Continuously or infinitely variable transmission free of over-running clutches

An oscillating ratchet style continuously or infinitely variable transmission, comprising:

• (a) first means including a first member adapted for connection with an external source of rotation and rotatable by said external source for establishing a rotational input;
• (b) second means operatively connected with said first means and including a plurality of second members which rotate in response to said input rotation, each of said second members rotating back and forth in accordance with its own respective oscillatory speed waveform, said waveforms being out of phase with one another in a predetermined way;
• (c) third means operatively connected with said second means and including a plurality of third members which rotate uni-directionally in response to the oscillatory rotations of said second members, without the aid of over-running clutches, said third members uni-directionally rotating in accordance with their own respective speed waveforms, said third means including (i) a plurality of differential gear arrangements, one for each of said second members, each differential gear arrangement including first and second inputs and an associated one of said third members which serves as an output the first input of each differential gear arrangement being coupled with an associated one of said second members for receiving that member's rotation, and each arrangement's output generating its own one of said uni-direction rotations in response to a received rotation at its first input simultaneously with a reaction rotation at its second input, each of said outputs being coupled to fourth means, and (ii) a commutator assembly including means for producing a reaction rotation for each of said differential gear arrangements, each of said reaction rotations being coupled to the second input of an associated one of said differential gear arrangements, whereby the combination of rotations at the first and second inputs to any given differential gear arrangement results in an associated one of said uni-directional rotations at the output of that arrangement, without the aid of an over-running clutch;
• and
• (d) said fourth means operatively connected with said third means and including a fourth, output member which rotates in response to the collective rotations of said third members and which does so in a modified way relative to said rotational input, whereby to provide a modified rotational output.