Vibration Damper for Connecting Two Devices

Abstract

The invention relates to a vibration damper for connecting two devices to one another, in particular an engine to an environment (100) of the engine, for example a car body, wherein the vibration damper includes a damping section (20) and a fastening section (10), wherein the mounting portion (10) is formed with first and second pipe socket portions (14) having a flange (12), and wherein the damping portion (20) at least partially surrounds the fastening portion (10) at the outer surface thereof.

Claims

1. A vibration damper for connecting two devices to one another, comprising: a) a damping section (20), b) a fastening section (10), wherein the mounting portion (10) is formed with first and second pipe socket portions (14) having a flange (12), and wherein the damping portion (20) at least partially surrounds the fastening portion (10) at the outer surface thereof.

2. The vibration damper according to claim 1, wherein the pipe socket sections (10) with flange (12) are formed on the pipe end side (18) with respective connecting sections in order to connect the pipe flange sections to each other.

3. The vibration damper according to claim 2, wherein the connecting sections comprise a thread on the one hand and a counter-thread on the other hand,

4. The vibration damper according to claim 1, wherein a retaining portion is provided extending axially through the first and second flanged pipe socket portions (10).

5. The vibration damper according to claim 1, wherein the damping section (20) is formed with a first and a second damping element (20)

6. The vibration damper according to claim 5, wherein the first and second damping element (20) are cylindrical.

7. The vibration damper according to claim 5, wherein the damping elements (20) are cylindrical and are formed with respective partial circumferential wall portions (24).

8. The vibration damper according to claim 7, wherein the partial circumferential wall sections (24) of the damping elements are extended over equal angular ranges.

9. The vibration damper according to claim 8, wherein the equal angular ranges extend from 85° to 90° in each case.

10. The vibration damper according to claim 9, wherein the equal angular ranges are 90° in each case.

11. The vibration damper according to claim 7, wherein the damping elements (20) have inner circumferential engagement structures (22a, 22b) on their partial circumferential wall portions (24).

12. The vibration damper according to claim 11, wherein the inner circumferential engagement structures (22a, 22b) correspond to outer circumferential engagement geometries (16) on the pipe socket portions (14).

13. The vibration damper according to claim 12, wherein the inner circumferential engagement structures (22a, 22b) correspond to a recess and the outer circumferential engagement geometries (16) correspond to an extension, or vice versa.

14. The vibration damper according to claim 1, wherein the damping section (20) is provided on its outside with a surface structure (30).

15. The vibration damper according to claim 14, wherein the surface structure (30) is selected from the group consisting of bulges or lips formed in the direction of the cylinder axis of the vibration damper.

16. The vibration damper according to claim 1, wherein the pipe socket sections (10) with flange (12) are of the same design.

17. The vibration damper according to claim 1, wherein the pipe socket sections (10) with flange (12) and damping elements (20) are each formed as identical parts.

18. The vibration damper according to claim 1, wherein the pipe socket sections abut one another with their pipe end sections (18) in the installed position or leave a gap into which an elastic damping separating element can be inserted.

19. The vibration damper according to claim 1, wherein the damping elements (20) have flange-like structures (26) at their ends on the front side in the installation position.

20. The vibration damper according to claim 19, wherein the flange-like structures (26) are formed with contact projections (28) extending in the cylinder axis direction of the vibration damper.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0019] The present invention is described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying figures, as follows:

[0020] FIG. 1 shows a perspective exploded view of a preferred embodiment.

[0021] FIG. 2 shows an embodiment in an axial longitudinal section in an assembled installation situation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENT(S) OF THE INVENTION

[0022] FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of a vibration damper for connecting two devices together. One device can preferably be an engine, in particular an internal combustion engine, and the other device can be an environment of the engine, such as a vehicle frame, a body or the like.

[0023] In the illustration, the vehicle frame or the environment of the engine is schematically represented by the reference sign 100, whereby a hole 102 is provided in which the vibration damper according to the invention is pre-assembled and final assembled.

[0024] The illustration shows two pipe sockets 10 with flange 12, each of which is designed to be cylindrically symmetrical with respect to the cylinder axis Z.

[0025] Both pipe sockets 10 with flange 12 are preferably designed as identical parts, so that the description of one of the pipe sockets 10 with flange 12 applies simultaneously to the other of the pipe sockets 10 with flange 12.

[0026] The same applies to the damping elements 20, which are also preferably designed as identical parts. The differences in their external appearances are only due to their twisted orientation around the cylinder axis Z, which is necessary to be able to plug the two damping elements 20 together.

