JPH0159450B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention has an outer circumference as a drive side, a fixed shaft member installed in the center, and a rotor in an operating chamber fixed to a cooling fan to control the rotation speed of the fan. The present invention relates to a viscous fluid coupling.

Conventional fluid couplings of this type have a configuration in which the driving side is located at the center and the driven side is located at the outer periphery. In addition, because the number of revolutions on the driven side is necessarily lower than the number of revolutions on the driving side due to the function of the fluid coupling, the frictional heat generated by the frictional resistance of the viscous fluid in the working chamber is efficiently dissipated. I couldn't do it. Furthermore, conventionally, a control unit has been provided that senses the water temperature in the radiator, opens and closes a valve mechanism, and ultimately controls the rotational speed of the cooling fan. However, in the past, this control unit had to be attached to a rotating member, so
Installation was complicated and time consuming, and there were problems with durability. Furthermore, in conventional cases, since the entire device rotates, it is necessary to prepare a separate fixing member.

In view of the above-mentioned drawbacks of the conventional device, the present invention transmits the driving force from the engine to the case and cover located on the outer periphery of the device of the present invention, and installs a rotor in the working chamber formed inside to prevent viscous fluid. A valve mechanism is provided in the middle of a passage communicating between the working chamber and a separately provided storage chamber so as to be able to rotate only when the valve exists in the working chamber, and the valve mechanism is activated by sensing the water temperature of the radiator. The above-mentioned drawbacks of the conventional device are attempted to be overcome by installing a control section for opening and closing within a fixed shaft member.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Embodiment 1 In FIG. 1, a V-belt 1 for transmitting driving force from an engine is fitted into a V-groove 2a of a pulley 2. The pulley 2 is fixed to a case 4 by a plurality of bolts 3, and the case 4 is caulked and fixed 6 to the outer periphery of a cover 5. An O-ring 7 for preventing oil leakage is incorporated into the outer peripheral portion. A plurality of heat dissipation fins 4a are provided on the outer periphery of the case 4.
is formed. A working chamber 8 is formed inside by the case 4 and the cover 5, and a viscous fluid (for example, silicone oil) is sealed inside the working chamber 8. Three annular protrusions 5a are formed on the cover 5 so as to protrude into the working chamber 8, and two annular protrusions 9a of the rotor 9 are disposed adjacent to the protrusions 5a. There is. The rotor 9 is caulked 10a to a connecting member 10 at its inner peripheral portion, and the connecting member 10 is secured to an engine cooling fan (not shown) through a plurality of attachment holes 10b. A first ball bearing 11 is fitted between the cover 5 and the connecting member 10. Therefore, the pulley 2, case 4, and cover 5 rotate integrally at the same number of rotations, but the rotor 9, the connecting member 10, and the fan (not shown) rotate at a different number of rotations from the above-mentioned number of rotations.

On the other hand, a shaft member 12 is located at the center of the pulley 2.
The shaft member 12 does not rotate because it is fixed to a fixing member (not shown) through a plurality of attachment holes 12a. A second ball bearing 1 is provided on the left outer circumference of the shaft member 12.
3 is assembled, and a non-rotating plunger 14 is provided on the inner periphery so as to be freely slidable in the axial direction. An O-ring 15 for preventing oil leakage is installed on the outer periphery of the center of the plunger 14, and a case 17 in which a solenoid 16 is fitted is attached to the right end, and one end is locked to the case 17. The plunger 14 is urged leftward by the spring 18. The solenoids 16a and 16b are connected to a thermoswitch (not shown) for sensing the water temperature within the radiator. The solenoid, plunger, and spring will be collectively referred to as the "control unit" hereinafter.

A spherical convex portion 19a is engaged with a spherical concave portion formed at the left end of the plunger 14. In order to improve the life of the engagement, a member 14a made of a material suitable for friction is driven and fixed to the left end of the plunger 14, and the spherical recess is formed in the member 14a. The convex portion 19a is the valve member 19
The valve member 19 is pivotally connected to the storage chamber wall 21 by a pin 20. Further, one end of the valve member 19 is biased by a spring 22, and a valve 23 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) is fixed to the other end.

