STRUCTURE OF EXHAUST PIPE

Abstract

A structure of an exhaust pipe may include a first pipe discharging exhaust gas produced in engine cylinders disposed in a first side row, a second pipe discharging exhaust gas produced in engine cylinders disposed in a second side row, a merging pipe having a first end communicatively connected to the first pipe, and a second end communicatively connected to the second pipe, and a valve plate embedded in the merging pipe, and selectively closed or opened.

Claims

1. A structure of an exhaust pipe, the structure comprising: a first pipe discharging exhaust gas produced in engine cylinders disposed in a first side row; a second pipe discharging exhaust gas produced in engine cylinders disposed in a second side row; a merging pipe having a first end communicatively connected to the first pipe, and a second end communicatively connected to the second pipe; and a valve plate embedded in the merging pipe, and selectively closed or opened.

2. The structure of claim 1, wherein the valve plate has a circular plate shape, and is configured to be opened or closed based on a rotation angle at which a rotating shaft is rotated.

3. The structure of claim 2, further comprising an actuator which rotates the valve plate when electric power is applied to the actuator.

4. The structure of claim 3, wherein the actuator opens or closes the valve plate based on driving information of the vehicle and predetermined logic, and rotates the valve plate to open or close the valve plate.

5. The structure of claim 4, wherein the actuator opens the valve plate under a condition in which the engine operates at a range of 750 rpm to 3,000 rpm, and an engine load is 50% or below.

6. The structure of claim 1, wherein the first pipe and the second pipe form sections in which the first pipe and the second pipe are parallel to each other at a front side of a muffler, and the merging pipe is disposed in the section in which the first pipe and the second pipe are parallel to each other.

7. The structure of claim 6, wherein pipe joints are mounted at both ends of the merging pipe, respectively, to be fitted in the section in which the first pipe and the second pipe are parallel to each other.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] FIG. 1A is a view illustrating an exhaust pipe in the related art.

[0026] FIG. 1B and FIG. 1C are views illustrating a state in which behavior occurs at the periphery of a muffler in an up and down direction and a left and right direction in the exhaust pipe in the related art.

[0027] FIG. 2 is a view illustrating an appearance of an exhaust pipe according to various embodiments of the present invention, and an enlarged portion where a merging pipe is mounted.

[0028] FIG. 3 is a view illustrating an appearance of the merging pipe according to various embodiments of the present invention, in which an interior of the merging pipe is penetrated in order to show an embedded valve plate.

[0029] FIG. 4 is a view illustrating an appearance of a cross section when an interior of the valve plate is opened and closed.

[0030] It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various features illustrative of the basic principles of the invention. The specific design features of the present invention as disclosed herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particular intended application and use environment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the invention(s) will be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments, it will be understood that the present description is not intended to limit the invention(s) to those exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the invention(s) is/are intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

[0032] Various embodiments of the present invention relate to a structure of an exhaust pipe which is capable of maintaining noise reducing properties or generating rough exhaust sound, which emphasizes dynamism, in accordance with a driving situation or a driver's preference, and hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

[0033] As illustrated in FIG. 2, in an exhaust pipe according to various embodiments of the present invention, a first pipe 10, which discharges exhaust gas produced in engine cylinders disposed in one side row, and a second pipe 20, which discharges exhaust gas produced in engine cylinders disposed in the other side row, are disposed in parallel in a longitudinal direction, and connected through a merging pipe 30. That is, the merging pipe 30 has one end which is connected with the first pipe 10 so as to communicate with the first pipe 10, and the other end which is connected with the second pipe 20 so as to communicate with the second pipe 20, and a valve plate 32, which is opened and closed, is embedded in the merging pipe 30 as illustrated in FIG. 3.

[0034] In various embodiments of the present invention, the merging pipe 30 has a cylindrical shape, and the valve plate 32 is formed in a circular shape having a diameter capable of closing the merging pipe, and the valve plate 32 is configured to be opened or closed based on a rotation angle at which a rotating shaft is rotated.

[0035] When electric power is applied to the valve plate 32, the valve plate 32 is coupled to an actuator 50 being rotated by an embedded motor. The actuator 50 determines whether to open or close the valve plate 32 based on driving information of the vehicle and predetermined logic, and may be set to rotate the valve plate 32 so as to open or close the valve plate 32.

[0036] The actuator 50 may be set to open the valve plate 32 so as to reduce exhaust sound (to reduce a half-order component) under a condition in which the engine operates at a low rotational speed within a range of 750 rpm to 3000 rpm, and an engine load is below 50%, but the actuator 50 may be set to close the valve plate 32 so as to generate rough exhaust sound (to prevent a reduction in the half-order component) under a condition in which the engine operates at a high rotational speed of 3,000 rpm or higher.

[0037] Alternatively, independently of the aforementioned setting, the actuator 50 may be adjusted to generate rough exhaust sound or silent exhaust sound at all times based on a driver's preference or only in a particular situation.

[0038] Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4, in various embodiments of the present invention, sub-mufflers 11 and 21 are disposed on the first pipe 10 and the second pipe 20, respectively, at front sides of mufflers 40, and sections 10a and 20a, in which the first pipe 10 and the second pipe 20 are parallel to each other, are formed between the sub-mufflers 11 and 21 and the mufflers 40, and the merging pipe 30 is configured to be disposed in the sections 10a and 20a in which the first pipe 10 and the second pipe 20 are parallel to each other.

[0039] Pipe joints 31 are mounted at both ends of the merging pipe 30 so as to be fitted in the sections 10a and 20a in which the first pipe 10 and the second pipe 20 are parallel to each other.

[0040] According to various embodiments of the present invention having the aforementioned configuration, when the engine operates at a low speed, the valve plate 32 is opened such that exhaust gas at both sides of the merging pipe 30 is merged together, and as a result, the half-order is weakened and exhaust sound becomes silent like the structure in the related art. Further, when the engine operates at a high speed, the valve plate 32 closes the merging pipe 30 such that exhaust gas at both sides is blocked, and as a result, the half-order is prevented from being weakened and rough and dynamic exhaust sound is generated unlike the structure in the related art.

[0041] The merging pipe 30 according to various embodiments of the present invention supports and connects the first pipe 10 and the second pipe 20, and as a result, torsional rigidity is further increased by the merging pipe 30 instead of the reinforcing bracket in the related art.

[0042] Meanwhile, the actuator 50, which controls the valve plate 32, is configured to operate by predetermined logic, and may implement various types of exhaust sound in accordance with properties of the vehicle or a mode manipulated by the driver.

[0043] The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain certain principles of the invention and their practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to make and utilize various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the Claims appended hereto and their equivalents.