Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Denso Corporation

Other

Nippon Soken, Inc.

Koichi Shimizu

Hiromasa Suzuki

Hiroyuki Kawase

Yuichi Sakaguchi

Yoshihito Moriya

Takashi Inoue

Eiji Isobe

Yuuji Yoshihara

Kenichi Sato

Akihiko Takenaka

Hisanaga Matsuoka

Takayuki Inohara

Toshiki Fujiyoshi

Yasuyoshi Suzuki

Akira Hori

Akira Tsunoda

Kenichi Yamamoto

Jouji Yamaguchi

Yoriaki Ando

Hideo Inaba

Futao Kaneko

Takahiro Kawakami

Keizo Kato

Fuminori Hosoda

Kazunari Shinbo

Yuji Yoshihara

Osamu Hanaoka

Akira Baba

Tetsuya Hyakutake

Shigetoshi Miyazaki

Takahide Koshimizu

Hitoshi Tsuge

Kimihiko Todo

Akira Sugiura

Provided is a simple secondary battery tester that obtains, without applying an AC signal for determination based on capacitance, the capacitance of a secondary battery from time characteristics of a current flowing to the secondary battery and a terminal voltage and determines whether the secondary battery is degraded based on the capacitance thus obtained.

Secondary battery tester

An engine variable valve actuation mechanism that substantially equally adjusts the valve lift amount in each cylinder. The mechanism includes variable valve lift mechanisms respectively arranged in association with the engine cylinders. A control shaft extends through the variable valve lift mechanisms. An actuator moves the control shaft in the axial direction and drives the variable valve lift mechanisms. Collars are arranged alternately with the variable valve lift mechanisms. Each collar includes a cylindrical sleeve and flanges formed integrally with the sleeve. The flanges directly or indirectly contact the end faces of adjacent variable valve lift mechanisms. This determines the positions of the variable valve lift mechanisms with respect to one another in the axial direction.

Collar and variable valve actuation mechanism

A feed screw mechanism including a screwed shaft which moves linearly along with the control shaft, and a rotation spindle which rotates in a circumferential direction. The feed screw mechanism converts a rotational movement of the rotation spindle into a linear movement of the screwed shaft. A protrusion protrudes outwardly from the rotation spindle. An internal thread member engages with an outer wall surface of the rotation spindle. A motor stator generating a magnetic is positioned over the rotation spindle, and is sandwiched between the protrusion and the internal thread member in an axial direction of the rotation spindle.

Actuator for valve lift controller

A valve timing controller includes a guide rotation member provided with a guide groove, a bearing rotation member radially supporting the guide rotation member, and a plurality of movable bodies sliding in the guide groove in accordance with a rotation of the guide rotation member. A plurality of link mechanisms connects the bearing rotation member with each one of movable bodies respectively, and rotates the bearing rotation member in accordance with a movement of the movable bodies. The valve timing of at least one of the intake valve and the exhaust valve is adjusted in accordance with a rotation of the bearing rotation body. A clearance gap is provided between the guide rotation member and the bearing rotation member in order to permit a relative radial movement of the guide rotation member with respect to the bearing rotation member.

Valve timing controller

A valve timing controller is provided with a first rotary element that rotates in response to the movement of a crankshaft, a second rotary element that rotates in response to the movement of a camshaft. A link mechanism changes a relative rotation phase between the first and second rotary elements. The first and second rotary elements include introduction passages that introduce a lubricating fluid in the first rotary element. In the link mechanism, shafts are fitted in the links. The links relatively rotate with respect to the shaft, and include conveying passages to communicate with the introduction passages and convey the lubricating fluid from the introduction passages to the circumference of the shaft.

The current invention provides an inexpensive variable valve mechanism that includes a first intervening member which rotates a small angle rotation about an axis of a support shaft by being pressed by a rotating cam and a second intervening member which lifts a valve by making a small angle rotation about an axis of the support shaft together with the first intervening member thus pressing a cam corresponding part of a rocker arm. The variable valve mechanism further includes a control shaft which is provided concentrically with the support shaft, a slider which moves with the control shaft, a slanted part which is formed diagonally relative to the slider's movement direction and is in contact with the slider, and a relative rotation angle control device which varies the relative rotation angle of the first intervening member and the second intervening member by pressing the slanted part in a direction substantially perpendicular to the slider's movement direction by moving the slider together with the control shaft, thus varying the valve's lift and operating angle continuously.

Variable valve mechanism

A valve performance control apparatus has a low speed cam, a high speed cam, and an intermediate speed cam. A rocker arm is arranged between the cams and a valve. The rocker arm contacts the low speed cam. A pair of cam followers are reciprocally supported in the rocker arm to contact the high speed and intermediate speed cams. Lock members are slidably received in bores (or grooves) of the rocker arm. The lock members, when positioned in an unlocked position, permit the free reciprocation of the associated cam followers with respect to the rocker arm, which causes the valve to be driven by the low speed cam. When locked, the lock members abut against the associated cam followers and lock the cam followers to the rocker arm, which causes the valve to be driven by the cam with the largest profile. The lock member has an abutment surface, which contacts and is pressed by the cam follower. The bore has a supporting wall for supporting the lock member opposite to the abutment surface when the abutment surface of the lock member is positioned in the lock position and is pressed by the cam follower. The lock member is not subjected to bending or shear, which improves the reliability of the apparatus.

Valve performance control apparatus for internal combustion engines

An exhaust manifold has inner and outer tubes made of stainless steel and welded to flanges provided at inlet ports of the exhaust manifold, from which exhaust gas discharged from an engine enters the exhaust manifold. The inner tube has flat portions, and shield plates disposed within the inner tube protect the flat portions from being directly vibrated by pressure waves of the exhaust gas. Accordingly, the vibration of the flat portions is lowered, so that high frequency noise from the exhaust manifold is reduced.

Stainless double tube exhaust manifold

An engine has a crankshaft, a combustion chamber and a valve that selectively opens and closes the combustion chamber. The valve has a timing relationship to the crankshaft and lift characteristic. A control device hydraulically alters at least one of the timing relationship and the lift characteristic. A lubricant passage is connected with the control device to supply oil to a mechanism that is formed by engine parts slidably contacting one another within the engine. An auxiliary passage is provided for supplying the oil to the mechanism. Oil supplied from an oil pump to said auxiliary passage is restricted by an electromagnetic valve that is actuated based on the instruction from an electric controller when engine speed is lower than a predetermined value.

Apparatus for supplying oil in engine

An engine has a crankshaft, a combustion chamber and a valve. The valve opens and closes the combustion chamber. The valve has a lift characteristic that is altered by a control device according to a change of hydraulic pressure therein. The engine has a lubricant passage that is connected with an oil pump and supplies oil to a mechanism formed by parts slidably connecting one another within the engine. A hydraulic pressure passage extends into an interior of the control device to exchange the hydraulic pressure with the control device, thereby the control device is actuated to alter the lift characteristic. The oil pump supplies the oil to the pressure passage when connected with the pressure passage. The oil pan supplies the oil to the pressure passage when connected with the pressure passage. A switching valve selects one of the oil pump and the oil pan to connect the selected one with the control device based on the engine speed.

Growing community of inventors

Toyota, Japan

Koichi Shimizu