Patent ID: 6907849

Claim:
A piston and connecting rod assembly for an internal combustion engine, the assembly comprising a piston, a connecting rod and a carrier, the connecting rod having a first end operatively associated with the piston for movement therewith, and a second end connectible to a rotary output shaft, wherein a bellows spring is integrally formed with the piston, the spring acting to bias the connecting rod away from the crown of the piston, the carrier being connected to the first end of the connecting rod in such a manner that the bellows spring permits the crown of the piston to move axially relative to the carrier, and wherein at least a portion of the carrier is positioned within the bellows spring and is configured in such a manner as to hold the carrier firmly in alignment with the axis of the piston, that portion of the carrier remote from the crown of the piston being fixed to the piston, and that portion of the carrier adjacent to the piston crown carries a ring which is a sliding fit within a cylindrical wall formed within the piston adjacent to the crown of the piston, the sliding fit of the ring within said cylindrical wail and the fixing between said portion of the carrier and the piston constituting the alignment means wherein the crown and an annular base extend slightly radially outwardly beyond the circumferential edges of the bellows spring.