U.S. patent application number 09/368653 was filed with the patent office on 2001-05-24 for coupling device having a holder, which is provided on a flywheel mass, for a driver.
This patent application is currently assigned to Klaus P. Stoffel. Invention is credited to KUNDERMANN, WOLFGANG.
Application Number | 20010001768 09/368653 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 27438758 |
Filed Date | 2001-05-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010001768 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
KUNDERMANN, WOLFGANG |
May 24, 2001 |
COUPLING DEVICE HAVING A HOLDER, WHICH IS PROVIDED ON A FLYWHEEL
MASS, FOR A DRIVER
Abstract
A coupling device is designed with a flywheel mass which faces a
drive and is operatively connected, such that they rotate together,
to a driver which acts on the drive. A holder is provided on the
flywheel mass, which holder faces the driver and is provided with a
tooth system. The driver has an axial attachment, which is likewise
designed with a tooth system at its end which faces the holder. At
least one tooth of the tooth system of the axial attachment is
pressed, with radial prestressing, into the tooth gap between in
each case two teeth of the tooth system of the holder.
Inventors: |
KUNDERMANN, WOLFGANG;
(SCHWEINFURT, DE) |
Correspondence
Address: |
THOMAS C PONTANI ESQ
COHEN PONTANI LIEBERMAN & PAVANE
551 FIFTH AVENUE
SUITE 1210
NEW YORK
NY
10176
|
Assignee: |
Klaus P. Stoffel
|
Family ID: |
27438758 |
Appl. No.: |
09/368653 |
Filed: |
August 5, 1999 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
464/157 |
Current CPC
Class: |
Y10T 29/53657 20150115;
F16D 2013/706 20130101; F16D 13/70 20130101; F16D 3/18 20130101;
F16H 41/24 20130101; F16D 3/76 20130101; F16D 13/71 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
464/157 |
International
Class: |
F16D 003/18; F16D
003/44 |
Claims
I claim:
1. A coupling device, comprising: a drive; a driver that acts on
the drive; a flywheel mass which faces the drive and is operatively
connected to the driver so that the flywheel mass and the driver
rotate together; and a holder provided on the flywheel mass so as
to face the driver, the holder being provided with a tooth system,
the driver having an axial attachment which is likewise provided
with a tooth system on a side facing the holder, the tooth system
of the driver having at least one tooth that engages in a tooth gap
between each two teeth of the tooth system of the holder so that
teeth of at least one of the two tooth systems are positioned
opposite a respective other of the two tooth systems with radial
prestressing.
2. A coupling device as defined in claim 1, wherein each tooth of
the tooth system of the driver is formed with a wedge surface on
tooth flanks of each tooth, so that each of the teeth engages as a
wedge in the corresponding tooth gap of the tooth system of the
holder.
3. A coupling device as defined in claim 2, wherein each tooth of
the tooth system of the holder has a wedge surface on each of its
tooth flanks at an angle matched to the wedge surfaces of the teeth
of the tooth system of the driver which act on both sides.
4. A coupling device as defined in claim 1, wherein the holder is
formed as a ring that encloses the axial attachment of the
driver.
5. A coupling device as defined in claim 4, wherein the tooth
system of the holder is an internal tooth system in which the tooth
system of the driver engages with prestressing directed radially
outward.
6. A coupling device as defined in claim 1, wherein the driver has
a radially elastic flange at least along a portion of its radial
extent, the flange having a bend at least in a circumferential
region to form the axial attachment.
7. A coupling device as defined in claim 1, and further comprising
an axial securing device assigned to the axial attachment of the
driver with respect to the circumference.
8. A coupling device as defined in claim 7, wherein the axial
securing device is a claw which can move radially and has a radial
holder which is provided at a free end of the claw so as to engage
in a radial depression which is provided on the holder.
9. A coupling device as defined in claim 8, wherein the radial
holder for the claw wedge-shaped and engages in the radial
depression on the holder with radial prestressing.
10. A coupling device as defined in claim 9, wherein the radial
depression is shaped to match the radial holder of the claw.
11. A coupling device as defined in claim 1, and further comprising
an installation apparatus for producing an engaged connection
between the driver and the holder, the installation apparatus being
operatively configured to pull the at least one tooth of the driver
away from the holder against the influence of the radial
prestressing, influence of the installation apparatus on the driver
being cancelable once the engaged connection has been produced.
12. A coupling device as defined in claim 11, wherein the
installation apparatus is configured to enclose the axial
attachment with an inwardly directed radial force exerted at least
on the at least one tooth for at least a time needed to produce the
engaged connection.
13. A coupling device as defined in claim 12, wherein the
installation apparatus is a tightening clamp which has a strip that
encloses the axial attachment and has a screw housing on a first
end of the strip, a tightening screw is arranged in the screw
housing and has a thread that engages in a thread indentation at a
second, free end of the strip so as to produce a relative movement
of the strip with respect to the screw housing, via the threaded
connection to the thread indentation, in order to initiate a
tightening process.
14. A coupling device as defined in claim 12, wherein the
installation apparatus is a compression hose which is connectable
via a pressure connection to a pressure source so that when
pressure is supplied the hose is stressed by expansion of its cross
section.
15. A coupling device as defined in claim 14, and further
comprising a protective sleeve arranged over the compression
hose.
16. A coupling device as defined in claim 12, wherein the axial
attachment has a conical section, the installation apparatus being
a tightening ring which can be moved axially on the conical section
of the axial attachment.
17. A coupling device as defined in claim 12, wherein the
installation apparatus is a tightening loop having spread ends
which are prestressed toward one another in a circumferential
direction.
18. A coupling device as defined in claim 12, wherein the
installation apparatus is a tightening loop which has a holding end
holdable in a die of a tool, and a tightening end clampable in
tightening means which can move relative to the die.
19. A coupling device as defined in claim 11, wherein the axial
attachment has an axially free end which is provided with a bearing
surface for the installation apparatus.
20. A coupling device as defined in claim 19, and further
comprising an axial securing device attached to the free end of the
axial attachment.
21. A coupling device as defined in claim 20, wherein the axial
securing device is configured to act over an axial extent range of
the tooth systems and engage in the tooth system which is provided
on the holder.
22. A coupling device as defined in claim 6, wherein the flange has
at least one elastic spring turn radially within the bend.
23. A coupling device as defined in claim 22, wherein the elastic
spring turn is provided with a damping means on the flange.
24. coupling device as defined in claim 23, wherein the damping
means is an elastomer which at least partially fills a free space
which is present on the spring turn.
25. A coupling device as defined in claim 1, wherein the holder has
a support for a further axial attachment on which the tooth system
is held.
26. A coupling device as defined in claim 25, wherein the tooth
system of the holder is formed on a radial outer side of the
further axial attachment and is surrounded in an annular shape by
the tooth system of the axial attachment of the driver.
27. A coupling device as defined in claim 25, wherein the support
for the holder is an axially elastic flange.
28. A coupling device as defined in claim 27, wherein the flange of
the holder has an elastic spring turn.
29. A coupling device as defined in claim 25, and further
comprising an installation apparatus for producing an engaged
connection between the driver and the holder, the installation
apparatus being operatively configured to pull the at least one
tooth of the driver away from the holder against the influence of
the radial prestressing, influence of the installation apparatus on
the driver being cancelable once the engaged connection has been
produced, the further axial attachment having a bearing surface for
the installation apparatus.
30. A coupling device as defined in claim 29, wherein the bearing
surface is formed at a free end of the axial attachment.
31. An installation apparatus for a coupling device having a drive,
a driver that acts on the drive, a flywheel mass which faces the
drive and is operatively connected to the driver so that the
flywheel mass and the driver rotate together, and a holder provided
on the flywheel mass so as to face the driver, the holder being
provided with a tooth system, the driver having an axial attachment
which is likewise provided with a tooth system on a side facing the
holder, the tooth system of the driver having at least one tooth
that engages in a tooth gap between each two teeth of the tooth
system of the holder so that teeth of at least one of the two tooth
systems are positioned opposite a respective other of the two tooth
systems with radial prestressing, the installation apparatus being
useable to make or break an engagement between the tooth systems in
which case the tooth systems engage at least radially in one
another and the tooth system located radially on the inside is
prestressed radially outward against the tooth system located
radially on the outside, the component which has the tooth system
located radially on the inside can be elastically deformed radially
at least in a region of its tooth system, the installation
apparatus comprising: at least one ring element which is fittable
so that it can rotate on the component which has the tooth system
located radially on the inside, the at least one ring element
having a deformation formation by means of which, when the at least
one ring element rotates about an axis of rotation, radial
positioning of the component, which has the tooth system located
radially on the inside, can be varied in a region of the tooth
system located radially on the inside.
32. An installation apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the
deformation formation has, assigned to one of each tooth and a
group of teeth of the tooth system located radially on the inside,
a deformation incline which points radially inward and is at a
varying distance from the axis of rotation in the circumferential
direction.
33. An installation apparatus as defined in claim 32, wherein, in
the circumferential direction, the ring element has a region at an
approximately constant distance from the axis of rotation that is
at least one of adjacent to a region where the distance between the
deformation incline and the axis of rotation is at a minimum, and
adjacent to a region where the distance between the deformation
incline and the axis of rotation is at a maximum.
34. An installation apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the
installation apparatus comprises two ring elements.
35. An installation apparatus as defined in claim 34, wherein the
two ring elements have deformation inclines which in each case run
in opposite directions to one another, one of each tooth and each
group of teeth of the tooth system located radially on the inside
being assigned a pair formed from a deformation incline of each
ring element.
36. An installation apparatus as defined in claim 34, wherein the
two ring elements can rotate in mutually opposite directions about
the axis of rotation in order to make or to break a coupling
engagement between the tooth systems.
37. An installation apparatus as defined in claim 34, wherein the
two ring elements are prestressed with respect to one another in
order to rotate in the circumferential direction, to a relative
rotation position in which a coupling engagement between the tooth
systems is made.
38. An installation apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the
at least one ring element has at least one tool attachment
formation for a tool to act on, by means of which tool the at least
one ring element can be rotated about the axis of rotation.
39. An installation apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the
at least one ring element is held such that it can rotate on that
component which has the tooth system located radially on the
inside.
40. A coupling device for producing a rotating coupling between two
assemblies which can rotate about an axis of rotation, the coupling
device comprising: assigned to one of the assemblies, a first
component having a first tooth system; and, assigned to another of
the assemblies, a second component having a second tooth system,
the two tooth systems engage radially in one another and are
prestressed radially in engagement.
41. A coupling device as defined in claim 40, wherein one of the
tooth systems is located radially on the inside and is prestressed
radially outward against the other of the tooth systems which is
located radially on the outside, and further comprising an
installation apparatus having at least one ring element which is
fittable so that it can rotate on the component which has the tooth
system located radially on the inside, the at least one ring
element having a deformation formation by means of which, when the
at least one ring element rotates about an axis of rotation, radial
positioning of the component, which has the tooth system located
radially on the inside, can be varied in a region of the tooth
system located radially on the inside.
42. A tooth system component, comprising a central body region from
which a plurality of elastic tongue-like projections project
radially outward, at least one tooth of a tooth system being
provided in a radially outer region of each of the projections.
