Centrifugal switch for pendulum vibration absorber
AssigneeFca US LLC
InventorsIan S Glanfield, Bruce Geist
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A crankshaft assembly for an internal combustion engine can include a crankshaft having a lobe with a pendulum absorber coupled thereto. The pendulum absorber can include a carrier, a pendulum, a pin and a centrifugal switch assembly. The carrier can be coupled to a body of the lobe and can have an opening therein. The pendulum can have an opening therein and the pin can extend through the pendulum opening and the carrier opening to pivotably couple the pendulum to the carrier. The switch assembly can be slidably positioned in a bore of the body and can have a lock member configured to selectively engage the pendulum based on a centrifugal force being below a predetermined threshold to lock movement of the pendulum relative to the carrier.
Claims17
A crankshaft assembly for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
- a crankshaft having a lobe with a pendulum absorber coupled thereto, the pendulum absorber including:
- a carrier coupled to a body of the lobe and having an opening therein,
- a pendulum having an opening therein, and
- a pin extending through the pendulum opening and the carrier opening to pivotably couple the pendulum to the carrier;
- and
- a switch assembly slidably positioned in a bore of the body and having a lock member configured to selectively engage the pendulum based on a centrifugal force being below a predetermined threshold to lock movement of the pendulum relative to the carrier, the switch assembly including:
- a body coupled at a first end to a mass member and at a second opposite end to the lock member;
- and
- a biasing member positioned in the bore and configured to engage the mass member to bias the switch assembly toward an engaged position where the lock member engages the pendulum to lock the pendulum,
- wherein the crankshaft comprises a center of rotation, and wherein the mass member and a center of mass of the switch assembly are positioned on a first side of the center of rotation opposite the pendulum absorber and the lock member is positioned on a second opposite side of the crankshaft center of rotation.
A crankshaft assembly for an internal combustion engine, comprising:
- a crankshaft having a lobe with a pendulum absorber coupled thereto, the pendulum absorber including:
- a carrier coupled to a body of the lobe and having an opening therein,
- a pendulum having an opening therein, and
- a pin extending through the pendulum opening and the carrier opening to pivotably couple the pendulum to the carrier, the pendulum opening and the carrier opening having an epicycloidal configuration;
- and
- a centrifugal switch assembly slidably positioned in a bore of the body and having a biasing member and a lock member, the lock member configured to i) selectively engage the pendulum based on a centrifugal force being below a predetermined threshold to lock movement of the pendulum relative to the carrier, and ii) selectively disengage from the pendulum against a biasing force of the biasing member based on the centrifugal force being above the predetermined threshold, the switch assembly further comprising a body coupled at a first end to a mass member and at a second opposite end to the lock member, wherein the biasing member is configured to engage the mass member to bias the switch assembly toward an engaged position where the lock member engages the pendulum to lock the pendulum,
- wherein the crankshaft comprises a center of rotation, and wherein the mass member and a center of mass of the switch assembly are positioned on a first side of the center of rotation opposite the pendulum absorber and the lock member is positioned on a second opposite side of the crankshaft center of rotation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.