Bearing arrangement

Abstract

A bearing arrangement for a camshaft may include a bearing ring arranged between two functional elements. The bearing ring may be supported with respect to the functional elements via axial front sides. At least one of the axial front sides of the bearing ring and a side of the respective functional elements in sliding contact with the axial front side may have a polymer coating.

Claims

1. A bearing arrangement for a camshaft, comprising: a bearing ring arranged between two receiving elements, the bearing ring including lateral shoulders and supported with respect to the receiving elements via axial front sides, and a polymer coating disposed on an axially facing contact surface of at least one of (i) the axial front sides of the bearing ring and (ii) a side of the respective receiving elements in sliding contact with the axial front sides; wherein the bearing ring includes a double-T-shaped cross-section forming an I-shaped cross section having the lateral shoulders projecting radially outwards; and wherein the polymer coating has a base material and includes a dispersion of polytetrafluoroethylene particles in a concentration of 1-15% by volume.

2. The bearing arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the lateral shoulders project radially outwards on each side thereof, and wherein rolling elements are arranged between the bearing ring and a surface of the camshaft.

3. The bearing arrangement according to claim 2, wherein the rolling elements include needles and run directly on the surface of the camshaft, wherein in a radial direction the respective lateral shoulders of the bearing ring extend in a direction away from the camshaft and do not guide the rolling elements.

4. The bearing arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the base material of the polymer coating includes at least one of polyimide, acrylate, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and epoxy resin.

5. The bearing arrangement according to claim 1, wherein at least one of: at least one receiving element includes a cam, a limit stop, a drive wheel, an assembly aid, a gearwheel and a rotary sensor, and the bearing ring is arranged between a drive wheel and a first cam.

6. The bearing arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the bearing ring is arranged having an axial play of 30-50 μm with respect to at least one receiving element.

7. The bearing arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the bearing ring includes a sliding bearing and slides on a surface of the camshaft, the bearing ring having a circumferential oil groove and at least one radial oil passage opening, and wherein at least one of the surface of the camshaft is polymer-coated in a sliding area and the bearing ring is polymer-coated on a side facing the surface of the camshaft.

8. The bearing arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the bearing ring has a plurality of oil supply grooves spaced circumferentially on at least one of the axial front sides.

9. An internal combustion engine, comprising: a camshaft having a longitudinal axis and at least two receiving elements each having an opening received by the camshaft; and a bearing arrangement, the bearing arrangement including a bearing ring arranged between the at least two receiving elements in an axial direction of the longitudinal axis, the bearing ring including lateral shoulders and supported with respect to the at least two receiving elements via at least two axial front sides, and a polymer coating disposed on an axially facing contact surface of at least one of (i) the at least two axial front sides of the bearing ring and (ii) a side of the respective receiving elements in sliding contact with the at least two axial front sides; wherein the bearing ring includes a double-T-shaped cross-section forming an I-shaped cross section having the lateral shoulders projecting radially outwards; wherein the polymer coating includes a dispersion of polytetrafluoroethylene particles in a concentration of 1-15% by volume; and wherein at least one axial front side of the at least two axial front sides includes a plurality of oil supply grooves spaced apart circumferentially and extending radially with respect to the longitudinal axis.

10. The internal combustion engine according to claim 9, wherein the lateral shoulders project radially outwards on each side thereof, and wherein rolling elements are arranged between the bearing ring and a surface of the camshaft.

11. The internal combustion engine according to claim 10, wherein the bearing ring is secured via the respective lateral shoulders on a cylinder head.

12. The internal combustion engine according to claim 10, wherein the rolling elements include needles and run directly on the surface of the camshaft, wherein in a radial direction of the longitudinal axis, the respective lateral shoulders of the bearing ring extend in a direction of a cylinder head and do not guide the rolling elements.

13. The internal combustion engine according to claim 9, wherein at least one of: the polymer coating includes at least one of polyimide, acrylate, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and epoxy resin, and the polymer coating further includes metallic particles in a concentration of 1-15% by volume.

14. The internal combustion engine according to claim 9, wherein the bearing ring is arranged having an axial play of 30-50 μm with respect to at least one receiving element.

15. The internal combustion engine according to claim 9, wherein at least one of the receiving elements is at least one of a cam, a limit stop, a drive wheel, an assembly aid, a gearwheel, and a rotary sensor.

16. The bearing arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the polymer coating further includes a dispersion of metallic particles; and wherein the axially facing surface of the polymer coating includes at least one of a front surface and a rear surface.

17. The bearing arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the polymer coating includes the dispersion of polytetrafluoroethylene particles.

