JP2006152832A - Oil line fetch structure for oil cooler - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily mount and replace the thermostat of an oil cooler. <P>SOLUTION: A fetch port 1 for extracting oil from a lubricating oil line and a return port 2 for returning the oil to the lubricating oil line are formed in the crankcase cover 6 of an engine E mounted on a motorcycle. An oil passage 21 leading to the fetch port 1 is allowed to communicate with an oil passage 22 leading to the return port 2 through a communication part 20. A thermostat 30 opening and closing the communication part 20 by sensing the temperature of the oil is detachably installed at the communication part 20 from the outside of the engine E. The oil can be circulatingly fed to the oil cooler 10 through the fetch port 1 and the return port 2 by replacing the pre-fitted crankcase cover with a crankcase cover 6 having the fetch port 1, the return port 2, and the communication part 20. Also, the thermostat 30 is securely fixed to the engine E integrally with each other, and its mounting and replacement can also be easily performed. In addition, the aesthetic appearance of connection hoses 11 and 12 can be improved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an oil line take-out structure to an oil cooler that is mounted to cool engine oil.

  In general, an engine lubrication device called a pressure-feed type or a pressure-and-spray type is configured such that, for example, engine oil stored in an oil pan 3 located at the bottom of the engine E is linked to a crankshaft 9 as shown in FIG. The oil is sucked up by the operating oil pump 8, and the oil is supplied to each part of the engine by the hydraulic pressure. The engine oil supplied to each part of the engine is circulated again to the oil pan 3 and is lubricated (oil line). ). The oil line is provided with a replaceable oil filter (not shown in FIG. 6) at an appropriate position so that foreign matters contained in the circulating oil can be removed.

  Moreover, an oil cooler may be provided in this oil line as needed. This is because if the engine oil becomes high temperature, the viscosity becomes soft and the oil film forming function is lowered, and sludge generation and oil deterioration are caused, which is not preferable, and excessive temperature rise is suppressed.

  When installing an oil cooler, as shown in FIG. 7 (a), an oil extraction outlet 1 and an oil return return 2 that are not in communication with each other are provided at any position on the oil line. A method of connecting the hoses 11 and 12 drawn from the core of the oil cooler 10 to the respective ports 1 and 2 is generally used. According to this method, the oil led out from the take-out port 1 toward the oil cooler 10 is cooled in the core of the oil cooler 10, and the cooled oil returns to the original oil line through the return port 2. Has been circulating.

In addition, a thermostat is attached as necessary to prevent overcooling of the oil by the oil cooler at the time of starting the engine or during winter operation. For example, as shown in FIG. 7A, the thermostat is a thermostat (thermo valve unit) provided between a hose 11 going from the take-out port 1 to the oil cooler 10 and a hose 12 going from the oil cooler 10 to the return port 2. 40) is used. As shown in FIGS. 7B and 7C, the thermo valve unit 40 has a route 42 for short-circuiting the hoses 11 and 12, and the short-circuit route 42 senses the oil temperature and operates. A thermo valve 41 is provided. When the oil temperature is low, the thermo valve 41 opens the short-circuit route 42 to circulate the oil, so that a large amount of oil does not flow through the oil cooler 10. Further, when the oil temperature becomes high, the short circuit route 42 is closed and the oil cooler 10 is supplied with oil. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-144521 (FIG. 8-10, page 6)

In many automobile-mounted engines, a mounting hole for a cartridge-type oil filter is provided outside the cylinder side, and the oil filter can be easily connected to the oil line through the mounting hole. Yes. For this reason, a technique is disclosed in which a thermo valve unit having a take-out port and a return port for mounting an oil cooler is interposed between the cartridge-type oil filter and the mounting hole (for example, Patent Document 2). reference).
JP-A-9-137706

  However, in a motorcycle-mounted engine, when the thermostat (thermo valve unit 40) of Patent Document 1 is used, the take-out port 1 and the return port 2 provided in the engine E and the frame F are provided in the frame F as shown in FIG. The thermo valve unit 40 is interposed in the middle of the hoses 11 and 12 that connect the fixed oil cooler 10. For this reason, the connection location of a hose increases, and since installation of not only the thermostat but the oil cooler 10 becomes very complicated, it is not preferable.

