Hydraulic valve gear

Claim 1

Valve gear means for use in an internal combustion engine having a driven cam and a source of pressurized liquid lubricant, said valve gear comprising: a. a valve lifter contacting and following said cam and in fluid communication with said source of pressurized liquid lubricant, said valve lifter providing a metered portion of said lubricant to an aperture in the end thereof remote from said cam, said remote end having a substantially flat surface disposed transversely of the direction of motion of said lifter; b. a poppet valve for controlling the gas flow to and from the engine combustion chamber, and c. a rocker arm pivotally interposed between said valve lifter and said poppet valve, said rocker arm having an upwardly opening lubricant-receiving cavity and having a first end portion operatively contacting said remote end of said valve lifter and a second end portion operatively contacting the stem of said poppet valve, such that upon rotation of said cam, axial movements of said lifter result in opposite axial movements of said poppet valve, said first end portion having a convex surface with a lubricant-receiving aperture therethrough, said rocker arm being mounted to said engine for oscillation in the plane defined by the hydraulic valve lifter and poppet valve axes only, said rocker arm convex surface and said substantially flat transverse surface of said hydraulic valve lifter remote end being in sliding communication, with said apertures being in sliding registration for providing a supply of valve gear lubricant to said Cavity.