(19)
(11)EP 2 956 653 B1

(12)EUROPEAN PATENT SPECIFICATION

(45)Mention of the grant of the patent:
29.04.2020 Bulletin 2020/18

(21)Application number: 14707582.4

(22)Date of filing:  17.02.2014
(51)International Patent Classification (IPC): 
F02F 3/00(2006.01)
F02B 23/06(2006.01)
F02F 3/22(2006.01)
(86)International application number:
PCT/US2014/016670
(87)International publication number:
WO 2014/127319 (21.08.2014 Gazette  2014/34)

(54)

COMPLEX-SHAPED PISTON OIL GALLERIES WITH PISTON CROWNS MADE BY CAST METAL OR POWDER METAL PROCESSES

KOMPLEX GEFORMTE KOLBENÖLSTRECKEN MIT KOLBENKRONEN AUS GUSSMETALL- ODER PULVERMETALLVERFAHREN

GALERIES D'HUILE DE PISTON DE FORME COMPLEXE AVEC TÊTES DE PISTON FABRIQUÉES PAR LE BIAIS DE PROCÉDÉS UTILISANT DU MÉTAL COULÉ OU DE LA POUDRE MÉTALLIQUE


(84)Designated Contracting States:
AL AT BE BG CH CY CZ DE DK EE ES FI FR GB GR HR HU IE IS IT LI LT LU LV MC MK MT NL NO PL PT RO RS SE SI SK SM TR

(30)Priority: 18.02.2013 US 201361766055 P

(43)Date of publication of application:
23.12.2015 Bulletin 2015/52

(73)Proprietor: Tenneco Inc.
Lake Forest, IL 60045 (US)

(72)Inventor:
  • SCHNEIDER, Norbert, G.
    Ann Arbor, MI 48108 (US)

(74)Representative: Hoffmann Eitle 
Patent- und Rechtsanwälte PartmbB Arabellastraße 30
81925 München
81925 München (DE)


(56)References cited: : 
US-A1- 2006 207 424
US-A1- 2012 222 305
  
      
    Note: Within nine months from the publication of the mention of the grant of the European patent, any person may give notice to the European Patent Office of opposition to the European patent granted. Notice of opposition shall be filed in a written reasoned statement. It shall not be deemed to have been filed until the opposition fee has been paid. (Art. 99(1) European Patent Convention).


    Description

    TECHNICAL FIELD



    [0001] The invention relates generally to pistons for internal combustion engines, particularly diesel engines, and more particularly to pistons having oil galleries.

    BACKGROUND



    [0002] It is known in internal combustion engine applications, particularly with respect to diesel engines, to provide pistons with bodies formed with a closed gallery for cooling oil. The oil circulates through the gallery and cools parts of the piston which are susceptible to damage from the heat of combustion. The upper rims around the combustion bowls are particularly susceptible to damage when overheated.

    [0003] The cooling galleries are generally annular or ring-shaped with constant cross-sections and are provided inside the piston ring belt and adjacent the top wall and rim of the piston body. The gallery is bounded by an inner wall adjacent the combustion bowl. The oil galleries can be either open or closed. If closed, the gallery channel is closed at the bottom by a bottom wall. For closed galleries, inlets can be provided in the bottom wall for receiving cooling oil into the gallery, or the cooling oil could be supplied to the galleries by other means.

    [0004] Traditionally, the combustion bowls of diesel engines have circular symmetric shapes and have smooth unbroken surfaces from the outer rims to the depressed center portions. Today, however, new bowls are being designed with non-traditional or complex shapes. It is understood that these non-traditional shapes are utilized in order to burn fuel more effectively and with less undesirable emissions. However, the complex bowl shapes makes the cooling of the bowls and rims with conventional piston galleries more difficult. Conventional machining with turning operations will not provide oil galleries with similar or corresponding complex shapes as the complex shaped combustion bowls.