  Further, since the thermo valve unit 40 is always maintained in a suspended state via the hoses 11 and 12, the unit 40 has a problem that vibrations of the vehicle body are further amplified and transmitted to cause a failure. Furthermore, since the thermo valve unit 40 is provided so as to be exposed to the outside of the engine E, a foreign object or a cylinder block main body may come into contact with the unit 40 and give an impact during traveling. Moreover, since the thermo valve unit 40 exposed to the outside is interposed, the portions where the hoses 11 and 12 are routed are not clean in appearance.

  Further, when the thermo valve 41 or the entire unit 40 is removed from the hoses 11 and 12 in order to replace the thermostat, the hoses 11 and 12 are shaken during the removing operation, so that the engine remaining in the oil cooler 10 Oil leaks from the removed part. For this reason, when exchanging the thermostat, it is necessary to open the drain bolt in advance to completely drain all engine oil, which is troublesome.

  In general, engines mounted on motorcycles such as motorcycles and motorbikes are equipped with an oil filter in the crankcase so that they are not exposed to the outside. The thermo valve unit described in Patent Document 2 on the premise of the oil filter cannot be used.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to reduce the occurrence of a failure of a thermostat that adjusts the supply of oil to an oil cooler, and to facilitate the mounting and replacement of the thermostat.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention is provided with an oil line outlet and a return port in the crankcase cover, and a thermostat is detachably attached between the outlet and the return port. Since the crankcase cover is easily attached to and detached from the engine, the crankcase of an existing engine, for example, an engine not equipped with an oil cooler or an engine equipped with an oil cooler and not having a thermostat function, etc. By replacing the case cover with the crankcase cover provided with the take-out port, the return port, and the thermostat, the engine can easily be equipped with a thermostat and an oil cooler corresponding to the thermostat function. Further, since the thickness of the crankcase cover can be freely set at the time of production, there is an advantage that it is easy to secure a space for mounting the thermostat if the thickness of the oil line peripheral portion in the cover is increased.

  Further, according to this configuration, the attached thermostat is firmly fixed integrally with the engine, so that the influence of vibration and external force is reduced, and the occurrence of failure can be eliminated. Furthermore, since the number of hose connection points is reduced, the oil cooler can be easily connected, and it is not necessary to touch the hose when the thermostat is attached or replaced. Therefore, the thermostat can be easily attached or replaced.

  Since the present invention is configured as described above, it is possible to reduce the failure of the thermostat and facilitate the mounting and replacement thereof.

  As a specific embodiment of the above means, an oil outlet outlet and an oil return outlet are formed in a lubricating oil line of a motorcycle engine, and the oil line is connected to the oil line via the outlet and outlet. In the oil cooler oil line take-out structure in which the circulating lubricating oil can be circulated and supplied to the oil cooler, a part of the lubricating oil line is formed in a crankcase cover that closes a side surface of the crankcase of the engine. The take-out port and the return port are provided in the crankcase cover, and an oil passage that communicates with the take-out port and an oil passage that communicates with the return port are communicated with each other through a communicating portion in the crankcase cover. A thermostat that senses an oil temperature above a certain temperature and closes the communicating part and senses an oil temperature below a certain temperature and opens the communicating part is detachably provided from the outside of the crankcase cover. Is.

  In this way, the thermostat can be firmly fixed integrally with the engine to prevent the occurrence of a failure, and the hose is provided between the oil outlet and the oil return outlet and the oil cooler. Since it can be directly connected, the connection is easy and the appearance is neat. In addition, it is not necessary to touch the oil cooler connection hose when installing or replacing the thermostat.

