Patent ID: 7168359

Claim:
A swash plate compressor for compressing a gas, the compressor comprising: a rotatable drive shaft; a swash plate connected to the drive shaft in a manner enabling integral rotation with the drive shaft; a slide plate supported to be rotatable relative to the swash plate; a pair of shoes arranged on the swash plate and the slide plate; a bearing arranged between the swash plate and the slide plate and in between the shoes; and a piston connected to the swash plate and the slide plate by the shoes, the piston being reciprocated to compress gas when the rotation of the drive shaft rotates the swash plate, wherein: the swash plate includes a swash plate support surface for contacting the bearing; the slide plate includes a slide plate support surface for contacting the bearing; and at least one of the swash plate and the slide plate is formed so that a clearance between the swash plate support surface and the slide plate support surface increases along a radial line, from a point radially farther away from the drive shaft toward a point radially closer to the drive shaft, and at least one of the swash plate support surface and the slide plate support surface is inclined relative to a hypothetical plane perpendicular to the axis of the swash plate so that the surfaces gradually increase in space from each other radially inwardly of the swash plate and the slide plate, and the clearance between the swash plate support surface and the slide plate support surface gradually increases radially inwardly of the swash plate and the slide plate.