Abstract:
Internal combustion engine valve roller rocker arm system designed to manipulate horsepower output of an equipped engine. Each roller rocker arm system is formed of two arm members pivotally mounted to a common shaft and are joined together by a pin through roller bearings. As a conventional camshaft rotates, it contacts the roller bearing causing a conventional valve to attain an open valve position through the arm assemblies.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention. 
     The present invention relates to combustion engine components, and more particularly, to a roller rocker arm system for operation in an internal combustion engine. 
     2. Description of the Related Art. 
     Internal combustion engines are the most popular source of power for many vehicles, especially automobiles, boats, and motorcycles. The sport of auto, boat, and motorcycle racing in particular, require specially manufactured engine components to maximize horsepower to ultimately achieve top performance. One of such components is the rocker arm system. Rocker arm systems are driven by a camshaft. The camshaft and crankshaft of a combustion engine are sequenced to allow a camshaft lobe to contact and follow the surface of a rocker arm, cammingly actuating it to transmit linear motion to a valve in the coordinated time to follow the piston position within a cylinder. 
     Presently, the surface upon which a camshaft lobe strikes is flat, causing excessive friction, wear, and deteriorated engine performance. There are no similar roller rocker arm assemblies to the best of applicant&#39;s knowledge, that utilize a roller system for a camshaft lobe to rotate upon. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is one of the main objects of the present invention to provide a roller rocker arm system designed especially for high performance racing vehicles utilizing internal combustion engines. 
     It is another object of this invention to provide a roller rocker arm system made of a durable, lightweight material to improve moments of inertia and increase the revolutions per minute range of the valve train. 
     It is still another object of the present invention to provide a roller rocker arm system that eliminates the variable timing electronic control function. 
     It is yet another object of this invention to provide a roller rocker system that prevents the bearings from skidding across the camshaft lobe surface, thus reducing friction. 
     It is still another object of the present invention to provide a roller rocker system that may be installed without cylinder head modifications. It is yet another object of this invention to provide such a device that is inexpensive to manufacture and maintain while retaining its effectiveness. 
     Further objects of the invention will be brought out in the following part of the specification, wherein detailed description is for the purpose of fully disclosing the invention without placing limitations thereon. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     With the above and other related objects in view, the invention consists in the details of construction and combination of parts as will be more fully understood from the following description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: 
     FIG. 1 represents an isometric view of the invention. 
     FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of one arm unit and a valve and rocker shaft shown in phantom. 
     FIG. 2 a  shows an elevational side view of one arm unit. 
     FIG. 3 represents a top view. 
     FIG. 4 represents a bottom view. 
     FIG. 5 shows the instant invention with other engine components in phantom. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring now to the drawings, where the present invention is generally referred to with numeral  10 , it can be observed that it basically includes rocker arm members  20 , spacer sleeve  30 , bearings  40 , adjustable screws  60 , and stop nuts  70 . 
     As seen in FIG. 1, rocker arm members  20  and spacer sleeve  30  are pivotally mounted about common rocker shaft  90 . Spacer sleeve  30  snugly fits between rocker arm members  20  establishing a predetermined spaced apart distance between rocker arm members  20 , as do bearings  40 . Bearings  40  have bearing shell  42  that taper to establish chamfered edges  44 . Adjustable screws  60  are set at a predetermined height to establish a linear distance for valve  100 , shown in FIG. 2, to travel. Stop nut  70  restricts adjustable screw  60  with sufficient force to keep adjustable screw  60  stationary while instant invention  10  is operating within an internal combustion engine. Instant invention  10  is manufactured from a durable, lightweight material such as Aluminum-Magnesium, or a material of similar characteristics to improve moments of inertia and increase the revolutions per minute range of the valve train. 
     Moments of inertia is defined to be the cause for momentum, which is the product of the mass of a body and its velocity. The sum of all the momenta remains unaltered in any one mechanical system. 
     As better seen in FIG. 2, rocker arm member  20  has interior face  22 . Interior face  22  has partial generally circular face notch  26  to complement chamfered edge  44  of bearing  40  when biased against it. At a predetermined distance from face notch  26  is notched step  28 , seen in FIG. 2 a . Notched step  28  serves to contain interconnecting pin  50  snugly in place, connecting rocker arm members  20 . Bearing  40  has bearing shell  42  encasing roller needles  46 . Bearings  40  are designed to prevent skidding across camshaft lobe  82 , shown in FIG. 5, thus reducing friction. Spacer sleeve  30  rotably fits about common rocker shaft  90  and has exterior face  32  which abuts interior face  22  of rocker arm members  20  when biased against them. Adjustable screw  60  trespasses rocker arm member  20  and serves to adjust the vertical travel of valve  100 . Once adjusted to the desired height, adjustment screw  60  remains stationary with retaining stop nut  70 . 
     Seen in FIG. 3 is instant invention  10  from a top view. Spacer sleeve  30  and bearings  40  approximately of the same width, establish a spaced apart relationship for rocker arm members  20 . As best seen here, bearings  40  have chamfered edges  44 . Bearing  40  has chamfered edge  44  that abuts circular face notch  26 , and chamfered edge  44  of adjacent bearing  40 . Interconnecting pin  50 , trespasses through bearings  40  and is snugly kept stationary by notched step  28  shown in FIG.  2 . 
     Seen in FIG. 4 is instant invention  10  from a bottom view. Spacer sleeve  30  and bearings  40  approximately of the same width, establish a spaced apart relationship for rocker arm members  20 . Adjustable tip  62  of adjustable screw  60  makes contact with tip  102 , seen in FIG. 2, when biased against it. 
     As best seen in FIG. 5, camshaft lobe  82  is fixedly secured to camshaft  80  and rotates to contact bearings  40 . The contact, thus exerts a downward force upon rocker arm members  20  through interconnecting interconnecting pin  50 , seen in FIG. 2, to overcome the upward force of valve  100 , causing valve stem  104  to vertically travel downward establishing a momentary open valve position within cylinder  110  of a multi-cylinder internal combustion engine, thus regulating intake and exhaust requirements in cooperation with piston  112 . Utilizing present invention  10  results in the deactivation of the variable timing electronic control system (not shown), common in most multi-cylinder internal combustion engines. This result is achieved due to the single point of contact between camshaft lobe  82  and bearings  40 . In this deactivated mode, other camshaft lobes  82  immediately adjacent (not shown) continue to rotate upon camshaft  80  but do not make contact with arm members  20 , and as a result, do not affect the operation of instant invention  10  and ultimately valves  100 . 
     The foregoing description conveys the best understanding of the objectives and advantages of the present invention. Different embodiments may be made of the inventive concept of this invention. It is to be understood that all matter disclosed herein is to be interpreted merely as illustrative, and not in a limiting sense.