    [0005] If the differences in structure between the combustion bowls and the oil galleries create walls with significantly different thicknesses, or walls which are too thick to be adequately cooled by the oil being circulated in the oil galleries, then "hot spots" in the piston can occur where the material can overheat. Hot spot areas can create weak spots in the piston where the material could crack or fail. If a piston fails, this creates an engine failure causing major expense and perhaps a new engine for the vehicle.

    [0006] It is an object of the present invention to provide piston crowns made by cast metal or powder metal processes with oil galleries, and a method of forming such oil galleries, which accommodates non-traditional complex-shaped combustion bowls and maintains thin and uniform wall thickness in order to avoid overheating concerns.

    [0007] US 2006/0207424 A1 relates to a piston made of two components.

    SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION



    [0008] The invention is defined by the independent claims.

    [0009] The invention provides oil galleries for cast metal and powder metal pistons with complex shaped combustion bowls, as well as methods for forming such oil galleries, which provide substantially uniform wall thickness between the combustion bowls and the oil galleries. The invention minimizes or eliminates hot spots and allows the oil in the galleries to maintain the rims and other areas of the pistons and combustion bowls within acceptable temperature limits.

    [0010] The galleries are formed in the same or substantially similar complex shapes as the combustion bowls. The galleries are formed by cast metal processes or powder metal processes and then machined by conventional turning operations where possible to enlarge the galleries and to finish certain surfaces. Areas and surfaces in the galleries which cannot be finished by conventionally machine turning operations, such as recesses and bulges, are left in their initial condition. During the machine turning, an annular groove is formed extending the shape of the oil gallery in a direction toward the bowl rim.

    [0011] The term "complex" as used herein refers to the shape of the combustion bowl in the piston crown which is not traditionally shaped, either in its outer perimeter, or inside the outer perimeter, or both. "Complex" shapes refers to all shapes of a combustion bowl other than traditional and which can have, for example, edges which include straight, curved, or arced sections, or which have bumps, protrusions, ribs, recesses and the like either in the bowl or, its outer perimeter, or both. In general, complex shapes are any shapes which are not machineable by conventional machine-turning operations.

    [0012] The present invention is preferably utilized for pistons for diesel engines, although the invention can also be utilized for pistons for any internal combustion engine and for engines that use either liquid or gas fuel.

    [0013] Once the crown of the piston if formed, the crown is attached to a second portion of the piston in order to complete the full piston. The second portion typically includes the remainder of the side walls and the pin bores. The crown and second portion are connected together in any known manner, but preferably by friction welding. A connection process of this type is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Patent No. 6,260,472.

    BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS



    [0014] These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily appreciated when considered in connection with the following detailed description and appending drawings, wherein:

    FIGURE 1 illustrates a piston with a closed oil gallery.

    FIGURES 2A, 2B and 2C schematically illustrate three general types of complex combustion bowls.

    FIGURE 3 is a schematic plan view of a piston crown depicting a representative complex shape of a combustion bowl.

    FIGURE 4 is a cross-section of the piston crown as shown in Figure 1 taken along line 4-4 and in direction of the arrows.

    FIGURE 5 is another cross-section of the piston crown similar to Figure 4, following machining-turning of at least one surface of the oil gallery.

    FIGURE 6 is a flow chart of an embodiment of a system and method in accordance with the present invention.


    DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS



    [0015] A representative piston 100 in which the present invention can be utilized if the combustion bowl has a complex shape is shown in Figure 1. The piston 100 includes a piston crown member 10 and a lower member 102 which includes sidewalls 104 and pin bosses 106. The piston crown 10 and lower member 102 are fixedly secured together, preferably by friction welding, to form the complete piston 100.

    [0016] The piston 100 has an oil gallery in which oil is circulated in order to maintain the temperature of the piston, particularly the upper surface, combustion bowl and outer rim within acceptable temperature limits. The oil gallery includes an oil gallery channel 105 positioned in the crown member 10. The oil gallery can be either opened or closed as well known in the art. If closed, the bottom wall of the oil gallery is typically included as part of the lower member 102.