  In addition, by replacing the preinstalled crankcase cover with a crankcase cover equipped with the take-out port, return port, communication portion, etc., an oil cooler can be easily attached and a thermostat function can be added. become. According to this method, an oil cooler and a thermostat function can be easily used even in a vehicle shipped without an oil cooler from a manufacturer, particularly in a vehicle in which the extraction port and the return port are not formed in advance in the engine. Will be able to wear.

  In the above configuration, if the thermostat is provided above the oil level position in the crankcase when the engine is stopped, oil leakage when the thermostat is removed can be prevented more reliably. Furthermore, if the thermostat is provided above the take-out port and return port, the oil remaining in the oil cooler core and the connecting hose after the engine has stopped is directly passed through the oil pan without passing through the thermostat mounting part. The oil will not leak because it will fall.

  One embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The oil cooler oil line take-out structure of this embodiment is provided in the middle of the lubricating oil line of the engine E so that the oil cooler can be attached to the four-cycle engine E mounted on a motorcycle. In the lubricating oil line, the lubricating engine oil stored on the oil pan 3 located below the cylinder block 4 and the crankcase 5 is interlocked with the rotation of the crankshaft 9 as in the conventional example shown in FIG. Thus, the oil is sucked up by the oil pump 8 that operates, and the oil is divided into two upper and lower routes to be supplied to each part of the engine E by its hydraulic pressure.

  One route is a route from the oil pump 8 to the upper side of the engine E. The camshaft and the like are lubricated through the cylinder head 7 and the block 4 and the like are cooled through an oil passage around the cylinder block 4. After that, it falls to the oil pan 3. The other route is a route from the oil pump 8 toward the lower side of the engine E, and lubricates and cools the inside of the cylinder and the piston through an oil passage D formed in the crankcase 5, and then to the oil pan 3. Each oil line is falling down.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the oil line heading downward from the engine E has an oil passage D formed in a crankcase cover (clutch cover) 6 that closes the side surface of the crankcase 5, as shown in FIG. 2. A space 15 for storing an oil filter is formed in the middle of the oil passage D. By storing the oil filter 13 in the space 15 and closing it with the lid 14, foreign matters contained in the oil can be removed by the oil filter 13 when the oil passes through the oil passage D and the space 15. Yes.

  An oil outlet lead-out port 1 and an oil return port 2 are formed in an oil passage D in the clan case cover 6. As shown in FIG. 1A, the oil passage D in the crankcase cover 6 is provided with an oil passage 21 leading to the take-out port 1 and an oil passage 22 leading to the return port 2 in parallel. The communication section 20 communicates between the two oil passages 21 and 22. An oil passage 21 that communicates with the take-out port 1 communicates with an introduction portion 23 that communicates with the oil pump 8, and oil is supplied into the oil passage D from the introduction portion 23. The space 15 communicates with the oil passage 22 communicating with the return port 2, and the oil passage D is formed in the crankcase cover 6 as a whole.

  As shown in FIG. 1A, the communication portion 20 is provided orthogonal to the oil passage 21 and the oil passage 22, and the back portion 24 on the oil passage 21 side of the communication portion 20 is closed. In addition, the oil passage 22 side has an opening 25 that extends on the concentric shaft and reaches the outer surface of the crankcase cover 6.

  The thermo valve 31 shown in FIG. 3 is screwed into the opening 25 and fixed. The thermo valve 31 senses an oil temperature above a certain temperature by the action of springs 32 and 34 made of a shape memory alloy, closes the communicating portion 20, senses an oil temperature below a certain temperature, and senses the oil temperature below a certain temperature. The thermostat 30 which functions to open 20 and opens and closes the communication unit 20 is configured. The thermo valve 31 is screwed into the opening 25 from the outside of the engine E to close the opening 25 in a liquid-tight manner, and the tip of the thermo valve 31 reaches the inner part 24. When the thermo valve 31 is turned in the opposite direction, the opening 25 is closed. It is provided so that it can be detached from the crankcase cover 6 as appropriate.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the oil cooler 10 is fixed to the frame F of the vehicle body immediately behind the front wheels of the motorcycle and in front of the engine E. In order to circulate and supply engine oil to the oil cooler 10, as shown in FIG. 2, a pair of connection hoses 11 and 12 of the oil cooler 10 are connected to the take-out port 1 and the return port 2, respectively. It has become.

