Balancer device for internal combustion engine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9816582-B2
Application number	US-201514884249-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 15, 2015
Priority date	Nov 11, 2014
Publication date	Nov 14, 2017
Grant date	Nov 14, 2017

Abstract

A balancer device includes a housing fixed to an internal combustion engine, a roller bearing disposed in the housing, a balancer shaft rotatably supported in the housing by the roller bearing, a balancer weight integrally mounted on the balancer shaft and rotatably accommodated in an weight accommodation room of the housing, an introduction part that introduces a lubricating oil from the outside to the inside of the weight accommodation room, and a discharge part that provides communication between the inside and the outside of the weight accommodation room and discharges the lubricating oil from the inside of the weight accommodation room, wherein herein the roller bearing is arranged to face the weight accommodation room.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A balancer device for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
a housing fixed to the internal combustion engine and defining therein a weight accommodation room;
at least one roller bearing disposed in the housing;
a balancer shaft rotatably supported in the housing by the at least one roller bearing;
a balancer weight integrally mounted on the balancer shaft and rotatably accommodated in the weight accommodation room;
an introduction part that introduces a lubricating oil from an outside of the housing to an inside of the weight accommodation room; and
a discharge part that provides communication between the inside and an outside of the weight accommodation room and discharges the lubricating oil from the inside of the weight accommodation room,
wherein the at least one roller bearing is arranged to face the weight accommodation room,
wherein the housing includes a pair of front and rear side walls extending in a width direction of the internal combustion engine and a circumferential wall formed between the side walls such that the weight accommodation room is defined by the side walls and the circumferential wall,
wherein the housing has a collection groove formed in an inner circumferential surface of a lower side of the circumferential wall with respect to a direction of gravity so as to collect the lubricating oil in the collection groove, and

wherein the balancer weight has a protrusion formed thereon in a rotation direction of the balancer weight along the collection groove.

2. The balancer device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the introduction part provides communication between the inside and the outside of the weight accommodation room.

3. The balancer device according to claim 2 ,
wherein the introduction part has an introduction hole opened at an upper side of the circumferential wall, and
wherein the discharge part has a discharge hole opened at a lateral side of the circumferential wall along an axial direction of the balancer shaft.

4. The balancer device according to claim 3 ,
wherein the at least one roller bearing includes roller bearings disposed in the respective side walls of the housing, and
wherein the introduction part has introduction holes formed in regions of the circumferential wall within the vicinity of the respective roller bearings.

5. The balancer device according to claim 4 ,
wherein the housing has chamfered surfaces formed on boundaries between an inner circumferential surface of the upper side of the circumferential wall and wall surfaces of the side walls, the chamfered surfaces being inclined downwardly toward the side walls, and
wherein lower opening edges of the introduction holes are connected to the chamfered surfaces.

6. The balancer device according to claim 3 ,
wherein the internal combustion engine has an oil pan that stores therein the lubricating oil to circulate to the internal combustion engine, and
wherein the housing is located inside the oil pan.

7. The balancer device according to claim 6 ,
wherein the introduction hole is arranged at a higher position than an oil surface of the lubricating oil in the oil pan.

8. The balancer device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the inner circumferential surface of the lower side of the circumferential wall includes a surface area inclined downwardly toward the collection groove.

9. The balancer device according to claim 8 ,
wherein the at least one roller bearing includes roller bearings disposed in the respective side walls of the housing,
wherein the collection groove is arranged at a substantially middle position of the weight accommodation room in the axial direction of the balancer shaft.

10. The balancer device according to claim 9 ,
wherein the introduction hole and the collection groove are arranged at the same position of the weight accommodation room or within the vicinity of each other in the axial direction of the balancer shaft.

11. The balancer device according to claim 1
wherein the collection groove is formed in a region of the circumferential wall within the vicinity of the at least one roller bearing.

12. The balancer device according to claim 11 ,
wherein the protrusion has an outer circumferential surface inclined downwardly toward the at least one roller bearing.

13. The balancer device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the protrusion has a concave groove formed in an outer circumferential surface thereof.

14. The balancer device according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a filter member disposed in the introduction part so as to remove a foreign substance from the lubricating oil.

15. A balancer device for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
a housing fixed to the internal combustion engine and defining therein a weight accommodation room;
a roller bearing disposed in the housing;
a balancer shaft rotatably supported in the housing by the roller bearing;
a balancer weight integrally mounted on the balancer shaft and rotatably accommodated in the weight accommodation room;
an introduction part having a main oil passage formed in the balancer shaft and extending along a longitudinal axis of the balancer shaft, and a branch oil passage formed in the balancer shaft and branched off from the main oil passage with respect to the longitudinal axis of the balancer shaft, such that the introduction part allows free flow of a lubricating oil from an outside of the housing and introduces the lubricating oil to the roller bearing via the main oil passage and the branch oil passage; and
a discharge part that provides communication between an inside and an outside of the weight accommodation room and discharges the lubricating oil from the inside of the weight accommodation room.

16. The balancer device according to claim 15 ,
wherein the introduction part has a reservoir being in communication with an axial end portion of the roller bearing so as to store therein the lubricating oil for introduction to the roller bearing.

17. The balancer device according to claim 16 ,
wherein the introduction part has an introduction hole opened at an upper side of the housing and being in communication with the reservoir; and
wherein a clearance on a side of the reservoir opposite from the roller bearing is arranged such that part of the lubricating oil stored in the reservoir is discharged out through the clearance.

18. A balancer device for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
a housing fixed to the internal combustion engine and defining therein a weight accommodation room;
needle bearings disposed in the housing;
drive- and driven-side balancer shafts rotatably supported in the housing by the needle bearings such that the drive-side balancer shaft is rotated by rotation of a crankshaft of the internal combustion engine and such that the driven-side balancer shaft is rotated by rotation of the drive-side balancer shaft;
balancer weights integrally mounted on the drive- and driven-side balancer shafts and rotatably accommodated in the weight accommodation room with one or both end sides of the balancer weights being supported by the needle bearings;
an introduction part that introduces a lubricating oil to the weight accommodation room from an outside of the housing; and
a discharge part that provides communication between an inside and an outside of the weight accommodation room and discharges the lubricating oil from the inside of the weight accommodation room,
wherein the needle bearings are arranged to face the weight accommodation room
wherein the housing

Assignees

• Hitachi Automotive Systems Ltd

Inventors

• Okabe Harunobu
• Matsuo Masatoshi
• Todo Tamotsu
• Saito Masaharu
• Niwata Dai
• Kabasawa Hiroaki

Classifications

• F16F2230/32

  Modular design · CPC title

• F16F15/267 Primary

  characterised by bearing support of balancer shafts; Lubrication arrangements · CPC title

• F16F15/264 Primary

  Rotating balancer shafts (F16F15/262 takes precedence) · CPC title