JP2010261808A - Oil property detector - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to suppress contamination of an oil property sensor.
An oil property detection device includes a fixing member, a stay, a float, and an oil property sensor. The stay 5 includes a connector portion 51 that is fixed to the side wall 2 of the oil pan 1 via the fixing member 4, a link 52 that is swingably attached to the connector portion 51, and a swingable end to the other end of the link 52. A sensor attachment portion 53 attached to the The sensor attachment portion 53 has a plurality of floats 6 attached to the upper portion thereof, and an oil property sensor 7 attached to the lower portion thereof. In the oil property sensor 7, light is emitted from the light emitter 71 toward the oil in the oil chamber 75, and the amount of transmitted light that passes through the oil is detected by the light receiver 72. The calculation unit 10 calculates the oil transmittance based on the amount of light received detected by the light receiver 72. An angle sensor for detecting these relative angles is provided at a connection portion between the connector portion 51 and the link 52.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an oil property detection device that detects the property of oil for engine lubrication.

  In Patent Document 1, as a method for detecting the properties of engine lubricating oil (hereinafter referred to as “oil”), inspection light emitted from a light emitter is guided to a contact surface between a light guide and oil. It is disclosed that the particle concentration in oil is detected based on the intensity of the inspection light reflected on the contact surface.

JP-A-8-29331

  By the way, an oil property sensor that detects the property of oil based on the light transmission characteristic of the oil (specifically, the amount of transmitted light that passes through the oil) is known. In this sensor, light is emitted from the light emitter toward the oil, and the amount of transmitted light that passes through the oil is detected by the light receiver. Part of the light emitted from the illuminant is absorbed and scattered by particles (for example, carbon particles) mixed in the oil, so that the amount of transmitted light detected by the photoreceptor corresponds to the amount of particles in the oil. . In this way, the property of the oil is detected based on the transmitted light amount of the oil.

  However, when such an oil property sensor is attached to the side wall of the oil pan that stores oil, the oil property sensor may be exposed to air when the oil level in the oil pan is lowered. . For this reason, when the dirt adhering to the oil property sensor is cured without being washed, the detection accuracy of the oil property sensor may be lowered.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and an object of the present invention is to ensure the reliability of the oil property detected by the oil property sensor by suppressing the adhesion of dirt on the oil property sensor.

  Therefore, in the present invention, the oil property detecting device includes a connector portion fixed to the side wall of the oil pan, a link having one end swingably attached to the connector portion, and a sensor swingably attached to the other end of the link. A mounting portion, a float that is attached to the sensor mounting portion and floats on the oil surface, and an oil property sensor that is attached to a sensor mounting portion below the float and detects the property of the oil based on the light transmission characteristics of the oil. Prepare.

  According to the present invention, the oil property sensor is mounted on the sensor mounting portion with the float, the sensor mounting portion is swingably mounted on the link, and the link is swingably mounted on the connector portion. The oil property sensor can move in the oil according to the fluctuation. Thereby, since the dirt adhering to the oil property sensor is washed by the oil, the adhesion of the oil property sensor can be suppressed, and the reliability of the oil property detected by the oil property sensor can be ensured.

  Further, according to the present invention, since the oil property sensor is attached to the sensor attachment portion below the float, the oil property sensor is always immersed in the oil, so that the dirt attached to the oil property sensor is prevented from being cured. can do.

Front sectional view showing an oil property detecting device attached to an oil pan in one embodiment of the present invention Side view of oil property detection device in the same embodiment The figure which shows the state change of the oil property detection apparatus by the fluctuation | variation of an oil level

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows an oil property detection device attached to an oil pan in one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows a side surface of the oil property detection device. FIG. 3 shows a change in the state of the oil property detection device due to a change in the oil level. FIG. 3A shows the state of the oil property detection device when the oil level is low, while FIG. ) Shows the state of the oil property detection device when the oil level is high. The oil property detection device according to the present embodiment includes an oil level detection sensor in addition to the oil property detection sensor.

  The oil pan 1 attached to the lower part of a cylinder block (not shown) of the vehicle engine stores the oil after lubrication that has returned through the lubrication part of the engine.

  A through hole 2a is formed in the side wall 2 of the oil pan 1 in advance, and an oil property detecting device 3 described later is attached to the oil pan 1 through the through hole 2a.

  The oil property detecting device 3 is attached to a fixing member 4 fixed to the side wall 2 while oil-tightly closing the through hole 2a, a stay 5 having one end fixed to the fixing member 4, and the other end of the stay 5. A plurality of floats 6 floating on the oil surface and an oil property sensor 7 attached to the other end of the stay 5 are provided.

  The fixing member 4 is bolted to the side wall 2 of the oil pan 1 through mounting holes 4a formed through the four corners in advance. The fixing member 4 includes a connector 4b that connects the signal line 8 from the oil property sensor 7 and the signal line 9 from the outside of the engine.

