Integrated Water Pump Crankcase Cover for Compact Engine Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional water cooled internal combustion engines for vehicles have exposed tightening members and increased size in the width direction, which compromises external appearance and compactness, especially on straddle-type vehicles like motorcycles.
Innovation Solution
The engine design integrates the water pump on the crankcase cover with a case member that supports the pump shaft, forming a water passage section between the crankcase cover and case member, eliminating the need for external discharge pipes and reducing component count, and uses a balancer shaft to operate the water pump, minimizing external protrusions and allowing for a more compact design.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a pump cover is fixedly attached on the crankcase cover from the outside, then the water pump can be mounted, but tightening members remain exposed and the engine width increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pump cover is integrated with the crankcase cover as a unified component rather than being attached separately. The tightening members are positioned on the inner peripheral surface of the crankcase cover, merging the fastening function into the existing structure. This eliminates the need for external attachment and hidden the tightening members, resolving the contradiction between ease of manufacture and compact外形.
Solution Approach 2:
The tightening members are relocated from the outer peripheral surface to the inner peripheral surface of the crankcase cover, changing their spatial dimension. This allows the pump cover to be fixedly attached without exposing tightening members on the external surface, maintaining a compact engine width and clean external appearance while preserving the mounting function.
2Reliability
If tightening members are arranged on the outer periphery of the pump cover, then the pump can be securely attached, but the external appearance is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of placing tightening members on the outer periphery of the pump cover as in conventional designs, the invention inverts the arrangement by positioning them on the inner peripheral surface of the crankcase cover. This maintains secure attachment functionality while eliminating the aesthetic drawback of exposed external fasteners.
3Length of moving object
If the engine size is reduced in the width direction, then straddling comfort improves, but the water pump mounting becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The crankcase cover is designed to serve multiple functions: it protects the crankcase, provides mounting surface for the water pump, and houses the tightening members on its inner surface. This multi-functional design allows compact engine width while maintaining easy water pump mounting through the integrated structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A compact water cooled internal combustion engine for a vehicle wherein a water pump operated by a pump driving shaft is arranged on a crankcase cover for covering a lateral side of a crankcase, such that an axis of rotation of the water pump is coaxial with the pump driving shaft. A case member that forms a pump case of a water pump, together with a crankcase cover, and that rotatably supports a pump shaft of the water pump, is attached on an inner surface side of the crankcase cover.