Patent ID: 6203436
Filing Date: 2001-03-20
Classification: F16D

Abstract:
Universal joint for joining two shafts such that they are axially and angularly movable within certain limits with respect to one another, comprising:shaft flanges located at facing ends of the two shafts, each of said shaft flanges having a plurality of axially projecting driving tabs with respective driving tabs of one shaft flange being disposed in use intermediate respective driving tabs of the other shaft flange along a common circle surrounding an axis through said universal joint,and a joint ring assembly connecting the respective driving tabs with one another, said joint ring assembly including:respective driving tab accommodating sockets disposed at respective corner points of a polygonal configuration, andoval driving loops wrapped around respective pairs of adjacent sockets, said driving loops having a rectangular cross-sectional shape with respective longer cross-sectional sides extending in a radial plane of the universal joint and respective shorter cross-sectional sides extending axially of the universal joint, the longer cross-sectional sides of the supporting cross-sections of the driving loops being at least four times longer than the shorter cross-sectional sides, said driving loops forming legs extending between adjacent sockets surrounded by the respective driving loops, which legs are axially yieldable and elastically twistable,wherein the sockets are provided with position-stablizing circumferential grooves at least in areas wrapped by the driving loops, said grooves matching the cross-sectional shapes of the driving loops so as to receive the driving loops in a position-stablizing manner while permitting the loops to bend and twist elastically like leaf spring tongues,wherein lateral flanks of the circumferential grooves of the socket expand in a circumferential area not wrapped by the driving loops, andwherein the sockets are rotationally asymmetrical and are secured against twisting within the joint ring.