43. A tooth system component as defined in claim 42, wherein the
radial projections have a width in a circumferential direction
which decreases radially outward, starting from the central body
region.
44. A tooth system component as defined in claim 43, wherein a
ratio A/I of the width in a radially outer region to the width in
the radially inner region is in a range
0.5.ltoreq.A/I.ltoreq.1.2.
45. A tooth system component as defined in claim 44, wherein the
ratio A/I is about 0.8.
46. A tooth system component as defined in claim 42, and further
comprising an essentially curved transition formed between two
adjacent radial projections on the central body region.
47. A tooth system component as defined in claim 46, wherein the
curved transition has a radius of curvature which is at least equal
to a material thickness of the tooth system component in a region
of the radial projections.
48. A tooth system component as defined in claim 47, wherein a
ratio B/M of the width in the circumferential direction to the
material thickness, in each case in the region of the radial
projections, is in a range 5.ltoreq.B/M.ltoreq.30.
49. A tooth system component as defined in claim 48, wherein the
ratio B/M is about 10.
50. A tooth system component as define in claim 47, wherein,
originating from the central body region, the radial projections
are initially bent approximately in an axial direction in a first
bend region, are then bent essentially radially outward in a second
bend region, are then bent approximately in the axial direction
once again in a third bend region, and have at least one tooth of
the tooth system in the region which extends approximately in the
axial direction.
51. A tooth system component as defined in claim 50, wherein at
least one of the second and third bend regions has a radius of
curvature that is at least 1.5 times the material thickness of the
tooth system component in the region of the radial projections.
52. A tooth system component as defined in claim 50, wherein the
second and third bend regions together form an essentially
continuous bend region, roughly like a semicircle.
53. A tooth system component as defined in claim 50, wherein the
radial projections are essentially not curved in the
circumferential direction in the region which extends essentially
in the axial direction and has at least one tooth.
54. A tooth system component as defined in claim 53, wherein the
radial projections are essentially not curved in the
circumferential direction in the region of the third bend region
which is adjacent to the region which extends essentially in the
axial direction and has at least one tooth.
55. A tooth system component as defined in claim 42, wherein at
least one of the radial projections has at least one slot which
extends essentially radially.
56. The tooth system component as defined in claim 55, wherein,
originating from the central body region, the radial projections
are initially bent approximately in an axial direction in a first
bend region, are then bent essentially radially outward in a second
bend region, are then bent approximately in the axial direction
once again in a third bend region, and have at least one tooth of
the tooth system in the region which extends approximately in the
axial direction, starting from the body region, the slot extending
at least as far as the second bend region.
57. A tooth system component as defined in claim 42, wherein the
teeth of the tooth system, which is provided on a tooth system
component, each have tooth flanks which point essentially in the
circumferential direction, the tooth flanks being inclined, with
respect to a longitudinal center plane of the associated tooth, at
an angle in a range from 10.degree. to 50.degree..
58. A tooth system component as defined in claim 57, wherein the
tooth flanks are inclined at an angle in a range of 20.degree. to
30.degree..
59. A tooth system component as defined in claim 42, comprising a
plurality of teeth which follow one another in the circumferential
direction, each tooth being formed on a tongue-like projection and
having an end surface pointing essentially in the radial direction,
as well as flank surfaces which merge into the end surface and
point essentially in the circumferential direction, the tooth
system component being formed from steel sheet, the tongue-like
projections having at least one region which extends substantially
axially, on which the associated tooth is formed.
60. A tooth system component as defined in claim 59, wherein the
component is made of spring steel sheet.
61. A tooth system component as defined in claim 59, wherein each
approximately axially extending region is formed with
circumferential projections on its circumferential end regions, the
circumferential projections being bent in the radial direction in
order to form flank surfaces.
62. A tooth system component as defined in claim 61, wherein the
tooth system is a tooth system which is open radially outward, in
order to hold a complementary tooth system which is open radially
inward, the circumferential projections being bent radially
inward.
63. A tooth system component as defined in claim 59, wherein side
surface regions, which point essentially in the circumferential
direction, of the axially extending regions in each case form flank
surfaces.
64. A tooth system component as defined in claim 59, wherein the
tooth is formed on each axially extending region.
65. A tooth system component as defined in claim 59, wherein the
flank surfaces are at an inclination angle in a range from
10.degree. to 50.degree. with respect to a longitudinal center
plane of the associated tooth.
66. A tooth system component as defined in claim 65, wherein the
flank surfaces are inclined at an angle in a range of 20.degree. to
30.degree..
67. A tooth system component as defined in claim 65, wherein each
approximately axially extending region is formed with
circumferential projections on its circumferential end regions, the
circumferential projections being bent in the radial direction in
order to form flank surfaces, the circumferential projections being
bent from the axially extending region in order to form the
inclination angle.
68. A tooth system component as defined in claim 65 wherein side
surface regions, which point essentially in the circumferential
direction, of the axially extending regions in each case form flank
surfaces, the flank surfaces which point essentially in the
circumferential direction being formed with the inclination angle
during one of production and reworking of the tooth system
component.
69. A coupling device as define in claim 1, wherein the driver and
the holder has a central body region from which a plurality of
elastic tongue-like projections project radially outward, at least
one tooth of a tooth system being provided in a radially outer
region of each of the projections.
70. A method for producing a tooth system component, comprising the
steps of: a) taking a component blank from a steel sheet; b)
forming the component blank in order to form at least one
substantially axially extending region; and c) before or after step
b), processing the component blank in order to produce a tooth for
each axially extending region.
71. A method as defined in claim 70, wherein the step of taking a
component blank from a steel sheet includes stamping the component
from the steel sheet.
72. A method as defined in claim 70, wherein the step of taking a
component blank from a steel sheet includes cutting the component
from the steel sheet.
73. A method as defined in claim 70, wherein the step of taking a
component blank from a steel sheet includes taking the component
blank from a spring steel sheet.
74. A method as defined in claim 70, wherein step c) includes
bending circumferential projections of each tooth to produce flank
surfaces and an end surface.
75. A method as defined in claim 70, wherein step c) includes one
of chamfering and broaching side surface regions of at least each
axially extending region to form flank surfaces and an end
surface.
76. A method as defined in claim 70, wherein step c) includes one
of forming and stamping the component blank in a region of each
axially extending region to form a tooth which projects from the
axially extending region.
77. A method as defined in claim 70, further including
shape-hardening the tooth system component after the forming step
has been carried out.
78. A tooth system component as defined in claim 42, comprising a
plurality of teeth which follow one another in the circumferential
direction, each tooth being formed on a tongue-like projection and
having an end surface pointing essentially in the radial direction,
as well as flank surfaces which merge into the end surface and
point essentially in the circumferential direction, the tooth
system component being elastically deformable at least in a region
of the tongue-like projections, the tongue-like projections having
at least one substantially axially extending region on which the
associated tooth is formed.
79. A tooth system component as defined in claim 78, wherein the
tooth system component is formed from one of the group consisting
of fiber composite material, spring steel sheet and steel sheet.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The invention relates to a coupling device having a flywheel
mass which faces a drive and is connected to a driver.
[0003] 2. Discussion of the Prior Art
[0004] German reference DE 41 22 135 A1 describes, as can be seen
by way of example in FIG. 1, a coupling device in the form of a
hydrodynamic torque converter, in which a flywheel mass which faces
the drive is formed by a radial flange which runs radially outward
from a bearing journal which is mounted in the transmission housing
via a holder. The radial flange is firmly connected to the pump
shell of the pump wheel. On the other hand, together with an output
drive shaft, the turbine wheel forms a flywheel mass on the
output-drive side.
[0005] Returning to the radially inner bearing journal, this is
formed with an internal tooth system which engages in an external
tooth system on a drive shaft. This drive shaft likewise has an
external tooth system at the other end, via which it engages in a
corresponding internal tooth system on the crankshaft of an
internal combustion engine. This drive shaft is thus used as a
driver for the flywheel mass which faces the drive.
[0006] Although the drive shaft produces a connection between the
drive and the flywheel mass such that they rotate together, it is
impossible, due to play in the tooth systems, to avoid rattling or
chattering occurring in the region of these tooth systems when
torsional oscillations occur.
[0007] A further problem with the known coupling device is that
neither the mounting for the bearing journal nor the drive shaft
ensure that the flywheel mass which faces the drive is secured
axially, and thus that the entire torque converter is secured
axially on the crankshaft. The torque converter could thus carry
out axial movements which would have to be supported in the
transmission and could lead to damage there.
[0008] In order to avoid the problems mentioned above, it is
normal, as can be seen from FIG. 1 in German reference DE 32 22 119
C1, for a plate which is elastic in the axial direction to be
screwed detachably to the free end of the crankshaft of a drive.
The plate, for its part, is screwed in the radially outer region to
the flywheel mass, which faces the drive, of the coupling device,
in the present case once again formed by a hydrodynamic torque
converter. However, the solution is complex since, in order to
screw the flexible plate to the flywheel mass, threaded blocks must
be attached to the flywheel mass, at specific distances from one
another and distributed around the circumference, these blocks
being used to hold the screws. Furthermore, due to the confined
physical space conditions and difficult access conditions, it is
extremely difficult to screw the flexible plate to the
corresponding flywheel mass of the coupling device.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The invention is based on the object of providing a coupling
device that can be attached to a drive, with as little installation
complexity as possible, and without any play in the circumferential
direction.
[0010] As a result of the measure of designing the driver (which is
attached to the drive, for example to the crank-shaft of an
internal combustion engine) with an axial attachment, in the case
of which at least one tooth of a tooth system engages in a
corresponding tooth system on a holder which is attached to the
flywheel mass, a connection is produced between the holder and the
driver, and thus between the drive and the flywheel mass, such that
they rotate together. Since at least one of the two tooth systems
is subject to radial prestressing with respect to the other tooth
system in each case, the connection between the driver and the
holder essentially has no radial play. If, for example, the at
least one tooth which is formed on the axial attachment of the
driver is radially prestressed, this tooth is pressed radially as
deeply as possible into the tooth system of the holder in order to
allow a force-fitting joint to be produced with the tooth system of
the holder. This operates particularly well if the tooth flanks of
both tooth systems are each designed with a wedge surface so that,
for example, in each case one tooth of the tooth system of the
driver penetrates radially, like a wedge, between in each case two
teeth of the tooth system of the holder, and is firmly clamped at a
predetermined penetration depth. Connected to one another in such a
way, there is no play between the tooth systems of the driver and
holder, so that no chattering can occur even in the event of severe
torsional oscillations. Furthermore, the firm clamping (described
above) of the teeth of the driver in the tooth system of the holder
when torque is being transmitted results in the following
advantage: the torque results in a circumferential force acting on
the teeth. Since, however, these teeth engage in one another
without any play, each tooth is supported in the circumferential
direction, so that the tooth base is not loaded with any bending
torque. Instead of this, the tooth just needs to be supported
against transverse forces, so that the load remains limited. This
advantage is particularly important when the teeth of the tooth
system of the driver can be supported on the teeth of a holder
which is designed, for example as a ring and, in consequence, has a
tooth system which is dimensionally stable in the circumferential
direction. The advantage becomes particularly major if the annular
holder encloses the driver and is provided with an internal tooth
system so that the radial prestressing in the tooth system of the
driver is supported during rotation by the centrifugal force, while
the ring which encloses the tooth base of the tooth system on the
holder radially supports the teeth of the tooth system of the
driver.