FIG. 1 shows a state in which the valve 23 is in contact with the end of the bent pipe 24 to block the flow of viscous fluid, and the bent pipe 24 is fixed to the above-mentioned storage chamber wall 21.
A communication hole 24a is formed inside, and the bent end 24b is assembled so as to face upward in the direction perpendicular to the paper plane in FIGS. 1 and 2. Note that FIGS. 2 and 3 show a state in which the valve 23 is not in contact with the bent pipe 24, and the valve member 19 is in contact with the pin 20 in this way.
It is assembled so as to be able to swing about the fulcrum, and when it swings in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 2, the communication of viscous fluid is cut off.

A bent pipe 25 similar to the bent pipe 24 is fixed to the storage chamber wall 21 on the opposite side of the bent pipe 24 . The bent pipe 25 is provided with a communication hole 25a. The bent end 25b is assembled so as to face upward in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the paper in the same manner as the above-described bent end 24b. The storage chamber wall 21 is disk-shaped, and another similar disk-shaped storage chamber wall 26 is fixed to the storage chamber wall 21 with a plurality of machine screws 27 to form a storage chamber 28 inside. ing. Then, the storage chamber wall 26 is screwed into the shaft member 12 by machine screws 29.
, so both storage chamber walls 21 and 26 do not rotate.

To explain the operation of the first embodiment configured in this way, when driving force from an engine (not shown) is transmitted to the belt 1, the pulley 2, case 4, and cover 5 rotate integrally. do. The direction of rotation is counterclockwise when viewed from the direction of arrow B in FIG. However, since the shaft member 12 and the storage chamber walls 21 and 26 do not rotate, the viscous fluid in the working chamber 8 "tangles", and as a result, the rotor 9 and the connecting member 10 rotate. When the temperature of the viscous fluid is low, the viscosity is high, so the rotational speed of the rotor 9 is quite close to the rotational speed of the cover 5. However, when the viscosity of the viscous fluid decreases due to frictional heat, the rotor 9
The number of rotations of the cover 5 is considerably smaller than that of the cover 5.

Since the rotation direction of the cover 5 is counterclockwise as described above, the viscous fluid in the working chamber 8 also "tangles" in the same direction, but the left bent end 25b of the bent pipe 25 is perpendicular to the plane of the paper. Since the direction is upward, the viscous fluid flows from the bent end 25b to the through hole 25a.
It flows into the storage chamber 28 through the. As long as the valve 23 below the storage chamber 28 is closed as shown in FIG. 1, the amount of viscous fluid in the storage chamber 28 increases. As a result, the amount of viscous fluid in the working chamber 8 decreases, making it difficult for the rotor 9 to rotate based on drag, and the rotation speed of the rotor 9 on the driven side is higher than that of the case 4 and the cover 5 on the driving side. and the rotational speed of a cooling fan (not shown) decreases.

Next, when the water temperature in the radiator rises, the power to the solenoid 16 is cut off, and the plunger 14 moves to the left against the biasing force of the spring 22, the valve member 19 moves in the direction opposite to the direction of arrow A in FIG. direction, and the valve mechanism becomes open. For this reason,
The viscous fluid in the storage chamber 28 flows out into the working chamber 8 through the valve mechanism, and the rotor 9 based on the drag
The number of rotations of the fan will increase, and the number of rotations of the fan will increase.

In this manner, the control section operates in accordance with the water temperature of the radiator and operates the valve 23 as appropriate to increase or decrease the amount of oil in the working chamber 8, thereby controlling the rotation speed of the cooling fan.

In this embodiment, the flow hole 24a is opened when the power to the solenoid 16 is cut off, but by reversing the axial positional relationship between the solenoid 16 and the plunger 14, the flow hole 24a is opened. A change such that the communication hole 24a is in an open state when energized can be easily made.

