Abstract:
An intake manifold assembly for an internal combustion engine that has a modular construction and includes a base member, a runner, and a shell, wherein the base member removably attaches to the engine, and the runner and the shell each separately and independently removably attach to the base member. In another aspect, the assembly further includes a fastener for attaching the runner to the base member, wherein the shell is formed so as to retain the fastener between the shell and the base member when the shell is attached to the base member. In another aspect, the assembly further includes a bumper affixed to a surface of the base member, wherein the bumper abuts a surface of the internal combustion engine. In another aspect, the base member includes a sealing ridge that mates with a sealing groove provided on the shell.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     Aspects of the present invention relate to an intake manifold for an internal combustion engine and, more particularly, to a manifold having interchangeable parts capable of disassembly and reassembly. 
     2. Background of the Technology 
     Internal combustion engines generally include an intake manifold. The intake manifold directs air or a fuel and air mixture into the cylinders of the engines where the fuel and air mixture is combusted, releasing mechanical energy to power the engine. 
     Intake manifolds have been traditionally made by either casting metals into a single component or by forming plastics or polymers into several different pieces that are then permanently bonded together, by, for example, friction welding. Subsequent attempts to disassemble either of the traditional types of manifolds results in severe damage to the intake manifold. Therefore, these construction types have precluded the intake manifold from being tuned to alter individual engine performance, or allowing clearing or removal of excess metal or other material, for example, without completely removing and discarding the current intake manifold and obtaining and installing a new intake manifold. Such replacement is both costly and wasteful. Additionally, removal of the traditional intake manifold destroys the seal between the intake manifold and the engine, exposing internal components of the engine to external debris and contamination. Thus, in order to tune engine performance by means of the intake manifold, e.g., adjusting runner length, a user must essentially purchase an entirely new intake manifold part and subject the engine to potential damage from external contamination, among other things. 
     Prior art patents disclosing multipiece intake manifolds capable of being disassembled are known, such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,831,566 issued to Thomas and U.S. Pat. No. 4,279,224 issued to Szabo, et al., the entirety of each of which is hereby incorporated by reference. However, among other things, none of these patents provides for a manifold comprising easily removed and replaced components having different characteristics, such as air inlet size and internal runner shape, to alter engine performance. U.S. Pat. No. 7,021,263 issued to Agnew et al., the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference, provides an improved intake manifold for an internal combustion engine that permits disassembly, replacement or substitution, and reassembly without detriment to the individual intake manifold components. The Agnew manifold has a multiple piece construction comprising, for example, a lower base member, a center runner section, and an upper shell, wherein the upper shell and center runner section fixably attach to the lower base member in such a way that the components can later be disassembled. The center runner section is formed with runner cavities of different shapes that work with the upper shell and the lower shell to change the airflow within the intake manifold and, hence, the way in which the air is delivered to the engine. However, among other things, Agnew does not provide for interchangeable individual runners that function independently from the manifold shell, wherein the runners can be easily removed and replaced without requiring an associated removal and replacement of an upper shell and/or a lower shell in order to alter the air intake qualities, and hence the performance, of an internal combustion engine. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Aspects of the present invention provide for an intake manifold for an internal combustion engine that permits efficient disassembly, replacement and/or substitution, and reassembly of an intake manifold, in which variably dimensioned independent runners are easily removed and replaced to alter engine performance, for example, without the requirement of replacing an upper shell and/or a lower shell due to permanently formed or attached flow pathways therein. As a result, the intake manifold in accordance with aspects of the present invention may be disassembled and assembled with a new runner configuration without causing damage to the component parts of the intake manifold. Similarly, the intake manifold may be disassembled and assembled with a new shell configuration, permitting a larger (or smaller) and/or different length air inlet, for example, and thus permitting transmittal of different volume(s) of air through the intake manifold and/or transmittal of air with different flow characteristics. 
     The modularity and ease of assembly/disassembly of the intake manifold allows for the efficient mixing and matching of component parts, e.g., the shell, base member, and/or individual runners, to achieve targeted performance goals for an engine at significant advantage, including at lower cost and with less waste. The ability to simply unfasten the shell and remove, replace and/or exchange one or more of the individual runners with runners of different lengths and/or shapes, for example, facilitates the efficient fine tuning of a particular engine&#39;s performance characteristics. For example, different runners may be used with the same or different base members to serve different engine displacements and revolution per minute (rpm) ranges. The ability to disassemble the shell from the base member to access and/or exchange the runners, and then simply reassemble the intake manifold, eliminates the complete replacement and/or welding, gluing, and other cumbersome requirements typical with most intake manifold repairs and/or modifications. 
