Non-circular rotary component
AssigneeLitens Automotive Partnership
InventorWitold Gajewski
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A rotary component with a rotor having a plurality of teeth arranged around the perimeter of the rotor. Each tooth has a crown and each pair of adjacent teeth has a valley therebetween. The crowns of the teeth lie on a curved envelope forming the perimeter of the rotor. The perimeter of the rotor has a non-circular profile with at least two protruding portions alternating with receding portions, in which the distance between the midpoints of the crowns of each pair of adjacent teeth is substantially the same, the profile of the valley between each pair of adjacent teeth is substantially the same, and the distance between the midpoint of each crown and the axis of the rotor varies around the perimeter to produce the said non-circular profile.
Claims11
A synchronous drive apparatus including a rotary component, the synchronous drive apparatus comprising:
- a plurality of rotors comprising a first rotor and a second rotor, each of the plurality of rotors having a rotational axis and a plurality of teeth arranged about a perimeter;
- a continuous loop drive structure having a plurality of engaging sections that are engaged with the teeth of the rotors to transmit rotary power through the continuous loop drive structure to drive the first rotor;
- a rotary load assembly driven by the first rotor, the rotary load assembly generating a first periodic fluctuating torque when driven by the first rotor;
- wherein at least one of the plurality of rotors is configured such that each of its plurality of teeth have a crown that is disposed between a pair of valleys, each of the valleys has a profile and each of the profiles is identical, and a distance between a midpoint of each of the crowns and the rotational axis of the at least one of the rotors varies around its perimeter to produce a non-circular rotor profile that is configured to produce a second periodic fluctuating torque that is out of phase with the first periodic fluctuating torque to reduce variation in a newt torque applied to the first rotor by the continuous loop drive structure and the rotary load assembly.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.