Power steering gear for motor vehicle

A motor vehicle power steering gear comprising:

• a housing,
• a pinion head rotatably supported on said housing,
• a tubular spool shaft rotatably supported on said housing having an inboard end adjacent said pinion head,
• a torsion bar inside said spool shaft having an inboard end rigidly connected to said pinion head and an outboard end rigidly connected to said spool shaft operative to induce a centering force between said pinion head and said spool shaft in response to relative rotation therebetween,
• a tubular valve body rotatably supported on said spool shaft around a valve spool defined on said spool shaft,
• a first radially oriented pin on said pinion head aligned on a lateral centerline thereof,
• a second radially oriented pin on said pinion head aligned on said lateral centerline thereof diametrically opposite said first radially oriented pin,
• a radial bore in said valve body adjacent a first end thereof closely receiving said first radial pin on said pinion head,
• a radial slot in said valve body open through said first end thereof having a pair of parallel sides closely receiving therebetween said second radial pin whereby said valve body is connected to said pinion head for rotation as unit therewith and for bodily movement relative thereto parallel to said lateral centerline,
• a variable effort means connected to said spool shaft and to said valve body at a second end thereof opposite said first end selectively operable to induce a torque reaction between said spool shaft and said pinion head through said valve body for varying the effective centering force of said torsion bar,
• a cylindrical journal on said torsion bar, and
• a bushing on said spool shaft at said inboard end thereof including an elongated bore therein around said cylindrical journal on said torsion bar having a short dimension parallel to said lateral centerline generally equal to the diameter of said cylindrical journal so that said inboard end of said torsion bar is rotatably supported on said torsion bar and constrained against movement relative to said pinion head parallel to said lateral centerline and a long dimension perpendicular to said short dimension exceeding the diameter of said cylindrical journal so that said inboard end of said spool shaft is moveable relative to said pinion head perpendicular to said lateral centerline.