[0011] The tooth system of the driver is assigned an axial securing
device which is designed, for example, as a claw with a radial
holder, in which case the radial holder engages in a radial
depression on the holder. In the situation where this radial holder
is designed in the form of a wedge, a clamped connection is once
again produced with the matching shape of the radial depression in
the holder.
[0012] As already described, the tooth system of the driver is
radially prestressed with respect to the holder. In order to
produce an engaged connection between the driver and the holder
when the latter is being pushed onto the driver, an installation
apparatus is used, which acts on the driver in such a way that its
axial attachment is deformed against the influence of the
prestressing such that the engaged connection between the driver
and the holder is produced essentially without any axial forces. As
soon as this connection has been produced, the influence of the
installation apparatus is canceled. This can either be done by
removing the installation apparatus completely from the driver or
else, in the situation where the installation apparatus is left on
the driver, it is released, so that it can no longer exert any
influence on the tooth system of the driver.
[0013] The measure of using the axial attachment of the driver at
an axially free end as a bearing surface for the installation
apparatus means that, due to the lever effect of this free end with
respect to its other end, which is attached to the radial flange of
the driver, a relatively small installation force need be applied
by the installation apparatus in the radial direction, in which
case this installation force may be less than the prestressing
force acting in the direction toward the tooth system of the
holder. If the ratio of the installation force to the prestressing
force is advantageous in a manner such as this, the prestressing
force may be chosen to be sufficiently high so that axial movement
between the driver and the holder can be constrained just by the
friction force within the tooth system. It is thus possible to
dispense with an additional axial securing device.
[0014] If an axial securing device is attached to the free end of
the axial attachment for the connection between the driver and the
holder, this axial securing device can engage in the holder in the
axial region where the tooth system extends. This results in a very
small axial space requirement.
[0015] The radial flange of the driver is designed with an axially
elastic flange. This axial elasticity can be increased further by
designing this last-mentioned flange with an elastic spring turn,
thus allowing tumbling movements of the crankshaft to be better
compensated for. Such an elastic spring turn on the flange may act
in an even more advantageous manner if it is provided with a
damping means which is preferably composed of an elastomer which at
least partially fills the radial free space created by the spring
turn. Such a damping means makes it possible to damp oscillations
which could be triggered by the previously mentioned tumbling
movements of the crank-shaft on the spring turns.
[0016] In the same way as the driver, the holder can also be
designed with an axially elastic flange, by which means additional
axial elasticity can be introduced into the connection of the
converter housing to the crankshaft, particularly if the axially
elastic flange of the holder has an elastic spring turn.
Furthermore, if the axial attachment of the holder is designed with
a mounting surface for an installation apparatus at its free end, a
high radial prestressing force can be achieved between the two
tooth systems of the driver and the holder, with acceptable
installation forces. As already explained, this makes it possible
on the one hand to achieve a chatter-free connection between the
two systems while, on the other hand, it is possible to dispense
with an additional axial securing device.
[0017] In order to achieve the required coupling strength in such
coupling devices, the tooth systems which engage in one another and
are prestressed with respect to one another must be in contact with
one another with relatively high radial prestressing and/or the
components used must be correspondingly stiff. However, this means
that a relatively large amount of radial force must be exerted on
at least one of the tooth systems in order to make or break the
coupled state. Based on a further aspect, the present invention
thus proposes an installation apparatus which is able to produce
the required radial forces in such coupling devices. In particular,
an installation apparatus is proposed by means of which an
engagement like a tooth system between the tooth systems of two
components can be made or broken, with the tooth systems engaging
at least radially in one another. The tooth system located radially
on the inside being prestressed radially outward with respect to
the tooth system located radially on the outside. That component
which has the tooth system located radially on the inside is
radially elastically deformable at least in the region of its tooth
system. The installation apparatus comprises at least one ring
element which is fitted or can be fitted to the component which has
the tooth system located radially on the inside, such that they can
rotate. The at least one ring element has a deformation formation,
by means of which, during rotation of the at least one ring element
about an axis of rotation, the radial positioning of the component
which has the radially inner tooth system can be varied in the
region of the radially inner tooth system.
[0018] This installation apparatus is preferably designed in such a
way that the deformation formation, assigned to each tooth or in
each case one group of teeth in the radially inner tooth system,
has a deformation incline which extends in the circumferential
direction, is directed radially inward and whose distance from the
axis of rotation varies in the circumferential direction. Provision
of this deformation incline allows a rotary movement to be
converted into a radial movement in a simple manner, in which case
the conversion ratio and thus the rotation force to be applied can
be determined, in particular, by the inclination angle of the
deformation incline or of the deformation inclines.
[0019] For example, it is possible for a region which is at an
approximately constant distance from the axis of rotation to be
adjacent to a region whose distance between the deformation incline
and the axis of rotation is at a minimum in the circumferential
direction, and/or to a region where the distance between the
deformation incline and the rotation axis is at a maximum. An
approximately constant distance can in this case also load a short
region extending essentially tangentially with respect to a radial
line.
[0020] The installation apparatus according to the invention
preferably has two ring elements.
[0021] These two ring elements then comprise deformation inclines
which each run in opposite directions to one another, in which case
each tooth or each group of teeth is assigned a pair formed from a
deformation incline on each ring element.
[0022] Such an installation apparatus can be used to make or break
the coupling engagement in such a manner that the two ring elements
can rotate, or can be rotated, in mutually opposite directions
about the axis of rotation.
[0023] In this case, it is advantageous if the two ring elements
are prestressed with respect to one another with regard to rotation
in the circumferential direction, preferably to a relative rotation
position in which the coupling engagement between the tooth systems
is produced.
[0024] In order to allow the coupled state to be made or broken by
means of the installation apparatus according to the invention, the
at least one ring element has a tool attachment formation for a
tool to act on, by means of which tool the at least one ring
element can be rotated about the axis of rotation.
[0025] Since the design of the installation apparatus according to
the invention is very simple, that is to say its design is very
economical and its total weight is low, the at least one ring
element is held such that it can rotate on that component which has
the tooth system located radially on the inside. This means that
the at least one ring element remains permanently on this specific
component, even when the coupled state is produced.
[0026] The present invention furthermore relates to a coupling
device for producing a rotating coupling between two assemblies
which can rotate about an axis of rotation, in which case the
coupling device comprises, assigned to one of the assemblies, a
first component having a first tooth system and, assigned to the
other of the assemblies, a second component having a second tooth
system, in which case the two tooth systems engage radially in one
another and are prestressed radially in engagement. Such a coupling
device can preferably be provided with an installation apparatus
according to the invention.
[0027] As already mentioned above, the various components which can
be used for coupling in such coupling devices have to satisfy two
contradictory requirements. On the one hand, they must have
sufficient radial elasticity to allow the coupled state between the
two tooth systems to be made or broken by means of installation
apparatuses. On the other hand, when in the coupled state, that is
to say when the two tooth systems have been engaged with one
another, the prestressing force must be sufficiently strong so that
the coupled state is maintained and the two tooth systems are
prestressed with respect to one another, with the tooth systems
engaged, in a suitable manner. It order to satisfy this
requirement, a further aspect of the present invention envisages a
tooth system component, in particular as a driver or holder for a
coupling device according to the invention. The tooth system
component has a central body region from which a plurality of
elastic tongue-like projections project radially outward, in which
case at least one tooth of the tooth system is provided in a
radially outer region of each projection.
[0028] In the case of such a refinement, the fitting of teeth or
groups of teeth to respective tongue-like projections first of all
ensures that the coupled engagement can be broken and remade easily
using various installation tools, due to the elasticity of the
tongue-like projections. Furthermore, however, due to the
possibility of choosing suitable resilient materials, for example
spring steel, as the construction material, the various tongue-like
projections provide an adequate prestressing force, by means of
which the tooth systems, once they have been engaged with one
another, can be kept engaged.
[0029] For example, it is possible for the radial projections to
have a width in the circumferential direction which decreases
radially outward, starting from the body region.
[0030] In this case, the ratio A/I of the width in the radially
outer region to the width in the radially inner region can
advantageously be in the range 0.5.ltoreq.A/I.ltoreq.1.2,
preferably being about 0.8.
[0031] In order to obtain the required radial elasticity while the
strength is still adequate to transmit the torques which occur, it
is advantageous for an essentially curved transition to be formed
between two adjacent radial projections on the central body region.
In this case, it has been found to be advantageous for the curved
transition to have a radius of curvature which is greater than or
equal to the material thickness of the tooth system component in
the region of the radial projections.
[0032] In order to obtain the required radial elasticity on the one
hand, and the required radial prestressing force on the other hand,
it is furthermore advantageous if the ratio B/M of the width in the
circumferential direction to the material thickness in each case in
the region of the radial projections is in the range
5.ltoreq.B/M.ltoreq.30, preferably about 10.
[0033] In a particularly preferred refinement of the tooth system
component according to the invention, in which the contradictory
requirements mentioned above can be satisfied in an excellent
manner, the invention provides that, originating from the central
body region, the radial projections are initially preferably bent
approximately in the axial direction in a first bend region, are
then bent essentially radially outward in a second bend region, and
are then bent essentially in the axial direction in a third bend
region, and have at least one tooth of the tooth system in this
region, which extends approximately axially, that is to say, for
example, at an angle in the range from 0.degree. to 5.degree. with
respect to the axis of rotation. With such an arrangement, the
radial elasticity is provided by inward radial springing, in which
case it is possible to ensure, due to the resultant S-shape or
swan's-neck shape, that during this inward springing movement, in
particular the radially outer regions which are fitted with the
teeth and extend essentially axially are moved radially and are
essentially not pivoted, so that uniform engagement or
disengagement with the complementary tooth system is achieved over
the entire axial tooth length, and essentially radially directed
prestressing is likewise achieved essentially without any tilting
movement.
[0034] In this case, it is advantageous for the radius of curvature
in the second and/or third bend region to be greater than or equal
to 1.5 times the material thickness in the region of the radial
projections.
[0035] It is furthermore possible for the second and the third bend
region together to form an essentially continuous bend region,
which is approximately semicircular.
[0036] If, as has been described above, the radial projections are
essentially bent in an S-shape or swan's-neck shape, and the
prestressing and the radial inward movement are thus essentially
achieved by bending deformation in the various bend regions, it is
advantageous if the radial projections are essentially not curved
in the circumferential direction in their region which extends
essentially in the axial direction and has at least one tooth. Such
curvature in the transitional region to the third bend region would
result in a three-dimensionally curved surface being formed, with
corresponding stiffness, which could have a disadvantageous effect
on the spring response.
[0037] In this case, it is furthermore preferred for the radial
projections not to be significantly curved in the circumferential
direction in the region of the third bend region which is adjacent
to the region which essentially extends in the axial direction.
This configuration, which is essentially planar when considered in
the circumferential direction, also contributes to increased spring
elasticity in this region.
