초록 ▼

A composite air intake manifold includes a header and runners having communicating passages. The composite intake manifold is fashioned from carbon fiber cloth which is preferably impregnated with resin and cured between a meltable core mold and a split outside mold. The carbon fiber cloth is orien

A composite air intake manifold includes a header and runners having communicating passages. The composite intake manifold is fashioned from carbon fiber cloth which is preferably impregnated with resin and cured between a meltable core mold and a split outside mold. The carbon fiber cloth is oriented throughout the manifold to give the manifold maximum pressure resisting capability with minimum thickness and weight. Because virtually any shape may be adopted for the interior passages of the header and the runners, the interior passages of the header and runners may be shaped to enhance air flow through the manifold.

대표청구항 ▼

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is: 1. A method for making a composite air intake manifold body for an internal combustion engine, said manifold body having an inside surface and an outside surface defining a header and a plura

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is: 1. A method for making a composite air intake manifold body for an internal combustion engine, said manifold body having an inside surface and an outside surface defining a header and a plurality of runners communicating with said header wherein said header has an inlet opening for communication with an air supply and wherein each of said runners have an outlet port for passage of air into an air intake port of an internal combustion engine, said method for making said air intake manifold body comprising the steps of: (a) selecting structural fiber cloth and a resin for impregnating said structural fiber cloth for making a composite material, said resin generally liquid when in an uncured condition and solid when in a cured condition, (b) fashioning a core mold from meltable material having an outside surface corresponding to said inside surface of said air intake manifold body, (c) fashioning at least two complementary outside mold portions having adjoining inside surfaces corresponding to said outside surface for said air intake manifold body, (d) covering said core mold with said structural fiber cloth to make a cloth lay-up, (e) enclosing said cloth lay-up within said outside mold portions, (f) injecting said resin into said cloth lay-up to make a resin impregnated lay-up, (g) allowing said resin of said resin impregnated lay-up to cure to make a cured lay-up, (h) removing said outside mold portions from said lay-up to expose a lightweight composite intake manifold shell, (i) heating said cured lay-up above the melting temperature of the core mold material causing said core mold material to melt and drain out of said cured lay-up. 2. The method of claim 1 wherein, said resin cures at an elevated resin curing temperature and degrades at a higher resin degradation temperature, wherein step (g) includes heating said lay-up to said elevated resin curing temperature to hasten curing and wherein said core mold material is adapted to melt at a temperature between said resin curing temperature and said resin degradation temperature so that in step (i) said cured lay-up is heated to a temperature above the melting temperature of said core mold material but below said resin degradation temperature to cause melting and removal of said core mold material. 3. The method of claim 1 wherein, said header of said intake manifold body is fashioned by overlaying alternating portions of structural fiber cloth impregnated with said resin and said runners of said intake manifold body are fashioned by overlaying woven tubes of structural fiber cloth at least one of which is also disposed in an overlapping relationship with said overlaid alternating portions of structural fiber cloth of said header. 4. The method of claim 1, wherein; at least a portion of said structural fiber cloth is pre-impregnated structural fiber cloth which is pre-impregnated with resin so that it is not necessary to transfer resin into said pre-impregnated structural fiber cloth. 5. The method of claim 1 wherein, said structural fiber cloth is pre-impregnated with resin such that step (f) may be eliminated. 6. A method for making an air intake manifold for an internal combustion engine, said intake manifold including a body having an inside surface and an outside surface defining a header and a plurality of runners communicating with said header wherein said header has an inlet opening for communication with an air supply and each of said runners having an outlet port for passage of air into an air intake port of an internal combustion engine, said method for making said air intake manifold body comprising the steps of (a) selecting structural fiber cloth and a resin for impregnating said structural fiber cloth for making a composite material, said resin generally liquid when in an uncured condition and capable of curing at elevated curing temperature to a cured condition wherein said resin is a solid, (b) fashioning a core mold from meltable material having a melting point above the curing temperature of said resin, said core mold having an outside surface corresponding to said inside surface of said air intake manifold body, (c) obtaining at least two complementary outside mold portions having adjoining inside surfaces corresponding to a desired outside surface for said air intake manifold body, (d) covering said core mold with layers of said structural fiber cloth to make a cloth lay-up, (e) enclosing said cloth lay-up within said outside mold portions, (f) injecting said resin into said cloth lay-up to make a resin impregnated lay-up, (g) heating said resin impregnated lay-up to a curing temperature until said resin is cured to make a cured lay-up, (h) removing said outside mold portions from said cured lay-up to expose a lightweight composite intake manifold shell, (i) heating said cured lay-up above the melting temperature of the core mold material causing said core mold material to melt and drain out of said cured lay-up, (j) trimming the header of said manifold body to make an air inlet opening and trimming said runners to make a plurality of air outlet ports, (k) fashioning fittings for interfacing with air supply and engine air intake components and gluing said fittings to said manifold shell at said air inlet opening and said air outlet ports to make a completed air intake manifold. 7. The method of claim 6 wherein, said resin cures degrades at a higher resin degradation temperature substantially higher than said curing temperature and wherein said core mold material is adapted to melt at a temperature between said resin curing temperature and said resin degradation temperature so that in step (i) said cured lay-up is heated to a temperature above the melting temperature of said core mold material but below said resin degradation temperature. 8. The method of claim 6 wherein, said header of said intake manifold body is fashioned by overlaying alternating portions of structural fiber cloth impregnated with said resin and said runners of said intake manifold body is fashioned by overlaying woven tubes of structural fiber cloth at least one of which is also disposed in overlapping relationship with said overlaid alternating portions of structural fiber cloth of said header. 9. The method of claim 6, wherein; at least a portion of said structural fiber cloth is pre-impregnated structural fiber cloth which is pre-impregnated with resin so that it is not necessary to transfer resin into said pre-impregnated structural fiber cloth. 10. The method of claim 6 wherein, said structural fiber cloth is pre-impregnated with resin such that step (f) may be eliminated. 11. An air intake manifold for an internal combustion engine, comprising: a body including a header having an intake opening for receiving air and a plurality of runners pneumatically communicating with said header, said runners having distal outlet ports for discharging air to the intakes of an internal combustion engine, said header fashioned from overlaid alternating portions of structural fiber cloth impregnated with said resin and said runners fashioned from structural fiber cloth also impregnated with said resin and disposed in an overlapping relationship with said structural fiber cloth of said header, fittings fixed to said inlet opening of said header for connecting to the discharge of an air supply, and fittings fixed to said outlet ports of said runners for connecting to the air intakes of an internal combustion engine. 12. The air intake manifold of claim 11 wherein, said body of said intake manifold is a hollow lightweight shell. 13. The air intake manifold of claim 11 wherein, said body of said intake manifold is a hollow lightweight shell having internal passages having aerodynamically shaped walls which are smoothly blended to reduce the turbulence of air flow through said manifold. 14. The air intake manifold of claim 11 wherein, said runners of said intake manifold body are fashioned from woven tubes of structural fiber cloth.