18. The internal combustion engine according to claim 9, wherein the polymer coating has a base material that includes the dispersion of polytetrafluoroethylene particles in the concentration of 1-15% by volume.

19. The internal combustion engine according to claim 9, wherein the polymer coating has a base material and further includes a dispersion of metallic particles in a concentration of 1-15% by volume.

20. The internal combustion engine according to claim 9, wherein the bearing ring includes a circumferential oil groove on a side facing radially away from the camshaft and at least one radially extending oil passage disposed axially between the at least two axial front sides.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) In the figures, schematically:

(2) FIG. 1 shows a sectional view through a bearing arrangement according to the invention,

(3) FIG. 2 shows a detailed illustration of the region X,

(4) FIG. 3 shows a sectional view along the sectional plane A-A,

(5) FIG. 4 shows a view as in FIG. 1, but of a bearing ring that is configured differently.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(6) According to FIG. 1, an internal combustion engine 1 has a bearing arrangement 2 according to the invention for a camshaft 3, wherein the bearing arrangement 2 has a bearing ring 4 that is arranged between two functional elements 5 of the camshaft 3. Said functional elements 5 can be formed, for example, as a cam 6, a drive wheel, an assembly aid, a gearwheel, a rotary sensor or a limit stop 7. As is apparent from the FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the bearing ring 4 is supported with respect to the functional elements 5 via its axial front sides 8, wherein for easier mounting and in particular also for implementing so-called start-stop strategies, at least the axial front sides 8 of the bearing ring 4 and/or those sides 9 of the functional elements 5 that are in sliding contact therewith have a polymer coating 10.

(7) When viewing the FIGS. 1 and 2, it can be seen that the bearing ring 4 has a double-T-shaped cross-section, usually also referred to as I-cross-section, with lateral shoulders 11, wherein between the bearing ring 4, on the one hand, and the camshaft 3, on the other, rolling elements 12, for example roller bodies, are arranged. By way of these rolling elements 12, a radial roller bearing can be achieved, whereby a particularly smooth-running radial mounting of the camshaft 3 is enabled. The rolling elements 12 can be formed as needles and can run directly on the surface of the camshaft 3; the lateral shoulders 11 of the bearing ring 4 can be provided such that in the radial direction, they are formed only in the direction of the cylinder head 15, that is, towards the outside, and therefore do not guide the rolling elements 12. In FIG. 1, this simply would mean that the T-shaped shoulders 11 are merely formed as L-shaped shoulders 11 and project radially outwards.

(8) The polymer coating 10 can comprise, for example, polyimide, acrylate, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) or epoxy resin, wherein it is of course also conceivable to incorporate metallic particles and/or polytetrafluoroethylene particles, which are then contained in a preferred concentration of 1 to 15% by volume.

(9) With the axial sliding bearing according to the invention, the axial installation space required can be reduced significantly. If, in addition, the radial installation space required is also to be reduced, the bearing ring 4 can generally be formed as a sliding bearing and can slide on the surface of the camshaft 3, wherein in this case, the bearing ring 4 has a circumferential oil groove 13 on its outside and, in addition, has radial oil passage openings 14 (cf. FIG. 4). In this case, the bearing ring 4 can be supplied with oil via a cylinder head 15. The surface of the camshaft 3 can be polymer-coated in the sliding/contact area, and/or the bearing ring 4 can be polymer-coated on its inside, in particular, with such a polymer coating 10.

(10) When viewing the FIGS. 1 and 2, it can be seen that the bearing ring 4 engages with both of its shoulders 11 around a portion of the cylinder head 15 and thereby is fixed thereon.

(11) The bearing ring 4 can be made from metal, for example. Preferably, the bearing ring 4 is arranged between a drive wheel and the first cam 6, wherein the bearing ring 4 is usually arranged with an axial play a of 30-50 μm with respect to the functional element 5. As an alternative to engaging around the portion of the cylinder head 15 by means of the shoulders 11, it is of course also possible to use separate fastening means, or fastening means that are integrated in the bearing ring 4 and engage in corresponding formations on the cylinder head 15. The functional elements 5 are usually fixedly connected to the camshaft 3, for example, are thermally joined therewith.

(12) When viewing FIG. 3, it can be seen that the bearing ring 4, on its front sides 8, has oil supply grooves 16 which supply the tribological contact zone between the bearing ring 4 and the functional element 5 with an oil film which additionally facilitates the sliding mounting.

(13) With the bearing arrangement 2 according to the invention it can be achieved that not only installation space is saved when mounting the camshaft 3, but, at the same time, a comparatively cost-effective bearing arrangement 2 is also achieved, which bearing arrangement, even without complex roller bearings, enables implementing start-stop strategies using sliding bearings due to the tribologically optimized polymer coating 10.