     Furthermore, the modular construction of the intake manifold permits the shell and/or the runners to be changed, for example, without having to disassemble the base member from the engine. Therefore, the seals between the intake manifold and the cylinder heads can remain intact. Accordingly, there is less risk of debris entering into the engine and, therefore, less risk of internal engine damage while removing and/or replacing various components of the intake manifold. 
     In some variations, constructing the various components of the intake manifold from an advanced polymer material, for example, provides the added benefits of lighter weight, increased strength and improved heat dissipating characteristics. The injection molded design of the various components, among other things, also allows perfect bolt-on fitment of various factory accessories without modification or clearance concerns, including, for example, integrated nitrous bungs and provisions for various Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) features, vacuum nipples, fuel rails, and throttle body linkages. 
     Additional advantages and novel features of aspects of the invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows, and in part will become more apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or upon learning by practice of the invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       In the drawings: 
         FIG. 1  shows an exemplary intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  shows an exploded view of an intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention 
         FIG. 3  corresponds to view A-A of  FIG. 2  and is a bottom view of an intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  shows an exemplary air outlet, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 5A-5C  show exemplary shapes for inlet ports for different engines, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is an isometric view of an exemplary shell for a modular intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view of an intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIG. 8  corresponds to view S-S of  FIG. 3  and is another cross-sectional view of the intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIG. 9  corresponds to view E-E of  FIG. 2  and is a top view of an intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIG. 10  shows a front view of an intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 11A-11E  show various views and cross-sectional views of an exemplary intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 12A-12G  show various views and cross-sectional views of an exemplary intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention; and 
         FIGS. 13A-13K  show various views and cross-sectional views of an exemplary intake manifold assembly, in accordance with aspects of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1  shows an exemplary intake manifold assembly  10  for an eight-cylinder internal combustion engine in accordance with aspects of the present invention. However, it is understood that aspects of the invention are applicable to an internal combustion engine having any number of cylinders. The intake manifold assembly  10  has a shell  20 , individual runners  30  (see  FIG. 2 ), and a base member  40 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , the shell  20  is the upper component and the base member  40  is the lower component of the intake manifold assembly  10 . The intake manifold assembly  10 , or components thereof, may be constructed from a state-of-the-art polymer material for cooler airflow operations, compared to an aluminum manifold, for example, which aluminum may tend to act as a heat-sink, reducing an engine&#39;s power. The shell  20  secures to a mating surface  50  of base member  40  with the individual runners  30  enclosed between the shell  20  and the base member  40 . 
       FIG. 2  is an exploded view of an intake manifold in accordance with aspects of the present invention. One individual runner  30  may be secured to the base member  40  for each cylinder of the engine  100 . For example, an eight cylinder engine may have eight individual runners  30  secured to the base member  40 . Each runner  30  may be designed to be very similar or essentially identical, for example, or each runner  30  may be individually tuned for each cylinder of a particular engine  100 . The individual runners  30  may be formed to be of varying dimensions, including different shapes and lengths, for example, and limited only by the dimensions of the plenum chamber formed between the shell  20  and the lower base  40  into which the runners  30  are fitted. For example, a set of short runners may be installed for higher horsepower applications and easily exchanged for a set of longer runners for low-end torque applications. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the base member  40  may include right  60  and left  70  mating faces that abut mating surfaces on right  80  and left  90  cylinder heads of an engine  100 . A semicircular flange  180  having an upper surface  190  and rounded surfaces  200  may be formed at the front of base member  40  to create a semicircular front opening  210 . 
       FIG. 3  corresponds to view A-A of  FIG. 2  and is a bottom view of the intake manifold assembly  10 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , air outlets  110  are provided within the base member  40 . The air outlets  110  are formed to correspond to inlet ports (not shown) provided in the cylinder heads  80  and  90 . A raised pad  112  and a seal groove  114  may be provided around the perimeter of the air outlet  110 . As shown in  FIG. 3  with respect to the right mating face  70  of the base member  40 , a rope style o-ring type seal  116 , for example, may be press fit into the seal groove  114  surrounding the raised pad  112  in order to provide a sealed connection when the base member  40  is attached to the engine  100 . As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , a series of through-holes  230  may be provided from the mating surface  50  of the base member  40  that extend through the entire thickness of the base member  40 . 
