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US 4,529,073 AGranted
Cooling oil cut-off valve for a clutch
AssigneeDeere & Company
InventorDavid G. Lewis
Life of this patent
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AssigneeDeere & Company
InventorDavid G. Lewis
Estimating the term…
A cooling oil cut-off valve is disclosed for use in a clutch having a rotatable drum fixed to a drive member and a rotatable hub fixed to a driven member. The hub is arranged within the drum so as to form a clutch chamber in which is positioned a clutch pack. The clutch pack is radially attached to both the drum and the hub and is axially engageable by a hydraulically actuated piston. Fluid flow to the piston is provided by means of a first fluid passage while the flow of cooling oil to the clutch chamber is provided by a second fluid passage. The clutch drum also contains a bore formed therein which intersects the first and second passages and which contains a cooling oil cut-off valve. The cooling oil cut-off valve is movable by fluid pressure to a first position when the clutch is engaged to permit cooling oil to flow to the clutch pack. The cut-off valve is also movable to a second position by centrifugal force which is generated by the rotational movement of the clutch drum to prevent the flow of cooling oil to the clutch pack when the clutch is disengaged. The cooling oil cut-off valve is designed to initially start moving toward the open position at a higher pressure than needed to keep it moving toward said open position.
A cooling oil cut-off valve for a clutch, said clutch having a rotatable drum fixed to a drive member, a rotatable hub fixed to a driven member which is arranged within said drum to form a clutch chamber, a clutch pack positioned in said clutch chamber which is radially attached to both said drum and said hub and which is axially engageable by a hydraulically actuated piston, a first fluid passage formed in said drum for supplying fluid to a side of said piston, which side is distal from said clutch pack, a second fluid passage formed in said drum radially inwardly of said first fluid passage for supplying a cooling medium to said clutch chamber, and a bore radially aligned to the rotational axis of said clutch and which intersects both said first and second fluid passages, said cut-off valve comprising a spool valve positioned in said bore which is movable to a first position by fluid pressure in said first fluid passage wherein flow of said cooling medium through said second fluid passage is permitted and which is movable to a second position by centrifugal force generated by the rotational speed of said clutch drum to prevent flow of said cooling medium to said clutch chamber.
A clutch assembly comprising:
A clutch assembly comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.