Support tool for deep rolling crankshaft fillets

A lower support tool adapted for use on a jaw arm of a fillet rolling machine adapted for deep rolling the fillets of the journals of a crankshaft having counterweights, the lower support tool comprising:

• a roller support housing adapted to be operatively attached to the jaw arm, said roller support housing having at least two transverse annular openings therethrough;
• and
• at least two spaced apart support rollers, each of said support rollers being received and retained in one of said annular openings and having an outer cylindrical surface for contacting and supporting the journals of the crankshaft, at least one of said support rollers being a roller unit, said roller unit having at least one radial and annular flange extending from said outer cylindrical surface of said at least one roller unit, said radial flange being adapted to fit within and coact with a crankshaft journal fillet to thereby limit the lateral movement of the jaw arm by locating the jaw arm relative to the crankshaft counterweights such that the jaw arm will not contact and damage the crankshaft counterweights.

A roller unit adapted to support a crankshaft journal having a pair of opposing fillets, the roller unit comprising:

• an outer cylindrical surface being adapted to rollingly engage the crankshaft journal whereby said cylindrical surface supports said journal;
• at least one flange extending outwardly from said outer cylindrical surface, said flange coacting with a crankshaft journal fillet thereby laterally locating the crankshaft relative to the roller unit.

A work support tool for rotatably supporting a shaft for an internal combustion engine to be worked in a fillet rolling machine having a pair of jaws movable between opened and closed positions with respect to said shaft and with a fillet rolling tool operatively mounted on one of said jaws having fillets rollers supported thereon for operatively engaging and deep rolling the radii of annular undercuts formed at opposite sides of a cylindrical journal on the shaft, the support tool comprising a base member operatively mounted on another one of said jaws, at least one shaft support wheel operatively mounted on the base member, said support wheel having a cylindrical support surface for direct support and contact with the journal of said shaft and a pair of annular flanges outboard of the cylindrical support surface, each of said diameters of said annular flanges being greater than the diameter of said cylindrical support surface for operatively fitting into said annular undercuts to engage portions of said undercuts to limit the lateral movement of said shaft as said undercuts are being compressively rolled by said fillet rollers.