       FIG. 4  shows an exemplary air outlet  110  in accordance with aspects of the present invention. The air outlet  110  with raised pad  112  may have an upper edge  120  relative to a lower edge  130 , as well as an interior surface  140  extending from the upper edge  120  to the lower edge  130 . The air outlets  110  are formed to correspond to the inlet ports (not shown) provided in the cylinder heads  80  and  90 . As illustrated in  FIGS. 5A-5C , for example, inlet ports may be shaped and sized differently for different engines. Accordingly, the base member  40  may be designed with air outlets  110  of varying shape, size and/or location to mate properly with a designated engine  100 . Once the base member  40  is mounted onto the engine  100 , the air outlets  110  mate with the inlet ports of cylinder heads  80  and  90  to form passages extending through the entire thickness of base member  40 , allowing communication between the interior of the intake manifold  10  and the inlet ports of cylinder heads  80  and  90 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , surfaces  150  may be provided within an outer periphery of the air outlets  110  near the outer periphery of the base member  40 . An opening  160  may extend from each surface  150  through the entire thickness of the base member  40 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , a witness mark  170  may be formed into the interior surface  140  of the air outlets  110 . The witness mark  170  may, among other things, allow removal of material from the interior surfaces  140  of the air outlets  110  in a practice referred to herein as “porting”. The depth of the witness mark  170  defines the depth of material that may be safely removed by porting without the risk of damaging the seal between the intake manifold assembly  10  and the engine  100 . 
       FIG. 6  is an isometric view of the shell  20  that illustrates a continuous lower mating surface  530 , comprised of a lower surface of the mating flange  440 , a lower semicircular surface  540 , and rounded surfaces  550 . 
     The shell  20  may enclose the intake manifold assembly  10  from above, for example. The shell  20  may be formed as a single piece component, for example, manufactured by any number of well-known casting or molding techniques. As shown in  FIG. 6 , the shell  20  may comprise a throttle body mounting boss  420 , an inlet  430 , a peripheral mating flange  440 , an upper portion  450 , and an interior cavity  460 . The inlet  430  communicates with the interior cavity  460  and may be circular in shape. However, the inlet  430 , in accordance with aspects of the instant invention can be of any suitable shape. As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , a series of openings  470  may extend through the throttle body mounting boss  420  from a front face and accept heat staked inserts used to attach a throttle body or other fasteners to the shell  20 . Similarly, the openings  470  may be threaded and accept bolts, for example, to attach a throttle body to the shell  20 . A series of openings  480  extend through the mating flange  440  from an upper surface, as shown in  FIG. 6 . The upper portion  450  may comprise a series of contours that extend from an edge of the mating flange  440  to an opposing edge on the mating flange  440 . The contours may be formed to efficiently accommodate the runners  30 , while maintaining specified clearance parameters for an engine  100  within a specific engine compartment. A sealing ridge  560  may extend from a surface of the mating flange  440 . 
     The components of the intake manifold assembly  10  may be assembled as follows. As shown in  FIG. 2 , the base member attaches to the engine  100  between the cylinder heads  80  and  90 . The mating faces  60  and  70  may engage corresponding mating surfaces on the cylinder heads  80  and  90  with a series of gaskets  570  or other sealing mechanisms provided there between. When the base member  40  is properly positioned on the engine  100 , openings  160  align with corresponding openings in the cylinder heads  80  and  90  of the engine  100 . Securing features  580 , such as bolts, may insert through the openings  160  and attach, e.g., screw into corresponding threaded opening(s), to the cylinder heads  80  and  90 , creating a sealable interface of the mating faces  60  and  70 , e.g., via the gaskets  570 , and the mating surfaces of the cylinder heads  80  and  90 . Further, as previously described, the air outlets  110  align with the corresponding inlet ports in the cylinder heads  80  and  90  of the engine  100 , allowing communication between the interior of both the intake manifold  10  and the engine  100 . 