[0038] The spring response of the tooth system component according
to the invention can furthermore be influenced in an advantageous
manner by at least one of the radial projections having at least
one slot which preferably extends essentially radially.
[0039] This slot can, for example, be designed in such a manner
that, starting from the body region, it extends at least as far as
the second bend region.
[0040] According to a further advantageous aspect of the present
invention, it is possible in the case of a tooth system component
to provide for the teeth on the tooth system component each to have
tooth flanks pointing essentially in the circumferential direction,
and for the tooth flanks to be inclined, with respect to a
longitudinal center plane of the respectively associated tooth, at
an angle in the range 10.degree. to 50.degree., preferably
20.degree. to 30.degree.. Such a configuration leads to the
advantage that, on the one hand, as a result of the oblique
position of the tooth flanks, the radially acting force component
which occurs when a torque is introduced is not yet sufficiently
large to cause the tooth systems to disengage inadvertently. On the
other hand, such an inclined position of the tooth flanks has the
advantage that it is easily possible to compensate for minor
manufacturing tolerances which could lead to undesirable movement
play if the inclined position of the tooth flanks were considerably
less.
[0041] The present invention furthermore relates to a coupling
device which has a tooth system component according to the
invention as a driver and/or as a holder.
[0042] In order to be able to provide the requirements with regard
to elasticity and spring force for a tooth system component for a
coupling device according to the invention, a further aspect of the
present invention proposes that the tooth system component has a
plurality of teeth which follow one another in the circumferential
direction. Each tooth is formed on a tongue-like projection and has
an end surface which points essentially in a radial direction as
well as flank surfaces which merge into the end surface and point
essentially in a circumferential direction. In this case, the tooth
system component is then formed from a steel sheet, preferably
spring steel sheet, and the tongue-like projections have at least
one axially or approximately axially extending region, on which the
respectively associated tooth is formed.
[0043] By using steel material, for example spring steel material,
it is possible in conjunction with the forming to achieve a design
in which the spring effect that is produced on the one hand allows
the movement to allow the installation apparatus to release the
coupling engagement while, on the other hand, an adequate
prestressing force is maintained once the coupling engagement has
been produced.
[0044] In order to form the teeth with an end surface and flank
surfaces on such a tooth system component, it is proposed that each
approximately axially extending region is formed with
circumferential projections on its circumferential end regions,
which circumferential projections are bent in the radial direction
in order to provide the flank surfaces.
[0045] If, for example, the tooth system is a tooth system which is
open radially outward and is designed to hold a complementary tooth
system which is open radially inward, then the circumferential
projections are preferably bent radially inward. This means that,
in this case, the outer surface of the approximately axially
extending region forms the end surface, from which each of the
flank surfaces project radially inward.
[0046] In an alternative embodiment, it is possible to provide for
side surfaces (which point essentially in the circumferential
direction) of the approximately axially extending regions to each
form a flank surface. Thus, in this embodiment, the entire wall or
material thickness of each approximately axially extending region
intrinsically forms a tooth, in which case the respective side
surfaces provide the flank surfaces.
[0047] In a further alternative embodiment, it is possible to
provide for the tooth to be formed on each approximately axially
extending region by stamping, forming or the like.
[0048] In order to compensate for production tolerances, it is
proposed that the flank surfaces are at an inclination angle in the
range from 10.degree. to 50.degree., preferably 20.degree. to
30.degree., with respect to the longitudinal center plane of the
respectively associated tooth.
[0049] For example, the circumferential projections can be
correspondingly bent from the approximately axially extending
region in order to form this inclination angle.
[0050] In the embodiment in which the material thickness of the
essentially axially extending region forms the teeth, it is
possible for the side surfaces which point essentially in the
circumferential direction to be formed with the inclination angle
during production or after processing of the tooth system
component.
[0051] The present invention furthermore relates to a method for
producing a tooth system component, such as that described above,
for example. This method comprises the following steps:
[0052] a) stamping, cutting or the like, a component blank from a
spring steel sheet,
[0053] b) forming the component blank in order to form the axially
or approximately axially extending regions, and
[0054] c) before and after step b), processing the blank in order
to produce a tooth for each axially or approximately axially
extending region.
[0055] In such a method, step c) may comprise the following
procedures:
[0056] each tooth is formed by bending circumferential projections
around in order to provide flank surfaces and an end surface of the
respective tooth, or
[0057] each tooth is produced by chamfering, broaching or the like
from side surface regions of at least each approximately axially
extending region, in order to form flank surfaces and an end
surface, or
[0058] each tooth is produced by stamping, forming or the like of
the component blank in the region in which the approximately
axially extending region is to be formed or is formed.
[0059] In the case of the method according to the invention, the
tooth system component is preferably shape-hardened once the
forming operation has been carried out.
[0060] An essential characteristic of a coupling device according
to the invention or of a tooth system component for such a coupling
device is that it must be possible to deform the tooth system
component in order to make and break the coupling engagement.
According to a further independent aspect of the present invention,
a tooth system component is thus proposed, comprising a plurality
of teeth which follow one another in the circumferential direction,
in which case each tooth is formed on a tongue-like projection and
has an end surface which points essentially in the radial direction
as well as flank surfaces which merge into the end surface and
point essentially in the circumferential direction. This tooth
system component is then preferably designed in such a manner that
it can be deformed elastically at least in the region of the
tongue-like projections, and is preferably formed from fiber
composite material, spring steel sheet, steel sheet or the like.
The tongue-like projections have at least one axially or
approximately axially extending region, on which the associated
tooth is formed. Such a tooth system component can thus, on the one
hand, be elastically deformed in order to make and break the
coupling engagement. Furthermore, this makes it possible to allow
tumbling movement during operation between the input side and the
output side of such a coupling device, that is to say between a
drive shaft and a converter housing or a coupling or the like,
within the elastic range of this tooth system component. A wide
range of materials which allow this elasticity can then be used to
construct such a tooth system component. For example, steel sheet
or sheet metal may be used. It is also possible to use fiber
composite materials, such as carbon-fiber materials, which provides
the required elasticity on the basis of specific shaping or
material thickness.
[0061] The various features of novelty which characterize the
invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed
to and forming a part of the disclosure. For a better understanding
of the invention, its operating advantages, and specific objects
attained by its use, reference should be had to the drawing and
descriptive matter in which there are illustrated and described
preferred embodiments of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0062] FIG. 1 shows a section of a drive having a driver, inserted
in a holder of a coupling device;
[0063] FIG. 2 shows a detail of a tooth system part of the
driver;
[0064] FIG. 3 shows a plan view of the driver along the section
line III-III in FIG. 1, but without fastening screws;
[0065] FIG. 4 shows an installation apparatus for connecting the
holder to the driver, in the form of a tightening clamp;
[0066] FIG. 5 is as FIG. 4, but with a pressure hose;
[0067] FIG. 6 is as FIG. 5, but with a protective sleeve for the
pressure hose;
[0068] FIG. 7 is as FIG. 4 but with a tightening ring;
[0069] FIG. 8 is as FIG. 4, but with a tightening loop;
[0070] FIG. 9 shows the tightening loop from FIG. 8 as a
detail;
[0071] FIG. 10 is as FIG. 9, but in another configuration;
[0072] FIG. 11 is as FIG. 1, but with the driver having a different
physical design;
[0073] FIG. 12 is as FIG. 11, but with an additional damping
means;
[0074] FIG. 13 is as FIG. 1, but with a driver and holder having a
different physical design;
[0075] FIG. 14 shows a view corresponding to the illustration in
FIG. 11, with an alternative embodiment of an installation
apparatus;
[0076] FIG. 15 shows a simplified axial view of the illustration in
FIG. 14 viewed from the right in FIG. 14, and in the coupled
state;
[0077] FIG. 16 shows a view corresponding to FIG. 15, but not in
the coupled state;
[0078] FIG. 17 shows a view corresponding to FIG. 15, in which
prestressing elements can also be seen;
[0079] FIG. 18 shows an axial view of the two rings of the
installation apparatus located one above the other;
[0080] FIG. 19 shows a view corresponding to FIG. 18, in which the
prestressing elements can also be seen;
[0081] FIG. 20 shows an enlarged section of FIG. 19;
[0082] FIG. 21 shows a plan view of a prestressing spring;
[0083] FIG. 22 shows an enlarged section of FIG. 16;
[0084] FIG. 23 shows an enlarged section of FIG. 17;
[0085] FIG. 24 shows a view, corresponding to FIG. 14, of a further
alternative embodiment of the installation apparatus;
[0086] FIG. 25 shows a further view, corresponding to FIG. 14, with
a further embodiment of an installation apparatus according to the
invention;
[0087] FIG. 26 shows an axial view of a tooth system element
according to the invention, as a driver;
[0088] FIG. 27 shows a section view of the tooth system element
from FIG. 26, along a line XXVII-XXVII in FIG. 26;
[0089] FIG. 28 shows a modification of the tooth system component
illustrated in FIG. 26;
[0090] FIG. 29 shows a perspective view of a further modification
of the tooth system component shown in FIG. 26;
[0091] FIG. 30 shows an axial view of the tooth system component
from FIG. 29;
[0092] FIG. 31 shows a section view of the tooth system component
from FIG. 30, along a line XXXI-XXXI in FIG. 30;
[0093] FIG. 32 shows a perspective view of an alternative
embodiment of a tooth system component;
[0094] FIG. 33 shows an axial view of the tooth system component in
FIG. 32;
[0095] FIG. 34 shows a section view of the tooth system component
shown in FIG. 33, along the line XXXIV-XXXIV;
[0096] FIG. 35 shows a partial axial view of a blank for a tooth
system component as shown in FIGS. 32 to 34;
[0097] FIG. 36 shows the forming process to produce a tooth for the
tooth system component shown in FIGS. 32 to 34;
[0098] FIG. 37 shows a side view of a tongue-like projection which
is fitted with a tooth, in conjunction with an installation
apparatus;
[0099] FIG. 38 shows the tooth from FIG. 37 engaged with a mating
tooth system;
[0100] FIG. 39 shows a perspective view of a further embodiment of
a tooth system component;
[0101] FIG. 40 shows an axial view of the tooth system component
shown in FIG. 39;
[0102] FIG. 41 shows a section view of the tooth system component
shown in FIG. 40, along the line XLI-XLI in FIG. 40;
[0103] FIG. 42 shows the tooth system component illustrated in
FIGS. 39 to 41, in conjunction with an installation apparatus, as
is illustrated in FIGS. 14 to 25; and
[0104] FIG. 43 shows a partial section view of the tooth system
component illustrated in FIG. 42.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0105] FIG. 1 shows the free end of the crankshaft 3 of an internal
combustion engine, which acts as a drive 1. The crankshaft 3 has a
plurality of threaded holes 5 distributed around the circumference,
into each of which an attachment means 7 in the form of a screw 9
engages by means of a threaded shank 11 on the screw 9. This
attachment means 7 attaches a radial flange 13 to the crankshaft 3,
which radial flange 13 has a reduced cross section in the radial
region outside the attachment means 7 and thus produces a flange 15
which is axially elastic. The flange 15 merges by means of a bend
16 into an axial attachment 17 which, at its free end 22 facing
away from the crankshaft 3, has a tooth system 19 with teeth 20
which extend essentially in the axial direction. These teeth 20
merge axially, before reaching the bend 16, into a tooth base 21
formed on the circumference. The radial flange 13 and the axially
elastic flange 15 together with the axial attachment 17 form a
driver 23, which engages with a holder 25 in a manner which will be
described in more detail later. The holder 25 is designed as a ring
27 and is attached by means of a weld bead 29 to a flywheel mass
31, which has a primary flange 33. In the present exemplary
embodiment, the primary flange 33 is part of a housing 35 of a
hydrodynamic torque converter, as a coupling device, but is
likewise conceivable as a flywheel mass on the drive side of a
two-mass flywheel as is evident, for example, from German reference
DE 44 22 732 A1. In order to accommodate the housing 35 of the
hydrodynamic torque converter, the crankshaft 3 has an axial hole
39 at its center of rotation, in order to accommodate a bearing
journal 41 which is attached to the primary flange 33 radially on
the inside.
