Camshaft drive arrangement for engine

Claim 2

A camshaft drive arrangement for an engine having at least one cylinder closed by a cylinder head, a crankshaft driven by a piston contained with said one cylinder for rotation about a first axis, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head about a second axis parallel to said first axis, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from said crankshaft on one side of a first plane extending perpendicular to said first and said second axes and containing the axis of said cylinder, a camshaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head about a third axis parallel to said first and said second axes for operating at least one valve associated with said cylinder head, and second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft on the other side of said first plane, said first and said second drive means comprising flexible transmitters.

Claim 3

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 1 wherein at least one of the flexible transmitters comprises a chain.

Claim 4

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 2 wherein both of the flexible transmitters comprise chains.

Claim 5

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 1 wherein the engine has a plurality of cylinders and the one cylinder is an end cylinder of a plurality of aligned cylinders.

Claim 6

A camshaft drive arrangement for an engine having at least one cylinder, a crankshaft driven by a piston contained within said one cylinder rotation about a first axis, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation about a second axis parallel to said first axis, first driven means for driving said intermediate shaft on one side of a plane extending perpendicular to said first and said second axes and containing the axis of said cylinder, a camshaft journaled for rotation about a third axis parallel to said first and said second axes for operating at least one valve associated with said cylinder, and second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft on the other side of said plane, said engine having a cylinder head defining a combustion chamber and said camshaft being journaled above said combustion chamber and the intermediate shaft is journaled at one side of said combustion chamber and below said third axis, said cylinder head including a plurality of ports extending through the one side of said cylinder head, one of said drive means being disposed between a pair of said ports, said intermediate shaft being contained within a cavity formed by said cylinder head, said cavity having an access opening formed between the ports for accessing the respective drive means.

Claim 7

A camshaft drive arrangement for an engine having at least one cylinder, a crankshaft driven by a piston contained within said one cylinder rotation about a first axis, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation about a second axis parallel to said first axis, first driven means for driving said intermediate shaft on one side of a plane extending perpendicular to said first and said second axes and containing the axis of said cylinder, a camshaft journaled for rotation about a third axis parallel to said first and said second axes for operating at least one valve associated with said cylinder, and second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft on the other side of said plane, said engine having a cylinder head defining a combustion chamber and said camshaft being journaled above said combustion chamber and the intermediate shaft is journaled at one side of said combustion chamber and below said third axis, said cylinder head including a plurality of ports extending through the one side of said cylinder head, one of said drive means being disposed between a pair of said ports, said intermediate shaft being contained within a cavity formed by said cylinder head, said cavity having an access opening formed between the ports for accessing the respective drive means.

Claim 8

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 5 wherein the access opening is closed by a removable cover plate.

Claim 9

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 6 wherein one of the drive means comprises a flexible transmitter.

Claim 10

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 7 wherein both of the drive means comprise flexible transmitters.

Claim 11

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 8 wherein at least one of the flexible transmitters comprises a chain.

Claim 12

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 9 wherein both of the flexible transmitters comprise chains.

Claim 13

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 6 wherein the first drive means includes an output shaft driven by the crankshaft and driving the intermediate shaft by a flexible transmitter.

Claim 14

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 11 further including a flywheel fixed to the one end of the output shaft for driving a transmission.

Claim 15

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 12 wherein the first and second drive means are offset from the flywheel.

Claim 16

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement for an internal combustion engine comprising a camshaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head for operating at least one valve located therein, a cam cover affixed to said cylinder head and enclosing said camshaft, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head at one side thereof, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from an output shaft of said engine, second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft, one of said drive means being located at one end of said engine, the other of said drive means being spaced from said one end of said cylinder head and remotely from the other end thereof, and removable access means other than said cam cover and carried by said cylinder head for offering access to said other drive means for servicing said other drive means.

Claim 17

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement for an internal combustion engine comprising a camshaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head for operating at least one valve located therein, a cam cover affixed to said cylinder head and enclosing said camshaft, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head at one side thereof, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from an output shaft of said engine, second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft, one of said drive means being located at one end of said engine, the other of said drive means being spaced from said one end of said cylinder head and remotely from the other end thereof, and removable access means other than said cam cover and carried by said cylinder head for offering access to said other drive means for servicing said other drive means.

