Oil pump

Abstract

An oil pump includes a rotor, an outer peripheral member accommodating the rotor, a first plate, and a second plate. A discharge passage through which hydraulic fluid is discharged is connected to a discharge port of the first plate. A first pressure gradually-changing groove and a second pressure gradually-changing groove are formed such that a second flow passage area is larger than a first flow passage area, the first flow passage area being a flow passage area of the first pressure gradually-changing groove of the first plate, at a position at which the first pressure gradually-changing groove communicates with a transfer chamber passing through a sealed region, and the second flow passage area being a flow passage area of the second pressure gradually-changing groove of the second plate, at a position at which the second pressure gradually-changing groove communicates with the transfer chamber passing through the sealed region.

Claims

1. An oil pump comprising: a rotor that is driven to be rotated; an outer peripheral member that has a generally cylindrical shape and that accommodates the rotor; a first plate disposed so as to cover an opening at one end face of the outer peripheral member having the generally cylindrical shape; and a second plate disposed so as to cover an opening at the other end face of the outer peripheral member having the generally cylindrical shape, wherein a clearance is defined between an outer peripheral face of the rotor and an inner peripheral face of the outer peripheral member, the clearance is partitioned into a plurality of transfer chambers arranged in a circumferential direction of the rotor, a volume of each of the transfer chambers gradually changes as the rotor rotates, suction ports in the form of recesses are respectively formed in a face of the first plate and a face of the second plate, the faces being opposed to the transfer chambers, the suction ports including at least part of a region in which the volume of each of the transfer chambers gradually increases, and the suction port of the first plate and the suction port of the second plate being formed at such positions as to be opposed to each other, discharge ports in the form of recesses are respectively formed in the face of the first plate and the face of the second plate, the faces being opposed to the transfer chambers, the discharge ports including at least part of a region in which the volume of each of the transfer chambers gradually decreases, and the discharge port of the first plate and the discharge port of the second plate being formed at such positions as to be opposed to each other, a discharge passage through which hydraulic fluid is discharged is connected to the discharge port of the first plate, and the discharge port of the second plate is connected to the discharge passage via the transfer chamber that has reached the discharge port of the second plate and the discharge port of the first plate, a first pressure gradually-changing groove and a second pressure gradually-changing groove are formed respectively in the first plate and the second plate so as to extend from the discharge ports toward the suction ports, the first and second pressure gradually-changing grooves being formed in a sealed region through which the transfer chamber that has reached end points of the suction ports passes before reaching start points of the discharge ports, the first and second pressure gradually-changing grooves gradually supplying the hydraulic fluid from the discharge ports to the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region, and the first pressure gradually-changing groove and the second pressure gradually-changing groove are formed such that a second flow passage area is larger than a first flow passage area, the first flow passage area being a flow passage area of the first pressure gradually-changing groove of the first plate, at a position at which the first pressure gradually-changing groove is communicated with the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region, and the second flow passage area being a flow passage area of the second pressure gradually-changing groove of the second plate, at a position at which the second pressure gradually-changing groove is communicated with the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region.

2. The oil pump according to claim 1, wherein the second flow passage area is made larger than the first flow passage area by setting the number of the second pressure gradually-changing grooves of the second plate larger than the number of the first pressure gradually-changing grooves of the first plate.

3. The oil pump according to claim 1, wherein a ratio of the second flow passage area to the first flow passage area is set such that a pressure of the hydraulic fluid flowing from the first pressure gradually-changing groove into the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region and a pressure of the hydraulic fluid flowing from the second pressure gradually-changing groove into the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region are equal to each other.

4. The oil pump according to claim 2, wherein a ratio of the second flow passage area to the first flow passage area is set such that a pressure of the hydraulic fluid flowing from the first pressure gradually-changing groove into the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region and a pressure of the hydraulic fluid flowing from the second pressure gradually-changing groove into the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region are equal to each other.