[0106] Returning to the driver 23, as can be seen better in FIGS. 2
and 3, this has a tooth gap 45 in each case between each two teeth
20 in the region in which its tooth system 19 extends, in each of
which tooth gaps 45 one tooth 53 of the tooth system 51 on the
holder 25 engages. Conversely, the holder 25, for its part, has a
tooth gap 52 between each two teeth 53 of its tooth system 51, for
in each case one tooth 20 of the tooth system 19 on the driver 23.
The design of a tooth 20 of the tooth system 19 can in this case be
seen particularly in FIG. 2. On the circumferential side, the tooth
20 has tooth flanks 47 which run at an angle other than a right
angle with respect to the radial axis of the tooth 20, and thus
form a wedge surface 48. In the radial direction, the tooth 20 is
bounded by a tooth tip 49. Due to its design, the tooth 20 acts as
a wedge 50 which, as shown in FIG. 3, engages in the
correspondingly designed tooth gap 52 between two teeth 53 on the
holder 25. Measured on their radial axis, the teeth 53 on the
holder 25 are likewise designed at an angle other than a right
angle, so that wedge surfaces 54 are produced on each side of each
tooth 53, and their inclination is preferably matched to the wedge
surfaces 48 of the teeth 20. With appropriate radial prestressing
of the teeth 20 on the driver 23 in the direction of the tooth base
55 on the holder 25, the tooth 20 can accordingly be firmly clamped
in the tooth gap 52, before it reaches this tooth base 55.
[0107] As already mentioned above, the teeth 20 of the tooth system
19 on the driver 23 are prestressed radially outward. To make it
easier to mount the coupling device on the crankshaft 3, an
installation apparatus 70 (FIGS. 4 to 10), which is described in
more detail below, is placed on the axial attachment 17 in the
region between the bend 16 and the tooth system 19, and presses all
the teeth 20 of the driver 23 radially inward. Held in such a way,
the holder 25 can be pushed onto the tooth system 19 of the driver
23 without any axial force. As soon as the axial limit position
between the driver 23 and the holder 25 is reached, the
installation apparatus 70 is loosened and thus releases the teeth
20, at which point they spring into the tooth system 51 of the
holder 25 owing to their radial prestressing, until the clamped
connection (which has already been mentioned) is produced in the
region of the wedge surfaces 48, 54 of the teeth 20, 53. This
ensures that the coupling device is connected without any play in
the circumferential direction, that is to say that the converter
housing 35 is connected to the crankshaft 3.
[0108] In order that the converter housing 35 remains in this axial
position, the driver 23 is designed, with respect to the
circumference, with two claws 59 which are offset through
180.degree. and are provided at the appropriate points instead of a
tooth 20, and are likewise subject to radial prestressing. At their
free end facing the converter housing 35, these claws 59 have a
radial holder 61 which extends in the direction of the holder 25
and can engage in a corresponding radial depression 63 in the ring
27 of the holder 25. This engagement process preferably takes place
when the installation apparatus 70 (which has already been
mentioned above) is loosened and the claws 59 spring radially
outward. The radial holder 61 is in this case preferably designed
in the form of a wedge, and thus penetrates into a radial
depression 63 formed in the same way. The penetration process ends
as soon as the claw 59 is held in a clamped manner in the radial
depression 63. As soon as this is the case, the converter housing
35 can no longer become detached from the driver 23. The claws 59
accordingly act as an axial securing device 57.
[0109] FIGS. 4 to 8 once again show a sectional view which is
comparable to FIG. 1 and in which, for reasons of simplicity, the
tooth system 19 which is shown correctly in FIG. 1 has been
omitted, with the exception of the intersection regions of the
tooth system 19. The reason for this is that FIGS. 4-8 serve only
to illustrate the already mentioned installation apparatus 70, for
which reason as well, essentially only this element is illustrated,
with reference symbols in the corresponding figures.
[0110] The installation apparatus 70 shown in FIG. 4 is formed by a
tightening clamp 71, which is essentially arranged axially between
the bend 16 and the tooth system 19 of the driver 23, on its axial
attachment 17, and is fitted at one end of a strip 72 with a screw
housing 74 which is used to hold a tightening screw 73. The screw
thread of this tightening screw 73 engages in a thread indentation
which is formed at the free end 75 of the strip 72, so that, if the
tightening screw 73 rotates, a tightening force is exerted in the
circumferential direction on the free end 75 of the strip 72 and,
in consequence, the tightening clamp 71 is narrowed or
widened--depending on the direction in which the tightening screw
73 rotates. If the rotation direction is chosen to narrow the clamp
71, then, as can be seen in the upper half of FIG. 4, the free end
75 of the strip 72 moves further over the remaining part of the
strip 72. As a result of the narrowing of the tightening clamp 71
caused by this, a radial force is transmitted radially from the
outside to the axial attachment 17, as a result of which the tooth
system 19 is pushed radially inward. As soon as this has been done,
this completes the preparation for pushing the holder 25 onto the
driver 23 without any axial force. Once this pushing-on movement
has ended, the tightening screw 73 is turned in the opposite
direction, thus reducing the amount of overlap between the free end
75 and the rest of the strip 72, and thus widening the tightening
clamp 71. The tightening clamp 71 can be then completely released
from the driver 23, or remain on it without any effect.
[0111] In FIG. 5, the installation apparatus 70 is formed by a
compression hose 78, which encloses the axial attachment 17. In
FIG. 5, this compression hose 78 is unpressurized and thus has a
flattened region 82 on its radial inner side facing the axial
attachment 17. The compression hose 78 can be connected via a
pressure connection 79 to a pressure source 80 which is shown only
schematically and, as soon as the pressure source 80 applies an
increased pressure to it, the hose cross section expands and, in
consequence, pushes the axial attachment 17 radially inward, while
the area of the flattened region 82 is at the same time reduced.
The axial attachment 17 is thus changed to the shape required for
the installation process. The effect of the pressure source 80 just
has to be canceled in order to cancel the effect of the
installation apparatus 70. In this embodiment as well, the
compression hose 78 can be removed from the driver 23, or may be
left on it, without any effect.
[0112] FIG. 6 shows a modification of the embodiments shown in FIG.
5, the only difference being that the compression hose 78 is
enclosed by a protection sleeve 83.
[0113] FIG. 7 shows a tightening ring 84 as the installation
apparatus 70, in which case the tightening ring 84 is arranged such
that it can move on a conical section 85 of the axial attachment
17. If the tightening ring 84 is moved to the right, as shown in
FIG. 7, that is to say in the direction of the widened region of
the axial attachment 17, it compresses the axial attachment 17 to
the size of the internal diameter of the tightening ring 84.
Conversely, movement of the tightening ring 84 in the opposite
direction, results in the axial attachment 17 springing radially
outward.
[0114] FIG. 8 shows an embodiment of the installation apparatus 70
with a tightening loop 87, which can be seen more clearly in FIG.
9. This tightening loop 87 has spread ends 88 which are prestressed
so that they try to move toward one another. The tightening loop 87
then assumes its diameter illustrated by the solid lines. Once a
tool (which is not shown) has been fitted to the spread ends 88,
they can be pulled past one another in the circumferential
direction, until they have reached the position shown by dashed
lines. The diameter of the tightening loop 87 is then reduced, and
the axial attachment 17 is pushed radially inward. To cancel the
effect of this tightening loop 87, the tool which is not shown just
has to be removed from the spread ends 88. They spring back to
their original position, and thus relieve the load on the axial
attachment 17.
[0115] FIG. 10 shows another way of operating the tightening loop
87. In this case, a tool 90 is fitted to the axial attachment 17
radially from the outside. This tool 90 has dies 93 which hold the
loop 87, in the region of a holding end 91 as well as a tightening
end 92, in radial contact with the axial attachment 17. The holding
end 91 is in this case inserted into one of the dies 93, namely
into the one on the right in FIG. 10, and is fixed there, while the
tightening end 92 is held in a tightening means 94. This tightening
means 94 may be, for example, a clamp. As soon as this tightening
means 94 is moved in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 10,
the loop 87 which is secured at the holding end 91 is narrowed from
the position shown by solid lines to the position shown by dashed
lines, and thus exerts a constricting radial force on the axial
attachment 17. Conversely, the tightening means 94 is moved in the
opposite direction to relieve the load on the loop 87.
[0116] In FIG. 11, attention should be directed mainly at the
change to the design of the radial flange 13, which represents the
major difference from the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, which has
already been described. In this case, the axially elastic flange 15
is formed with a spring turn 96 radially outside its diameter that
is used for attachment to the crankshaft 3, and this spring turn 96
has a cross section roughly in the shape of a back-to-front letter
"C". The radially outer limb of this spring turn 96 is comparable
to the already described axial attachment 17 shown in FIG. 1, and
is fitted with the tooth system 19 in the axially central region of
its external circumference. In the direction of the crankshaft 3,
the tooth system 19 is adjacent to an axially free end 98, which
has on its external circumference a bearing surface 99 for an
installation apparatus 70, as is illustrated for example in FIGS. 4
to 10. An axial securing device 57 is also attached to this free
end 98 and has a claw 59 which engages (in a manner which is
already known) in a radial depression 63 in the holder 25. Since
this claw 59 is attached to the free end 98 of the axial attachment
17, it engages (in the region of the axial extent of the tooth
system 51 on the holder 25) in the corresponding radial depression
63, so that the physical space which is available axially is fully
utilized. Furthermore, the lever effect of the free end 98 with
respect to the bend 16 in the axially elastic flange 15 results in
a relatively low installation force being required (exerted by the
said installation apparatus 70) in order to overcome a
comparatively high radial prestressing force, which can preferably
be produced on the driver 23 by virtue of the physical design of
the spring turn 96.
[0117] As an addition to the configuration shown in FIG. 11, FIG.
12 shows damping means 100 in the form of an elastomer 102, which
can be inserted into a free space 104 in the spring turn 96 of the
radial flange 13. Both an annular configuration of the elastomer as
well as individual elastomers arranged at predetermined
circumferential distances from one another are feasible.
