Patent ID: 7669330
Filing Date: 2010-03-02
Classification: F16H,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A method for structuring a housing to enclose a gear assembly for attachment to an axle assembly of a land mobile vehicle comprising: identifying a lowest surface structure defined by a plurality of ring gear teeth top lands that define a spin plane of a gear assembly relative to a vertical axis perpendicular to a horizontal plane that would be tangent to a bottom of a plurality of wheels of a land vehicle; forming a lower gear housing portion having a wall of smooth, generally non-planar surfaces positioned below a gear assembly centerline with an interior surface adjacent said lowest surface structure that does not contact said lowest surface structure; shaping said wall relative to an axis of an axle of said land vehicle to form: a convex curved wall segment adjacent to said lowest surface structure joined to a first concave curved wall segment that transitions to a generally linear wall segment that is adjacent said gear assembly; a first transition wall segment is joined to said generally linear wall segment and to an axle tube interface element; a ring gear wall segment that is of generally linear form and approximately parallel to a ring gear outer diameter surface and said ring gear wall segment joined to said convex curved wall segment; said ring gear wall segment opposite said convex curved wall segment joined to a second concave curved wall segment that transitions to a second transition wall segment that is attached to an axle tube interface element; wherein said wall is positioned adjacent to a contour of outer surface structural surfaces of said gear elements, but not contacting said gear elements; and attaching an upper housing portion to said lower housing portion to enclose said gear assembly.