Engine Mounting via Cylinder Head Hangers for Frame Stiffness
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Solution Overview
Problem
Air-cooled internal combustion engines face challenges in achieving increased stiffness of the entire body frame when mounted on a saddle riding vehicle, as the cylinder head is not adequately supported by the body frame, leading to insufficient structural rigidity.
Innovation Solution
The engine is configured with a vertically stacked cylinder and cylinder head on a crankcase, where cooling fins are formed on the cylinder head, and hanger bosses on the crankcase and hanger seating surfaces on the cylinder head are used to join the engine to the body frame via hanger members, allowing the engine to reinforce the body frame without additional members.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If only the crankcase is joined to the body frame via hanger bosses, then the engine can be mounted on the vehicle, but the stiffness of the entire body frame cannot be increased
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the crankcase and cylinder head into a single supported unit by providing hanger bosses on both components. The crankcase hanger bosses and cylinder head hanger bosses work together to attach the entire engine assembly to the body frame, merging the support function across multiple engine components to increase overall body frame stiffness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extends the support structure from a single-point or single-component attachment to a multi-dimensional attachment system. Hanger bosses are provided at multiple locations on both the crankcase and cylinder head, creating a distributed support network that engages the body frame at multiple points, thereby increasing stiffness in multiple directions.
2Strength
If the cylinder head is not joined to the body frame, then the engine structure remains simple, but the upper portion of the body frame is not reinforced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the support function across different engine components. Instead of using a single complex mounting structure, the support is divided into crankcase hanger bosses and cylinder head hanger bosses, each performing the same support function independently. This segmentation allows for easier manufacturing and assembly while achieving the reinforcement goal.
Solution Approach 2:
The hanger bosses on both the crankcase and cylinder head serve the universal function of supporting the engine assembly and reinforcing the body frame. This multi-functional design allows the same structural feature (hanger bosses) to be used at multiple locations and on multiple components, simplifying the overall manufacturing process.
Data Source
AI summary
In the vehicle structure for mounting an air-cooled internal combustion engine, a crankcase is supported by a body frame in such a manner that crankcase hanger bosses on the crankcase are joined to the body frame via crankcase hanger plates. A cylinder head has left and right cylinder head hanger seating surfaces formed perpendicular to a left-right horizontal direction by cutting out right and left symmetric areas close to side edges of left and right side faces of the cylinder head along with parts of cooling fins. One ends of left and right cylinder head hanger members are fastened respectively to cylinder head hanger attaching seats on which the left and right cylinder head hanger seating surfaces of the cylinder head are formed. The other ends of the left and right cylinder head hanger members are fastened individually to the body frame. The structure is capable of using an engine body itself to improve stiffness of a body frame without use of any particular reinforcing members.