Oil passage structure in an engine

Abstract

An oil passage structure in an engine includes a first oil passage and a second oil passage. The second oil passage has a hydraulic pressure which is different from that in the first oil passage. The first and second oil passages are provided in engine body in an arrangement where they intersect each other when viewed in projection onto a plane parallel to an axis of the first oil passage. In order to enable the space for disposition of both the oil passages to be reduced to a necessary minimum to provide a reduction in size of the engine body, a cylindrical partition member having annular seal members mounted on its outer surface at opposite ends is fitted into the first oil passage. Thus, an annular intermediate chamber is defined between the outer surface of the partition member and an inner surface of the first oil passage and is sealed at its opposite ends by the seal members. The second oil passage is provided in the engine body in an arrangement where upstream and downstream passage portion thereof communicate with each other through the intermediate chamber.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.