  The operation of the oil line take-out structure for the oil cooler will be described. As shown in FIG. 5A, in the state where the engine oil has not yet warmed, the thermo valve 31 is compressed by the spring 32 and the spring 34 is expanded. The body 33 is slightly retracted, and the communication part 20 is in an open state. In this state, the oil supplied by the oil pump 8 branches from the oil passage 21 to the communication portion 20 and the hose 11 of the oil cooler 10. At this time, the core of the oil cooler 10 is composed of a large number of fins, and the flow path is very thin in each fin. Therefore, the flow resistance of the oil line toward the oil cooler 10 is large, and almost all The engine oil is supplied to the oil passage 22 and the oil filter 13 in the space 15 through the communication portion 20 having a relatively low flow resistance. For this reason, engine oil does not receive the air cooling effect by the oil cooler 10 so much, and overcooling of the engine oil is prevented.

  When the engine oil warms up and exceeds a predetermined temperature, as shown in FIG. 5B, the thermo valve 31 is extended by the spring 32 and the spring 34 is contracted and the valve body 33 is advanced. It becomes a closed state. In this state, the oil supplied by the oil pump 8 is led out from the oil passage 21 through the take-out port 1 and supplied to the oil cooler 10 through the hose 11. The oil cooled by the oil cooler 10 is returned to the return port 2 through the other hose 12 and supplied to the oil filter 13 in the oil passage 22 and the space 15. For this reason, the engine oil is cooled by being largely subjected to the air cooling effect by the oil cooler 10 and supplied to each part of the engine E.

  Thus, by providing the outlet 1 and the return port 2, the oil passages 21 and 22, and the communication portion 20 in the crankcase cover 6, the thermostat 30 is firmly and integrally attached to the crankcase cover 6. And fixed to the engine E. For this reason, unlike the case where the thermostat 40 of the conventional example is interposed in the middle of the hose, it is less likely that the thermostat is broken or damaged due to vibration during traveling or collision with a foreign object or the engine body. Further, the thermostat 30 is housed in the crankcase cover 6 so that the appearance of the engine E and the whole motorcycle becomes smart.

  Moreover, since the thermostat 30 is detachable with respect to the crankcase cover 6, even if a malfunction occurs, only the thermostat 30 can be easily replaced. At the time of this replacement, it is only necessary to replace the thermo valve 31 constituting the thermostat 30 without attaching or detaching the hoses 11 and 12, so that it is not necessary to touch the oil cooler 10 or its connecting hoses 11 and 12 at all. It is.

  Further, in this replacement work, for example, oil remaining in the core of the oil cooler or in the connection hose after the engine is stopped may fall toward the oil pan 3 when the thermostat 30 is removed. At this time, according to this oil line take-out structure, the engine oil falls directly from the take-out port 1 and the return port 2 to the oil pan 3 through the introduction portion 23 without passing through the mounting portion of the thermostat 30, so that the opening 25 Oil does not leak from At that time, if the vehicle body side of the two-wheeled vehicle on which the crankcase cover 6 is attached is raised in a direction that is slightly inclined upward, the oil level of the engine oil accumulated on the oil pan 3 and the opening 25 Since the position is further away, it is more effective in preventing oil leakage.