[0118] While the holder 25 has always surrounded the driver 23 in
an annular shape in the exemplary embodiments described so far,
FIG. 13 shows a different embodiment, in which the holder 25 is
formed by a support 105, which is attached by means of a weld bead
107 to the primary flange 33 of the converter housing 35. This
support 105 is designed as an axially elastic flange 106 and is
provided in the radially outer region with an elastic spring turn
108. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 13, this has a cross section
like the letter "C", with the radially outer limb of this spring
turn 108 acting as the axial attachment 111 which is fitted (in the
circumferential region) with the tooth system 51 of the holder 25
and, facing the converter housing 35, has a free end 113 which is
provided radially on the outside with a bearing surface 114 for an
installation apparatus 70 as is described, for example, in FIGS. 4
to 10. In the case of this installation apparatus, since there is a
lever arm between the free end 113 and the axially elastic flange
106, the free end 113 can be designed to produce a force that is
less than the radial prestressing force which pushes the tooth
system 51 radially outward into the tooth system 19, which is
formed on the inner circumference of the axial attachment 17 of the
driver 23. There is no need for any additional axial securing
device in this embodiment either, owing to the relatively high
radial force between the tooth systems 19, 51.
[0119] FIGS. 14 to 23 show a further embodiment of an installation
apparatus 70 which can be used, in particular, with an embodiment
of the driver 23 which is likewise shown in FIGS. 14 to 23.
However, it should be mentioned that this installation apparatus 70
can likewise be used with the embodiments of the driver described
above, in particular with the embodiments shown in FIGS. 11 to
13.
[0120] First of all, it can be seen that, in contrast to the
versions described above, the driver 23 (which may be formed, for
example, from spring steel) is designed with a central, disk-like
region 115, to which a large number of tongues 116 (which are
designed like springs) are connected successively in the
circumferential direction. The radially outer region of each of the
tongues 116 is fitted with a tooth of the tooth system 19, in which
case each of these teeth may have the configuration described in
detail above. In particular, once again, each of the spring tongues
116 has the axial attachment 17 on which a respective tooth is then
supported, extending radially outward. Furthermore, each tooth of
the tooth system 19 is assigned a gap between two teeth of the
tooth system 51 on the holder 25, so that the teeth of the tooth
systems 19, 51 can be engaged with one another in the manner
described above. It is obvious that an axial fixing means can also
be provided with such a configuration of the driver 23, as has been
described, for example, with reference to FIG. 11.
[0121] The installation apparatus 70 illustrated in FIGS. 14 to 23
comprises two ring elements 110, 112 which are mounted on the
bearing surface 99, in the region of the free end 98 of the axial
attachment 17, such that they can rotate. In particular, it can be
seen that the ring elements 110, 112 are held on the individual
axial attachment 17 such that they are fixed axially between the
teeth of the tooth system 19 and a fixing projection or securing
projection 120, which can be produced, for example, by forming,
peening or the like of the free end 98 of the axial attachment 17.
This means that the driver 23 can form a prefabricated unit with
the rings 110, 112, and this unit is produced by using another tool
to bend the individual springs or spring tongues 116 radially
inward, before the ring elements 110, 112 are pushed on and the
spring tongues 116 are then released, until the rings are held in
the illustrated form on the driver 23. As can be seen in particular
in the detailed views in FIGS. 18, 19 and 20, which show the
configuration of the two ring elements 110, 112, these ring
elements 110, 112 have a deformation formation 122 on their inner
circumferential regions 124. This deformation formation 122
comprises a deformation incline 126 on the ring element 110, which
deformation incline 126 is associated with each tooth of the tooth
system 19, that is to say is associated with each spring tongue
116, and extends in the circumferential direction, and which is
adjacent to regions 128 and 130, which in each case follow in the
circumferential direction, at an approximately constant distance
from the axis of rotation A. In the circumferential direction, the
region 130 is then followed by a step 132, after which there is
another region 128. In a corresponding manner, the ring element 112
(the majority of which is concealed in FIG. 20) has a deformation
incline 134 associated with each tooth of the tooth system 19, that
is to say each spring tongue 116, which deformation incline 134 is
once again followed by regions 136 and 137 at an approximately
constant distance from the axis of rotation A. The two rings may be
designed to be identical and may be placed on one another twisted
with respect to one another, so that this finally results in the
arrangement illustrated in FIG. 20, in which a pair of deformation
inclines 126, 134 are arranged such that they in each case extend
in opposite directions, but are associated with one another.
[0122] As can be seen in particular in FIGS. 18 and 19, each ring
element 110, 112 furthermore has an attachment formation 138, at a
plurality of circumferential positions, for an operating tool. The
attachment formations 138 on the ring element 110 comprise an
elongated hole 140, and an opening 142 adjacent to it. In a
corresponding manner, the attachment formation 138 on the ring
element 112 comprises a partially concealed elongated hole 144 and
an opening 146 adjacent to it. Since the two ring elements 110, 112
are designed identically and are arranged in the opposite sense to
one another, part of the elongated hole 140 in the ring element 110
is located above the elongated hole 144 in the ring element 112
and, furthermore, exposes the opening 146 in the ring element 112.
In a corresponding manner, the opening 142 in the ring element 110
is located above the part (which is shown only in a concealed
manner) of the elongated hole 144 in the ring element 112.
[0123] The tool that is used may comprise, for example, two pins or
sections that are roughly parallel to one another and can be moved
toward one another; for example, these may be two spring end
sections connected via a spiral or helical spring turn. For
operation, these two sections are inserted into the openings 142,
146 in the ring elements 110, 112, which are accessible through the
elongated holes 140 and 144, respectively, and the two ring
elements 110, 112 can be rotated with respect to one another in the
circumferential direction by moving the two sections toward one
another. Since those sections of the operating tool which pass
through the openings 142, 146 furthermore respectively engage in
the elongated holes 144, 140 in the other respective ring element
112, 110, this does not prevent the two ring elements 110, 112 from
being rotated, even if the two end sections are pushed completely
through the openings 142, 146. It should be mentioned that, in this
case, FIGS. 18, 19 and 20 show a situation in which the axial
attachment 17 of the respective spring tongues 116 are located in
the region of the sections or regions 128, 136, that is to say have
been moved radially outward. This situation is likewise shown in
FIGS. 15 and 17. It can be seen there that the teeth of the tooth
system 19 engage essentially completely between two respective
teeth of the tooth system 51.
[0124] As can be seen, for example, in FIGS. 17, 19, and 20, the
two ring elements 110, 112 may each have mutually associated
recesses 150, which are located one above the other in the relative
rotation position shown in FIGS. 17, 19 and 20. Leaf-spring
elements 152 designed essentially with an H-shape are arranged in
these recesses 150, hold the two ring elements 110, 112 together
axially by means of respective notches or depressions 154, 156 and,
furthermore, cause the ring elements 110, 112 to be prestressed to
the relative rotation position shown in FIGS. 17, 19, 20.
[0125] In order to release this coupled engagement starting, for
example, from the position shown in FIG. 14 in which the two tooth
systems 19, 51 are completely engaged with one another, in which
case, in this situation, the two ring elements 110, 112 likewise
assume the relative position with respect to one another shown in
FIGS. 15, 17, 18, 19, 20 and 23, the two sections of an operating
tool are inserted into at least one of the attachment formations
138, that is to say such a section is inserted into each of the
openings 142, 146. The two sections are then moved toward one
another in the circumferential direction, in an opposite direction
to the prestress produced by the leaf-spring elements 152 (if these
are present), with the consequence that the sections which are
engaged in the openings 142, 146 move in the elongated hole 140,
144 respectively provided in the other ring element 110, 112 until,
in the end, the relative rotation position of the ring elements
110, 112 shown in FIGS. 16 and 22 is reached. While this relative
rotation is being carried out, the individual deformation inclines
126, 134 (which are each associated with one of the teeth of the
tooth system 19) each move along an associated outer edge of the
bearing surface 99 of the axial attachment 17, and lead to this
outer edge, and thus the entire axial attachment 17, being pushed
radially inward. This means that, as can be seen in particular in
FIG. 22, the teeth of the tooth system 19 are likewise moved
radially inward, and the mutual radial prestressing between the
tooth systems 19, 51 is thus canceled, and, owing to the
wedge-shaped design of the tooth systems, this now allows slight
axial movement of these tooth systems, that is to say of the driver
23 and of the holder 25, with respect to one another. After axial
removal from the driver 23 and the holder 25, the tool which was
inserted into the openings 142, 146 can be released, so that the
leaf-spring elements 152 cause the ring elements 110, 112 to be
rotated with respect to one another once again such that the
deformation inclines 126, 134 slide in the opposite direction on
the bearing surface region 99, and the axial attachments 17 are
then moved radially outward again by the spring elasticity of the
spring tongues 116 until, in the end, the position of the tooth
system 19 shown in FIGS. 15, 17 and 23 is reached once again--but
without the tooth system 19 now having to engage in the tooth
system 51.
[0126] In this case, an arrangement could also be produced here,
for example, in which the leaf-spring elements 152 are not
provided, but which ensures that, for example in the situation
illustrated in FIG. 22, the regions 130 and 137 are not aligned
with the bearing surface 99 in the circumferential direction, but
in which these deformation inclines 126, 134 still act on the axial
attachments 17 so that, once the two ring elements 110, 112 have
been released by removal of the tool, the radially outwardly
directed prestressing of the axial attachments 17 results in the
ring elements 110, 112 necessarily being rotated to the position
which is shown, for example, in FIG. 23. This means that it is
possible to dispense completely with regions 130, 137 in such a
configuration.
[0127] It should be mentioned that, when the spring tongues 116
and/or axial attachments 17 reach the position where they have been
moved inward, as is shown, for example, in FIG. 22, it is not
possible for the ring elements 110, 112 to fall off the driver 23
since, in this case as well, the securing projections 120 ensure
that the rings 110, 112 are held axially.
[0128] As can be seen, in the assembled state, the ring elements
110, 112 can at the same time define an axial stop for the holder
25, that is to say the position in which the holder 25 and the
driver 23 have been pushed toward one another to the maximum
extent, in which case, of course and as already stated above, axial
securing devices can be provided in the region of the tooth
systems. The axial clamping of the ring element 110, 112 between
the holder 25 and the securing projections 120 furthermore has the
advantage that chattering noise during operation resulting from the
ring elements 110, 112 knocking against one another can be avoided,
even if the ring elements 110, 112 remain permanently in the
assembled state on the driver 23.
[0129] One modification of the embodiment described above is shown
in FIG. 24. The design differs from that described above only in
that the two ring elements 110, 112 of the installation apparatus
70 are curved toward one another in their radially outer regions,
resulting in a dish-like structure. This thus additionally results
in a force component being introduced which pushes the two ring
elements 110, 112 axially apart from one another and which, by
interacting with the axial clamping between the holder 25 and the
securing projections 120, provides additional protection against
chattering noise.
[0130] FIGS. 14 and 24 each show embodiments in which the ring
elements 110, 112 can be stamped out of sheet metal, as stamped
parts. FIG. 25 shows an embodiment in which the ring elements 110,
112 are formed, for example, as drawn parts and assume a structure
roughly in the shape of a pot. This means that they initially
extend radially outward from the region in which they interact with
the axial attachments 17 and are then inclined slightly in the
axial direction and radially outward, before entering a further
radially extending region in which the individual attachment
formations 138 for the tool may be located, and may extend from
there even further in the axial direction, as indicated by a dashed
line. The advantage of such an embodiment is that this provides
greater freedom of choice with regard to the region in which the
attachment formations 138 can be arranged. For example, by
arranging these attachment formations radially further outward,
they can be accessed more easily by the operating tool. In this
case, it would also be possible to arrange the attachment
formations 138 in the radially outer and axially extending region.
