Controls for a centrifugal fluid clutch

A control system, for a rotating clutch having a rotating housing with a cavity adapted to axially slidably receive a clutch actuating piston therein and defining a radially inwardly open clutch actuating chamber therebetween, comprising;

• a source of fluid;
• a control valve for infinitely variably supplying said fluid through a path in the rotating housing to such clutch actuating chamber so that the clutch actuating piston is biased in a direction to engage the clutch solely through centrifugal force acting on a torus of fluid in said chamber;
• a valve bore in said housing opening on said chamber;
• a fluid exhaust passage in said housing opening on said valve bore;
• a control passage in said housing communicating said path with said valve bore;
• and
• centrifugal relief valve means including a relief piston slidably mounted in said bore and radially outwardly biased by the pressure of said torus of fluid in said chamber acting thereon over the cross sectional area of said bore, and including a reaction slug slidably disposed within said relief piston, said relief piston radially inwardly biased by the pressure in said control passage acting on the area of said slug for meteringly relieving fluid from said clutch actuating chamber to said exhaust passage in a differential area ratio responsive manner.

A control system, for a rotating clutch having a rotating housing with a cavity adapted to axially slidably receive a clutch actuating piston therein and defining a radially inwardly open clutch actuating chamber therebetween, comprising;

• a source of fluid;
• a control valve of infinitely variably supplying said fluid through a path in the rotating housing to such clutch actuating chamber so that the clutch actuating piston is biased in a direction to engage the clutch solely through centrifugal force acting on a torus of fluid in said chamber;
• a valve bore in said housing opening on said chamber;
• a fluid exhaust passage in said housing opening on said valve bore;
• a control passage in said housing communicating said path with said valve bore;
• a substantially cylindrical reaction slug;
• and
• a cup-shaped centrifugal relief piston having a side passage therethrough slidably mounted within said bore and upon said reaction slug to define a reaction chamber therebetween for meteringly relieving fluid from said clutch actuating chamber to said exhaust passage in response to radially outward biasing thereof through said torus of fluid and in opposition to pressure in said path which is communicated to said reaction chamber by said control passage and said side passage.