According to the invention, parting of the cap of the connecting rod is achieved by engaging the eye of the big end of the connecting rod with two semicylindrical fixtures, respectively a fixed fixture and a movable fixture, which are actuated by a hydraulic actuator which is interposed between them and is adapted to expand the fixtures in a diametrical direction against the inner surface of the eye of the big end of the connecting rod, subjecting the piston of the actuator to the action of a hydraulic fluid fed into the respective actuation cylinder at an optional pre-loading pressure that is in any case lower than the pressure required to reach the yield point of the material of the connecting rod, and producing an instantaneous peak in the pressure of the fluid fed to the hydraulic actuator by means of an auxiliary piston that is subjected to the momentary action of a striking mass.
The apparatus includes a frame supporting two fixtures, of which at least one is movable, and which have respective crescents adapted to be brought together to form a circular profile engageable with the big end of a connecting rod and separable by an opening device for fracturing the big end of the connecting rod. The opening device comprises a pusher device which has a sloping surface and is slidably supported with respect to one of the crescents to abut against the other crescent, and a driving member, which is slidable transversely to the pusher device under control of driving elements, and has a sloping surface that is adapted to cooperate with a camming action with the sloping surface of the pusher device.
An integral cast-iron connecting rod blank having a smaller-diameter end, a shank, and a larger-diameter end with a crank opening is set on an inclined base, and the tip end of a laser beam applying device is positioned in the larger-diameter end. While a YAG laser beam from the laser beam applying device is being applied to diametrically opposite inner central wall regions of the larger-diameter end, the laser beam applying device is moved to form notches transversely in the respective inner central wall regions. Two spreading elements are placed in the crank opening, and then a tapered wedge is inserted downwardly between the spreading elements. A downward impact point load is applied to a load bearing surface of the wedge thereby to apply spreading forces to the larger-diameter end. A crack starting radially outwardly from the notches is developed in the larger-diameter end, dividing the larger-diameter end into a saddle and a cap. Mating surfaces of the saddle and the cap have interfitting surface irregularities which prevent the saddle and the cap from being combined in wrong orientations. Before the larger-diameter end is split open, the crank opening is finished for roundness while the larger-diameter end is being subjected to the same load as a fastening load by which the saddle and the cap will be fastened by bolts.
A frame (10) carries two fixtures (16, 20), of which at least one (20) is movable, and which have respective crescents (18, 22) adapted to be brought together to form a circular profile engageable with the big end of a connecting rod and separable by opening means for fracturing the big end of the connecting rod. The apparatus also has transfer means (58) for transferring a connecting rod from a rod conveyor line (12) to said crescents (18, 22) and vice versa; an actuator (60) for pressing a locking member (62, 162, 262) against portions of the rod body in order to lock the rod body against the crescent facing the body; another actuator (64) for pressing a profiled block (66) against the other end of the connecting rod in order to lock it against the crescent proximate to the cap; an auxiliary actuator (23, 25) for remating the cap with the body of the rod; and ejector means (68, 70, 72) for ejecting the connecting rod from the crescents and for returning it to the transfer means after its fracturing and remating.
The invention relates to a device for fracture-separating a workpiece comprising several ring-shaped workpiece sections which are aligned axially one behind the other. The device comprises at least one expansion device which can be introduced axially into a borehole, formed in each ring-shaped workpiece section and has at least one expansion element that can be expanded in at least two axial expansion areas which lie at a distance from each other in the axial direction. The expansion device is provided with an integrated expansion control device which interacts with the expansion element for controlling a variable position and/or a variable expansion distance and/or a variable expansion period and/or a variable expansion sequence of at least the two expansion areas.
A device for separating the rod and cap of a connecting rod by breaking includes a fixed expansion mandrel half on a fixed device part a mobile expansion mandrel half on a device part which moves in the direction of expansion, and support elements for the rod and the cap. The device has a long service life without operational problems and can separate the rod and cap of a connecting rod from each other with a high degree of precision. To this end, the adjustable support elements are arranged on the fixed device part and the fixed support elements are arranged on the mobile device part.
