Patent ID: 9745074
Date: 2017-08-29
CPC Classifications: B64D,F16D

Claim:
1. An aircraft propeller drive system for an aircraft, the aircraft having a propeller driven by an intermittent combustion internal combustion engine via the propeller drive system, the propeller drive system comprising: a gear adapted to be operatively connected to and driven by the engine, the gear having a first plurality of teeth, a spacing of adjacent teeth of the first plurality of teeth along a pitch circle of the gear having an arc length; a torsion bar having a first end and a second end opposite the first end, the first end being connected to and driven by the gear about a torsion axis, the second end being rotatable relative to the first end about the torsion axis by a torsion angle; and an output shaft fixedly connected to and driven by the second end of the torsion bar, the output shaft being adapted for being connected to the propeller; and a clutch having a driving member and a driven member, the driven member being rotationally fixed to the output shaft, the driving member having a second plurality of teeth, teeth of the second plurality of teeth having a circular thickness, the second plurality of teeth selectively engaging the first plurality of teeth, the circular thickness being less than the arc length of the spacing of adjacent teeth of the first plurality of teeth such that when one tooth of the second plurality of teeth is received and centered between two adjacent teeth of the first plurality of teeth the one tooth of the second plurality of teeth is angularly spaced from each of the two adjacent teeth of the first plurality of teeth by a clearance angle of at least 0.75 degrees, the second plurality of teeth engaging the first plurality of teeth when a variation in the torsion angle from a mean torsion angle is greater than the clearance angle, and torque being transferred between the gear and the output shaft via the clutch when the second plurality of teeth engages the first plurality of teeth.