Claims
- 1. A quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint comprising:
- a hollow inner joint member having an axis of rotation, said hollow inner joint member having an external spherical surface and a plurality of radial apertures, said plurality of radial apertures being provided through the wall of said hollow inner joint member along a common plane transverse to said axis of rotation;
- a plurality of roller balls, one disposed in each of said radial apertures, said roller balls being free to move in said radial apertures in a radial direction between a predetermined innermost position to a predetermined outermost position;
- an outer joint member having a cylindrical portion for receiving said external spherical surface of said hollow inner joint member therein, the inner surface of said cylindrical portion having a plurality of rectilinear grooves provided therein, one rectilinear groove for each of said plurality of roller balls;
- plunger means for radially displacing said plurality of roller balls between said predetermined innermost position and said predetermined outermost position, said plunger means being disposed in said hollow inner joint member and having a plunger and resilient means for biasing said plunger from an extended position towards a retracted position, said plunger having a straight tapered portion near one end thereof, said straight tapered portion of said plunger radially displacing said plurality of roller balls from said predetermined innermost position to said predetermined outermost position in response to said displacement of said plunger from said extended portion towards said retracted position by said resilient means, said plurality of roller balls in said predetermined innermost position permitting said hollow inner joint member to be inserted into and separated from said outer joint member in said predetermined outermost position, said plurality of roller balls extending into said rectilinear grooves operatively connecting said hollow inner joint member to said outer joint member, said resilient means biasing said plunger towards said retracted position to maintain said straight tapered portion of said plunger in contact with said plurality of roller balls to produce a radial force on said plurality of roller balls, maintaining said plurality of roller balls in intimate contact with said plurality of rectilinear grooves of said outer joint member; and
- plunger actuator means coupled to said hollow inner joint member for displacing said plunger from said retracted position to said extended position against the force of said resilient means in response to a manual actuation.
- 2. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of deformations provided in said plurality of rectilinear grooves to inhibit the separation of said hollow inner joint member from said outer joint member when said plurality of roller balls are being displaced towards their predetermined outermost position by said plunger.
- 3. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 1 wherein said plurality of radial apertures are equally spaced about said hollow inner joint member and said plurality of rectilinear grooves are equally spaced about said inner surface of said cylindrical portion of said outer joint member.
- 4. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 1 wherein each rectilinear groove of said plurality of rectilinear grooves, has a cylindrical cross-section.
- 5. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 1 wherein said plunger actuator means comprises:
- a pair of diametrically opposed olongitudinal slots provided in said hollow inner joint member adjacent to an internal end of said plunger when said plunger is in said retracted position;
- a cylindrical sleeve slidably coupled to said hollow inner joint member juxtaposed to said pair of diametrically opposed longitudinal slots; and
- a diametrically disposed pin connected to said cylindrical sleeve, said diametrically disposed pin extending through said pair of diametrically opposed longitudinal slots and engaging said plunger, wherein the displacement of said diametrically disposed pin from the end of said pair of diametrically opposed longitudinal slots to the other end by a manual displacement of said cylindrical sleeve displaces said plunger from said retracted position to said extended position.
- 6. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 5 wherein said diametrically disposed pin is received in a bore provided in said plunger.
- 7. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 1 wherein said plunger actuator means comprises:
- at least one longitudinal slot provided in said hollow inner joint member adjacent to said plunger, said at least one longitudinal slot having a forward end and a remote end;
- an actuator lever attached to said plunger near said remote end of said at least one longitudinal slot when said plunger is in said retracted position, said actuator lever protruding through said at least one longitudinal slot, said actuator lever manually displaceable within said at least one longitudinal slot from said remote end to displace said plunger from said retracted position to said extended position.
- 8. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 7 wherein said at least one longitudinal slot consists of two diametrically opposed longitudinal slots and wherein said actuating lever is a pin fixedly received in a diametrically disposed bore provided in said plunger, said pin protruding through both of said two diametrically opposed longitudinal slots.
- 9. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 1 wherein said plunger has a first inclined cam surface provided at an end opposite said one end, said plunger actuator means comprises:
- a boss provided on said hollow inner joint member normal to said axis of rotation, said boss having a guide bore passing therethrough, said guide bore having a larger diameter countersunk portion forming a release button chamber;
- a release button having an actuator rod slidably received in said guide bore, a cylindrical rim slidably received in said countersunk portion and a head axially protruding from said cylindrical rim, said actuator rod having a second inclined cam surface engagable with said first inclined cam surface of said plunger to longitudinally displace said plunger towards said extended position; and
- a cap attached to said boss captivating said cylindrical rim in said countersunk portion, said cap having an aperture concentric with said guide bore, said head of said release button extending through said cap, wherein depression of said release button towards said cap causes said second inclined cam surface to engage said first inclined cam surface, longitudinally displacing said plunger towards said extended position against the force of said resilient means.
- 10. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 9 wherein said first inclined cam surface is a truncated cone provided at said end of said plunger opposite said one end.
- 11. The quick disconnect constant velocity universal joint of claim 9 further comprising a resilient member disposed between said cylindrical rim of said release button on the bottom of said countersunk portion to bias said cylindrical rim against said cap to prevent said release button from rattling.
Parent Case Info
This is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 07/552,260, filed Jul. 13, 1990, now abandoned, which was a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 170,944, filed Mar. 21, 1988, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,862 issued Jul. 17, 1990 which was a divisional of U.S. Ser. No. 945,183, filed Dec. 23, 1986, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,626 issued Jun. 28, 1988.
US Referenced Citations (12)
Foreign Referenced Citations (3)
Number |
Date |
Country |
0046501 |
Jan 1965 |
DEX |
1206985 |
Dec 1965 |
DEX |
0047212 |
Dec 1972 |
SUX |
Divisions (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
945183 |
Dec 1986 |
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Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
170944 |
Mar 1988 |
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Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
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Parent |
552260 |
Jul 1990 |
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