Claim 18

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 14 wherein one of the drive means comprises a flexible transmitter.

Claim 19

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 15 wherein both of the drive means comprise flexible transmitters.

Claim 20

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 16 wherein at least one of the flexible transmitters comprises a chain.

Claim 21

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 17 wherein both of the flexible transmitters comprise chains.

Claim 22

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 18 wherein the cylinder head includes a plurality of ports extending through the one side of the cylinder head and one of the drive means is disposed between a pair of the ports.

Claim 23

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set fort in claim 14 wherein the cylinder head includes a plurality of ports extending through the one side of the cylinder head and one of the drive means is disposed between a pair of the ports.

Claim 24

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 20 wherein the first drive means includes an output shaft driven by the crankshaft and driving the intermediate shaft by a flexible transmitter.

Claim 25

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 21 further including a flywheel fixed to the one end of the output shaft for driving a transmission.

Claim 26

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 22 wherein the first and second drive means are offset from the flywheel.

Claim 27

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 23 wherein the engine has a plurality of cylinders and the one cylinder is an end cylinder of a plurality of aligned cylinders.

Claim 28

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 14 wherein the one of the drive means comprises the first drive means and the other of the drive means comprises the second drive means.

Claim 29

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 25 wherein the removable access means offers access to the intermediate shaft.

Claim 30

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement for an internal combustion engine comprising a camshaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head and operating a plurality of valves located therein, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head at one side thereof, a plurality of ports opening through said one side of said cylinder head, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from said output shaft of said engine, second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft, one of said drive means being located at one end of said cylinder head, the other of said drive means being positioned at least in part at the side of said cylinder head and between a pair of said ports.

Claim 31

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement for an internal combustion engine comprising a camshaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head and operating a plurality of valves located therein, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head at one side thereof, a plurality of ports opening through said one side of said cylinder head, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from said output shaft of said engine, second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft, one of said drive means being located at one end of said cylinder head, the other of said drive means being positioned at least in part at the side of said cylinder head and between a pair of said ports.

Claim 32

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 27 wherein the intermediate shaft is contained within a cavity formed by the cylinder head and the cavity has an access opening formed between the ports for accessing the respective drive means.

Claim 33

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 28 wherein the access opening is closed by a removable cover plate.

Claim 34

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 29 wherein one of the drive means comprises a flexible transmitter.

Claim 35

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 30 wherein both of the drive means comprise flexible transmitters.

Claim 36

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 31 wherein at least one of the flexible transmitters comprises a chain.

Claim 37

A camshaft drive and cylinder head arrangement as set forth in claim 32 wherein both of the flexible transmitters comprise chains.

Claim 38

A camshaft drive arrangement for an internal combustion engine having a crankshaft, an output shaft driven by said crankshaft about a first axis, a flywheel affixed for rotation at one end of said output shaft, an intermediate shaft journaled by said engine for rotation about a second axis parallel to said first axis, means offset from said flywheel for driving said intermediate shaft from said output shaft adjacent one end thereof, a camshaft journaled for rotation about a third axis parallel to said first and said second axes, and means for adjacent but offset from said flywheel for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft.

Claim 39

A camshaft drive arrangement for an internal combustion engine having a crankshaft, an output shaft driven by said crankshaft about a first axis, a flywheel affixed for rotation at one end of said output shaft, an intermediate shaft journaled by said engine for rotation about a second axis parallel to said first axis, means offset from said flywheel for driving said intermediate shaft from said output shaft adjacent one end thereof, a camshaft journaled for rotation about a third axis parallel to said first and said second axes, and means for adjacent but offset from said flywheel for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft.

Claim 40

A camshaft drive arrangement for a vehicular engine having at least one cylinder, a crankshaft driven by a piston contained within said one cylinder for rotation about a first axis, an output shaft for driving the vehicle journaled for rotation about an output shaft axis parallel to said first axis and driven by said crankshaft, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation about a second axis parallel to said first axis, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from said output axis, on one side of a plane extending perpendicular to said first and said second axes and containing the axis of said cylinder, a camshaft journaled for rotation about a third axis parallel to said first and said second axes for operating at least one valve associated with said cylinder, and second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft on the other side of said plane.