  The stay 5 includes a connector part 51 fixed to the fixing member 4, a link 52 whose one end is swingably attached to the connector part 51, a sensor attachment part 53 which is swingably attached to the other end of the link 52, Is provided.

  The connector portion 51 has a cylindrical shape extending horizontally with respect to the oil surface, and one end thereof is fixed to the fixing member 4 by bonding with an adhesive or bolt fastening. In addition, a through hole 51 a penetrating in the radial direction is formed in advance at the other end of the connector portion 51.

  The link 52 has a U-shaped cross-sectional shape, and a pair of opposing side frames are extended in the longitudinal direction so that the connector part 51 or the sensor mounting part 53 can be sandwiched at both ends thereof, thereby forming an extension part. Has been. Each extension part is previously formed with a through hole 52a penetrating in the width direction.

  The sensor attachment portion 53 has a plurality of floats 6 attached to the upper portion thereof, and an oil property sensor 7 attached to the lower portion thereof. Thereby, the oil property sensor 7 is always immersed in the oil near the oil surface. Here, the plurality of floats 6 are attached to the sensor attachment portion 53 so that the sensor attachment portion 53 is always horizontal with respect to the oil surface due to its buoyancy. A through hole 53a penetrating in the width direction is formed in advance at the end of the sensor attachment portion 53 on the link 52 side.

  The connector part 51 and the link 52 are connected by a through hole 51a and a pin 11 inserted into the through hole 52a to form a first joint part 11a. The first joint part 11a is linked to the connector part 51. 52 is relatively swingable. Here, the pin 11 has a hollow part in the longitudinal direction.

  Similarly, the link 52 and the sensor mounting portion 53 are connected by a through hole 52a and a pin 12 inserted into the through hole 53a to form a second joint portion 12a, and the second joint portion 12a is linked. 52 and the sensor mounting portion 53 are relatively swingable. Here, the pin 12 has a hollow part in the longitudinal direction.

  Thus, since the stay 5 has the first joint portion 11a and the second joint portion 12a, as the oil level in the oil pan 1 becomes lower, as shown in FIG. While the longitudinal direction of the link 52 approaches vertical, as the oil level increases, the longitudinal direction of the link 52 approaches horizontal with respect to the oil surface as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the signal line 8 extending from one side of the oil property sensor 7 is wired to the other side through the hollow portion of the pin 12 (second joint portion 12 a) and wired along the link 52. After that, the other side is wired to one side through the hollow portion of the pin 11 (first joint portion 11a). The signal line 8 is connected to the connector 4 b of the fixing member 4. The signal line 8 is potted with a resin having oil resistance and heat resistance and bonded to the stay 5 or embedded in the stay 5.

  The oil property sensor 7 includes a light emitting body 71 that emits light, a light receiving body 72 that receives light from the light emitting body 71, and a light emitting surface of the light emitting body 71 inside a holder 70 formed of a prismatic light shielding member. A light guide 73 disposed on the side, a light guide 74 disposed on the light receiving surface side of the light receiver 72, and an oil chamber 75 formed between the light guide 73 and the light guide 74. Prepare.

  The signal line 8 a constituting the signal line 8 is connected to the input terminal of the light emitter 71, while the signal line 8 b constituting the signal line 8 is connected to the output terminal of the light receiver 72. Both of the signal lines 8 a and 8 b are connected to the connector 4 b of the fixing member 4 through the wiring path of the signal line 8 described above.

  In the present embodiment, an LED (light emitting diode) is used as the light emitter 71, while a photodiode whose output voltage increases as the amount of received light increases as the light receiver 72. The light guides 73 and 74 are made of a transparent member having a low light attenuation rate.

  The oil chamber 75 communicates with the inside of the oil pan 1 through a plurality of communication holes (not shown) formed in the holder 70 in advance. As a result, the oil in the oil pan 1 enters and exits the oil chamber 75 through the plurality of communication holes of the holder 70, so that the oil chamber 75 is filled with oil. In addition, as described in JP-A-2009-25192, a light guide body (transparent member) facing the light guide body 73 and the light guide body 74 and swinging in the oil chamber 75 is provided in the oil chamber 75. ) Can be arranged.

  Light emitted from the light emitter 71 is received by the light receiver 72 via the light guide 73, the oil in the oil chamber 75, and the light guide 74. The photoreceptor 72 outputs a voltage corresponding to the amount of received light, and this output is transmitted to the arithmetic unit 10 outside the engine via the signal line 8b, the connector 4b, and the signal line 9. The arithmetic unit 10 calculates the oil transmittance based on the input voltage to the light emitter 71 and the output voltage from the light receiver 72. Here, the oil transmittance is a value defined by the ratio between the light emission amount of the light emitter 71 and the light reception amount of the light receiver 72, and the value decreases as the particle concentration in the oil increases. Therefore, it is possible to detect the particle concentration in the oil, which is the property of the oil, based on the oil transmittance, which is the light transmission characteristic of the oil.

