Engine Mounting Bracket Gap Structure for Front Cover Vibration Isolation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing internal combustion engines suffer from membrane vibration (or film vibration) at the end cover due to vibration transmission from the vehicle body, which is not adequately addressed in previous designs.

Innovation Solution

The engine design incorporates a metal mounting bracket that overlaps a resin front cover with a gap, preventing direct contact and thus blocking vibration transmission, while maintaining a secure connection to the engine body.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of manufacture

If the mounting bracket is directly connected to the end cover, then the structure is simplified and easier to manufacture, but vibration from the vehicle body is transmitted to the end cover causing membrane vibration

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestructural simplicityVSAvoidmembrane vibration
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a mounting bracket as an intermediary component between the engine body and the end cover. This mounting bracket is directly connected to the engine body but maintains a gap with the end cover, serving as a mediator that supports the engine while preventing vibration transmission to the end cover.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts the vibration transmission path by separating the mounting function from the end cover. The mounting bracket is designed to be connected to the engine body while maintaining a predetermined gap with the end cover, effectively removing the end cover from the vibration transmission path.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Object-affected harmful factors

If the mounting bracket overlaps the front cover, then vibration transmission is suppressed, but the structural complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevibration transmissionVSAvoidstructural complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Object-affected harmful factorsVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The mounting bracket serves as an intermediary that overlaps the front cover in the cylinder line direction. This overlapping configuration allows the mounting bracket to block vibration transmission paths while maintaining a gap to prevent direct contact with the end cover, achieving vibration suppression without excessive complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentEP4538522B1Internal combustion engine
Publication Date: 2026.02.18 NISSAN MOTOR CO LTD
  • EP4538522B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4538522B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4538522B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

An internal combustion engine-side mounting bracket (6) is connected to an internal combustion engine body (8) so as not to come into contact with a front cover (5) in a cylinder line direction of the internal combustion engine body (8). A bolt boss portion (32) of the internal combustion engine-side mounting bracket (6) penetrates a boss portion through hole (13) of the front cover (5) . A second bolt boss portion (32b) penetrates a boss portion through hole (13a) of the front cover (5) so that its outer peripheral surface does not come into contact with an inner peripheral surface of the boss portion through hole (13a). A fifth bolt boss portion (32e) penetrates a boss portion through hole (13b) of the front cover (5) so that its outer peripheral surface does not come into contact with an inner peripheral surface of the boss portion through hole (13b).