Due to the lever ratios that this results in, this furthermore has
the advantage that it is easier to produce the force required to
deform the individual spring tongues 116 radially inward.
[0131] It should be mentioned that, as illustrated, the individual
attachment formations 138 are preferably provided at angular
intervals of 90.degree., so that the ring elements 110, 112 can be
influenced from various circumferential regions. However, any other
desired positioning and any other number of attachment formations
are possible. In addition, any other desired number of such
prestressing leaf-spring elements is feasible for the leaf-spring
elements 152 which are preferably arranged in pairs with an angular
interval of 180.degree..
[0132] In principle, it should also be mentioned that the
illustrated embodiments of the installation apparatus 70 with two
ring elements 110, 112 are particularly preferred, since a relative
rotation movement, and thus the operation of the axial sections 17
are then achieved simply by moving two sections of an operating
tool toward one another. However, in principle, the installation
apparatus 70 may also be formed from a single ring element, for
example the ring element 110, which can then be rotated on its own
with respect to the driver 23 by means of an appropriate operating
tool, in order, by means of the deformation inclines 126, to move
the axial detachments 17 radially inward and to release them
radially outward by turning in opposite direction. In this case,
before the driver 23 and the holder 25 are assembled, the driver
23, for example, would have to be fixed and the ring element 110
then turned until the regions 130 are each located above the
individual bearing surfaces 99, and the ring element 110 cannot be
turned back inadvertently. Then, once the driver 23 has been moved
axially toward the holder 25 and the teeth of the tooth system 19
have already engaged between the teeth of the tooth system 51, the
ring element 110 can be rotated in the opposite sense with the
cover of the torque converter being fixed, that is to say with the
holder 25 being fixed, so that the axial attachments 17 are
released. In order to release this coupled engagement, the ring
element 110 is then rotated again with the holder 25 being fixed,
in order to move the axial attachments 17 radially inward.
[0133] It should be mentioned once again that the embodiments of
the installation apparatus 70 shown in FIGS. 14 to 25 can also be
used with drivers of a different design and, in particular, the
driver need not be designed, as described above, with spring
tongues. This means that such an installation apparatus 70 could
also be used with a driver as is shown in FIG. 1.
[0134] Furthermore, it should be mentioned that a plurality of
teeth of the tooth system 19 can be provided on each spring tongue
116, so that the deformation inclines associated with these spring
tongues 116 can move a group of teeth radially.
[0135] FIGS. 26 and 27 once again show a tooth system component, in
this case the driver 23, as can be used for a coupling device as
described above, and which is also illustrated, for example, in
FIG. 11 or FIGS. 14, 24 and 25.
[0136] This driver 23 has a body region 115 which is designed
essentially like a circular ring and in which the openings or holes
117 are provided for attaching it, for example, to a crankshaft
flange or the like. The projections 116 or spring tongues 116 in
each case project in the radial direction from the body region 115.
It should be mentioned that such a driver 23 is preferably stamped
from a spring-steel blank, and is then bent to the illustrated
shape.
[0137] The required spring elasticity to make and break coupled
engagement on the one hand, and the required radial prestressing
force to maintain the coupled state on the other hand, are thus
obtained in conjunction with the special forming, which will be
described below. As can be seen in particular in FIG. 27, the
projections 116 initially have a first bend region 180 originating
from the body region 115, in which first bend region 180 they are
bent toward the axial direction, that is to say incline at an angle
in the range from 0.degree. to 20.degree. with respect to the axis
of rotation. This first bend region 180 is followed by a first
region 182 which extends essentially axially. This region 182 is
followed by a second bend region 184, which bends radially outward
and merges into a third bend region 186. The second bend region 184
and the third bend region 186 result in each radial projection 116
merging once again into the axial attachment 17, forming a further
region which extends essentially, that is to say, approximately,
axially and, originating from the associated bend region--in this
case the third bend region 186 extends in the opposite direction
toward the region 182 which extends essentially axially, so that
these regions essentially overlap when viewed in the radial
direction.
[0138] The advantage of this essentially S-shaped or
swan's-neck-shaped contouring or bending of the individual radial
projections 116 is that, when a radial compression or expansion is
produced, these movements take place in such a manner that the
axial attachments 17 essentially move only radially, but are not
tilted about the third bend region 186 and then with respect to the
axis of rotation A. This means that, when an installation apparatus
is used corresponding to any of the various embodiments described
above and movement of the axial attachments radially inward results
in an influence on the free end regions of these axial attachments
17, the tooth systems 19, 51 are disengaged, or moved out of
contact, roughly uniformly over their axial length, so that even a
slight radially inward movement of these axial attachments 17 leads
to the coupled state and the mutual contact of the teeth being
broken, and the driver 23 can be moved away from the holder 25. A
corresponding situation applies to the provision of the radial
prestressing force. Once again, the radially outward movement of
the axial attachments 17 essentially without any pivoting with
respect to the axis of rotation A ensures that a uniform contact
pressure is produced over the entire axial length of the teeth of
the tooth systems 19, 51, so that it is largely possible to avoid
load peaks at points on the teeth, in particular at the axial ends
of the teeth. It should be mentioned that the individual axial
attachments 17 can in this case advantageously extend at a slight
angle outward with respect to the axis of rotation, starting from
the third bend region 186, for example at an angle in the range up
to 5.degree.. This means that, when a radially inwardly directed
force is subsequently applied to make or break the coupled state,
using the tool which is attached in the region of the free ends of
the axial attachments then, during the said movement which takes
place radially inward, the individual axial attachments can at the
same time be moved to a position parallel to the axis, or can even
be pivoted beyond the position parallel to the axis, so that, when
subsequently brought into contact with the tooth system on the
holder 25 and when the axial attachments are released by the
installation apparatus, the teeth 20 of the tooth system 19 on the
driver 23 lie with their longitudinal direction approximately
aligned with respect to the axis of rotation A, that is to say
parallel to it.
[0139] Each axial attachment 17 is fitted with one tooth 20 of the
tooth system 19. In the illustrated embodiment, the tooth 20 is
produced by stamping out the spring-steel material in the region of
the axial attachment 17. This stamping process can be carried out
before the individual bending processes are carried out by means of
suitable tools. In contrast to the embodiment shown in FIG. 25, it
can be seen in FIGS. 26 and 27 that the second bend region 184 and
the third bend region 186 merge into one another and form a common
bend region which is curved roughly in a circular shape while, in
contrast, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 25, the second bend
region and the third bend region are separated by a short section,
which extends essentially in a straight line, and have different
radii of curvature. There is a relatively high degree of design
freedom here, and it is possible to vary the spring response of the
radial projections or spring tongues 116 depending on the choice of
the radii of curvature of the second bend region 184 and third bend
region 186, or by introducing a section which separates these
curved regions 184, 186. In this case, at least for the third bend
region 186, a curved region has been found to be advantageous in
which the radius of curvature is in the region of 1.5 times the
material thickness, or more. The radius of curvature in the second
bend region 184 can also satisfy this dimensional requirement; in
particular, if, as illustrated in FIG. 27, the second bend region
184 and the third bend region 186 merge into one another, it may be
advantageous to provide a uniform radius of curvature.
[0140] FIG. 26 furthermore shows the radial projections or spring
tongues 116 being formed such that they taper radially outward.
This, as well, makes a contribution to the desired spring
elasticity, without affecting the torque transmission capacity. It
has been found in this case that a ratio in the range from 0.5 to
1.2 is advantageous for the width in the inner region to the width
in the outer region. FIG. 26 shows that different reduction rates
may be provided here, that is to say the circumferential extent of
the individual radial projections 116 may be reduced to a greater
extent in the outer region than in the inner region. With regard to
the elasticity and prestressing requirements, it has been found to
be advantageous if the ratio between the circumferential extent of
the radial projections 116 and the wall or material thickness of
the driver 23 is in the range from 5 to 30, at least in the region
of the radial projections 116, in which case, for example, a mean
circumferential width of the individual radial projections can be
used for comparison with the material thickness, here. It has also
been found to be advantageous for a curved or circular transition
to be formed for the transition between two immediately adjacent
radial projections 116 via the body region 115, that is to say in
the recessed regions denoted by 188 in FIG. 26, so that load peaks
can be avoided. In this case, it has been found to be advantageous
for the radius of curvature of the curved transition to have a
value which is in the same order of magnitude as the material
thickness of the driver 23, or is greater than this.
[0141] A further aspect, which is advantageous particularly with
respect to the spring response of the individual radial projections
116, is shown in FIG. 28. In this figure, dashed lines indicate
that the axial attachments 17 of the various radial projections 116
(which attachments are shown by a dashed line there) are now
flattened starting from the circumferential contour which can be
seen in FIG. 26 and is matched to a circular shape, so that
lengthening of the respective axial attachments in the
circumferential direction leads to a polygonal structure. This
means essentially that none of the individual axial attachments 117
is curved in the circumferential direction. If such a region which
is not curved in the circumferential direction extends further at
least into the third bend region 186, then this leads to a
situation in which the spring elasticity of the spring-steel
material from which the driver 23 is made not being limited or
stiffened by three-dimensional forming, as is the case in the
embodiment shown in FIGS. 26 and 27 and, in particular, as is
indicated for the radial projection 116 which can be seen on the
left in FIG. 27, where such stiffening by the curved forming is not
desirable.
[0142] The aspects described above each contribute individually,
but preferably in combination, to being able to satisfy the
contradictory requirements for producing an adequate radial
prestressing force and for providing adequate radial elasticity for
interaction with an installation tool in the best-possible
manner.
[0143] A further aspect which contributes in particular to
producing an adequate and reliable torque transmission coupling, is
shown in FIG. 26. This shows that the flank surfaces of the teeth
20 of the tooth system 19, which point approximately in the
circumferential direction, include an angle .alpha. (in a radially
outward extension) with respect to a longitudinal center plane of
the individual teeth 20, which plane is denoted by M in FIG. 26 and
is at right angles to the plane of the drawing there, and this
angle is in the range from 10.degree. to 50.degree. preferably
20.degree. to 30.degree.. The choice of the angle .alpha. in the
stated value range initially leads to the radial force component,
which is produced by interacting with a complementary tooth system
and by means of which the associated tooth 20 is pushed radially
inward, not being so large that the two tooth systems could be
disengaged in an undesirable manner. However, on the other hand,
such a value for the angle .alpha. means that manufacturing or
dimensional tolerances in the region of the tooth systems 19 and 51
which engage with one another do not lead to undesirable movement
play, as would be the case if, for example, the tooth flanks 48
were to run parallel to the plane M or only at a very small
inclination angle with respect to it. Specifically, in order to
produce the engagement between the two systems, relatively major
radial movements would then have to be carried out to compensate
for minor dimensional inaccuracies. If the flanks 48 lie flat, even
a relatively small axial movement leads to compensation for
manufacturing or dimensional inaccuracies, so that dimensional
inaccuracies can in each case be compensated for within an axial
movement range of the axial attachment 17 which does not lead to a
major change in the prestressing force, as a result of which the
teeth 20 are pressed radially outward.
