Title of Invention

"AN AIR CLEANER FOR A MOTORCYCLE"

Abstract

This invention concerns an air cleaner (30) comprising an air cleaner case (35) provided with an intake duct (32), an air cleaner cover(33) mounted to said air cleaner case (35) so as to close an opening of said air cleaner case (35), a connecting tube (31) connected to said air cleaner cover (33) and communicating with a carburetor (17), and an air cleaner element (34) accommodated in an enclosed space defined by said air cleaner case (35) and said air cleaner cover (33), characterised by; said connecting tube (31) having a joint portion (40) at one end, said air cleaner cover (33) having an opening edge portion (51) of a discharge opening (50), said joint portion (40) is tightly mounted to said opening edge portion (51), and said air cleaner element (34) is tightly mounted to said joint portion (40), whereby said connecting tube (31)and said air cleaner element (34) are integrated with said air cleaner cover (33) to provide a subassembly.

Full Text

The present invention relates to an air cleaner which can be easily assembled. An air cleaner for a motorcycle is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 61-38346. This air cleaner includes an air.cleaner case provided with an intake duct, an air cleaner cover mounted to said air cleaner case so as to close an opening of said air cleaner case, a connecting tube connected to said air cleaner cover and communicating with a carburetor, and an air cleaner element accommodated in an enclosed space defined by said air cleaner case and s'aid air cleaner cover. The air cleaner element is generally cylindrical and has a frame member as an inner member. The frame member is inserted at its one end in a joint portion of the connecting tube. The joint portion is engaged with an opening edge portion of a discharge opening formed through the air cleaner cover. [0004] This air cleaner is assembled by inserting one end of the frame member on which a filter is mounted into the joint portion, next bringing opening edges of the air cleaner case and the air cleaner cover into abutment against with each other, and then securing them together at their surrounding portions, thereby making the inner surface of the air cleaner case tightly press the air cleaner element against the joint portion. [0005] [Problem to be Solved by the Invention] In general, an air cleaner is required to have a hermetic structure such that the air cleaner element is held in close contact with the joint portion to prevent leakage of air. In the above conventional structure, however, the close contact structure of the joint portion and the air cleaner element cannot be established unless the air cleaner case and the air cleaner cover are connected together. Further, the air cleaner element inside the air cleaner case cannot be visually checked in the assembled condition of the air cleaner. [0006] Accordingly, close attention must be paid to assembling in an air cleaner assembly shop, and it is desired to provide an air cleaner that can be easily assembled. [0007] [Means of Solving the Problem] According to the present invention, there is provided in an air cleaner including an air cleaner case provided with an intake duct, an air cleaner cover mounted to said air cleaner case so as to close an opening of said air cleaner case, a connecting tube connected to said air cleaner cover and communicating with a carburetor, and an air cleaner element accommodated in an enclosed space defined by said air cleaner case and said air cleaner cover; the improvement wherein a joint portion formed at one end of said connecting tube is tightly mounted to an opening edge portion of a discharge opening formed through said air cleaner cover, and said air cleaner element is tightly mounted to said joint portion, whereby said connecting tube and said air cleaner element are integrated with said air cleaner cover to provide a subassembly. [0008] 'Preferably, an outer circumferential groove of said joint portion is tightly engaged with said opening edge portion of said discharge opening, and a flange larger in size than said discharge opening is formed at one end of a frame member of said air cleaner element, said flange being tightly engaged with an inner circumferential groove of said joint portion. [0009] Preferably, an annular rib is formed in the vicinity of said opening edge portion of said discharge opening so as to project inward from said air cleaner cover integrally therewith, and a flange is formed at one end of a frame member of said air cleaner element so as to be opposed to said air cleaner case, a filter of said air cleaner element,being held in