Patent ID: 7037088

Claim:
A balance shaft and fluid pump assembly for an engine of an automotive vehicle comprising: a balance shaft housing extending between opposite first and second ends, the housing terminating at a face at the first end; first and second balance shafts positioned parallel to one another and each journaled between the first and second ends of the balance shaft housing for rotation in opposite directions, each of the first and second balance shafts having a distal end extending axially from the face of the balance shaft housing; a fluid pump housing fixedly secured to the first end of the balance shaft housing for defining a fluid seal; and primary and secondary fluid pumps mounted on the distal end of the respective first and second balance shafts for driving the primary and secondary fluid pumps by rotation of the first and second balance shafts, the primary and secondary fluid pumps being disposed within the seal and adjacent the face of the balance shaft housing.