Example 2 Figure 4 shows the second example, and Figures 1 to 4 show the second example.
Components that are the same as those in the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3 are given the same numbers, and their explanations will be omitted. In this embodiment, a storage chamber 52 corresponding to the storage chamber 28 in FIG. 1 is formed within a fixed shaft member 51 by fixing a cover 53 with bolts 54. Also, the shaft member 51 has two holes 5.
5 and 56 are bored, and bent pipes 57 and 58 are fitted therein, respectively. The bent pipes 57 and 58 are supported by a fixing member 59 fitted around the outer periphery of the left end portion 51a of the shaft member 51.

One end of one bent pipe 57 is exposed to the working chamber 61, and the other end is exposed to the storage chamber 52. One end of the other bent pipe 58 is exposed to the working chamber 61, and the other end is fixed to the left end of the solenoid case 62. A bent portion similar to that shown in FIG. 2 is formed at the end of the bent pipe 58 exposed to the working chamber 61, and is assembled so that the open end 58a thereof faces upward in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the paper. Further, an open end 57a similar to the open end 58a is formed at the end of the bent pipe 57, and is also assembled so as to face upward in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the paper. Also, inside the solenoid case 62, the solenoid 16 shown in FIG.
A solenoid 63 similar to that shown in FIG. This plunger 64 has two large diameter parts 64a and 64b.
The right end of the plunger 64 is biased toward the left in the figure by a spring 65 housed in the solenoid case 62, and normally closes the hole 62a formed in the solenoid case 62. I'm here.

The second embodiment is noticeably different from the first embodiment in that the storage chamber 52 is provided within the shaft member 51, separate from the working chamber 61, and that there is a means for communicating the two chambers 52 and 61. The point is that pipes 57 and 58 that extend in a bent manner are provided.

Since the second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in this way, the operation is also different as follows. That is,
When you want to keep the fan rotation speed low because the water temperature inside the radiator is low, the thermoswitch (not shown) that senses the water temperature does not work and the solenoid 63
does not operate, so the plunger 64 is positioned as shown in FIG. Therefore, the hole 62a is closed and the storage chamber 5
2 to the bent pipe 28 is blocked. Therefore, when the drive side case 4 and cover 5 rotate counterclockwise when viewed from the direction of arrow c in FIG. The liquid enters from 57a and is stored in the storage chamber 52. Conversely, when the water temperature in the radiator rises, the thermoswitch operates, the solenoid 63 is activated, and the plunger 64 moves to the right, the hole 62a is opened and the viscous fluid in the storage chamber 52 flows through the passage in the bent pipe 58. The viscous fluid passes through the opening end 58a and is discharged into the working chamber 61, and as the discharged viscous fluid "tangles" with the rotation of the drive side, the cooling fan (not shown) fixed to the connecting member 10 is cooled. This results in an increase in the rotational speed.

In the first and second embodiments described above, the storage chamber is of a fixed type, and the fixed member is extended to approach the rotor (the annular protrusion 2 in Fig. 1).
1a and the protrusion 59a in FIG. It has a soothing effect. In addition, in the first and second embodiments, since the storage chamber is of a fixed type, there is no rotating and sliding part in the control section compared to a rotary type, and there is no possibility of wear due to long-term use or deviation of the set temperature. The hindrance is small.

Embodiment 3 FIG. 5 shows a third embodiment of the present invention.
Components that are the same as those in the first embodiment are given the same numbers, and explanations thereof will be omitted. In the third embodiment, a storage chamber 71 is fixed to the case 4 with a plurality of machine screws 72, and a storage chamber 73 formed inside.
In this example, the case 4 rotates together with the case 4, which is the drive side. Therefore, while the fixed shaft member 12 and plunger 14 do not rotate, the valve member 19 rotates together with the storage chamber wall 71 around the central axis of the spherical protrusion 19a (that is, the axis of the plunger 14).

