Interesting Cosworth Formula One head design

[gmh265]

the caps would have to be very accurately machined for the oil to flow smoothly.

Can't see how it would be any harder than getting a cam tunnel right on a 'normal' engine.

They also used this 'Beam" head design for quite a while. There was a writeup in racecar engineering many years ago on one of Cosworth's engines that utilised this design.



Since 1999, Cosworth has used a ‘beam head’ design on its F1 engines. This concentrates metal in a tall, slim beam projecting up from the head along its entire length. The advantage is it gives the engine the maximum structural strength as a chassis component in the car with the minimum amount of material. It was an effective way of retaining stiffness, while lowering the overall weight and the centre of gravity of the engine. When introduced, Cosworth was able to boast having shaved 30kg off the weight of the whole engine, making it probably the lightest in F1 at the time. This design dictated much of the rest of the cylinder head, the camshafts being bolted each side of the beam and enclosed with carbon fibre cam covers.

http://www.racecar-engineering.com/a...-an-f1-engine/

[LINCOLN]

What am I missing with the valve actuation? Link between cam profile and valve does not compute in my head? Complicated rocker that acts like a toggle?

[Billzilla]

Can't see how it would be any harder than getting a cam tunnel right on a 'normal' engine.

They also used this 'Beam" head design for quite a while. There was a writeup in racecar engineering many years ago on one of Cosworth's engines that utilised this design.



Since 1999, Cosworth has used a ‘beam head’ design on its F1 engines. This concentrates metal in a tall, slim beam projecting up from the head along its entire length. The advantage is it gives the engine the maximum structural strength as a chassis component in the car with the minimum amount of material. It was an effective way of retaining stiffness, while lowering the overall weight and the centre of gravity of the engine. When introduced, Cosworth was able to boast having shaved 30kg off the weight of the whole engine, making it probably the lightest in F1 at the time. This design dictated much of the rest of the cylinder head, the camshafts being bolted each side of the beam and enclosed with carbon fibre cam covers.

http://www.racecar-engineering.com/a...-an-f1-engine/

Good find, thanks.

[Billzilla]

What am I missing with the valve actuation? Link between cam profile and valve does not compute in my head? Complicated rocker that acts like a toggle?

The valves and springs aren't in place. They'd normally be running up against the cam lobes.

[clutch-monkey]

Nah a 32 valve V8 but it's got an separate inlet and exhaust port for each valve.

OP fixed coz I can't count.

4 valve v8 with the valves paired diagonally, instead of having an intake side and an exhaust side they are both on both sides on the head.

no idea what the advantages would be but i'd kill to have one in some sort of mid engined classic open wheeler type thing

[LINCOLN]

Just after I posted I realised how a rocker could work! Would like to see one still.

[Billzilla]

I'm pretty sure the only rockers you'll find in that car would be in the suspension.
Some F1 engines used things called 'finger followers' though - they do the same job as followers - and they could move the pivots around to chance the valve timing and lift.

[LINCOLN]

Wait - does that cam lobe go through the slot and actuate direct on top of stem?

Edit - no the slot is off centre. Carry on

[Billzilla]

Wait - does that cam lobe go through the slot and actuate direct on top of stem?

I reckon they do on that head - direct cam-on-bucket/valve.
Though it's possible they used tiny followers in it I guess. Hard to tell.

[gmh265]

The valves and springs aren't in place. They'd normally be running up against the cam lobes.

If my memory serves me correctly it actually uses a small rocker between the cam and valves, which rocks in the weird looking slot in the 7th picture down. this way they could get the camshaft in without having to actuate the valves I guess..

[Billzilla]

If my memory serves me correctly it actually uses a small rocker between the cam and valves, which rocks in the weird looking slot in the 7th picture down. this way they could get the camshaft in without having to actuate the valves I guess..

Quite possible. If they did, it looks like the rockers are locked in place somehow by going down through the backbone ridge .... ?
I guess you could just spin the cam so the lobe was up out the way, push the follower in & lock it, then spin the cam again to do the next one, etc.

[gmh265]

V8?

I love the 5th pic. I could stare at fine machining for ages *_* In fact, sometimes I walk down to machine shop and do. They think I'm strange... Mostly because I am :D

me too...

[Billzilla]

Thinking about it, yeah it's have to have followers there as there'd otherwise be no real lateral support for the valves as they don't have a bucket to keep them straight. They use fancy surface coatings to reduce the friction to make the followers slippery enough.

[LINCOLN]

Either way it is lovely.

That cam profile looks symmetrical so I think the cam actuates a type of straight bar style rocker/follower that pivots in its centre at that slot.

[gmh265]

Thinking about it, yeah it's have to have followers there as there'd otherwise be no real lateral support for the valves as they don't have a bucket to keep them straight. They use fancy surface coatings to reduce the friction to make the followers slippery enough.

the more i think about the more I can picture it in my head, can't find a picture on intergoogle however.

The rocker pivots in the weird slot.. I gave my copy of RCE with that article in it away almost 10 years ago so its long gone and it did have the pics..