an elastically deformed condition between said annular rib and said flange. [0010] Preferably, an end plate is provided on one end of a frame member of said air cleaner element so as to be opposed to said air cleaner case, said end plate being formed with a tapering guide recess, and a guide projection is formed on the inside surface of said air cleaner case so as to be opposed to said guide recess, whereby said guide projection is fitted into said guide recess in assembling said air cleaner to effect positioning of said air cleaner case with respect to said air cleaner cover. [0011] More preferably, a recess as a battery storing portion is formed on the outside surface of said air cleaner case, and a battery holder is secured to said air cleaner case in said battery storing portion by means of a securing member, a counterpart of said securing member being provided in said guide projection. [0012] [Effect of the Invention] The joint portion of the connecting tube is tightly mounted to the opening edge portion of the discharge opening of the air cleaner cover, and the air cleaner element is tightly mounted to the joint portion. Accordingly, the connecting tube and the air cleaner element are integrated with the air cleaner cover to obtain a subassembly. [0013] In this subassembly itself, the close contact structure of the joint portion and the air cleaner element is obtained. Accordingly, the close contact condition of the joint portion and the air cleaner element in the subassembly only can be visually checked prior to assembling the whole of the air cleaner. After such visual check, the air cleaner can be finally assembled by connecting the air cleaner cover and the air cleaner case. Thus, the assembly work can be carried out much more easily than that in the prior art, [0014] In the case that the flange formed at one end of the frame member of the air cleaner element is larger in size than the discharge opening, and this flange is engaged with the inner circumferential groove of the joint portion, the joint portion is prevented from easily disengaging from the discharge opening by the flange. Thus, the frame member serves both as a support for a filter of the air cleaner element and as a stopper for preventing escape of the joint portipn from the discharge opening. [0015] In the case that the annular rib is formed integrally with the air cleaner cover in the vicinity of the opening edge portion of the discharge opening so as to project toward the air cleaner case, and the flange is provided at one end of the frame member so as to be opposed to the air cleaner case, the filter can be held in an elastically deformed condition between the annular rib and -the flange in mounting the filter on the frame member. Accordingly, it is unnecessary to make the air cleaner case tightly press the air cleaner element against the joint portion, and gap formation between the air cleaner element and the discharge opening can be prevented. [0016] In the case that the guide recess is formed on the end plate of the frame member so as to be opposed to the air cleaner case, and the guide projection is formed on the inside surface of the air cleaner case so as to correspond to the guide recess, the guide projection is fitted into the guide recess to position the air cleaner case with respect to the air cleaner cover in integrating them together. Thus, joint portions of the air cleaner case and the air cleaner cover can be joined accurately and easily. [0017] In the case that the battery storing portion is formed on the outside surface of the air cleaner case, and the battery holder is mounted to the outside surface of the air cleaner case in the battery storing portion by the securing member, the counterpart of the securing member is provided in the guide projection. With this structure, any special structure for the counterpart such as a boss is not required, and the guide projection can be made multifunctional, so that the structure of the air cleaner can be simplified. Accordingly, the present invention relates to an air cleaner for a motorcycle comprising an air cleaner case provided with an intake duct, an air cleaner cover mounted to said air cleaner case so as to close an opening of said air cleaner case, a connecting tube connected to said air cleaner cover and communicating with a carburetor, and an air cleaner element accommodated in an enclosed space in between said air cleaner case and said air cleaner cover, characterised by; said connecting tube having a joint portion at one end, said air cleaner cover having an opening edge portion of a discharge opening, said joint portion is tightly mounted to said opening edge portion, and