    [0017] A piston crown member 10 with a representative complex combustion bowl 12 is depicted in Figure 3. The shape of the bowl 12 is essentially a square shape with four sides 15, 16, 17 and 18. In the shape depicted, the sides are straight with rounded corners 21, 22, 23 and 24.

    [0018] It is to be understood that the shape of the combustion bowl and the linearity of the sides 15-18 is merely one example of a complex combustion bowl. In accordance with the invention, the combustion bowl can have any perimeter or internal shape, with any number of sides or side portions. The sides and internal surfaces can also have any shape, such as being straight as shown or curved or arced, and can have sections or portions which are straight, curved or arced, or have bumps, protrusions, recesses, ribs and the like. In addition, the corners 21-24, or the intersections or joints between the side portions, can have any shape, and can protrude into the bowl or be recessed from it.

    [0019] The shape of the piston bowl can be complex either in its outer periphery, as shown in Figure 2A, be complex in the radially inner areas of the bowl, as shown in Figure 2B, or be complex with respect to both the outer periphery and the inner areas as shown in Figure 2C. Figures 2A, 2B and 2C are representative of these three general types of complex shaped combustion bowls. The present invention provides an oil gallery and oil gallery channel that can accommodate combustion bowls with such complex shapes.

    [0020] The piston crown and the entire piston are made of a cast metal or powder metal material. The shape of the piston crown 10 is formed by these processes. In the embodiment shown, the oil gallery channel is made by the cast metal or powder metal process, followed by a machining process.

    [0021] A cross-section of the piston crown 10 after it is initially formed is shown in Figure 4. The processes form an annular groove 30 that does not necessarily have a circumferential uniform width "W" or a uniform depth "D". The width of the groove 30 is greater in the portions where the sides of the combustion bowl are furthest from the outside surface of the piston crown. These areas are designated by the numeral 40 in Figure 3. Similarly, the areas where the groove 30 is the narrowest is at the corners or intersections between the side portions.

    [0022] As a subsequent step in forming the oil galleries in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the shape of the oil gallery is machined to the shape shown in Figure 5. In one step in the machine processing, a machining tool represented by the member 50 is inserted into the oil gallery 30 (in the direction of arrow 52) and used to finish the outer surface of the oil gallery channel and to form an annular groove 60, entirely around the bowl. This machine-turning extends the oil gallery channel into the upper reaches of the piston crown (near the top ring groove and adjacent the top face or rim 80 of the piston). The groove 60, which is fully machined, extends above the initial channel 30.

    [0023] "Machine-turning" or simply "turning" is a machining process in which a cutting tool, typically a non-rotary tool bit, moves linearly while the workpiece rotates, such as on a lathe. "Machine-turning" can refer to such a cutting or finishing operation on either the internal surfaces or the external surfaces of a workpiece. In machining some of the surfaces of an oil gallery channel thereon, the machine-turning finishes or forms internal surfaces.

    [0024] The machine-turning processing can also be used to machine and finish some of the inner surfaces of the oil gallery channel 30, such as surface 31. Due to the complex shape in the oil gallery in order to follow the complex shape of the combustion bowl, a plurality of bumps or recesses can be formed on the inside gallery surface by the initial casting or powder forming processes. Due to the turning procedure used in the machining process, the recesses and areas between bumps are left unfinished (i.e. not machined) in this step. Inner gallery channel surfaces 32 and 33 in Figure 5 are not finished and remain in their original condition.

    [0025] In Figure 3, the outer circumference of the finished annular groove 60 is indicated by hidden line 60'. In addition, an inner finished surface of the complex shaped oil gallery (such as surface 31) is indicated by the hidden line 30'. The areas (e.g. recesses) left unfinished are indicated by the reference numerals 32 and 33 in Figure 5. An oil gallery channel having the shape 30 shown in Figure 4 can be formed by cast metal or powdered metal processes.

