2, the corresponding guiding walls and side walls of the rocker arm shown in that publication form a contact with each other, so that, in the transition region, the previously mentioned crimped fold formation and thus the increased stresses are produced with unavoidable formation of cracks. According to U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,245 A, at the transition from the base wall to the side walls, a relatively large inner radius is provided, but the shown rocker arm has no guiding walls running opposite to the side walls. Instead, for this rocker arm, only a relatively flat groove is provided in the base wall that is produced by an extrusion pressing process. The flat groove does not guarantee sufficient guidance of the lever at the valve stem end. Overall, a correspondingly shaped rocker arm, with respect to the dimensions of the groove provided for holding the valve stem, has an overall relatively wide design in this region, for which the corresponding installation space is not available in modern valve trains.
In another construction of the invention, the inner radius R and the free space are formed as a common indentation in the transition, in the side wall, and in the guiding wall. Thus, the inner radius and the free space that lead to a reduction of the stresses are provided at the transition of each side wall into the guiding wall, without the lever having to have a wider design in this region and consequently the side walls could no longer have to be parallel to each other. A corresponding indentation in the transition, in the side walls, and in the guiding walls is advantageously produced in the still flat sheet metal part before its deformation.
Furthermore, each free space becomes narrower until it contacts the corresponding guiding wall at the respective side wall. The free space consequently forms a point in the direction of the ends of the two side walls until the corresponding guiding wall contacts the adjacent side wall or forms a narrow gap with this wall.
If a corresponding narrow gap is provided between each side wall and the respective guiding wall, then it is further proposed that the free space has at the transition into the inner radius its maximum width that is at least five times the width of the gap at its narrowest point. During the non-cutting shaping process, the material is extruded as a function of the shape of the lever such that, under some circumstances, a flat contact between the adjacent surfaces of the side wall and the guiding wall is produced, which is not important, however, for the present invention, because it involves the formation of the inner radius and the free space. The specified relation of the dimensions of the free space and a gap possibly occurring in certain sections of the surfaces of the walls should clarify that, in the area of the transition between the two walls, a minimum wall distance is provided.
Furthermore, the free space should have a width B≧0.6 mm in the area in which the inner radius R connects, while the inner radius R should be ≧0.3 mm. Here, the free space can have a drop-shaped contour, viewed in the cross section of the lever. As already described, this free space extending in the longitudinal direction of the lever extends with the specified drop-shaped contour such that the apex of the acute angle of this drop shape points in the direction of the ends of the side walls. The lever formed according to the invention should be preferably formed as a rocker arm or oscillating arm provided with a roller pocket for a cam roller. In this case, the free space reaches with the inner radius preferably from the end of the rocker arm or oscillating arm provided with the valve stem support into the area of the roller pocket. On the end facing away from the valve stem support, in a lever formed as the rocker arm, a similarly non-cutting shaped dome is provided by which the rocker arm is supported on a support element mounted in the cylinder head.
The task forming the basis of the invention is also met by the features of a method described herein. According to this method, in a first processing step, a blank is punched out from sheet steel, whereupon, in a second processing step, two grooves with an unfinished part radius RR are indented in the longitudinal direction of the blank. Then the blank is shaped in a third processing step for producing its U-shape and in a fourth processing step, the groove is indented into the base wall, wherein, on the two grooves, a transition from each of the side walls to the base wall is created that is formed, due to the indented unfinished part radius RR with an inner radius R and a free space that has a drop-like contour, viewed in cross section of the lever.
In this method according to the invention it is essential that the unfinished part radius RR is already produced in the blank in the area in which, in the subsequent shaping process, that is, in the formation of the groove, the free space with the inner radius R should be. This process enables more accurate and reliable processing with the production of a lever with low additional manufacturing expense in which, in the transition of the side walls into the guiding walls, the resulting stresses can be reduced so that during the subsequent use of the lever in a valve train of an internal combustion engine, no cracks occur in these areas. Thus, the durability of the lever is significantly improved overall.
The invention is not limited to the specified combination of features described below and in the claims. There is also the ability to combine individual features if they emerge from the claims, the advantageous details to the claims, the subsequent description of the embodiments, or at least from the drawings. The reference in the claims to the drawing through corresponding use of reference symbols does not limit the protective scope of the claims.
For further explanation of the invention, reference is made to the drawing in which an embodiment is shown simplified. Shown are:
In
A second end 9 of the rocker arm 1 has a valve stem support 10 with a valve stem support surface 10a. This valve stem support 10 consists of a groove 11 that is slightly wider than a diameter of the not-shown gas exchange valve to be actuated by the rocker arm. As can be seen in
As can be seen in
For a more detailed description of the second end 9 of the rocker arm forming the valve stem support 10, refer to
The other
Then the valve stem support 10 is produced in this blank, which happens through an embossing process. Here, the shape of the rocker arm 1 shown according to
The rocker arm 1 according to the present invention has a high durability, so that the crimped fold formations that occur in the prior art are not produced during the formation of the valve stem support 10 formed as a groove 11 in the region of the transitions 15 and 16 from the side walls 4 and 5 into the guiding walls 12 and 13. Thus, advantageously, the stresses that occur in this region can be minimized so that, according to the invention, the risk of a formation of cracks is significantly reduced.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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10 2013 203 956 | Mar 2013 | DE | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/DE2014/200008 | 1/20/2014 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2014/135159 | 9/12/2014 | WO | A |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
5016582 | Mills | May 1991 | A |
5720245 | Calka | Feb 1998 | A |
Number | Date | Country |
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4133033 | Apr 1992 | DE |
1122408 | Aug 2001 | EP |
200024048 | Sep 2000 | JP |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20160010514 A1 | Jan 2016 | US |