said air cleaner element is tightly mounted to said joint portion, whereby said connecting tube and said air cleaner element are integrated with said air cleaner cover to make a subassembly. [BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS] A [FIG. 1] FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an air cleaner including a joint portion; [FIG. 2] FIG. 2 is a general side view of a motorcycle on which the air cleaner is mounted; [FIG. 3] FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view of an essential part of the motorcycle, showing an engine and the air cleaner associated therewith; [FIG. 4] FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the air cleaner; , [FIG. 5] FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway, right side view of the air cleaner; [FIG. 6] FIG. 6 is a partially cutaway, left side view of the air cleaner; [FIG. 7] FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the air cleaner; [FIG. 8] 'FIG. 8 is a rear elevation of the air cleaner. [0018] [Preferred Embodiment] A preferred embodiment of the air cleaner of the present invention applied to a motorcycle will now be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an air cleaner including a joint portion (corresponding to a cross section taken along the line 1-1 in FIG. 5); FIG. 2 is a general side view of a motorcycle on which the air cleaner is mounted; FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view of an essential part of the motorcycle, showing an engine and the air cleaner associated therewith; FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the air cleaner; FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway, right side view of the air cleaner; FIG. 6 is a partially cutaway, left side view of the air cleaner; FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the air cleaner; and FIG. 8 is a rear elevation of the air cleaner. [0019] Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, a front wheel 1 is supported by a front fork 2 at its lower ends, and the upper end of the front fork 2 is pivotably supported to a head pipe 3. The front fork 2 is steerable by handlebars 4. [0020] 'Reference numeral 5 denotes a handgrip; 6 a headlight cover; 7 a meter; 8 a headlight; 9 a front turn signal; 10 a front fender; and 11 a license plate. [0021] A main frame 12 extends rearward from the head pipe 3. A pair of right and left pivot frames 13 extend downward from the rear end of the main frame 12, and a pair of right and left seat rails 14 extend substantially horizontally rearward from the rear end of the main frame 12. [0022] A pair of right and left front down frames 15 extend downward and rearward from a lower portion of the head pipe 3. An engine 16 is supported by the main frame 12, the pivot frames 13, and the front down frames 15. [0023] Reference numeral 17 denotes a carburetor; 18 a self-starting motor; and 19 a crankcase. [0024] A pair of right and left rear swing arms 21 are pivotably supported at their front end portions through pivots 20 to lower portions of the pivot frames 13, and a rear wheel 22 is supported to rear end portions of the rear* swing arms 21. [0025] A pair of right and left rear stays 23 extend upward and rearward from the lower portions of the pivot frames 13 in the vicinity of the pivots 20, and a pair of right and left shock absorbers 24 are mounted between upper end portions of the rear stays 23 in the vicinity of connected portions connected to the seat rails 14 and the rear end portions of the rear swing arms 21. [0026] Reference numeral 25 denotes a fuel tank; 26 a seat; 27 a rear cowl; 27a a rear turn signal; 28 a side cover; and 29 a bolt for mounting the side cover 28 to a nut 29a (see FIG. 3) on each pivot frame 13. [0027] An air gleaner 30 is accommodated in a space surrounded by the side cover 28. The air cleaner 30 is connected through a connecting tube 31 to the carburetor 17. An intake duct 32 extends rearward from the rear end of the air cleaner 30. [0028] As apparent from FIGS. 1 and 4 to 8, the air cleaner 30 includes an air cleaner cover 33 to which the connecting tube 31 is connected, a cylindrical air cleaner element 34, and an air cleaner case 35 on which the intake duct 32'is mounted. [0029] The air cleaner cover 33 and the air cleaner case 35 are integrated by aligning peripheral bosses 36 and 37 and securing them together with screws 38 (see FIG. 4), thereby defining a substantially enclosed space for accommodating the air cleaner element 34. [0030] The connecting tube 31 is formed of a suitable elastic material such as rubber. An annular thick-walled joint portion 40 is formed at one end of the connecting tube 31. The