    [0026] In a typical forging operation, the oil gallery channel in the lower surface of the piston crown member 10 will be formed at the same time that another forging die is forming the complex shaped combustion bowl on the upper surface or upper side of the piston crown member.

    [0027] The inventive process provides an annular oil gallery for a piston which has a similar or substantially the same perimeter inner shape as the outer perimeter shape of a complex-shaped combustion bowl. This minimizes the thicknesses of the wall areas 70 between the oil gallery and combustion bowl 12 and makes the wall thicknesses around the outside of the combustion bowl uniform. Due to practical limits of the forming and machining processes, the thicknesses of all of the walls will not be exactly the same around the circumference of the combustion bowl. The present invention, however, makes the wall thickness 70 as thin and uniform as practical around the entire oil gallery. This allows oil introduced in the oil gallery when the piston is finished to maintain the temperature of the bowl wall surfaces and rim 80 within appropriate limits and avoids harmful hot spots.

    [0028] With the present invention, thick wall sections which can create hot spots are minimized or eliminated. Areas of a piston which overheat (also called "hot spots") can create weak spots that could crack or fail. Failure of pistons in this manner could lead to expensive repairs, and possibly to the replacement of the engine.

    [0029] Preferred cooling for a piston can be provided when the walls have a uniform thickness and are relatively thin. Pistons with thinner walls also have less weight which provides less strain on the engine. This results in better gas mileage and less harmful emissions.

    [0030] Figure 6 presents a flow chart 108 of the preferred method of forming an oil gallery channel in a piston crown that corresponds in shape to the shape of a complex combustion bowl in the piston crown. First, a piston crown member is made of a steel material 110. This can be done by any conventional manufacturing procedure.

    [0031] Then, a complex shaped combustion bowl is formed in the top or upper surface of the piston crown member 112. This step is formed by a cast metal or powdered metal process.

    [0032] At the same time, an oil gallery channel 30 is formed in the lower surface or lower side of the piston crown member with a shape that is similar to, or corresponds to, the shape of the combustion bowl. This is shown in box 114.

    [0033] Finally, the oil gallery channel in the piston crown member is machine finished 116 to enlarge its size and bring it closer to the upper rim of the piston crown member and the combustion bowl. In this step, an annular groove 60 is formed by a cutting tool, and the other surfaces of the gallery channel which can be finished by a machine-turning operation (i.e. other than recesses and areas between bumps) can be finished as desired.

    [0034] Although the invention has been described with respect to preferred embodiments, it is to be also understood that it is not to be so limited since changes and modifications can be made therein which are within the full scope of this invention as detailed by the following claims.


    Claims

    1. A piston (1a) comprising:

    a lower member (102), said lower member (102) comprising sidewall portions and pin bores (100);

    an upper crown member (10) joined to said lower member (102), said upper crown member being fabricated by a cast metal or powder metal forming process and having a combustion bowl (12) on an upper side thereof and an oil gallery channel (105) on the lower side thereof, characterized in that said oil gallery channel (105) includes at least one machine-turned wall surface portion (31) and at least one as-formed non-machined pocket portion (32, 33), said pocket portion (32, 33) being recessed radially inwardly toward the longitudinal axis of the piston,

    wherein a plurality of said pocket portions (32, 33) are provided, said pocket portions (32, 33) being separated circumferentially from one another by intervening sections of machine-turned wall surface portions (31).


     
    2. The piston (100) as described in claim 1 wherein at least one of said machine-turned wall surface portions (31) extends axially above said at least one pocket portion (32, 33) toward said upper side.
     
    3. The piston (100) as described in claim 1 wherein said oil gallery channel (105) includes an outer wall portion (60) that is entirely made up of a machine-turned wall surface portion.
     
