Piston and cooled piston ring therefor and method of construction thereof
AssigneeFederal-Mogul Corporation
InventorsKeith Hampton, Miguel Azevedo
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A piston, piston ring and method of construction thereof is provided. The piston ring is L-shaped, having a first portion configured to extend upwardly from a ring groove of a piston along a top land of the piston and a second portion configured for receipt in the ring groove. The first and second portions of the ring have an enclosed hollow cooling chamber with a cooling medium disposed therein such that the cooling medium is free to flow internally to the piston ring groove and upwardly from the piston ring groove along the top land.
Claims16
A piston ring for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
- a L-shaped ring having a first portion configured to extend upwardly from a ring groove of a piston along a top land of the piston and a second portion configured for receipt in the ring groove, said first and second portions of said ring having an enclosed hollow cooling chamber with a cooling medium disposed therein such that the cooling medium is free to flow internally to the ring groove and upwardly from the ring groove along the top land, wherein said first portion has a wall with an outer surface configured for sliding movement against a cylinder line and an inner surface bounding a portion of said cooling chamber, said wall having a substantially continuously varying thickness that continuously decreases in thickness along a direction extending axially away from said second portion.
A piston for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
- a body with a cylindrical outer surface and an annular uppermost ring groove extending into said outer surface with a top land recessed radially inwardly from said outer surface, said top land extending from said uppermost ring groove to an upper combustion surface;
- and
- a L-shaped piston ring having a first portion configured for receipt in said uppermost ring groove and a second portion configured to extend upwardly from said uppermost ring groove along said top land, said first and second portions of said piston ring having a hollow cooling chamber with a cooling medium disposed therein such that the cooling medium is free to flow internally to said uppermost ring groove and upwardly from said ring groove along said top land, wherein said first portion has a wall with an outer surface configured for sliding movement against a cylinder liner and an inner surface bounding a portion of said cooling chamber, said wall having a substantially continuously varying thickness that decreases in thickness along a direction extending axially away from said second portion.
A method of constructing a piston ring for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
- forming a L-shaped ring having a hollow cooling chamber including a first portion configured to extend upwardly from a ring groove of a piston along a top land of the piston and a second portion configured for receipt in the ring groove, wherein said first portion is formed having a wall with an outer surface configured for sliding movement against a cylinder liner and having an inner surface bounding a portion of said hollow cooling chamber, and said wall is formed having a substantially continuously varying thickness that continuously decreases in thickness along a direction extending axially away from said second portion;
- disposing a cooling medium in the hollow cooling chamber;
- and
- fixing end plugs in opposite ends of the hollow cooling chamber to maintain the cooling medium in the cooling chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.