Patent ID: 8657520
Filing Date: 2014-02-25
Classification: F16C,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A ball joint apparatus comprising: a ball seat made of a resin material having a recessed spherical surface and an external peripheral surface; a stud ball having a spherical head portion that engages with the recessed spherical surface in a rotatable manner; and a housing comprising a recessed portion that accommodates the ball seat, which is inserted from an opening portion of the housing toward a bottom surface of the housing; wherein an inner peripheral surface of the recessed portion is engaged with the external peripheral surface of the ball seat when the ball seat and the housing are assembled; wherein an external diameter of the external peripheral surface increases from the bottom surface toward the opening portion, and the inner peripheral surface has a region where an internal diameter of the inner peripheral surface increases from the bottom surface toward the opening portion; and wherein, below a flange of the housing and before the ball seat and the housing are assembled, the external diameter of the external peripheral surface is (i) less than the internal diameter of the inner peripheral surface at a side of the bottom surface of the recessed portion, and (ii) greater than the internal diameter of the inner peripheral surface at a side of the opening portion of the recessed portion.