    4. The piston (100) as described in claim 3 wherein said outer wall portion (60) is the only wall surface portion in said oil gallery channel (105) which is machine-turned.
     
    5. The piston (100) as described in claim 3 wherein said machine-turned outer wall portion (60) extends axially above said at least one pocket portion (33) toward said upper side.
     
    6. The piston (100) as described in claim 1 wherein said oil gallery channel (105) includes an uppermost region that is entirely made up of machine-turned wall surface portions.
     
    7. The piston (100) as described in claim 1 wherein said oil gallery channel (105) is a portion of a closed oil gallery in the piston.
     
    8. The piston of one of the preceding claims,
    wherein said upper crown member (102) has a complex shaped combustion bowl (12) wherein the oil gallery channel has a shape corresponding to the complex shape of the combustion bowl (12).
     
    9. The piston as described in claim 8 wherein there is a section of said machine turned wall surface portion that extends above all of said multiple pocket portions.
     
    10. The piston of one of the claims 8 and 9,
    the upper crown member (10) being made of steel.
     
    11. A method for forming an oil gallery channel in a steel piston crown member, said method comprising the steps of:

    providing a piston crown member (10) made of a steel material and formed by a cast metal or powder metal forming process;

    forming a complex shaped combustion bowl (12) in the upper surface of said piston crown member (10) by the forming process; and

    forming a complex shaped oil gallery channel (105) in the lower surface of said piston crown member (10) by the forming process, the shape of the oil gallery channel (105) corresponding to the complex shape of the combustion bowl (12),

    machine-forming at least one wall surface portion of the oil gallery channel (105) and leaving at least one wall surface pocket portion (32, 33) of the oil gallery channel as formed and non-machined,

    wherein a plurality of said pocket portions (32, 33) are provided, said pocket portions being separated circumferentially from one another by intervening sections of machine-turned wall surface portions (31).


     
    12. The method as described in claim 11 wherein said at least one machine-turned surface (60) extends axially above said as-formed oil gallery channel (105).
     
    13. The method or piston according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said upper crown member is fabricated of steel.
     


    Ansprüche

    1. Kolben (1a), umfassend:

    ein unteres Element (102), wobei das untere Element (102) Seitenwandabschnitte und Bolzenbohrungen (100) umfasst;

    ein oberes Kronenelement (10), das mit dem unteren Element (102) verbunden ist, wobei das obere Kronenelement durch ein Gussmetall- oder Pulvermetallformverfahren hergestellt wird und eine Brennraummulde (12) auf einer Oberseite davon und einen Ölstreckenkanal (105) an der Unterseite davon aufweist, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass

    der Ölstreckenkanal (105) mindestens einen maschinengedrehten Wandflächenabschnitt (31) und mindestens einen so geformten nicht bearbeiteten Taschenabschnitt (32, 33) beinhaltet, wobei der Taschenabschnitt (32, 33) radial nach innen zur Längsachse des Kolbens hin vertieft ist,

    wobei eine Vielzahl der Taschenabschnitte (32, 33) bereitgestellt ist, die Taschenabschnitte (32, 33) umfänglich durch dazwischenliegende Sektionen der maschinengedrehten Wandflächenabschnitte (31) voneinander getrennt sind.


     
    2. Kolben (100) nach Anspruch 1, wobei sich mindestens einer der maschinengedrehten Wandflächenabschnitte (31) axial über den mindesten einen Taschenabschnitt (32, 33) zur Oberseite hin erstreckt.
     
    3. Kolben (100) nach Anspruch 1, wobei der Ölstreckenkanal (105) einen Außenwandabschnitt (60) beinhaltet, der vollkommen aus einem maschinengedrehten Wandflächenabschnitt besteht.
     
    4. Kolben (100) nach Anspruch 3, wobei der Außenwandabschnitt (60) der einzige Wandflächenabschnitt in dem Ölstreckenkanal (105) ist, der maschinengedreht ist.
     