5. The oil pump according to claim 1, wherein the first flow passage area is a flow passage area of the first pressure gradually-changing groove of the first plate at a position at which the first pressure gradually-changing groove is initially communicated with the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region, and the second flow passage area is a flow passage area of the second pressure gradually-changing groove of the second plate at a position at which the second pressure gradually-changing groove is initially communicated with the transfer chamber that is passing through the sealed region.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The foregoing and further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of example embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numerals are used to represent like elements and wherein:

(2) FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view illustrating an example of the configuration of an oil pump according to an embodiment of the invention;

(3) FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the axial direction of the oil pump, illustrating the state where the oil pump is fitted to pump housings;

(4) FIG. 3A is a view illustrating the external appearance of a second plate as viewed from a direction AA in FIG. 1;

(5) FIG. 3B is a view illustrating the external appearance of a first plate as viewed from a direction BB in FIG. 1;

(6) FIG. 4 is a view illustrating the positions of transfer chambers, the positions of suction ports and the positions of discharge ports, in a rotor, an outer peripheral member, and the first plate as viewed from a direction CC in FIG. 1;

(7) FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line D-D in FIG. 4, illustrating the position of the transfer chamber that is passing through a sealing region and that has reached a first pressure gradually-changing groove and a second pressure gradually-changing groove, and the position of a discharge passage;

(8) FIG. 6A is a view illustrating a second flow passage area;

(9) FIG. 6B is a view illustrating a first flow passage area;

(10) FIG. 7A is a view illustrating second flow passage areas;

(11) FIG. 7B is a view illustrating a first flow passage area; and

(12) FIG. 8 is a view illustrating an example of a conventional oil pump.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

(13) Hereinafter, an embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. As illustrated in an exploded perspective view in FIG. 1, an oil pump 1 includes, for example, a first plate 10, a rotor 30, an outer peripheral member 40, and a second plate 20. The rotor 30 is driven to be rotated by a shaft 50 that rotates about a rotation axis Z50. The outer peripheral member 40 has a generally cylindrical shape, and accommodates the rotor 30. The outer peripheral member 40 has an inner peripheral face having a generally elliptical sectional shape (refer to FIG. 4) so that partial clearances are formed between an outer peripheral face of the rotor 30 and the inner peripheral face of the outer peripheral member 40. An outer peripheral portion of the rotor 30 is provided with a plurality of vanes 31 urged radially outward. The first plate 10 is disposed so as to cover an opening at one end face of the outer peripheral member 40. The second plate 20 is disposed so as to cover an opening at the other end face of the outer peripheral member 40.

(14) As illustrated in FIG. 2, the outer peripheral member 40 that accommodates the rotor 30 is held between the first plate 10 and the second plate 20, which are located on the opposite sides of the outer peripheral member 40, and is accommodated in and secured to pump housings 51, 52. As a result, the first plate 10, the second plate 20 and the outer peripheral member 40 are secured to the pump housings 51, 52. The shaft 50 is passed through a through-hole of the rotor 30, so that the rotor 30 is driven to be rotated via the shaft 50. Discharge passages 52K are formed in the pump housing 52. The discharge passages 52K are passages through which the hydraulic fluid discharged from the oil pump 1 including the first plate 10, the second plate 20, the rotor 30, and the outer peripheral member 40 flows. The discharge passages 52K are respectively communicated with a discharge port 10ex and a discharge port 11ex, at a communication hole 10R formed in the discharge port 10ex and a communication hole 11R formed in the discharge port 11ex in the first plate 10 illustrated in FIG. 3B. Note that, in FIG. 2, suction passages through which the hydraulic fluid is sucked into the oil pump 1 are not illustrated.

(15) FIG. 3A illustrates the external appearance of the second plate 20 as viewed from the direction AA in FIG. 1. FIG. 3B illustrates the external appearance of the first plate 10 as viewed from the direction BB in FIG. 1. As illustrated in FIG. 3A, suction ports 20in, 21in that are in the form of recesses, discharge ports 20ex, 21ex that are in the form of recesses, a vane oil passage 20B that is in the form of a recess, and a through-hole 20X are formed in a opposed face of the second plate 20, which is opposed to the outer peripheral member 40 and the rotor 30. A second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M is formed so as to extend toward the suction port 20in from the start point of the discharge port 20ex (the right end of the discharge port 20ex in FIG. 3A). A second pressure gradually-changing groove 21M is formed so as to extend toward the suction port 21 in from the start point of the discharge port 21ex (the left end of the discharge port 21ex in FIG. 3A).