     The individual runners  30  may then be inserted into and attached to the base member  40 .  FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view of an intake manifold assembly  10  in accordance with aspects of the present invention. As shown in  FIG. 7 , each runner  30  may be formed with a flange section  31 , a tube section  35 , and a plenum section  37 . The flange section  31  may be formed to mate with the edge  120  of the air outlet  110 . The edge  120  may thus seat the runner  30  when an outlet  32  of the runner  30  is inserted into the air outlet  110 . The flange portion  31  of the runner  30  has a peripheral groove  33  into which a runner tube seal  34 , e.g., a rope style o-ring type seal, may be inserted to provide a seal between the outlet  32  of the runner  30  and the base member  40 . An additional sealant, such as silicone gel, for example, may be applied to the flange portion  31  of the runner  30  prior to seating the outlet  32  of the runner  30  into the base member  40 . 
     The tube section  35  may be formed in virtually limitless variations within the dimensions available to create variations in the air flow pattern, while maintaining a compact design. For example, the runner  30  may vary in length by increasing or decreasing the radius of curvature of the tube section  35 . The runners  30  may be designed as shown in  FIG. 7 , with smooth contours, for example, to create more predictable air flow patterns without the associated pressure drops that occur in runners with more abrupt changes in shape and/or contour. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , bosses  290  may be provided on an interior surface  250  of the base member  40 . Attendant features, such as threaded openings  295  may be formed on or used in connection with the bosses  290  and extend into the base member  40 . A tube shell fastener  590 , such as a bolt, may be used to attach the runner  30  to the base member  40 , which may be by way of a protrusion  38  formed on an outer peripheral surface of the runner  30 , for example. The tube shell fastener  590  may extend through the protrusion  38  and attach the runner  30  in place by aligning with the threaded openings  295  provided on the bosses  290  integral to the interior surface  250  of the base member  40 . The tube shell fastener  590  may screw into the threaded openings  295 , for example, to securely attach each runner  30  to the base member  40  in a designated location within the plenum chamber formed between the shell  20  and the base member  40 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , the shell  20  may be formed with contours  22  for further securing the runners  30  in position. Furthermore, the shell  20  may be formed to cover and clamp down on the top of the tube shell fastener  590  attaching the runners  30  to the base member  40 . Thus, by attaching the shell  20  to the base member  40 , the runners  30  may be secured in place and the tube shell fasteners  590  may be effectively trapped by the shell  20 , preventing the tube shell fasteners  590  from working out of the threaded openings  295  and becoming a hazard to the operation of the engine, for example. Similarly, in the event that one forgets to secure a runner  30  in place by using a tube shell fastener  590 , the runner  30  may be held in place by the contours  22  of upper surface  450  and the clamping effect of the shell  20  with the base member  40 . 
       FIG. 8  corresponds to view S-S of  FIG. 3  and is another cross-sectional view of the intake manifold assembly  10 , in accordance with aspects of the present invention. The shell  20  may be attached to the base member  40 , which may enclose the runners  30 , for example. When properly oriented, the mating surface  530  of the shell  20  contacts the mating surface  50  of the base member  40 . A sealing ridge  560  may be provided on the mating surface  530  of the shell  20 , and a matching sealing groove  260  may be provided in the mating surface  50  of the base member  40 . A rope style o-ring type seal  261 , for example, may be provided in the sealing groove  260 . As such, when the shell  20  is aligned over the base member  40 , the sealing ridge  560  is forced into the sealing groove  260 , pinching the o-ring seal  261  and creating a seal when the shell  20  is attached to the base member  40 . 