    5. Kolben (100) nach Anspruch 3, wobei sich der maschinengedrehte Außenwandabschnitt (60) axial über den mindestens einen Taschenabschnitt (33) zu der Oberseite hin erstreckt.
     
    6. Kolben (100) nach Anspruch 1, wobei der Ölstreckenkanal (105) eine oberste Region beinhaltet, die vollkommen aus maschinengedrehten Wandflächenabschnitten besteht.
     
    7. Kolben (100) nach Anspruch 1, wobei der Ölstreckenkanal (105) ein Abschnitt einer geschlossenen Ölstrecke in dem Kolben ist.
     
    8. Kolben nach einem der vorstehenden Ansprüche,
    wobei das obere Kronenelement (102) eine komplexe geformte Brennraummulde (12) aufweist, wobei der Ölstreckenkanal eine Form aufweist, die der komplexen Form der Brennraummulde (12) entspricht.
     
    9. Kolben nach Anspruch 8, wobei eine Sektion des maschinengedrehten Wandflächenabschnitts vorhanden ist, die sich über alle der mehreren Taschenabschnitte erstreckt.
     
    10. Kolben nach einem der Ansprüche 8 und 9
    wobei das obere Kronenelement (10) aus Stahl gefertigt ist.
     
    11. Verfahren zum Formen eines Ölstreckenkanals in einem Kolbenkronenelement aus Stahl, wobei das Verfahren die folgenden Schritte umfasst:

    Bereitstellen eines Kolbenkronenelements (10), das aus einem Stahlmaterial gefertigt ist und durch ein Gussmetall- oder Pulvermetallformverfahren geformt wird;

    Formen einer komplexen geformten Brennraummulde (12) an der oberen Oberfläche des Kolbenkronenelements (10) durch das Formverfahren; und

    Formen eines komplexen geformten Ölstreckenkanals (105) in der unteren Oberfläche des Kolbenkronenelements (10) durch das Formverfahren, wobei die Form des Ölstreckenkanals (105) der komplexen Form der Brennraummulde (12) entspricht,

    Maschinenformen mindestens eines Wandflächenabschnitts des Ölstreckenkanals (105) und Belassen von mindestens einem Wandflächentaschenabschnitt (32, 33) des Ölstreckenkanals als geformt und nicht bearbeitet,

    wobei eine Vielzahl der Taschenabschnitte (32, 33) bereitgestellt ist, die Taschenabschnitte (32, 33) umfänglich durch dazwischenliegende Sektionen der maschinengedrehten Wandflächenabschnitte (31) voneinander getrennt sind.


     
    12. Verfahren nach Anspruch 11, wobei sich die mindestens eine maschinengedrehte Oberfläche (60) axial über den so geformten Ölstreckenkanal (105) erstreckt.
     
    13. Verfahren oder Kolben nach einem der vorstehenden Ansprüche, wobei das obere Kronenelement aus Stahl hergestellt ist.
     


    Revendications

    1. Piston (la) comprenant :

    un élément inférieur (102), ledit élément inférieur (102) comprenant des portions de paroi latérale et des alésages d'axe (100) ;

    un élément de couronne supérieur (10) joint audit élément inférieur (102), ledit élément de couronne supérieur étant fabriqué par un procédé de formation de métal coulé ou métal pulvérisé et présentant une chambre de combustion (12) sur un côté supérieur de celui-ci et un canal de galerie d'huile (105) sur le côté inférieur de celui-ci, caractérisé en ce que

    ledit canal de galerie d'huile (105) inclut au moins une portion de surface de paroi tournée à la machine (31) et au moins une portion de poche non usinée telle quelle (32, 33), ladite portion de poche (32, 33) étant évidée radialement vers l'intérieur vers l'axe longitudinal du piston,

    dans lequel une pluralité de dites portions de poche (32, 33) est prévue, lesdites portions de poche (32, 33) étant séparées sur la circonférence l'une de l'autre par des sections intermédiaires de portions de surface de paroi tournées à la machine (31).