  The first joint portion 11a of the stay 5 is provided with an angle sensor (not shown) such as a potentiometer that detects the relative angle θ1 between the connector portion 51 and the link 52. In this angle sensor, the output voltage changes in accordance with the angle θ1, and for example, the output voltage increases as the angle θ1 increases. Therefore, when the oil level in the oil pan 1 changes from a low state (the state shown in FIG. 3A) to a high oil level (the state shown in FIG. 3B), the angle θ1 increases. The output voltage of the sensor increases. The output from the angle sensor is taken out by a signal line (not shown), and is transmitted to the arithmetic unit 10 through the connector 4b in the same manner as the output from the photoreceptor 72. The arithmetic unit 10 calculates the oil level in the oil pan 1 based on the output voltage of the angle sensor.

  In this embodiment, the angle sensor is provided in the first joint portion 11a of the stay 5, but in addition, the angle sensor is provided in the second joint portion 12a of the stay 5, and the link 52 and the sensor mounting portion are provided. It is also possible to detect the relative angle with respect to 53 and calculate the oil level in the oil pan 1 based on the detected value.

  The calculation unit 10 includes an oil property abnormality notifying unit that notifies the driver of an abnormality in the oil property, and an oil level abnormality notifying unit that notifies the driver of an abnormality in the oil level.

  The oil property abnormality notifying means compares the calculated oil transmittance with a threshold value for determining whether or not to notify the driver of the oil property abnormality. When the calculated oil permeability is lower than the threshold value, the driver is notified of an abnormality in the oil properties and prompted to perform maintenance (replacement) of the oil.

  The oil level abnormality notifying means compares the calculated oil level with a threshold value for determining whether or not to notify the driver of the oil level abnormality. If the calculated oil level is lower than this threshold value, the driver is informed of an abnormality in the oil level and urges the driver to check the oil lubrication system including the oil pan 1.

  According to this embodiment, the oil property sensor 7 is attached to the sensor attachment portion 53 with the float 6, the sensor attachment portion 53 is attached to the link 52 in a swingable manner, and the link 52 is attached to the connector portion 51. The oil property sensor 7 can move in the oil according to the fluctuation of the oil level of the oil pan 1 by being attached so as to be swingable. As a result, in the oil property sensor 7, dirt adhered to the contact surface (window) between the oil in the oil chamber 75 and the light guides 73 and 74 is washed by the oil entering and leaving the oil chamber 75. It is possible to prevent dirt from adhering to the optical path between the body 71 and the light receiver 72, and to ensure the reliability of the oil property detected by the oil property sensor 7.

  According to the present embodiment, the oil property sensor 7 is attached to the sensor attachment portion 53 below the float 6. Thereby, since the oil property sensor 7 is always immersed in oil, hardening of the dirt adhering to the oil property sensor 7 can be suppressed. In addition, since the oil property sensor 7 is always disposed near the oil surface, the oil property sensor 7 vibrates due to a change in the oil surface, so that the contact surface between the oil in the oil chamber 75 and the light guides 73 and 74 ( It is possible to further suppress the contamination of the window).

  Moreover, according to this embodiment, the stay 5 has the 1st joint part 11a and the 2nd joint part 12a. Thereby, when attaching the oil property detection device 3 to the oil pan 1, it can be inserted into the through hole 2a of the side wall 2 of the oil pan 1 from the oil property sensor 7 side while arbitrarily bending the stay 5. The through hole 2a in the side wall 2 of the oil pan 1 can be made relatively small.

  Moreover, according to this embodiment, it attaches to the 1st joint part 11a (connection part of the connector part 51 and the link 52) or the 2nd joint part 12a (connection part of the link 52 and the sensor attachment part 53). By providing an angle sensor that detects the relative angle between the connector portion 51 and the link 52 or the relative angle between the link 52 and the sensor mounting portion 53, the oil level in the oil pan 1 can be adjusted based on the output of the angle sensor. It is possible to detect. Thereby, since the sensor for oil property detection and the sensor for oil level detection can be assembled | attached to the oil pan 1 integrally, an assembly man-hour can be reduced.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Oil pan 2 Side wall 2a Through-hole 3 Oil property detection apparatus 4 Fixing member 4b Connector 5 Stay 6 Float 7 Oil property sensor 10 Calculation part 11a 1st joint part 12a 2nd joint part 51 Connector part 52 Link 53 Sensor attachment part 70 Holder 71 Light emitter 72 Light receiver 73, 74 Light guide 75 Oil chamber

Claims (1)

A connector part fixed to a side wall of an oil pan for storing oil for engine lubrication;
A link having one end swingably attached to the connector portion;
A sensor mounting portion swingably mounted on the other end of the link;
A float that is attached to this sensor mounting part and floats on the oil surface,
An oil property sensor that is attached to the sensor mounting portion below the float and detects the property of the oil based on the light transmission characteristics of the oil;
An oil property detection device comprising:

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