       FIG. 8  also shows an exemplary bumper  55  applied to a lower surface of the base member  40 . One or more bumpers  55  may be applied along the lower surface of base member  40 . The bumpers  55 , which may be self-adhesive, for example, compress against and are supported by the top of a valley cover of the engine  100 . By using the valley cover as a stressed member, the plenum of the intake manifold assembly  10  may be enlarged by reducing the support structure necessary for the base member  40 . The valley cover of the engine  100  may therefore provide the necessary structural support to the bottom of the intake manifold assembly  40 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 9 , once the shell  20  is aligned with the base member  40 , openings  480  in the mating flange  440  may align with the through-holes  230  in the mating surface  50 , for example. Fasteners  600 , such as bolts, for example, may be inserted through the openings  480  and through-holes  230  from above, and secured from below by an appropriate securing device, such as through tightening a nut, for example. The fasteners  600 , for example, may thus extend through the mating flange  440  of the shell  20  and the base member  40 , creating a clamping force to hold the engine manifold assembly  10  together, with the runners  30  secured between the shell  20  and the base member  40 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 10 , when assembled, the interior of the intake manifold assembly  10  may communicate with the exterior via the inlet  430  of the shell  20  and air outlets  110  in the base member  40 . In operation, the intake manifold assembly  10  accepts incoming air through inlet  430 . The air then travels into the plenum chamber between the shell  20  and the base member  40  and is drawn in through the plenum sections  37  of the individual runners  30 . The air travels the lengths of the respective runners  30  and through the air outlets  110  formed in the base member  40 , at which time the air flows into the inlet ports in the cylinder heads  80  and  90  of the engine  100 . 
     The volume and velocity of air traveling through an intake manifold is limited by the size and shape of the inlet of the intake manifold. Generally speaking, the larger the inlet  430  of the intake manifold  10 , the larger the volume of air that can be directed into the engine  100 . Traditionally, intake manifold modification has been limited to altering only certain easily accessible features, such as inlet size or air outlet size, because of the single component or permanently bonded types of construction. However, these features may be altered only to a degree, past which the part is no longer usable. Alternatively, intake manifold modification has constituted removing the installed intake manifold, obtaining an entirely new intake manifold with features of differing shapes or sizes, such as a smaller or larger inlet, and attaching the new intake manifold to the engine. This process can include a substantial financial cost for both purchase of a new part and labor for installation, not to mention the risk of damage being done to the engine during removal and exchange of entire manifold assemblies. However, an intake manifold assembly in accordance with aspects of the invention described above, provides significant benefits. 
     First, the intake manifold assembly  10  can be made to allow for a larger volume of air by simply removing the shell  20  having an inlet  430  of a given diameter, 92 mm for example, and replacing it with a shell  20  having an inlet  430  with a different diameter, 102 mm for example. Replacing only the shell  20  versus the entire intake manifold  10  results in a lower cost and less waste. Second, an added benefit of the present invention is the ability to simply unbolt the shell  20  and remove, replace and or exchange one or more of the individual runners  30  with runners  30  of different lengths or shapes, for example. The length and shape of the runners  30  directly affects how air flows within the intake manifold  10 , and hence, how the air is delivered to the engine  100 . Therefore, the interchangeability of the runners  30  is also advantageous from an engine tuning perspective. For example, different runners  30  may be designed to serve different target performance ranges. Thus, different runners  30  may be used with the same or different base members  40 , for example, to serve different engine displacements and revolution per minute (rpm) ranges. The ability to unbolt the shell  20  from the base member  40  to access and/or exchange the runners  30 , and then simply bolt the intake manifold assembly  10  back together, eliminates the welding, gluing, and other cumbersome requirements typical with most intake manifolds. 
     By modular construction of the intake manifold assembly  10 , the shell  20  and/or the runners  30  can be changed without having to disassemble the base member  40  from the engine  100 . Therefore the seals between the mating faces  40  and  50 , the gaskets  570 , and the mating surfaces of the cylinder heads  80  and  90  remain intact. Accordingly, there is less risk of debris entering into the engine  100  and, therefore, less risk of internal engine damage. 
     The ability to construct each and every component of the modular intake manifold assembly  10  from an advanced polymer material, for example, provides the added benefits of lighter weight, increased strength and improved heat dissipating characteristics. The injection molded design of the various components of the intake manifold assembly  10  allows perfect bolt-on fitment for the use of factory accessories without modification or clearance concerns, including integrated nitrous bungs and provisions for various Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) features, vacuum nipples, fuel rails, and throttle body linkages, for example. 
       FIGS. 11A-11E ,  12 A- 12 G, and  13 A- 13 K show various views and cross-sectional views of an exemplary intake manifold assembly  10  as described above and in accordance with aspects of the present invention. 
     While this invention has been described in conjunction with the exemplary aspects outlined above, various alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements, and/or substantial equivalents, whether known or that are or may be presently unforeseen, may become apparent to those having at least ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, the exemplary aspects of the invention, as set forth above, are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the invention is intended to embrace all known or later-developed alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements, and/or substantial equivalents.