Patent ID: 7704174

Claim:
A vertical internal combustion engine comprising: a horizontally disposed engine body having a crankcase connected to a cylinder block and forming a crank chamber and a valve train chamber therein; a crankshaft enclosed in the crank chamber with a center axis thereof vertically oriented and extending upward through an upper end part of the crankcase; a driven mechanism including a driven shaft supported in the engine body with a center axis thereof vertically oriented, to be rotatively driven by the crankshaft, said driven shaft disposed in the valve train chamber; a belt-drive transmission mechanism including a drive pulley mounted on an upper end part of the crankshaft, a driven pulley mounted on an upper end part of the driven shaft, and a rubber belt extending around the drive pulley and the driven pulley to transmit power of the crankshaft to the driven shaft; and a transmission case joined to an upper part of the engine body and defining a belt chamber for enclosing the drive pulley, the driven pulley and the belt, said transmission case comprising an upper case and a lower case forming a bottom wall joined to the engine body, said transmission case defining a belt chamber therein and having vent holes formed through a portion of the lower case, through which the belt chamber is in communication with an interior of the engine body, said vent holes including crank chamber vent holes in fluid communication with the crank chamber and valve train chamber vent holes in communication with the valve train chamber; wherein said engine body has a connecting passage formed through the upper end part of the crankcase to allow an oil-containing gas in the crank chamber to flow outwardly from the crank chamber, through the connecting passage and through the crank chamber vent holes into the belt chamber; wherein the lower case is configured to allow said oil-containing gas to flow from the belt chamber downwardly through the valve train chamber vent holes into the valve train chamber; and wherein said bottom wall of the lower case has an opening through which the crankshaft extends upward with a clearance, and the crankshaft has a flange which is formed on the crankshaft to rotate with the crankshaft and disposed adjacent to said opening and is so larger in size than the opening as to allow a small amount of the oil-containing gas to flow through said opening to thereby screen a part of the belt from the crank chamber.