Patent ID: 7134801
Filing Date: 2006-11-14
Classification: B60G,F16C,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A ball joint comprising: a ball stud having a shaft portion and a spherical head portion provided in an end portion of the shaft portion; a ball seat to which the spherical head portion is slidably fitted, thereby pivoting the ball stud universally, the ball seat comprising: a gap formed between the bottom portion of the ball seat and the spherical head portion of the ball stud; a housing receiving the ball seat, the housing being structured such that a closed-end cylindrical main body portion and a flange portion extending outward in a radial direction from the distal edge of the main body portion are formed in accordance with a sheet metal process, and the housing having an outer surface and a support bar extending outwardly from the outer surface, the cylindrical main body portion having an opening from which the shaft portion projects upward; and a dust cover having an opening which the shaft portion projecting from the opening of the housing penetrates, the dust cover covering the opening of the housing, and being sandwiched between the ball seat and the flange portion of the housing so as to be fixed on the housing, wherein the flange portion has a thickness smaller than a thickness of the main body portion, and wherein a center of the convex portion has a thickness larger than a periphery of the convex portion.