Method of and device for controlling a coupling
AssigneeGKN Automotive AG
InventorTheodor Gassmann
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A coupling for transmitting torque between two parts has a friction or viscous coupling. The friction coupling is loaded by a piston and rotational member. A shear channel is formed between faces such that viscous fluid contained in the chamber is moved along the shear channels wherein the piston is loaded as a result of shear forces.
Claims62
A method of controlling a coupling for transmitting torque between two parts which are rotatable relative to one another comprising:
- providing a coupling including a friction coupling whose friction elements are alternately non-rotatably connected to the one and other of the rotatable parts, with the friction coupling being loaded by at least one controllable piston which delimits a chamber filled with a viscous fluid, and including a reservoir for said viscous fluid in communication with said chamber, said reservoir comprising means to vary the volume of said reservoir;
- conveying a viscous fluid contained in a circumferentially extending, laterally delimited shear channel between two walls in the form of disc faces or rotational faces which rotate relative to one another;
- pressure loading the piston as a result of pressure building up due to shear forces in said shear channel to load said friction coupling by displacement of said piston and compensating a change of volume of said chamber due to displacement of said piston by change of volume of said reservoir with an exchange of viscous fluid between said reservoir and said chamber.
A method of controlling a coupling for transmitting torque between two parts which are rotatable relative to one another, said method comprising:
- providing a coupling including a viscous coupling whose plates are axially alternately non-rotatably connected to the one and other of the rotatable parts and are arranged in a chamber filled with a viscous fluid, providing a reservoir for said viscous fluid separate from and in communication with said chamber, said reservoir comprising means to vary the volume of said reservoir with the viscous coupling being controllable by changing the pressure or volume of viscous fluid in the chamber;
- conveying a viscous fluid contained in a circumferentially extending, laterally delimited shear channel between two walls in the form of disc faces or rotational faces which rotate relative to one another;
- generating pressure in the chamber as a result of pressure building up due to shear forces in said shear channel and compensating a change of volume in said chamber by a change of volume in said reservoir with an exchange of viscous fluid between said reservoir and said chamber.
A coupling for transmitting torques between two parts which are rotatable relative to one another, which coupling comprises:
- a friction coupling with mutually inter-active friction elements being alternately non-rotatably connected to the one and other of the rotatable parts, with the friction coupling being loaded by at least one movable piston which delimits a chamber having end faces and counter faces which is filled with a viscous fluid, a rotational housing is formed by the one of the rotatable parts and the piston rotating therewith and in which there rotates a rotational member having front faces and rotational faces, said rotational member being connected to the other of the rotatable parts, said rotational member is axially movable in the chamber such that the front faces are able to contact the end faces of the chamber;
- said rotational faces of the rotational member together with the end faces of the chamber;
- said rotational faces of the rotational member together with the counter faces of the chamber form two shear channels which extend circumferentially between a beginning and an end thereof and are laterally sealed, with the beginnings with respect to one another and the ends with respect to one another are lying in opposite directions of their respective shear channel;
- said shear channels, at their beginnings, are each connected to a reservoir;
- and, at their ends, terminate in a connecting channel or in an annular gap which ends between the respective opposite radial front face of the rotational member and the adjacent radial end face of the chamber.
A coupling for transmitting torques between two parts which are rotatable relative to one another, said coupling comprising:
- a viscous coupling whose plates are alternately non-rotatably connected to one and other of the rotatable parts and are arranged in a chamber which is filled with a viscous fluid, which is formed by the parts rotatable relative to one another and which is provided with a compensation chamber form which, for volume and pressure increasing purposes, viscous fluid may be conveyed into the interior of the chamber of the viscous coupling, with said compensation chamber comprising means to vary the volume of said compensation chamber;
- a rotational member and a rotational housing, one of which rotates with the one of the rotatable parts and the other one with the other of the rotatable parts;
- a rotational face of the rotational member contacts a contacting rotational face of the rotational housing and that both together form at least one laterally sealed shear channel which extends between a beginning and an end thereof in a circumferential direction and the beginning of the shear channel is connected to the compensation chamber and the end of the shear channel to the chamber of the viscous coupling.
