Patent ID: 8845474
Filing Date: 2014-09-30
Classification: B60K,B60Y,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A four-wheel drive vehicle comprising: a power unit including a prime mover, an endless belt type first transmission driven by the prime mover, and a second transmission driven by the first transmission, wherein the second transmission includes a transmission output shaft extended fore-and-aft of the vehicle; a first transaxle carrying right and left first drive wheels, wherein the first transaxle is disposed on one of front and rear sides of the power unit so as to be drivingly connected to one of front and rear ends of the transmission output shaft; a second transaxle carrying right and left second drive wheels, wherein the second transaxle is disposed on the other of the front and rear sides of the power unit, wherein the second transaxle includes a transaxle input shaft having an upstream divisional shaft and a downstream divisional shaft that are disposed coaxially to each other, wherein the upstream divisional shaft is drivingly connected to the other of the front and rear ends of the transmission output shaft, and wherein the downstream divisional shaft is drivingly connected to the right and left second drive wheels; and a clutch-brake unit including a clutch and a parking brake, wherein the transaxle input shaft is divided in the clutch-brake unit into the upstream divisional shaft and the downstream divisional shaft, wherein the clutch is interposed between the upstream and downstream divisional shafts and is shiftable between an engagement state for drivingly connecting the downstream divisional shaft to the upstream divisional shaft and a disengagement state for isolating the downstream divisional shaft from a torque of the upstream divisional shaft, wherein the parking brake is disposed on the upstream divisional shaft and is shiftable between a braking state for braking the upstream divisional shaft and an unbraking state for unbraking the upstream divisional shaft, and wherein the clutch is associated with the parking brake so that when the parking brake is shifted to the braking state, the clutch having been set in the disengagement state is automatically shifted to the engagement state.