(16) As illustrated in FIG. 3B, suction ports 10in, 11in that are in the form of recesses, discharge ports 10ex, 11ex that are in the form of recesses, a vane oil passage 10B that is in the form of a recess, and a through-hole 10X are formed in a opposed face of the first plate 10, which is opposed to the outer peripheral member 40 and the rotor 30. The communication hole 10R communicated with the discharge passage (see 52K in FIG. 2) is formed in the discharge port 10ex, and the communication hole 11R communicated with the discharge passage is formed in the discharge port 11ex. A first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M is formed so as to extend toward the suction port 10in from the start point of the discharge port 10ex (the left end of the discharge port 10ex in FIG. 3B). A first pressure gradually-changing groove 11M is formed so as to extend toward the suction port 11in from the start point of the discharge port 11ex (the right end of the discharge port 11ex in FIG. 3B).

(17) In the assembled state illustrated in FIG. 2, the suction port 10in and the suction port 20in are opposed to each other, the suction port 11 in and the suction port 21in are opposed to each other, the discharge port 10ex and the discharge port 20ex are opposed to each other, the discharge port 11ex and the discharge port 21ex are opposed to each other, and the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M and the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M are opposed to each other, and the first pressure gradually-changing groove 11M and the second pressure gradually-changing groove 21 M are opposed to each other. The vanes 31 are urged radially outward by the hydraulic fluid supplied from the vane oil passages 10B, 20B.

(18) FIG. 4 is a view illustrating, for example, the positions of the transfer chambers 30V, the positions of the suction ports 10in, 11in, and the positions of the discharge ports 10ex, 11ex, in the rotor 30, the outer peripheral member 40 and the first plate 10, as viewed from the direction CC in FIG. 1. Note that, the rotor 30 rotates clockwise in an example illustrated in FIG. 4.

(19) As illustrated in FIG. 4, multiple transfer chambers 30V are defined between the outer peripheral face of the rotor 30 and the inner peripheral face of the outer peripheral member 40. The transfer chambers 30V are spaces separated from each other in the circumferential direction by the vanes 31. The volume of each transfer chamber 30V gradually changes as the rotor 30 rotates. A suction region 10K (a suction region 11K) is a region in which the volume of each transfer chamber 30V gradually increases as the rotor 30 rotates and the suction port 10in (the suction port 11in) and the transfer chamber 30V are brought into contact with each other, so that the hydraulic fluid is sucked from the suction port 10in (the suction port 11in) into the transfer chamber 30V. The suction port 10in (the suction port 11in) is formed in at least part of the region where the volume of the transfer chamber 30V gradually increases. A discharge region 10T (a suction region 11T) is a region in which the volume of each transfer chamber 30V gradually decreases as the rotor 30 rotates and the discharge port 10ex (the discharge port 11ex) and the transfer chamber 30V are brought into contact with each other, so that the hydraulic fluid is discharged from the transfer chamber 30V to the discharge port 10ex (the discharge port 11ex). The discharge port 10ex (the discharge port 11ex) is formed in at least part of the region where the volume of the transfer chamber 30V gradually decreases. The communication hole 10R (the communication hole 11R) communicated with the discharge passage (see 52K in FIG. 2) is formed at the end point of the discharge port 10ex (the discharge port 11ex) of the first plate 10.

(20) A sealed region 10F (a sealed region 11F) is a region extending from the end point of the suction port 10in (the suction port 11in) to the start point of the discharge port 10ex (the discharge port 11ex). The transfer chamber 30V that has reached the end point of the suction port 10in (the suction port 11in) passes through the sealed region 10F (the sealed region 11F) before reaching the start point of the discharge port 10ex (the discharge port 11ex) as the rotor 30 rotates. In the sealed region 10F (the sealed region 11F), the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M (the first pressure gradually-changing groove 11M) is formed so as to extend toward the suction port 10in (or the suction port 11in) from the start point of the discharge port 10ex (the discharge port 11ex).

(21) FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line D-D in FIG. 4, illustrating, for example, the position of the transfer chamber 30V that is passing through the sealed region 10F and that has reached the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M and the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M, and the position of the discharge passage 52K. The discharge port 10ex and the discharge port 20ex illustrated in FIG. 5 are communicated with each other by the transfer chamber 30V that is passing through the sealed region 10F (refer to FIG. 4), and the discharge port 10ex is communicated with the discharge passage 52K through the communication hole 10R. FIG. 6A illustrates the section of the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M in a section taken along the line E-E in FIG. 5. FIG. 6B illustrates the section of the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M in a section taken along the line E-E in FIG. 5.

