Patent Application
20160194988
The present disclosure relates to a crankcase ventilation system for an engine. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a housing for the crankcase ventilation system of the engine.
Internal combustion engines typically employ crankcase ventilation (CV) systems to provide ventilation of blow-by gases generated during combustion process from the crankcase to a turbocharger and/or to atmosphere. Components of the crankcase ventilation system may generally be directly or indirectly exposed to atmosphere and as such may be susceptible to direct impact of prevailing weather conditions such as ambient temperature.
In cold weather conditions, the CV system may be susceptible to heat loss to the atmosphere. In such a situation, if the blow-by gases are overcooled, the water vapor entrained in the blow-by gases may condense. This condensed water vapor may further mix with oil and generate an oil-water emulsion. Additionally, if further cooled, the condensed vapor and/or the oil-water emulsion may freeze. This may result in a failure mode by restricting flow of blow-by gases within the crankcase ventilation system, in turn causing high pressure within the crankcase ventilation system. Also emulsion and freezing can cause high pressure within the crankcase of the engine. The CV system is intended to maintain crankcase pressure within allowable limits, otherwise it may lead to crankcase failure.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,537,000 describes an engine with a breather apparatus introducing a blow-by gas to an intake passage of the engine via a blow-by gas passage. The apparatus includes a breather heater provided within a breather tube of a blow-by gas passage corresponding to an external portion of the engine. The breather tube has a slot formed by passing through a wall portion of the breather tube. The breather heater is incorporated into the breather tube by passing through the slot from outside of the breather tube so as to protrude into a blow-by gas passing cavity formed within the breather tube. The breather heater is provided with a heater case formed of a thermally conductive material accommodating a heating element and one end of a heat radiating body is joined to the heater case. The engine is provided with a tubular heat insulator covering at least the slot in an outer periphery of the breather tube.
However, addition of insulation or heating means to selected individual components of the crankcase ventilation system may be traditionally costly, require frequent maintenance, and have sub-optimal operational performance. Hence, there is a need for an improved insulation means for the CV system.
In an aspect of the present disclosure, a housing for a crankcase ventilation system of an engine is provided. The housing includes a plurality of walls connected together and having an outer surface and an inner surface. The inner surface of the plurality of walls defines a central cavity therewithin. The central cavity is adapted to enclose at least a portion of each of a Valve Cover Integrated Breather (VCIB), an oil mist separator, and an inlet line connecting the VCIB and the oil mist separator. The housing also includes a coupling mechanism provided on one of the plurality of walls to mount the housing to the engine.
Other features and aspects of this disclosure will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.
Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or the like parts. Referring to
The engine 10 includes a frame 12. The frame 12 is configured to support various components of the engine 10 such as an engine block, a crankcase, a cylinder head, a fuel system, an air system, a cooling system, a turbocharger, an exhaust gas recirculation system, an exhaust aftertreatment system, other peripheries, and so on. Also, the engine 10 may be of any size including one or more cylinders arranged in any configuration such as inline, radial, “V”, and so on.
Referring to
The CV system also includes an inlet line 20 fluidly connected between the VCIB 16 and an oil mist separator 22. The inlet line 20 is configured to provide a fluid passage to the partially filtered oil from the VCIB 16 to the oil mist separator 22. The CV system includes the oil mist separator 22 affixed to the VCIB 16. The oil mist separator 22 is affixed to the VCIB 16 by any known fastening means such as bolting, riveting, welding, and so on. The oil mist separator 22 is configured to provide further filtration of the partially filtered oil received from the VCIB 16.
Referring to
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The housing 24 also includes a third wall 40. The third wall 40 includes an inner surface 42 and an outer surface 44. The third wall 40 is disposed substantially perpendicular to the first and second walls 28, 34. In other embodiments, the third wall 40 may be disposed at any angle with respect to the first and second walls 28, 34.
The third wall 40 has a stepped configuration defining a first stepped portion 46, a second stepped portion 48, and a third stepped portion 50. In other embodiments, the third wall 40 may include any number of stepped portions. The first, second, and third stepped portions 46, 48, 50 are configured to enclose various components of the CV system 14 and will be explained later in more detail.
