Abstract: An internal combustion engine structure in which the cylinder head and main bearing caps are linked by a framework of members including pairs of tension members each angled obliquely to the direct line between head and caps. The members of the framework are arranged so as to bear a substantial proportion of the firing loads of the engine in tension or compression without bending, thus relieving other parts of the engine, especially its outer surfaces, from loads under which they would tend to bend and thus emit noise. The framework may also serve to strengthen parts of the engine wall to make it less susceptible to bending.

Abstract: An internal combustion engine structure in which the tendency of the combustion forces to separate the cylinder head from the crankshaft bearings is resisted by external tie-rod structures attached at opposite ends to engine structure adjacent these two parts. The tie-rods run as nearly as possible in straight lines, and therefore typically lie obliquely to the crankshaft axis and to the transverse planes containing the cylinder axes. The tie-rod structures may be ribs or fins and may also be attached to parts of the engine wall intermediate their ends to make those parts more rigid.