joint portion 40 has an outer circumferential groove 41 and an inner circumferential groove 42. The other end of the connecting tube 31 is tightly connected to the carburetor \7 by means of a band 43. [0031] The air cleaner cover 33 is formed of a suitable material having rigidity to some extent such as plastics. A circular discharge opening 50 is formed at a central portion of the air cleaner cover 33. The shape of the discharge opening 50 is not limited to such a circular shape, but other various shapes may be adopted. [0032] The joint portion 40 of the connecting tube 31 is engaged 'with the discharge opening 50 of the air cleaner cover 33. That is, an opening edge portion 51 of the discharge opening 50 is tightly engaged with the outer circumferential groove 41 of the joint portion 40, thereby hermetically connecting the connecting tube 31 and the air cleaner cover 33. [0033] Further, the air cleaner cover 33 is integrally formed with an annular rib 52 annularly surrounding the opening edge portion 51 and projecting toward the air cleaner case 35. [0034] The air cleaner element 34 is composed of a cylindrical frame member 60 formed of metal and cylindrical filters 61 and 6,2 each formed of soft plastic foam. The filter 61 is mounted on the outer cylindrical surface of the frame member 60, and the filter 62 is mounted on the outer cylindrical surface of the filter 61. [0035] The frame member 60 is formed at its axial opposite ends with radially outward flanges 63 and 64. The flange 63 has an outer diameter larger than the inner diameter of the discharge opening 50, and is engaged with the inner circumferential groove 42 of the joint portion 40. [0036] The flange 64 is larger in diameter than the flange 63. A circular end plate 65 is formed at one end of the frame member 60 on the air cleaner case 35 side. The circular end plate 65 is extended radially outward to integrally form the flange 64. The flange 64 is bent at its outer circumferential portion toward the air cleaner cover 33. [0037] The end plate 65 is integrally formed at its central portion with a guide recess 66 recessed toward the air cleaner cover 33. The guide recess 66 has a tapering wall surface. [0038] The frame member 60 has a cylindrical body portion 67 formed with a plurality of communication holes 68 like punched holes. A wire mesh 69 is provided at one end of the body portion 67 on the discharge opening 50 side. The space inside of the frame member 60 is defined as a clean side of the air cleaner, and the space around the air cleaner element 34 is defined as a dirty side of the air cleaner. [0039] The air cleaner case 35 is integrally formed at its side wall portion with a guide projection 70 projecting toward the air cleaner cover 33 so as to correspond to the guide recess 66. A guide 71 suitably formed of a elastic material such as rubber is mounted on the front end of the guide projection 70. The guide 71 serves both as a stopper and as a cushion member. [0040] The guide 71 is formed so as to substantially tightly engage with the guide recess 66 and has a tapering side surface corresponding to the tapering wall surface of the guide recess 66. [0041] A cap nut 72 is embedded in the guide projection 70 by insert molding. A threaded hole of the cap nut 72 opens to a battery stqring portion 73 formed on the outer side surface of the air cleaner case 35. [0042] The battery storing portion 73 is formed by recessing a part of the outer side surface of the air cleaner case 35 toward the air cleaner cover 33. The battery storing portion 73 is formed with a battery holder mounting groove 74 extending substantially in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle so as to pass the position of the guide projection 70. [0043] The battery holder mounting groove 74 is formed at its central portion overlapping the guide projection 70 with a recess 74a recessed toward the air cleaner cover 33. The threaded hole of the cap nut 72 opens to the recess 74a (see FIGS. 4 and 6). [0044] The air cleaner case 35 is formed at its lower portion with a battery supporting bed 75. A dovetail groove 76 is formed on the lower surface of the battery supporting bed 75 so as to extend in the lateral direction of the vehicle, and a pair of nut portions 77 are formed in thick-walled portions on the front and rear sides of the dovetail groove 76. [0045] Two mounting portions 78 project upward from the top surface of the air cleaner case 35, and are mounted to a bracket 78a (see FIG. 3) provided between the right and left seat rails 14. [0046] A joint edge portion 79 of the air cleaner case 35 is tightly engaged through a seal 55 with a groove 54 formed in a forked