[0144] A modification of the driver 23, that is to say of the tooth
system of the component 23, is shown in FIGS. 29 to 31. In this
case as well, the driver 23 is essentially formed from a body
region 115 having a plurality of radial projections 116 which, as
described above, are bent with an approximately S-shaped or
swan's-neck-shaped contour. However, it can be seen that the
individual radial projections have slots 190 which originate
approximately from the body region 115 and extend through the first
bend region 180, the first region 182 which extends essentially
axially into the second end region 184 and, possibly, even as far
as the third bend region 186. Introducing such slots 190 into the
individual radial projections and spring tongues 116 allows their
spring response to be influenced further. In particular, the spring
response can be influenced by suitable choice of the slot length,
and of the slot width as well.
[0145] A further difference in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 29 to
31 is that the individual teeth 20 of the tooth system 19 of the
driver 23 are no longer formed by stamped regions created on the
axial attachments 17, but are formed directly by these axial
attachments 17. That is to say, in the circumferential direction,
the flank surfaces 48 each form bearing surfaces with the material
thickness of the spring-steel sheet from which the driver 23 is
constructed, and these bearing surfaces engage with complementary
bearing surfaces on the tooth system 51 of the holder 25. It can be
seen that these flank surfaces 48 extend into the third bend region
186, thus producing a very long axial extent for the teeth of the
tooth system 19, and thus allowing the material load in the region
of the tooth system 19 to be reduced.
[0146] Securing projections 120 are formed, for example by material
forming, in the region of each of the free ends 98 of the axial
attachments 17, by means of which securing projections 120, as was
described above with reference to FIGS. 14 to 25, the ring elements
110, 112 of the installation apparatus 70 can be held on the driver
23.
[0147] It should be mentioned that the advantages described above
can be obtained by appropriate design of the flank surfaces 48 on
the axial attachments 17 together with the inclination angle
.alpha. with respect to the longitudinal center plane M of the
respective teeth 20.
[0148] It can be seen in FIGS. 29 to 31 that, in this embodiment as
well, it is advantageous for the radial projections 116 to be
formed with a reducing circumferential extent toward the outside.
It should furthermore be mentioned that the dimensional details
described above can also be applied in an advantageous manner to
the various radii of curvature and transition regions.
[0149] It should be mentioned that the driver 23 as is illustrated
in FIGS. 26 to 31 can be used in all the embodiments of a coupling
device described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 25. This
relates both to use as a driver, as has been described
comprehensively above, and to use as a holder, as is shown, for
example, in FIG. 13.
[0150] FIGS. 32 to 38 show a further embodiment of a tooth system
component according to the invention, which in this case is
designed, for example, once again as a driver 23. This tooth system
component or this driver 23 also has a central body region 115,
from which a plurality of tongue-like projections 116 project
radially outward. As can be seen in particular in FIG. 34, these
radial or tongue-like projections 116, starting from the body
region 115, initially merge into the first bend region 180, then
into a first region 182 which extends essentially, that is to say
approximately, axially, then into the second bend region 184, the
third bend region 186 as well as the axial attachment 17. The outer
surface of each axial attachment 17, that is to say its surface 49
which points radially outward, in this case forms an end surface of
a respective tooth 20 of the tooth system 19. Circumferential
projections 200, 202 project in both circumferential directions
from each axial attachment 17 and, as can be seen in FIGS. 32 to
34, are bent radially inward and thus form the flank surfaces 48,
which merge into the end surface 49 of each tooth 20. Securing
projections 120 are once again formed on the free end region 98 of
each axial attachment 17 and, as already described above, interact
with the ring elements 110, 112 of the installation apparatus 70 in
order to fix them on the driver 23 (see FIGS. 37 and 38). The bend
in this case has a shape such that, with regard to the radially
outward extension of the flank surfaces 48, these extension lines
form an acute angle .alpha. in the range from 10.degree. to
50.degree., preferably 20.degree. to 30.degree., with a
longitudinal center plane M which is at right angles to the plane
of the drawing in the illustration in FIG. 33 and contains a radial
line. This has the advantages discussed above in terms of
compensating for manufacturing inaccuracies.
[0151] The provision of the flank surfaces 48 by means of bent
circumferential projections 200, 202 leads to circumferential
elasticity being provided for the engagement of the tooth systems
19 and 51, which elasticity results from the elastic link between
the circumferential projections 200, 202 at each axial attachment
17. This elasticity also makes it possible to compensate for
manufacturing tolerances. The provision of the bent circumferential
projections 200, 202 furthermore has the advantage that the
individual teeth 20 are very stiff in the axial direction due to
the plastic deformation that occurs when these circumferential
projections 200, 202 are being bent. Furthermore, the bend has the
advantage that no regions of the teeth project radially outward
beyond the axial attachment 17, so that the tooth system radius can
be made smaller for the same configuration, that is to say length,
of the radial projections 116.
[0152] It should be mentioned that such a configuration of the
teeth 20 is also possible if the body region 115 extends radially
outward into the third bend region 186, that is to say essentially
only the axial attachments 17 are bent from the body region 15.
[0153] As can be seen in FIG. 37, the axial attachments 17 are
preferably furthermore designed in such a manner that, when no
force is being applied to them, they extend slightly radially
outward away from the third bend region 186. In the illustration
shown in FIG. 37, the two ring elements 110, 112 can then be pushed
on from the right until they abut against the securing projections
120 of the teeth 20, in which case, during this process of pushing
them on, the teeth 20 are already pushed or prestressed slightly
radially inward. The spreading effect of the teeth 20 then results
in the ring elements 110, 112 being held on the tooth system
component 23 by static friction. After this, they are pushed
axially together with the ring elements 110, 112 into the tooth
system 51 of the holder 25, with, if necessary, the ring elements
110, 112 having previously been rotated, as has been described
above with reference to FIGS. 14 to 25. It should also be mentioned
that, as described above with reference to FIG. 28, the individual
axial attachments 17 may be designed in such a manner that they are
not matched to a circumferential line or circular line, but extend
essentially tangentially with respect to a radial line when viewed
in the circumferential direction, so that, once again, this results
in the elasticity advantages discussed above. It should furthermore
be mentioned that, after the forming or processing operations have
been carried out, the spring steel component can be hardened. This
also applies to the embodiment which is still to be described in
the following text and which is illustrated in FIGS. 39 to 43.
[0154] In this embodiment, which corresponds essentially to the
embodiment shown in FIGS. 29 to 31, the axial attachments 17
intrinsically once again form the teeth 20. This means that side
surface regions in each case located in the circumferential
direction form the flank surfaces 48, so that each tooth has an
extent in the radial direction which corresponds to the material
thickness of the projections 116 in the radially outer region, in
particular in the region of the axial attachments 17. It can be
seen that, in the region of the axial attachments 17, the
individual projections 116 are broadened in the circumferential
direction with respect to the immediately adjacent third bend
region 186, so that the tooth width is greater here. This allows
matching to a wide range of different tooth types. If there is a
continuous transition between the third bend region 186 and the
axial attachment 17, this results in the advantage described above
with respect to FIGS. 29 to 31, that the axial length of each tooth
may be greater, since the side surface region of the third bend
region 186 may also contribute to some extent to the flank
area.
[0155] In this embodiment as well, the flank surfaces 48 are once
again inclined at the angle .alpha. in the range from 10.degree. to
50.degree. with respect to the longitudinal center plane of each
tooth 20. This inclination may be produced, for example, by
reworking after the stamping of the component blank, by using a
broaching tool or the like. Otherwise, the embodiment shown in
FIGS. 39 to 43 corresponds in terms of the rest of the construction
and with respect to its function to the embodiments described
above. In particular, as is shown in FIGS. 42 and 43, this
embodiment can also be used in conjunction with the installation
apparatus 70, which uses the two ring elements 110, 112.
[0156] It should be mentioned that, in the case of the embodiments
described above and in which a tooth system component may form
either a driver or a holder and is produced by forming a spring
steel blank or some other sheet metal blank, the individual teeth
can be formed (depending on the configuration of these teeth)
before or after the forming of a stamped or cut material blank. For
example, if the teeth are formed by stamping or by bending
circumferential projections, it is advantageous for this process to
be carried out before the individual axial attachments and/or
radial projections are bent to shape. If the individual teeth are
formed by the axial attachments themselves, that is to say the
flank surfaces are in the region of the material or wall thickness,
it is advantageous to bend the individual axial attachments first
of all, and then to form the oblique flank surfaces using a
broaching tool or the like. When this process is being carried out,
the individual axial attachments 17, which preferably run slightly
radially outward away from the third bend region with respect to
the axis of rotation, can then, for example, initially be moved to
a position parallel to the axis, which in the end corresponds to
the position which the axial attachments 17, and thus the teeth 19
fitted to them, assume once the coupled state has been produced.
This means that the oblique surfaces produced by broaching have
exactly the shape which they need to have. For example, once the
axial attachments have been formed by bending or the like, the
individual tooth system components can for this purpose be clamped
in a tool and the teeth can be aligned parallel to the axis by
means of a tool, during which process a plurality of tooth system
components can in this case be positioned with aligned axial
attachments following one another in the direction of the axis, so
that a plurality of flank surfaces can be produced on different
tooth system components at the same time using a broaching tool, in
one movement in the axial direction.
[0157] Furthermore, it is advantageous in all the illustrated
embodiments to carry out a hardening process after carrying out the
individual forming processes so that, in particular, it is possible
to avoid the occurrence of wear in those tooth system surface
regions of the various tooth systems which are in contact with one
another.
[0158] As a result of the use of a body which can be stamped and
bent from spring steel in order to form the tooth system
components, it is possible to achieve the wide range of aspects
described above with regard to the provision of specific robustness
and spring elasticity in a simple manner in that, during the
stamping process, for example, the individual radial projections
are formed with a tapering profile, the slots are incorporated, the
transitional radii between the individual radial projections are
produced in a suitable manner and in that, after this and during
the forming process, the various bend regions and the regions which
there may be between these but which are essentially not bent are
provided and, if appropriate, care is taken during the forming
process to ensure that the individual axial attachments are not
curved in the circumferential direction. It should be mentioned
that, however, if the preconditions are different, it may also be
desirable for the individual axial attachments 17 to be curved in
the circumferential direction in order to provide adequate
stiffness, that is to say, when viewed in the circumferential
direction, for them to have a contour which is approximately that
of a circular shape or the like.
[0159] It should be mentioned that, where the text above refers to
specific directions, that is to say, for example, axially or
radially or approximately axially and/or radially or essentially
axially or radially, this means that this indicates a substantial
component of the extent of the respective parts. It thus does not
mean that an exact extent in the axial or radial direction must be
present in each case, but that this is only an indicative direction
from which specific discrepancies, for example in the stated
angular range may occur, or may even be desirable.
[0160] The invention is not limited by the embodiments described
above which are presented as examples only but can be modified in
various ways within the scope of protection defined by the appended
patent claims.
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