The present invention relates to marine stern drives propulsion systems and more particularly to a stern drive extension which will accommodate the addition of a transmission improving performance without the necessity of having to alter the original engine mounting position.
The present invention was conceived during development a stern drive to improve boating performance by modifying marine propulsion system configurations. Further, the invention relates to the addition of a multi-speed shift mechanism which does not require changing the original engine mounting position in the boat.
Existing single speed marine stern drives have only a single gear ratio or speed with ratios typically between 1:1 to 2.25:1. A gear reduction normally occurs between the engine crankshaft and the stern drive propellor shaft. Conventional stern drive units may also have forward, neutral, and reverse gear direction shifting capabilities.
Although such drives are capable of shifting directions, the gear ratio remains fixed. The propellor blade is also in a fixed position. This, in turn, limits performance. For example, if the system is configured for maximum power and speed at low speed, the drive will have less power and speed at high speed. Likewise, if the system is configured for maximum power and speed at high speed, the drive system will lose power and speed at lower speeds. A significant benefit of the present propulsion system is that the marine engine can be mounted farther back in the boat, usually 2″ to 12″ from the transom, without having to locate the transmission between the engine and the stern drive in the boat, thus providing more space inside the boat as well as affording better weight distribution and boat handling characteristics.
With conventional multi-speed marine systems, the stern drive may have forward, neutral and reverse gear direction shifting capabilities, but the gear ratio is a single, fixed ratio. The propellor blade is also in a fixed position. The gear ratio or speed change are accomplished by a transmission located between the engine and the stern drive. With existing transmissions, low gear and high gear speed ratios are available. The benefits of the propulsion system of the present invention is that multiple gear ratios are available so at low speed acceleration is improved and at high speed greater maximum or top speed of the boat is available.
With gear reductions usually being limited to 1.33:1 in low gear and 1:1 in high gear, the drawbacks are increased weight. When a transmission is added to existing systems, the engine mounting position is moved forward in the boat, away from the transom, usually from 12″ to 36″. This repositioning, in turn, can drastically effect boat handling characteristics, cause boat planing problems and limit available interior space. Accordingly, it is generally difficult to retrofit a multi-speed system into a single-speed designed boat due to the engine mounting position problems.
Briefly, the present invention is a multi-speed marine propulsion system in which the engine remains located in the boat in its normal position. A transmission, either manual or automatic, extends at least partially outboard of the transom and is coupled to a stern drive unit. A stern drive extension housing encloses the outboard transmission. A removable bearing carrier is provided in the extension housing. Various steering systems may be utilized as well as options such as a torque-absorbing coupling, a dry oil sump system and coupling arrangements to accommodate a rise or misalignment in the drive train components. A self-recharging air shift system also is also another optional feature.
The above and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description, claims and drawings in which:
The present invention is a multi-speed marine propulsion system and is shown in the drawings in which the same numerals are used throughout the various views to designate the same or similar elements. In
The stern drive has an upper unit 10, a lower unit 15, input shaft 12, propellor shaft 16 with propellor 14 attached to shaft 16. Forward, neutral and reverse shifting capabilities are provided with external or integral steering capabilities and trim and tilt functions 13. A self-generating and self-recharging manual or automatic air shift system 60 is also shown. This configuration maintains the rear engine block mounting surface 4, engine crankshaft 8 and side engine mounts 7 in their original mounting positions maintaining the mounting position of engine 6 in the boat as would occur without the addition of multi-speed transmission 30.
The invention provides the marine propulsion system
The transmission and stern drive extension housing 25 is mounted on the outside of the transom 27 of the boat by bolts or fasteners S secured to the housing with a gasket or seal 3 at the interface, as best seen in
The preferred manual and or automatic multi-speed transmission 30 includes at least a low gear ratio or speed, as for example 1.55, 1.50, 1.44, 1.40, 1.35, 1.30, 1.26, 1.25, 1.21, 1.17, 1.16, 1.10, 1.08:1 and a high gear ratio or speed as for example 1:1. The transmission is preferably controlled by a system with automatic electric or electronic shift signal controllers 50, 52 that sense tachometer negative signals and/or a crankshaft trigger signal 54. These shift controllers 50, 52 control the manual and/or automatic electric shift valve control 60 which delivers a pneumatic signal through air lines 65 from the reservoir 62 through the one-way check valves 63 through air lines 65 and then finally through the one-way control valves 31 to shift the multi-speed transmission 30 from high gear ratio to low gear ratio and vice versa.
Also included is an automatic, self-pressurizing system consisting of a regulator and or regulators 64, electronic, electric and/or manual compressor control 68, air compressor and or compressors 66, also air lines 65 and check valves 63. This system maintains pressure to the shift bottle reservoir 62 insuring proper air pressure to the manual and/or automatic electric shift valve controller 60 in turn maintaining transmission shifting operations. The manual or automatic multi-speed transmission 30 may be of the disc, sprag, clutch, band, spring type and or any combination of these such as, but not limited to, those manufactured by Scott Owens racing or Lenco.
The stern drive 10 with forward, neutral and reverse shifting capabilities is shown in
The stern drive may have a single propellor 14, a dual counter-rotating propellor configuration 14A as shown in
The preferred transmission and stern drive extension housing 25 mounts directly to the outside of the transom 27 of the boat, as seen in
The steering systems in this system may be full power in conjunction with the OEM cable style with hydraulic controller valve or a self-contained hydraulic system with no power assist as shown in
The steering function rams 9 can be mounted in various ways such as, but not limited to, mounting from the outside transom 27 of the boat to the stern drive upper unit 10 or from the outside mounts 28 on the sides of transmission and stern drive extension housing 25 to the stern drive upper unit 10. Another steering configuration may extend from the transmission and stern drive extension housing 25 to the trim ram 9 forward mounts. Trim hydraulic and steering hydraulic lines can be located internally in the extension housing 25 or routed externally through hull fittings to place them out of sight.
The propulsion system may also include other options such as but not limited to a torque-absorbing coupler 2 by Globe Rubber Works part # mrd 504pr as shown in
The invention also may incorporate various optional components such as a dry sump oil system as shown in
Another option that may be applied to this system includes a transmission and stern drive extension housing 25 as shown in
With the preceding options, another option may also become necessary to accommodate a change in height of the stern drive 10 in the relationship between the stern drive input shaft 12, stern drive coupler 42, and the transmission coupler 46, transmission output shaft 48. As shown in
It will be obvious to those skilled in the art to make various changes, alterations and modifications to the invention described herein. To the extent such changes, alterations and modifications do not depart from the spirit and scope of the appended claims, they are intended to be encompassed therein.
This application is based on provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/463,887, filed Apr. 17, 2003, of the same title.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60463887 | Apr 2003 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 10825772 | Apr 2004 | US |
Child | 11516387 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 11516387 | Sep 2006 | US |
Child | 12080621 | US |