The operation of this third embodiment is the same as that of the first and third embodiments, except that the storage chamber 73 rotates. That is, when the water temperature in the radiator is low, the valve 23 is in a closed state as shown in FIG.
When the drive side case 4 and the storage chamber wall 71 rotate, the viscous fluid in the working chamber 74 passes through the bent pipe 25 and is stored in the storage chamber 73. Conversely, when the water temperature rises, the plunger 14 moves to the left and the valve 23 opens, so that the viscous fluid flows from the storage chamber 73 through the bent pipe 24 into the working chamber 74. For this reason, the viscous fluid in the working chamber 74 "tangles", causing the rotational speed of the rotor 9 to increase and the rotational speed of the cooling fan to increase.

In this way, the present invention provides a viscous fluid coupling in which a control unit that senses the water temperature in a radiator opens and closes a valve mechanism to change the number of rotations of a cooling fan. A rotor is rotatably provided in the working chamber, a shaft member is fixed to the center of the case, and a viscous fluid is contained between the working chamber and the storage chamber. A valve mechanism for controlling communication is provided, and the control unit is disposed inside the shaft member to control the rotation speed of the cooling fan fixed to the rotor. Compared to the conventional device in which the part corresponding to the drive side rotates, the present invention has the case and cover provided on the outer periphery as the drive side.
Frictional heat generated within the working chamber due to friction of the viscous fluid can be easily dissipated. In other words, the drive side member rotates at a higher rotation speed than the driven side, and since it is located on the outer periphery, the area in contact with the air is large, which is coupled with the installation of multiple heat dissipation fins. This allows the heat in the working chamber to be easily released to the outside, thereby preventing the viscous fluid from deteriorating in function. Furthermore, in the present invention, since the control unit for sensing the water temperature of the radiator and opening and closing the valve mechanism is installed inside the fixed shaft member, the control unit can be easily installed and removed. Moreover, the durability of the control section can be improved. Furthermore, in the conventional device in which the portion corresponding to the fixed shaft member in the present invention is the driving side and the outer peripheral portion supported by the bearing is the driven side, since most of the devices rotate, A fixed member that does not rotate must be provided separately (conventionally, a water pump or the like, which is a component with another function, has been used as this fixed member). However, since the device of the present invention has a built-in fixed shaft member, there is no need to worry about how and where to connect the fixed members as in the conventional device. As described above, the present invention has various superior effects compared to conventional devices.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a view from below (viewed from the direction of arrow D) in FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a second embodiment of the present invention. , FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view showing the third embodiment. In the figure, 4 is a case, 5 is a cover, 8, 61,
74 is a working chamber, 9 is a rotor, 10 is a connecting member, 1
2 and 51 are shaft members, 14 is a plunger, 1
6 is a solenoid, 23 is a valve, 24, 25, 5
7 and 58 are bent pipes, and 28 is a storage chamber.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A fixed shaft member, and a working chamber that covers the tip of the shaft member, is rotatably held on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft member, and contains a viscous fluid therein, and has a working chamber that contains a viscous fluid. A case and a cover that rotate by a driving force, a rotor rotatably provided in the working chamber, a cooling fan fixed to the rotor, and a viscous fluid storage chamber provided separately from the working chamber. a valve mechanism that controls communication of the viscous fluid; and a control section that is provided inside the shaft member and has a plunger and a solenoid, and that senses water temperature in the radiator and drives the valve mechanism. Viscous fluid fitting. 2. The viscous fluid coupling according to claim 1, wherein the storage chamber is located inside the case and the storage chamber wall is fixed to the shaft member. 3. The fluid coupling according to claim 1, wherein the storage chamber is located inside the shaft member and is located away from the working chamber. 4. The viscous fluid coupling according to claim 1, wherein the storage chamber is located inside a case and has a storage chamber wall fixed to the case on the drive side.