Claim 41

A camshaft drive arrangement for a vehicular engine having at least one cylinder, a crankshaft driven by a piston contained within said one cylinder for rotation about a first axis, an output shaft for driving the vehicle journaled for rotation about an output shaft axis parallel to said first axis and driven by said crankshaft, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation about a second axis parallel to said first axis, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from said output axis, on one side of a plane extending perpendicular to said first and said second axes and containing the axis of said cylinder, a camshaft journaled for rotation about a third axis parallel to said first and said second axes for operating at least one valve associated with said cylinder, and second drive means for driving said camshaft from said intermediate shaft on the other side of said plane.

Claim 42

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 35 wherein one of the drive means comprises a flexible transmitter.

Claim 43

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 36 wherein both of the drive means comprise flexible transmitters.

Claim 44

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 37 wherein at least one of the flexible transmitters comprises a chain.

Claim 45

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 38 wherein both of the flexible transmitters comprise chains.

Claim 46

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 35 wherein the cylinder head includes a plurality of ports extending through the one side of the cylinder head and one of the drive means is disposed between a pair of the ports.

Claim 47

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 40 wherein the intermediate shaft is contained with a cavity formed by the cylinder head and the cavity has an access opening formed between the ports for accessing the respective drive means.

Claim 48

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 41 wherein the access opening is closed by a removable cover plate.

Claim 49

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 35 further including a flywheel fixed to the one end of the output shaft for driving a transmission.

Claim 50

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 43 wherein the first and second drive means are offset from the flywheel.

Claim 51

A camshaft drive arrangement for an engine having at least one cylinder closed by a cylinder head, a crankshaft driven by a piston contained within said one cylinder for rotation about a first axis, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head about a second axis parallel to said first axis and disposed at one side of said cylinder head, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from said crankshaft, on one side of a plane extending perpendicular to said first and said second axes and containing the axis of said cylinder, a first and second camshafts journaled for rotation by said cylinder about a respective third and fourth axes parallel to said first and said second axes each of said camshafts operating at least one valve associated with said cylinder head, and second drive means for driving said camshafts from said intermediate shaft on the other side of said plane.

Claim 52

A camshaft drive arrangement for an engine having at least one cylinder closed by a cylinder head, a crankshaft driven by a piston contained within said one cylinder for rotation about a first axis, an intermediate shaft journaled for rotation by said cylinder head about a second axis parallel to said first axis and disposed at one side of said cylinder head, first drive means for driving said intermediate shaft from said crankshaft, on one side of a plane extending perpendicular to said first and said second axes and containing the axis of said cylinder, a first and second camshafts journaled for rotation by said cylinder about a respective third and fourth axes parallel to said first and said second axes each of said camshafts operating at least one valve associated with said cylinder head, and second drive means for driving said camshafts from said intermediate shaft on the other side of said plane.

Claim 53

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 45 wherein one of the drive means comprises a flexible transmitter.

Claim 54

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 46 wherein both of the drive means comprise flexible transmitters.

Claim 55

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 47 wherein at least one of the flexible transmitters comprises a chain.

Claim 56

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 48 wherein both of the flexible transmitters comprise chains.

Claim 57

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 45 wherein the cylinder head includes a plurality of ports extending through the one side of the cylinder head and one of the drive means is disposed between a pair of the ports.

Claim 58

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 50 wherein the intermediate shaft is contained with a cavity formed by the cylinder head and the cavity has an access opening formed between the ports for accessing the respective drive means.

Claim 59

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 51 wherein the access opening is closed by a removable cover plate.

Claim 60

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 52 wherein one of the drive means comprises a flexible transmitter.

Claim 61

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 53 wherein both of the drive means comprise flexible transmitters.

Claim 62

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 54 wherein at least one of the flexible transmitters comprises a chain.

Claim 63

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 55 wherein both of the flexible transmitters comprise chains.

Claim 64

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 52 wherein the first drive means includes an output shaft driven by the crankshaft and driving the intermediate shaft by a flexible transmitter.

Claim 65

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 57 further including a flywheel fixed to the one end of the output shaft for driving a transmission.

Claim 66

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 58 wherein the first and second drive means are offset from the flywheel.

Claim 67

A camshaft drive arrangement as set forth in claim 45 wherein the engine has a plurality of cylinders and the one cylinder is an end cylinder of a plurality of aligned cylinders.