Method of inductively hardening the cams of a camshaft

Abstract

A built-up camshaft has cam discs which are secured to a tube under mechanical prestress, are of annular design, and are inductively hardened all the way around at a boundary layer on their outer periphery before they are secured to the tube. The hardening of the boundary layer is formed in such a manner that, due to the hardening, high residual compressive stresses (at least -450 N/mm.sup.2) are produced in an at least approximately 0.5 mm deep boundary zone near the surface in such a manner that, even after the cam discs are mounted on the tube, the superimposing residual tensile stresses in the boundary zone, induced by the joining, only partly compensate the original residual compressive stresses, i.e. there are still only residual compressive stresses (at least -150 N/mm.sup.2) in the boundary zone near the surface even after the pressing-on. Sufficiently high residual compressive stress in the boundary zone can be produced by effecting the inductive heating of the cam disc in two stages. Specifically, first of all the cam disc is loaded with a medium-frequency alternating magnetic field and thus the entire annular body of the cam disc is preheated to at least 250.degree. C. but below the transformation temperature. The cam disc is then loaded with a second alternating magnetic field changed in its intensity and/or its frequency relative to the alternating magnetic field of the first stage, as a result of which only the boundary zone is heated up to the transformation temperature or below it. After the quenching of the cam disc heated in such a manner, the high residual compressive stresses appearing a boundary zone of sufficient depth.