The housing 24 includes a fourth wall 52. The fourth wall 52 has a flat and planar configuration defining an inner surface 54 and an outer surface 56. In other embodiments, the shape and dimensions of the fourth wall 52 may vary. The third and fourth walls 40, 52 are disposed spaced apart and substantially parallel to one another. Also, the fourth wall 52 is disposed substantially perpendicular to the first and/or second walls 28, 34. In other embodiments, the third and fourth walls 40, 52 may be disposed at any angle with respect to one another and/or the first and second walls 28, 34. It should be noted that an orientation of the third and fourth walls 40, 52 with respect to one another and/or the first and second walls 28, 34 illustrated herein is merely exemplary and does not limit the scope of the disclosure.
The housing 24 also includes a top wall 58. The top wall 58 includes an angular configuration defining an inner surface (not shown) and an outer surface 60. The top wall 58 is disposed in a manner such that each of the first wall 28, the second wall 34, the third wall 40, and the fourth wall 52 are in connection with the top wall 58. The housing 24 further includes a bottom wall 62. The bottom wall 62 has an angular configuration defining an inner surface 64 and an outer surface 66. The bottom wall 62 is disposed in a manner such that each of the first wall 28, the second wall 34, the third wall 40, and the fourth wall 52 are in connection with the bottom wall 62.
The inner surface 30 of the first wall 28, the inner surface 36 of the second wall 34, the inner surface 42 of the third wall 40, the inner surface 54 of the fourth wall 52, the inner surface of the top wall 58, and the inner surface 64 of the bottom wall 62 defines a hollow, central cavity 68. The central cavity 68 is configured to enclose at least a portion of the CV system therewithin. The shape of the housing 24 is such that the multiple components of the CV system, including the VCIB 16, the oil mist separator 22, and the inlet line 20 are received therewithin. The housing 24 is configured to insulate the multiple components of the CV system.
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Each of the walls 26 including the first wall 28, the second wall 34, the third wall 40, the fourth wall 52, the top wall 58, and the bottom wall 62 are connected to one another by any known method such as adhesion, sewing, bolting, stapling, riveting, and so on. In other embodiments, the housing 24 may be formed as a single integral component by additive manufacturing process, casting, molding, and so on. The housing 24 may be made of any material known in the art including, but not limited to, TEFLON, fiber glass, glass wool, foam, polystyrene, and other polymers. A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the description of the housing 24 provided herein does not limit the scope of the present disclosure. The shape and dimensions of the housing 24 may vary based on that of the CV system 14.
The present disclosure relates to the housing 24 for the components of the CV system 14. More specifically, the housing 24 is configured to insulate the CV system 14 including the VCIB 16, the heater 18, the inlet line 20, and the oil mist separator 22 from low ambient temperatures. Moreover, the housing 24 also traps heat rejection from cylinder heads of the engine 10. As a result, freezing of water vapor and/or oil-water emulsion present within the CV system 14 may be minimized or prevented. Also, the housing 24 may be positioned in such a manner over core engine components, that the housing 24 may entrap heat generated by the heater 18 and/or other engine components around the CV system 14 within the housing 24. This may minimize or reduce undesired heat loss to atmosphere and improve efficiency of the heater 18 and/or the CV system 14.
Further, the heater 18 located within the housing 24 may further minimize heat loss, and in some cases, during operation, may heat the blow-by gas within the CV system 14. In one example, the heater 18 includes an electrical resistive heater which when vulcanized to the components of the CV system 14 made of aluminum may prove to be very effective. In one situation, the housing 24 may ensure that a temperature of the multiple components of the CV system 14 enclosed therewithin remains above the dew point temperature of the blow-by gas during operation of the engine 10 in cold ambient temperatures. Further, in another situation, the heater 18 used together with the housing 24 may ensure that the temperature of the multiple components of the CV system 14 enclosed therewithin remains above the dew point temperature of the blow-by gas during operation of the engine 10 in cold ambient temperatures.
Additionally, an overall shape of the housing 24 is configured to provide a tailor-made enclosure for the CV system 14 such that the housing 24 may be modified to receive any arrangement of the CV system 14 therewithin. As such, the housing 24 may include angled surfaces, chamfered/beveled edges, depressions/contours on surfaces, cutouts, stepped portions and so on to conform the central cavity 68 to an overall shape of the CV system 14. As a result, the housing 24 may provide a minimum footprint around the CV system 14 while still providing a maximum enclosure area, resulting in a cost efficient and a space efficient design of the housing 24.
While aspects of the present disclosure have been particularly shown and described with reference to the embodiments above, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various additional embodiments may be contemplated by the modification of the disclosed machines, systems and methods without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Such embodiments should be understood to fall within the scope of the present disclosure as determined based upon the claims and any equivalents thereof.
