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US 4,070,121 AGranted
Wear indicating ball joint
AssigneeMoog Automotive, Inc.
InventorJohn P. Graham
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A ball joint subject to wear in service and having an exposed indicator extending through the cover so as to be in position for visual examination for indicating wear which can be both axial and transverse to the joint axis. The indicator is confined against rotation and cooperates with the opening in the cover of the ball joint to show the extent of wear.
Claims9
A ball joint comprising:
- a housing having two openings thereto;
- a bearing seated adjacent one housing opening;
- a stud having a headed end carried within said housing and said bearing and a shank extending axially through said bearing to the exterior of said housing through said one opening;
- a perforated closure fixed to said housing at said second opening;
- and wear indicator means operatively disposed in said housing on said headed end of said stud, a portion of said wear indicator projecting through said perforation in said closure to the exterior to indicate the internal wear of said ball joint, and said wear indicator means projecting through said perforation with sufficient radial clearance so as to be movable relative to said closure in a direction axially of said stud shank and tranversely of said axial direction, whereby two conditions of predetermined excessive wear in said ball joint can be independently indicated at the exterior of the ball joint.
2 more elements
A ball joint comprising:
- a housing having a first opening adjacent a bearing seat;
- a bearing engaged on said bearing seat so as to be free to rock and turn relative to said bearing seat;
- a headed stud engaged on said bearing and having a shank extending through the bearing and first housing opening;
- a bearing element engaged on said headed stud within said housing and having a wear indicator projection extending outwardly of said housing at a second opening thereof;
- a plate element engaged on said bearing element over said projection;
- a resilient element disposed on said plate element and surrounding said projection;
- and a closure plate fixed in position at said second opening and formed with an opening to allow said projection to extend therethrough;
- said wear indicator projection and said closure plate opening having generally complementary shapes in which said wear indicator projection is held against rotating, said closure opening being sufficiently larger than said indicator projection in a radial direction so that said indicator projection is free to move relative to said closure opening in directions to indicate externally of the ball joint the extent of predetermined excessive axial and radial wear within the ball joint between said housing and bearing and between said bearing and headed stud shank.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.