(22) In a static state, the pressures of the hydraulic fluid in the discharge port 20ex and the discharge port 10ex that are communicated with each other, the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the transfer chamber 30V that provides communication between the discharge port 20ex and the discharge port 10ex, and the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the discharge passage 52K are all supposed to be equal to each other. However, actually, the rotor 30 rotates at a high speed to cause the hydraulic fluid to flow at a high speed, and thus the pressures of the hydraulic fluid at the above-described locations are different from each other. Actually, a pressure (P10) of the hydraulic fluid in the discharge port 10ex, which is located closer to the discharge passage 52K than the discharge port 20ex, is higher than a pressure (P20) of the hydraulic pressure in the discharge port 20ex (P10>P20). Thus, in FIG. 5, when the quantity of the hydraulic fluid that flows from the discharge port 20ex into the transfer chamber 30V through the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M is equal to the quantity of the hydraulic fluid that flows from the discharge port 10ex into the transfer chamber 30V through the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M, cavitation may be caused due to the pressure difference in the hydraulic fluids flowing into the transfer chamber 30V.

(23) Thus, in order to decrease the difference between the pressure of the hydraulic fluid that flows from the discharge port 20ex into the transfer chamber 30V through the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M and the pressure of the hydraulic fluid that flows from the discharge port 10ex into the transfer chamber 30V through the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M, the quantity of the hydraulic fluid at a lower pressure, which flows from the discharge port 20ex into the transfer chamber 30V through the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M is made larger than the quantity of the hydraulic fluid flowing from the discharge port 10ex into the transfer chamber 30V through the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M. In order to achieve this state, the following configuration is employed. The first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M and the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M are formed such that a second flow passage area (a second flow passage area S20 in FIG. 6A) is larger than a first flow passage area (a first flow passage area S10 in FIG. 6B). The first flow passage area is a flow passage area of the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M, at a position at which the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M is communicated with (connected to) the transfer chamber 30V that is passing through the sealed region 10F (at a position on the section taken along the line E-E in FIG. 5). The second flow passage area is a flow passage area of the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M, at a position at which the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M is communicated with (connected to) the transfer chamber 30V that is passing through the sealed region 10F (at a position on the section taken along the line E-E in FIG. 5).

(24) The inventors confirmed the fact that, when the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M and the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M are formed in an oil pump such that the second flow passage area S20 is substantially twice as large as the first flow passage area S10, the difference between the pressure of the hydraulic fluid flowing into the transfer chamber 30V through the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M and the pressure of the hydraulic fluid flowing into the transfer chamber 30V through the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M becomes substantially equal to zero and thus occurrence of cavitation is suppressed. Note that, the optimum ratio of the second flow passage area S20 to the first flow passage area S10 varies depending on kinds or dimensions of oil pumps. Thus, it is preferable to set the ratio of the second flow passage area S20 to the first flow passage area S10 such that the pressure of the hydraulic fluid flowing into the transfer chamber 30V that is passing through the sealed region 10F from the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M is equal to the pressure of the hydraulic fluid flowing into the transfer chamber 30V that is passing through the sealed region 10F from the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M.

(25) In the example illustrated in FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B, the width and/or depth of the second pressure gradually-changing groove 20M are/is set larger than the width and/or depth of the first pressure gradually-changing groove 10M to set the second flow passage area S20 larger than the first flow passage area S10. However, as illustrated in FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B, a plurality of second pressure gradually-changing grooves 20AM, 20BM may be formed to set the second flow passage area (a second flow passage area S20A+a second flow passage area 520B) larger than the first flow passage area S10. In this case, formation of the second pressure gradually-changing grooves is facilitated. As a result, it is possible to facilitate manufacturing of the oil pump.

(26) Note that various changes may be made to the configuration, structure, external appearance and shape of the oil pump 1 without departing from the scope of the invention. Further, the invention should not be limited to the oil pump having the configuration described in the aforementioned embodiment, but may be applied to any kinds of oil pumps. For example, the invention may be applied to an internal gear pump in which an inner rotor having a plurality of teeth formed on its outer peripheral face is eccentrically inscribed in an outer rotor having a plurality of teeth formed on its inner peripheral face.