joint edge portion 53 of the air cleaner-cover 33 (see FIG. 1). [0047] A battery holder 80 formed from a metal strip is engaged with the battery holder mounting groove 74 of the air cleaner case 35. The battery holder 80 is bent at its central portion to form a projection 81, at which the battery holder 80 is secured to the outer side surface of the air cleaner case 35 by means of a bolt 82. [0048] The projection 81 of the battery holder 80 is engaged with the recess 74a of the battery holder mounting groove 74. The projection 81 has a through hole aligned with the threaded hole of the cap nut 72. Thus, the cap nut 72 is a counterpart of the bolt 82 as a securing member. [0049] The battery holder 80 is formed at its longitudinally opposite ends with mounting holes 83. A substantially U-shaped band 85 having mounting holes 86 at the opposite ends is mounted to the battery holder 80 with a battery 84 sandwiched therebetween. The mounting holes 86 of the band 85 are aligned with the mounting holes 83 of the battery holder 80, and the band 85 is detachably connected to the battery holder 80 by means of suitable mounting members 87. [0050] The battery 84 is stored in the battery storing portion 73 in such a manner that the bottom of the battery 84 is supported on the battery supporting bed 75 in the condition that the former is projected from the latter, and the battery 84 is held to the outer side surface of the air cleaner case 35 by the band 85 and the battery holder 80. [0051] A tool box 90 is mounted on the lower portion of the air cleaner case 35. The tool box 90 has a cylindrical shape with a closed end, and is formed at the top with a projection 91 having reversely tapering side surfaces. The projection 91 of the tool box 90 is inserted in the dovetail groove 76 formed on the lower surface of the battery supporting bed 75, thereby integrally connecting the tool box 90 with the air cleaner case 35 in the vertical direction. [0052] A pair of mounting projections 95 each having a through hole are formed in the vicinity of an opening of the tool box 90. The through holes of the mounting projections 95 are aligned with the nut portions 77 of the air cleaner case 35. The opening of the tool box 90 is closed by a lid 92 having two through holes 93. The through'holes 93 of the lid 92 are aligned with the through holes of the mounting projections 95. In this condition, screws 94 are threadedly engaged with the nut portions 77 through the through holes of the mounting projections 95 and the through holes 93 of the lid 92, thereby securing the three members 92, 90, and 75 together and allowing removal of the lid 92. [0053] The operation of this preferred embodiment will now be described. In assembling the air cleaner, the joint portion 40 of the connecting tube 31 is first forced into the discharge opening 50 of the air cleaner cover 33, and the opening edge portion 51 of the discharge opening 50 is tightly engaged with the outer circumferential groove 41 of the joint portign 40. [0054] Then, the flange 63 of the frame member 60 is forced into the joint portion 40, and tightly engaged with the inner circumferential groove 42 of the joint portion 40. [0055] Then, the filters 61 and 62 are mounted around the frame member 60 in such a manner that the filter 61 is elastically deformed and compressed by the annular rib 52 and the 'bent portion of the flange 64 and supported therebetween. Thus, the air cleaner cover 33 and the air cleaner element 34 are hermetically connected together. [0056] Accordingly, the connecting tube 31 and the air cleaner element 34 are integrated with the air cleaner cover 33 to obtain a subassembly as shown in FIG. 1. [0057] In this subassembly, the connecting tube 31 is hermetically connected with the air cleaner cover 33 by the tight engagement of the opening edge portion 51 with the outer circumferential groove 41, and the air cleaner element 34 is also hermetically connected with the air cleaner cover 33 as mentioned above. [0058] Further, the connected condition between the air cleaner element 34 and the air cleaner cover 33 can be visually checked in the subassembly condition. If the connected condition is not perfect, the subassembly can be disassembled and next perfectly reassembled at once. Accordingly, the assembling work can be conducted greatly simply and easily, thus improving the working efficiency. [0059] Further, the outer diameter of the flange 63 is larger than the inner diameter of the opening edge portion 51 (i.e., the diameter of the discharge opening 50). Accordingly, when the flange 63 is engaged with the inner circumferential groove 42, the connecting tube 31 is prevented from