Gkn Sinter Metals Gmbh

Zenith Sintered Products, Inc.

Hilite Industries, Inc.

Joel H Mandel

Terry M Cadle

Donald J Phillips

Gary R Draxler

Donald D Cooper

Carl J Landgraf

Rainer Schmitt

Ian W Donaldson

Timothy E Geiman

Susan M Cadle, Legal Representative

Henry James Knott

Paul R Roskopf

Timothy Costanzo

Carl J Langraff

Michael S Gray

Timothy M Campbell

John P Mohr

Gerald Michael Malen

Peter C Butler

Michael P Marra

A method of making a powder metal bearing support insert includes filling a tool and die set with a powder metal. A compact is compacted from the powder metal using the tool and die set in which the compact includes a body having a pair of opposing ends on lateral sides thereof, a bearing-receiving surface positioned on a side of the body between the pair of opposing ends in which the bearing-receiving surface is for reception of a bearing therein, and a pair of holes extending through the body wherein each of the pair of holes are formed by sets of adjacent interdigitated slots having regions that abut one another to form a connected passageway therethrough that define the respective hole. The compact is sintered to form the powder metal bearing support insert. The powder metal bearing support insert may be cast into an engine component.

Method of forming a powder metal insert having a horizontal through hole and method of casting same into an engine component

A powder metal bearing support insert for casting into an engine component includes a pair of holes formed by interdigitated slots during a powder metal compaction process. Since they are formed by interdigitated slots, this pair of holes may receive the cast material therein during the casting step. Among other things, the cast material in these holes may be drilled or machined using tools graded to work the material of the casting in contrast to the material of the insert.

Method of forming a powder metal insert having a horizontal through hole

An assembly comprising: a powder metal outer part () having a radially inward facing cylindrical surface () with a plurality of facets () formed thereon that, in an alternating fashion, extend in an axial direction from an axial side of the powder metal outer part toward an opposite axial side of the powder metal outer part to a position between the opposing axial sides of the powder metal outer part; a powder metal inner part () having a radially outward facing cylindrical surface with a plurality of facets formed thereon that, in an alternating fashion, extend in an axial direction from an axial side of the powder metal inner part toward an opposite axial side of the powder metal inner part to a position between the opposing axial sides of the powder metal inner part; and an intermediate component () disposed between the cylindrical surfaces of the powder metal outer part and the powder metal inner part that connects the powder metal outer part and the powder metal inner part together.

Dampening assembly and related method of making same

A bearing cap in which each foot includes a protrusion formed thereon that is generally linear having opposing sides in which each of these opposing sides support a plurality of crush ribs.

Main bearing cap with locating feature

A bearing cap () in which each foot includes an elongated protrusion () formed thereon positioned between the bolt hole and a side of said foot, with its major axis parallel to the axis of the bore partially defined by the bearing cap and includes ribs on its side surfaces that are perpendicular to its major axis.

A method of joining multiple powder metal components to form a powder metal component assembly using an adhesive is disclosed. By machining at least one of the powder metal components prior to the adhesive joining, otherwise difficult to machine features can be more easily machined for less cost and at higher production rates. Unlike high temperature joining techniques, the adhesive joins the powder metal components at room temperature. This room temperature adhesive joining eliminates the thermal distortions in pre-joined machined features common to high temperature joining techniques such as brazing or welding that bring these features out of specification during joining.

Adhesive joining for powder metal components

A cast metal connecting rod of the type used in a reciprocating piston engine has a beam section between two end sections. The beam section and the end sections are integral with one another and are at least partially made of a cast metal material. At least the beam section of the connecting rod includes an insert made of a sintered powder metal material. The insert is at least partially encapsulated by the cast metal material of the connecting rod. The insert reinforces the connecting rod and can help match characteristics of surrounding or mating parts of the engine that are made of materials more similar to the material of the insert than the cast metal of the connecting rod. The cast metal material, for example aluminum alloy, of the connecting rod can also provide localized regions of high machinability where needed.

Connecting rod with cast-in insert

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.

A main bearing cap (A&prime;) made of powder metal has a body portion (Y) made from one powder metal material (Q), and a bearing arch portion (H), foot joint face portions (S) and/or wings (W) made of a different powder metal material (P). The material (Q) of the body portion (Y) is harder than the material (P) of the other portions (H, S, W), and the material (P) of the other portions (H, S, W) is relatively machinable. For the bearing arch portion (H), the machinability of the material (P) approximately matches the machinability of the bearing support structure (B) to which the bearing cap (A&prime;) is assembled to produce a good quality bore and longer tool life during line boring. The bearing arch material (P) may be a bearing material.

Duplex powder metal bearing caps and method of making them

A powder metal main bearing cap has integral dowels at its adjoining face around bolt holes and tooth projections surrounding the dowels. The dowels are force fit into counterbores in the engine block and the teeth bite into the metal of the block around the bolt holes to inhibit fretting wear. Elongated bolt holes can be formed in the main bearing cap to accommodate a splayed joint, with the bolt head supporting face of the cap at an oblique angle to the hole. The bearing cap can be first pressed into the engine block so as to assure indentation by the teeth and insertion of the dowels, followed by bolting.

Side-bolt bearing caps

A sintered powder metal part is prepared for machining by injecting grease into the surface of the part to be machined to a depth at least equal to the depth of machining. The grease is injected under very high pressure using repressing tooling by applying a certain volume of grease between the surface to be machined and the mating tool surface and applying pressure sufficient to uniformly inject the grease into the surface. A rim may be formed in the part adjacent to the surface which acts as a seal during grease injection and is compressed into the part.

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Hartford, WI, United States of America

Joel H Mandel