Support element

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10066517-B2
Application number	US-201515308994-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 31, 2015
Priority date	Jun 26, 2014
Publication date	Sep 4, 2018
Grant date	Sep 4, 2018

Abstract

A double-flow hydraulic support element for a switchable finger lever of a valve train of an internal combustion engine is provided. A piston is arranged in an axial bore of the housing of the support element in an axially movable manner, and the piston includes a hollow cylindrical pressure part and a cup-shaped working part. A head of the pressure part is used as a support for the finger lever and projects beyond the housing edge, and an opening for the flow of a hydraulic medium is formed in the end face of the head. The housing has a first passage and a second passage axially spaced from the first passage for the hydraulic medium. The support element has a hydraulic play compensation device with a ball non-return valve for the finger lever. In order to achieve an optimal actuation of the coupling element, a sleeve which is closed on one side is inserted into the pressing part; the closed end of the sleeve reaches the region of an outer annular groove in a sealing manner below the dome-shaped head of the pressing part; a storage space for supplying the play compensation device with the hydraulic medium is formed radially within and axially outside of the sleeve, in the pressure part, and in the working part of the piston; the storage space is connected to the first passage in the housing via a passage opening in the working part; an actuation space formed between the sleeve and the pressure part of the piston for hydraulically supplying the coupling device is connected to the second passage in the housing via a radial passage opening in the pressure part; and the volume of the storage space is substantially greater than the volume of the actuation space.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A double-flow hydraulic support element for a switchable finger lever of a valve train of an internal combustion engine, the support element comprising:
a pot-shaped housing that is installable in a cylinder head of the internal combustion engine,
a piston arranged to move axially in an axial hole of the housing coaxial to a longitudinal center axis of the support element,
the piston comprises a hollow cylindrical pressure part and a pot-shaped work part connected axially to said pressure part,
a head of the pressure part of the piston is used as a support for the switchable finger lever and projects axially past a housing edge,
an opening is formed in an end side of the head of the piston for flow of a hydraulic medium for loading a hydraulically controllable coupling device in the switchable finger lever,
the housing has a first radial passage and axially spaced apart from said first radial passage is a second radial passage for hydraulic medium,
a hydraulic play compensation device for the switchable finger lever is formed on the support element, said play compensation device has a ball retaining valve,
a sleeve closed on one side is inserted and fixed in the pressure part of the piston, a closed end of the sleeve extends into an area of an outer ring groove sealed underneath the head of the pressure part,
a common storage space for supplying the play compensation device with the hydraulic medium is formed radially within the sleeve and axially underneath the sleeve in the pressure part and also in the work part of the piston, the storage space is connected by a first radial passage opening in the work part of the piston to the first radial passage in the housing by a first hydraulic path,
a control space formed between a radial outer side of the sleeve and a radial inner side of the pressure part of the piston for the hydraulic supply of the coupling device in the switchable finger lever is connected by a second radial passage opening in the pressure part of the piston to the second radial passage in the housing by a second hydraulic path, and
a volume of the storage space is larger than a volume of the control space.

2. A support element according to claim 1 , wherein the sleeve has first and second hollow cylindrical sections that each have a different diameter and are connected to each other and spaced apart from each other by an offset section.

3. The support element according to claim 2 , wherein the first hollow cylindrical section of the sleeve forms a hydraulically sealed contact with a radial inner surface of the pressure part of the piston, and an annular space is formed between the second hollow cylindrical section of the sleeve and an axial section of the radial inner surface of the pressure part of the piston.

4. The element according to claim 1 , wherein the first radial passage is connected hydraulically in the housing to the first radial passage opening in the work part of the piston by a first ring gap between the housing and work p art.

5. The support element according to claim 4 , wherein the first ring gap is formed by a first radial widening of the axial hole of the housing and a cylindrical outer surface of the work part.

6. The support element according to claim 5 , wherein the second radial passage is connected hydraulically in the housing to the second radial passage opening in the pressure part of the piston by a second ring gap between the housing and pressure part.

7. The support element according to claim 6 , wherein the second ring gap is formed by a second radial widening of the axial hole of the housing and a cylindrical outer surface of the pressure part.

8. The support element according to claim 1 , wherein the first radial passage in the housing and the first radial passage opening in the work part of the piston and the radial second passage in the housing and the second radial passage opening in the pressure part of the piston are each offset axially relative to each other without axial overlap.

9. The support element according to claim 1 , further comprising a securing ring arranged between a shoulder formed on the axial hole of the housing and a shoulder formed on an outer surface of the pressure part.

10. The support element according to claim 1 , wherein the volume of the storage space is greater than the volume of the control space by at least 50%.

11. The support element according to claim 10 , wherein the volume of the storage space is greater than the volume of the control space by 50% to 180%.

Assignees

• Schaeffler Technologies Ag

Inventors

• Kretschmer Jurgen
• Sailer Peter
• Christgen Wolfgang
• Kugler Michael
• Tovar Jochen
• Schafer Max

Classifications

• F01L1/2405 Primary

  by means of a hydraulic adjusting device located between the cylinder head and rocker arm · CPC title

• F01L1/14

  Tappets {(hydraulic tappets for automatically adjusting or compensating clearance F01L1/24)}; Push rods · CPC title

• F01L13/0005 Primary

  Deactivating valves · CPC title

• F01L1/46

  Component parts, details, or accessories, not provided for in preceding subgroups · CPC title

• F01L2001/2444

  Details relating to the hydraulic feeding circuit, e.g. lifter oil manifold assembly [LOMA] · CPC title