Abstract: A method of producing a shoe for a swash plate type compressor, the shoe being disposed between a swash plate and a piston of the swash plate type compressor and formed of an aluminum alloy, the method comprising: a main forging step of forging a blank for producing the shoe into a roughly-shaped precursor shoe; a thermal refining step of thermally refining the roughly-shaped precursor shoe; and a size-adjustment forging step of forging the roughly-shaped precursor shoe which has been thermally refined, into a size-adjusted shoe.

Abstract: Lubricating films are formed on end surfaces of a swash plate, respectively. The lubricating films make slide contact with shoes, respectively. The lubricating films are made of a copper based material which contains bismuth but does not contain lead. A good slide contact characteristic may be obtained while restricting the amount of lead to be used.

Abstract: A swash plate type variable displacement compressor has a housing, a drive shaft, a swash plate and a piston. The housing includes a cylinder block, a front housing, and a rear housing. The drive shaft is rotatably supported by the housing. The swash plate is connected to the drive shaft, and is integrally rotatable with the drive shaft and tiltable relative to the drive shaft. The piston engages with the swash plate through a pair of shoes. Rotation of the drive shaft is converted to reciprocation of the piston through the swash plate and the shoes, and the displacement of the compressor is adjusted by varying the inclination angle of the swash plate with respect to the axis of the drive shaft. The swash plate includes a base member made of copper series and a sliding layer coating a sliding surface of the base member with respect to the shoes.

Abstract: Lubricating films are formed on end surfaces of a swash plate, respectively. The lubricating films make slide contact with shoes, respectively. The lubricating films are composed of a copper based material containing no lead, and solid lubricant other than lead is contained the copper based material. A good slide contact characteristic may be obtained while using no lead.

Abstract: A method of forming a coating on a work surface of a machine component. The method includes a preparatory step of preparing a feed form formed of a metal material that is softer than at least a work surface of a machine component, a pressure-welding step of pressure-welding an end face of the feed form to the work surface of the machine component while causing relative rotation between the machine component and the feed form, to join the feed form to the machine component, and a cutting step of cutting the feed form in a direction substantially orthogonal to an axis of the relative rotation at a portion near a joining position at which the machine component and the feed form are joined, to add a soft metal layer having a predetermined thickness to the work surface of the machine component.

Abstract: A compressor includes pistons, each of which is coupled to a swash plate through a pair of shoes. The swash plate rotates integrally with a drive shaft. The shoes convert the rotation of the swash plate to the reciprocation of the piston. A lubricating coating made of copper-based material is formed on parts of the swash plate along which the shoes slide. The copper-based material includes silicon. The shoes smoothly slide on the swash plate, which is coated by the lubricating coating that uses minimum amount of lead.

Abstract: A spherical crown shoe is fabricated from an aluminum alloy. A cast shoe member is first fabricated by casting in such a shape having a substantially flat surface and a convex curved surface, which is similar to the shape of the shoe as a product. The cast shoe member is then formed into a formed shoe member substantially in the shape of a spherical crown, by pressing. The cast shoe member is smaller in diameter and greater in height than the formed shoe member, for example.

Abstract: The durability of a coating layer formed on the sliding surface between two members of a compressor, and the sliding contact between the two members, is kept excellent over a long period of time. In a peripheral portion 10d of a swash plate 10, a pair of shoes 20 are connected to the swash plate 10 while intervening between the swash plate 10 and a piston 8. Both the swash plate 10 and the shoes 20 are formed from an iron series material. A film 23 is formed on both surfaces 22 of the peripheral portion 10d of the swash plate 10, and the shoes 20 slide on the film 23 on the swash plate 10. The film 23 is a coating layer formed from a resin containing metallic particles. The particle size of the metallic particles is larger than the thickness of the film 23 (e.g., from 10 to 100 &mgr;m), and the surface of the film 23 is made smooth by polishing. The resin functioning as a binder of the metallic particles is formed from, for example, a polyimide resin.

Abstract: Compressor may preferably include a swash plate coupled to a drive shaft, so that the swash plate will rotates in response to rotation of the drive shaft. A piston is preferably disposed within a cylinder bore. A shoe preferably couples the piston to the swash plate, so the piston will reciprocate within the cylinder bore in order to compress a refrigerant in response to rotation of the swash plate. The shoe preferably comprises a main body, a metallic hard layer at least partially disposed on the main body and an anti-friction layer at least partially disposed on the metallic hard layer. The main body preferably comprises a spherical surface portion and a substantially flat surface portion and comprises aluminum. The metallic hard layer preferably has a hardness of at least HV 300 based upon the Vickers hardness scale and is disposed on at least one of the spherical surface portion and the substantially flat surface portion.