A motor vehicle having at least one permanently driven axle and comprising a differential drive for distributing torque from a driveshaft to rear driving wheels of said axle and which further comprises torque transmitting means for generating a locking effect between the driving wheels of said axle, the torque transmitting means are formed by a coupling including a friction coupling with mutually inter-active friction elements being alternately non-rotatably connected to one and other of the rotatable parts, with the friction coupling being loaded by at least one movable piston which delimits a chamber having end faces and counter faces which is filled with a viscous fluid, a rotational housing is formed by the one of the rotatable parts and the piston rotating therewith and in which there rotates a rotational member having front faces and rotational faces, said rotational member being connected to the other of the rotatable parts, said rotational member is axially movable in the chamber such that the front faces are able to contact the end faces of the chamber;
- said rotational faces of the rotational member together with counter faces of the chamber form two shear channels which extend circumferentially between a beginning and an end thereof and are laterally sealed, with the beginnings with respect to one another and the ends with respect to one another are lying in opposite directions of their respective shear channel;
- said shear channels, at their beginnings, are each connected to a reservoir;
- and, at their ends, terminate in a connecting channel or in an annular gap which ends between a radial from face of the rotational member and the contacting radial end fade of the chamber.
A motor vehicle having two permanently driven axles and comprising a differential drive for distributing torque from a driveshaft to the said axles and further comprising torque transmitting means for generating a locking effect between said axles, the torque transmitting means are formed by a coupling including a friction coupling with mutually inter-active friction elements being alternately non-rotatably connected to one and other of the rotatable parts, with the friction coupling being loaded by at least one movable piston which delimits a chamber having end faces and counter faces which is filled with a viscous fluid, a rotational housing is formed by the one of the rotatable parts and the piston rotating therewith and in which there rotates a rotational member having front faces and rotational faces, said rotational member being connected to the other of the rotatable parts, said rotational member is axially movable in the chamber such that the front faces are able to contact the end faces of the chamber;
- said rotational faces of the rotational member together with counter faces of the chamber form two shear channels which extend circumferentially between a beginning and an end thereof and are laterally sealed, with the beginnings with respect to one another and the ends with respect to one another are lying in opposite directions of their respective shear channel;
- said shear channels, at their beginnings are each connected to a reservoir;
- and, at their ends, terminate in a connecting channel or in an annular gap which ends between a radial front face of the rotational member and the contacting radial end face of the chamber.
A motor vehicle having a permanently driven axle and an axle driven from case to case and comprising a coupling operating as a function of the differential speed and arranged between a first and a second part of a driveshaft associated with the axle driven from case to case, the coupling operating as a function of the differential speed is formed by a coupling including a friction coupling with mutually inter-active friction elements being alternately non-rotatably connected to one and other of the rotatable parts, with the friction coupling being loaded by at least one movable piston which delimits a chamber having end faces and counter faces which is filled with a viscous fluid, a rotational housing is formed by the one of the rotatable parts and the piston rotating therewith and in which there rotates a rotational member having front faces and rotational faces, said rotational member being connected to the other of the rotatable parts, said rotational member is axially movable in the chamber such that the front faces are able to contact the end faces of the chamber;
- said rotational faces of the rotational member together with counter faces of the chamber form two shear channels which extend circumferentially between a beginning and an end thereof and are laterally sealed, with the beginnings with respect to one another and the ends with respect to one another are lying in opposite directions of their respective shear channel;
- said shear channels, at their beginnings, are each connected to a reservoir;
- and, at their ends, terminate in a connecting channel or in an annular gap which ends between a radial front face of the rotational member and the contacting radial end face of the chamber.
A coupling for transmitting torques between two parts which are rotatable relative to one another, which coupling comprises:
- a friction coupling with mutually inter-active friction elements being alternately non-rotatably connected to the one and other of the rotatable parts, with the friction coupling being loaded by at least one movable piston which delimits a chamber having end faces and counter faces which is filled with a viscous fluid, a rotational housing is formed by the one of the rotatable parts and the piston and in which there rotates a rotational member having front faces and rotational faces, said rotational member being connected to the other of the rotatable parts, said rotational member is axially movable in the chamber such that a front face of the rotational member is able to contact an end face of the chamber;
- said rotational face of the rotational member together with counter face of a part forming the chamber form at least one shear channel which extend circumferentially between a beginning and an end thereof and is laterally sealed;
- said shear channel, at its beginning, is connected to a reservoir;
- and, at its end, terminate in a connecting channel or in an annular gap which ends between the opposite radial front face of the rotational member and the adjacent radial end face of the chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.