[0027] The exploded view according to FIG. 1 does not immediately reveal that the dimensions of the pipe socket sections 10 in the direction of the cylinder axis Z from their respective flanges 12 to their end 18 of the respective pipe sockets essentially correspond to half the dimension in the direction of the cylinder axis of the assembled damping elements 20. If this dimensional ratio of the pipe sockets 10 to the damping elements 20 is varied, a gap can be established between the pipe sockets 10 with flange 12 in the mounting position, or the pipe sockets can also be mounted without a gap if, for example, a ring-like washer (not shown) is inserted into the gap.

[0028] The pipe socket 10 with flange 12 has an engagement geometry at its end facing away from the flange 12, for example a circumferential ridge 16 formed on a pipe section 14 of the pipe socket 10 with flange 12. A pipe end 18 of the pipe socket 14 beyond the circumferential ridge 16 can be brought into contact with an end 18 of the other pipe socket 10 with flange 12 of the same design, which is approached in the installation position from the opposite direction.

[0029] Preferably, the pipe sockets 10 with flange 12 are made of a metal or a metal alloy. A hard plastic, for example with a metal powder filling or a mineral powder filling, can also be advantageous for certain applications. Manufacturing technologies can be provided, for example, by injection moulding, casting or the like.

[0030] The damping elements 20, which are also preferably designed as identical parts, are preferably made of a permanently elastic material, such as an elastomer. A permanently elastic plastic, such as an ethylene-propylene-diene rubber (EPDM) or a material that is at least comparable in its properties, can be used here.

[0031] The advantageously at least approximately cylindrically symmetrical damping elements each have a flange section 26 which adjoins a cylinder section 24. The cylinder section 24 is equipped on the outside with surface structures extending in the direction of the cylinder axis Z, which can compensate for manufacturing tolerances during assembly and can later have additional vibration damping properties in the final assembled state.

[0032] The cylinder sections 24 are extended over a partial circumference of approximately 90° and lie opposite each other. In this way, the cylinder sections 24 of a damping element 20 formed as an equal part can be brought into engagement with the partial circumferential cylinder sections 24 of the described damping element 20 from opposite along the cylinder axis Z, thus forming a substantially full circumferential cylinder from two damping sections 20.

[0033] Engagement structures 22a, 22b, in this case grooves 22a, 22b, continue fully around the common inner circumference of the two damper elements 20 after they have been assembled as shown in FIG. 1. The engagement geometries 16 of the flanged tube members 10 12 can be engaged with the engagement structures 22a, 22b, thereby allowing easy pre-assembly and pre-tensioning of the vibration damper according to this embodiment of the invention within the hole 102 of the vehicle frame 100. The pre-tension is sufficient to hold the vibration damper in its final position until a final assembly bolt, for example, has been inserted through the vibration damper and taken into action.

[0034] Since the four components 10, 20 of this embodiment of the vibration damper according to the invention are formed as identical parts, an assembly worker on a production line can easily pre-assemble said components with each other through the opening 102 in the vehicle frame or in the vehicle body, before a screw bolt is inserted through the opening 104 in order to fasten a vibrating device, such as an internal combustion engine, to the vehicle body. In this case, the pipe sockets 10 with flange 12 are inserted from below or above in a free space 106 provided around the inside circumference and engage with their ridges 16 in the grooves 22a, 22b of the damping elements 20 to enable pre-assembly.

[0035] FIG. 2 shows an embodiment in which an engine block 204, for example, is mounted to a vehicle frame 100 via a screw bolt 202, 200.

[0036] According to FIG. 2, the same components of this embodiment have been designated with the same reference signs as components according to FIG. 1 or according to the first embodiment, so that explanations regarding the first embodiment can also apply to components of the second embodiment according to FIG. 2.

[0037] In the installation position shown in FIG. 2, the damping elements 20 are in engagement with each other with their cylinder sections each extending by approximately 90°, so that the shapes of the damping elements 20 complement each other to form a cylindrical shape with the cylinder axis Z as the orientation for the cylinder symmetry. In this installation situation, engagement grooves 22a, 22b have been fully completed by the interlocking cylinder sections of the damping elements 20. The flanged pipe sockets 10 lie within the assembled damping elements 20 and engage with their engagement geometries 16 in the engagement structures 22a, 22b of the damping elements 20, whereby pre-assembly can be accomplished when the installation process has not yet been completed, i.e. when the screw bolt 200, 202 has not yet been inserted through the inner circumference of the assembled damping elements 20 and connected to the section 204, such as a part of an engine block.

[0038] In the final assembled state according to FIG. 2, vibrations are absorbed by the assembled damping elements 20 and are not transmitted from the device 204, such as an engine block, to the device 100, such as a vehicle frame, since the damping elements 20 consist of a permanently elastic material. It can be seen that all parts of the vibration damper according to the invention are formed as identical parts, i.e. the two damping sections 22 and the two pipe sockets 10 with flange are each formed identically and can be easily assembled on a production line without any major concentration on the part of an assembling person.