Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.

Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Toyota Motor Corporation

Toshiharu Noguchi

Yeongching Lin

Samuel D Koch

Kyle Thomas Bernier

Neal Berner

An internal combustion engine includes a crankshaft. The crankshaft includes multiple crank journals, at least two crank pins positioned between two of the multiple crank journals that neighbor one another, and at least one pin arm. Each pin arm may be positioned between two of the crank pins neighboring one another. Arrangements may include multiple crankshaft supports and multiple thrust bearings. These elements may be distributed about the crankshaft such that two or more of the multiple crankshaft supports have at least one associated thrust bearing. Each of the crankshaft supports having the associated thrust bearing may support one of the multiple the crank journals. Each thrust bearing may be positioned between the crankshaft and the crankshaft support having the associated thrust bearing.

Engines with multiple thrust bearings

The variable valve timing mechanism includes a housing, a rotor rotatably supported within the housing, and a lock pin. The housing includes a plurality of fluid chambers one of which includes a lock bore. The rotor includes a central portion and a plurality of vanes extending radially from the central portion. Each of the vanes extends into the fluid chambers of the housing to define an advanced fluid chamber and a retarded fluid chamber. One of the plurality of vanes includes a pin bore. The lock pin includes a shank section and an insertion section. The insertion section includes a nonlinear outer side profile. The lock pin is slidably received within the pin bore between an unlocked position and a locked position in which the insertion section of the lock pin is received within the lock bore of the housing thereby prohibiting relative rotation between the housing and the rotor.

Lock pin for variable valve timing mechanism

An engine includes a crankshaft, a camshaft being driven by the crankshaft for opening and closing intake valves, a variable valve timing mechanism (VVT) attached to one end of the camshaft, which applies torque to the camshaft so as to change the valve timing. The camshaft has an increased outside diameter at a portion adjacent to the VVT as compared to other portions that are more distant from the VVT.

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Toyota, Japan

Toshiharu Noguchi