External damper clutch

In combination with an engine and a transmission, a clutch-and-flywheel assembly rotatable about an axis, the clutch-and-flywheel assembly comprising:

• a flywheel;
• a clutch including a clutch housing within which is disposed a driven disk, a pressure plate and a friction face, the driven disk being disposed between the friction face and the pressure plate;
• an output shaft on which the clutch housing is journalled, the output shaft being fixed to the driven disk for rotation therewith while the pressure plate urges the disk into engagement with the friction face;
• and
• a damper having a bias during the flywheel and clutch housing to assume a relative angular position in which the damper is unstressed, the damper being disposed between the flywheel and clutch assembly, the damper being comprised of a plurality of beam springs having first and second ends wherein the first ends are connected to the flywheel and the second ends are connected to the clutch housing, the first and second ends of each beam spring being angularly spaced less than one full 360.degree. turn from one another when undeflected by an angle greater than 180.degree.wherein each beam spring circumferentially extends more than 180.degree. and less than 360.degree., which angle is sufficient to provide a partially negative spring characteristic, whereby the beam springs deflect elastically from an unstressed state to provide for relative rotational motion between the flywheel and clutch housing.