Slew drive with dust cover and torque transduction

A single axis driving system comprising:

• a housing including a central portion defining a cylindrically shaped cavity and a pair of parallel spaced apart flanges extending upwardly from opposing sides of the central portion and each terminating at an upper end, the pair of spaced apart flanges defining a space therebetween, each flange having an aperture formed therethrough so as to be coaxial and to define a mounting structure for an output axle, an opening formed between the parallel spaced apart flanges in the surface of the central portion of the housing, the opening extending into the cavity in the housing, and a mounting portion extending outwardly from the central portion;
• a cover removably received over and extending between the upper ends of the pair of spaced apart flanges, the cover enclosing the upper ends of the spaced apart flanges and closing the space defined therebetween;
• an output axle rotatably mounted in the coaxial openings through the parallel spaced apart flanges;
• a gear plate affixed to the axle and positioned in the space defined between the pair of spaced apart flanges, the gear plate extending through the opening formed between the parallel spaced apart flanges in the surface of the central portion of the housing and into the cavity in the housing for limited rotation with the output axle, the gear plate having an arcuate set of gear teeth positioned along a periphery thereof;
• and
• a worm gear rotatably mounted in the cylindrical cavity of the housing so as to mesh with the arcuate set of gear teeth on the gear plate in the cavity in the housing.