     
    2. Piston (100) selon la revendication 1, dans lequel au moins une desdites portions de surface de paroi tournées à la machine (31) s'étend axialement au-dessus de ladite au moins une portion de poche (32, 33) vers ledit côté supérieur.
     
    3. Piston (100) selon la revendication 1, dans lequel ledit canal de galerie d'huile (105) inclut une portion de paroi extérieure (60) qui est entièrement constituée par une portion de surface de paroi tournée à la machine.
     
    4. Piston (100) selon la revendication 3, dans lequel ladite portion de paroi extérieure (60) est la seule portion de surface de paroi dans ledit canal de galerie d'huile (105) qui est tournée à la machine.
     
    5. Piston (100) selon la revendication 3, dans lequel ladite portion de paroi extérieure tournée à la machine (60) s'étend axialement au-dessus de ladite une portion de poche (33) vers ledit côté supérieur.
     
    6. Piston (100) selon la revendication 1, dans lequel ledit canal de galerie d'huile (105) inclut une région supérieure qui est entièrement constituée par des portions de surface de paroi tournées par machine.
     
    7. Piston (100) selon la revendication 1, dans lequel ledit canal de galerie d'huile (105) est une portion d'une galerie d'huile fermée dans le piston.
     
    8. Piston selon l'une des revendications précédentes,
    dans lequel ledit élément de couronne supérieur (102) présente une chambre de combustion de forme complexe (12) dans lequel le canal de galerie d'huile présente une forme correspondant à la forme complexe de la chambre de combustion (12).
     
    9. Piston selon la revendication 8, dans lequel il y a une section de ladite portion de surface de paroi tournée à la machine qui s'étend au-dessus de toutes lesdites multiples portions de poche.
     
    10. Piston selon l'une des revendications 8 et 9,
    l'élément de couronne supérieur (10) étant réalisé en acier.
     
    11. Procédé de formation d'un canal de galerie d'huile dans un élément de couronne de piston d'acier, ledit procédé comprenant les étapes de :

    la fourniture d'un élément de couronne de piston (10) réalisé en un matériau d'acier et formé par un procédé de formation de métal moulé ou métal pulvérisé ;

    la formation d'une chambre de combustion de forme complexe (12) dans la surface supérieure dudit élément de couronne de piston (10) par le procédé de formation ; et

    la formation d'un canal de galerie d'huile de forme complexe (105) dans la surface inférieure dudit élément de couronne de piston (10) par le procédé de formation, la forme du canal de galerie d'huile (105) correspondant à la forme complexe de la chambre de combustion (12),

    la formation à la machine d'au moins une portion de surface de paroi du canal de galerie d'huile (105) et le fait de laisser au moins une portion de poche de surface de paroi (32, 33) du canal de galerie d'huile tel quel et non usiné,

    dans lequel une pluralité de dites portions de poche (32, 33) est prévue, lesdites portions de poche étant séparées sur la circonférence l'une de l'autre par des sections intermédiaires des portions de surface de paroi usinées à la machine (31).


     
    12. Procédé selon la revendication 11, dans lequel ladite au moins une surface tournée à la machine (60) s'étend axialement au-dessus dudit canal de galerie d'huile tel quel (105).
     
    13. Procédé ou piston selon l'une des revendications précédentes, dans lequel ledit élément de couronne supérieur est fabriqué en acier.
     




    Drawing

















    Cited references

    REFERENCES CITED IN THE DESCRIPTION



    This list of references cited by the applicant is for the reader's convenience only. It does not form part of the European patent document. Even though great care has been taken in compiling the references, errors or omissions cannot be excluded and the EPO disclaims all liability in this regard.

    Patent documents cited in the description