Abstract: Compressors may preferably include a swash plate coupled to a drive shaft, so that the swash plate will rotate in response to rotation of the drive shaft. A piston is preferably disposed within a cylinder bore. A shoe preferably couples the piston to the swash plate, so the piston will reciprocate within the cylinder bore in order to compress a refrigerant in response to rotation of the swash plate. The shoe preferably comprises a main body, a metallic hard layer at least partially disposed on the main body and an anti-friction layer at least partially disposed on the metallic hard layer. The main body preferably comprises a spherical surface portion and a substantially flat surface portion and comprises aluminum. The metallic hard layer preferably has a hardness of at least HV 300 based upon the Vickers hardness scale and is disposed on at least one of the spherical surface portion and the substantially flat surface portion. The anti-friction layer preferably comprises a metal and a solid lubricating agent.

Abstract: A swash plate used in a compressor. A side of the swash plate that contacts head side shoes is coated with two layers. The first layer is formed of aluminum material and the second layer is formed with solid lubricant. A side of the swash plate that contacts skirt side shoes is coated with a single layer of solid lubricant. Accordingly, the swash plate has a sufficiently wear resistance on both sides for the minimized cost.

Abstract: A compressor performing a compression action and having a sliding location where one member slides with respect to another member, wherein the sliding portion is formed with sliding layers comprised of a binder comprised of polyetheretherketone and a solid lubricant dispersed in the binder.

Abstract: A single-headed piston type swash plate compressor able to prevent wear of a coating when using a swash plate having a coating on a swash plate substrate to improve the slidability and in turn able to exhibit greater durability, wherein the swash plate is comprised of a swash plate substrate made of a ferrous material and a coating formed on at least one compression chamber side for improving the slidability with the ferrous material and wherein at least one shoe is comprised of a shoe substrate made of an aluminum-based material having a specific gravity smaller than that of the ferrous metal and coatings formed on the surfaces of the shoe substrate for improving the slidability.

Abstract: A swash plate for a swash plate compressor, wherein aluminum alloy containing 12 to 60% of Si and, as required, 0.1 to 30% of Sn is sprayed onto the iron or aluminum base plate of the swash plate compressor to form a seizure-resisting and abrasion-resisting surface layer dispersed with granulated Si.

Abstract: A swash plate compressor provided with a housing internally defining and forming cylinder bores, a crank chamber, a suction chamber, and a discharge chamber; pistons accommodated in the cylinder bores to be able to reciprocate in them; a drive shaft driven by an external drive source and supported by the housing; a swash plate synchronously rotatably supported with respect to the drive shaft; and shoes at the front and rear of the swash plate for driving the pistons; wherein the shoes are mainly comprised of a magnesium-based material.

Abstract: The seizure resistance of an Al-based flame-sprayed layer formed on the swash plate of a swash-plate type comressor is increased to such a level comparable to that of a flame-sprayed bronze layer. The Al-based flame-sprayed layer of the present invention contains: from 12 to 60% of Si and granular Si particles dispersed in the matrix thereof, and at least one dispersing phase of graphite carbon, amorphous carbon and carbon, the crystallizing degree of which is between the graphite carbon and amorphous carbon, and MoS2.

Abstract: The sliding characteristics of the sliding portions, where components slide on each other, are improved and the work of coating forming thereof is simplified. DLC coatings (43) and (44) are formed on a front surface (39) and a rear surface (40) of a swash plate (22) by a CVD method or a PVD method. Therefore, the sliding characteristics of the sliding portion (47) between the swash plate (22) and shoes (27) and (28) are improved and abrasion or seizure occurs less frequently on the surface of the swash plate (22) and flat surfaces (35) and (36) of the shoes (27) and (28).

Abstract: The object of the present invention is to offer methods for forming a film of a high quality on a swash plate for a swash plate type compressor simply and the film formed swash plate.

Abstract: A method of producing a hollow piston for a compressor, the piston including a head portion which is slidably fitted in a cylinder bore of the compressor, and an engaging portion which engages a reciprocating drive device of the compressor for reciprocating the piston, at least the head portion of the piston being hollow, the method comprising a step of preparing at least one piston blank by forging, which piston blank includes an engaging-portion-forming section which provides the engaging portion of the piston, and a head-portion-forming section which provides at least a part of the head portion of the piston, the at least one piston blank being prepared by a two-axes forging process which uses a forging die assembly including a set of two first dies which are movable relative to each other along a first axis which is one of two mutually perpendicular axes, and at least one second die which is movable along a second axis which is the other of the two mutually perpendicular axes.

Abstract: The object of the present invention is to form a film of a high quality on a constituent part in a compressor.