Gkn Sinter Metals Gmbh

Donald J Phillips

Joel H Mandel

Rainer Schmitt

Timothy E Geiman

Susan M Cadle, Legal Representative

Terry M Cadle

Donald D Cooper

Henry James Knott

Timothy M Campbell

Michael P Marra

The present invention provides a PM main bearing cap, and its precursor compact, with an undercut breathing window that is formed during a compaction process. By fabricating the undercut during the compaction process, the invention eliminates the need for a secondary machining operation to form the undercut feature in the bearing caps.

Powder metal bearing cap breathing windows

A method is disclosed of forming a powder metal compact. Powder metal is placed in an annular space of a compaction die tool set in which the annular space has inner and outer cylindrical surfaces that form inner and outer cylindrical surfaces of the powder metal compact. An elastomeric tool has a first cylindrical surface adjacent to a fixed cylindrical surface of the compaction die tool set that is radially fixed and further has a second cylindrical surface, opposite to the first cylindrical surface, that touches the powder metal. The powder metal is compressed to form the powder metal compact by applying an external axial force on the elastomeric tool while maintaining the diameter of the fixed cylindrical surface so as to cause the elastomeric tool to compress the second cylindrical surface of the elastomeric tool against the powder metal.

Thin walled powder metal component manufacturing

A high performance main bearing cap has particular surfaces densified for improved fatigue crack resistance. The surfaces densified are the bolted face inside of a perimetral margin and outside of bolt head interface areas around the main bolt holes, the surfaces of the main bolt holes and the side bolt hole threads. Preferred methods of densification are single needle programmable pattern peening of the bolted face peened area, over-burnishing of the bolt holes, and forming the threads rather than cutting them for the side bolt threads.

Method of surface densification of a powder metal component

Surface densification of powder metal bearing caps

A high performance main bearing cap has particular surfaces densified for improved fatigue crack resistance. The surfaces densified are the bolted face (F) inside of a perimetral margin and outside of bold head interface areas around the main bolt holes (B), the surfaces of the main bolt holes and the side bolt hole threads (S). Preferred methods of densification are single needle programmable pattern peening of the bolted face peened area, over-burnishing of the bolt holes, and forming the threads rather than cutting them for the side bolt threads.

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Menomonee Falls, WI, United States of America

Donald J Phillips