easily disengaging from the air cleaner cover 33. In the case that the flange 63 and the discharge opening 50 are both noncircular, the size of the flange 63 is set larger than that of the discharge opening 50. [0060] In mounting the air cleaner case 35 to the above subassembly, the guide 71 is fitted into the guide recess 66 as being guided thereby. Accordingly, the joint edge portion 79 of the air cleaner case 35 can be accurately positioned with respect to the joint edge portion 53 of the air cleaner cover 33 and easily connected together. Thus, the air cleaner case 35 and the air cleaner cover 33 can be connected highly hermetically. [0061] Further, the cap nut 72 as a counterpart of the bolt 82 is embedded in the guide projection 70 by insert molding. Accordingly, any special structure for the cap nut 72 such as a boss is not required. That is, the guide projection 70 can be made multifunctional, and the internal structure of the air cleaner can be made simple. [Explanation of Reference Numerals] 30: air cleaner 31: connecting tube 32: intake duct 33: air cleaner cover 34: air cleaner element 35: air cleaner case 40: joint portion 41: outer circumferential groove 42: inner circumferential groove 50: discharge opening 51: opening edge portion 52: annular rib 60: frame member 61, 62: filter 63: flange WE CLAIM: 1. An air cleaner (30) for a motorcycle comprising an air cleaner case (35) provided with an intake duct (32), an air cleaner cover(33) mounted to said air cleaner case (35) so as to close an opening of said air cleaner case (35), a connecting tube (31) connected to said air cleaner cover (33) and communicating with a carburetor (17), and an air cleaner element (34) accommodated in an enclosed space in between said air cleaner case (35) and said air cleaner cover (33), characterised by; said connecting tube (31) having a joint portion (40) at one end, said air cleaner cover (33) having an opening edge portion (51) of a discharge opening (50), said joint portion (40) is tightly mounted to said opening edge portion (51), and said air cleaner element (34) is tightly mounted to said joint portion (40), whereby said connecting tube (31)and said air cleaner element (34) are integrated with said air cleaner cover (33) to make a subassembly. 2. An air cleaner (30) as claimed in claim 1, wherein an outer circumferential groove (41) of said joint portion is tightly engaged with said opening edge portion of said discharge opening, and a flange (63) larger in size than said discharge opening is formed at one end of a frame member (61) of said air cleaner element, said flange being tightly engaged with an inner circumferential groove (42) of said joint portion. 3. An air cleaner as claimed in claim 1, wherein an annular rib (52) is formed in the vicinity of said opening edge portion of said discharge opening so as to project inward from said air cleaner cover integrally therewith, and a flange (63) is formed at one end of a frame member (60) of said air cleaner element so as to be opposed to said air cleaner case, a filter (61, 62) of said air cleaner element being held in an elastically deformed condition between said annular rib and said flange. 4. An air cleaner as claimed in claim 1, wherein an end plate (65) is provided on one end of a frame member (60) of said air cleaner element so as to be opposed to said air cleaner case, said end plate being formed with a tapering guide recess (66), and a guide projection (70) is formed on the inside surface of said air cleaner case so as to be opposed to said guide recess, whereby said guide projection is fitted into said guide recess in assembling said air cleaner to effect positioning of said air cleaner case with respect to said air cleaner cover. 5. An air cleaner as claimed in claim 4, wherein the battery storing portion (73) is formed as a recess on the out surface of said air cleaner case, and a battery holder (80) is secured to said air cleaner case in said battery storing portion by means of a securing member (82), a counterpart (72) of said securing member being provided in said guide projection. 6. An air cleaner (30) for a motorcycle, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Documents:

2636-del-1997-abstract.pdf

2636-del-1997-claims.pdf

2636-del-1997-correspondence-others.pdf

2636-del-1997-correspondence-po.pdf

2636-del-1997-description (complete).pdf

2636-del-1997-drawings.pdf

2636-del-1997-form-1.pdf

2636-del-1997-form-13.pdf

2636-del-1997-form-19.pdf

2636-del-1997-form-2.pdf

2636-del-1997-form-3.pdf

2636-del-1997-form-4.pdf

2636-del-1997-form-6.pdf

2636-del-1997-gpa.pdf

2636-del-1997-petition-137.pdf

2636-del-1997-petition-138.pdf