  In addition, when providing this oil line take-out structure in a motorcycle, by replacing the crankcase cover that is mounted in advance with the crankcase cover 6 equipped with the take-out port and the return port, the communication portion, etc., Easy to install thermostat function and oil cooler. Since the thickness of the crankcase cover can be set relatively freely at the time of production, if the oil line peripheral portion in the cover is made thicker, a thermostat mounting space (from the back 24 to the opening 25) can be set. There is an advantage that the communication part 20) can be easily secured. At this time, as compared with the existing crankcase cover 6, if the thickness of the member is increased outward, the space in the crankcase 5 is not narrowed. Further, if the crankcase cover 6 protrudes excessively to the side with respect to the vehicle body, if the vehicle body tilts when the two-wheeled vehicle turns a corner, the protruding portion of the cover 6 may be grounded to the road surface, which is not preferable. However, if the take-out port 1, the return port 2, and the communication portion 20 are provided below the space 15 for storing the oil filter 13 shown in FIG. 2 as in this embodiment, a large protruding portion is not formed. It is easy to secure the space.

  A motorcycle that can be equipped with an oil cooler and a thermostat function through the oil line take-out structure by the crankcase cover 6 is a vehicle that does not have the take-out port and the return port shipped from a manufacturer without an oil cooler. The vehicle may be a vehicle in which the outlet and the return port are provided in any place in advance. When the thermostat function is unnecessary, it is sufficient to remove the thermo valve 31 and attach a predetermined bolt to close the opening 25 in a liquid-tight manner.

  In this embodiment, the oil line take-out structure for the oil cooler is provided in the crankcase cover 6, but as a reference example other than this embodiment, for example, in the middle of the oil line from the oil pump 8 into the crankcase 5 You may provide in arbitrary positions. Further, a method of configuring the oil line take-out structure for the oil cooler by providing the take-out port, the return port, the communication portion, and the like on the cylinder side, the cylinder head, or the oil pan is also conceivable.

The crankcase cover of one Example is shown, (a) is a cut side view, (b) is a front view. The exploded perspective view which shows the oil line taking-out structure of the Example Detailed view of thermostat Overall view of a motorcycle having an oil line take-out structure of the embodiment Sectional drawing which shows the effect | action of the oil-line extraction structure of the Example Sectional drawing which shows the effect | action of the oil-line extraction structure of the Example Explanatory drawing showing a conventional oil line for lubrication Explanatory drawing which shows the attachment state of the thermo valve unit of a prior art example

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Outlet 2 Return port 3 Oil pan 4 Cylinder block 5 Crankcase 6 Crankcase cover 7 Cylinder head 8 Oil pump 9 Crankshaft 10 Oil cooler 11, 12 Hose 13 Oil filter 14 Lid 15 Space 16 Confirmation window 20 Communication part 21, 22 Oil passage 23 Introduction portion 24 Back portion 25 Opening 30, 40 Thermostat 31, 41 Thermo valve 32 Spring 33 Valve element D Oil passage E Engine F Frame

Claims (3)

An oil outlet outlet 1 and an oil return outlet 2 are formed in the lubricating oil line of the motorcycle engine E, and the lubricating oil flowing through the oil line through the outlet 1 and the return outlet 2 is formed. In the oil line take-out structure for the oil cooler that allows oil to be circulated and supplied to the oil cooler 10,
A part of the lubricating oil line is formed in a crankcase cover 6 that closes a side surface of the crankcase 5 of the engine E, and the take-out port 1 and the return port 2 are provided in the crankcase cover 6, and the take-out is performed. An oil passage 21 that communicates with the port 1 and an oil passage 22 that communicates with the return port 2 are communicated with each other through a communication portion 20 in the crankcase cover 6. An oil line take-out structure for an oil cooler characterized in that a thermostat 30 that closes the communication part 20 and detects the oil temperature below a certain temperature and opens the communication part 20 is detachable from the outside of the crankcase cover 6. . 2. The oil line take-out structure for an oil cooler according to claim 1, wherein the thermostat is provided above an oil level position in the crankcase when the engine is stopped. The oil line take-out structure for an oil cooler according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the thermostat (30) is provided above the take-out port (1) and the return port (2).

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