Differential gear

Abstract: A differential gear (30) includes a rotatable case (32), pinions (34) rotatably disposed in the case (32), a pair of side gears (36) meshing with the pinions (34) and disposed in the case (32), a first shaft (44) supported rotatably about a rotary axis of the case (32) and extending from one of side gears (36), a second shaft (48) supported rotatably about the axis and extending from the other side gear (36) in the opposite direction to the first shaft, a first driven gear (50) provided in one of the first and second shafts (44,48), a first drive gear (98) for rotating the driven gear (50) to transmit driving force to the first and second shafts (44,48). A worm wheel (52) fixed to the case (32), a worm (55) meshing with the worm wheel (52) and an electric motor (56) are provided. The motor (56) is controlled by a control device (106) so as to maintain the difference between numbers of revolutions of the first and second shafts (44,48) within a predetermined range.

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention: This invention relates to a differential gear and, more particularly, to a differential gear used suitably for a differential gear installed in a drive line of a vehicle to drive front or rear wheels. Description of the Prior Art: When one of two wheels connected to a drive line having a differential gear runs onto a snow-covered road surface or the like having low coefficient of friction and then slips, such phenomena take place that driving force to other wheel connected to the drive line is reduced or utterly lost because of the inherent property of said differential gear. The fact similar to the above applies to a center differential gear installed to absorb differential number of revolutions between front and rear wheels on a full time four wheel drive car in turning. Thus, there is proposed a special differential gear with a differential lock or a limited slip differential. Since the special differential gear needs the differential lock or limited slip differential, the construction of the special differential gear is complicated. When the special differential gear is provided with the differential lock, a driver has complexities that he or she has to lock and unlock the differential lock, and moreover there is a possibility of dangerous wrong operation to lock it in turning. When the limited slip differential is incorporated in the special differential gear, driving force transmitting capacity is structurally limited. In this case, sufficient driving force cannot be transmitted. GB-A-557,249 describes a variable-speed gear mechanism in which speed changes are effected by controlling variably one element of an epicyclic train by an external source of power. A constant speed drive motor drives a planet-pinion carrier of the train through a worm and wheel drive mechanism. US-A-2 780 299 illustrates in Figs. 2 and 3 thereof a differential gear system having the features of the preamble of claim 1. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an advantageous differential gear system having a differential gear which is capable of transmitting drive so as to prevent or minimize any tendency of one of a plurality of wheels connected to a drive line having the differential gear, to slip. Another object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle differential gear which dispenses with a differential lock or a limited slip differential. A further object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle differential gear which dispenses with any operation by a driver. The invention provides a differential gear system according to Claim 1. A differential gear system according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a rotatable case, pinions disposed rotatably in the case, a pair of side gears meshing with the pinions and disposed rotatably in said case, a first shaft supported rotatably about a rotary axis of said case and extending from one of said side gears, a second shaft supported rotatably about said axis and extending from the other side gear in the opposite direction to said first shaft, a driven means provided in one of said first and second shafts, a first means for rotating said driven means to give driving force to said first and second shafts, a worm wheel provided in said case, a second rotary means having a worm meshing with the worm wheel and a control device for controlling number of revolutions of said second rotary means to maintain the difference between number of revolutions of said first shaft and that of said second shaft within a predetermined range. The control device is a CPU or a computer for calculating on the basis of signals from a steering angle sensor and a vehicle speed sensor to control the number of revolutions of the second rotary means. According to another embodiment of the present invention, a driven means is fixed to said case, and a worm wheel is provided in one of the first and second shafts. When the differential gear is used for a front differential gear of a front wheel drive car or a rear differential gear of a rear wheel drive car, the first and second shafts are respectively connected to the drive wheels. Even if any of drive wheels runs onto snow or the like at the time of straight driving of a vehicle, since rotation of the case is ceased to maintain the difference between the number of revolutions of the first shaft and that of the second shaft to zero, there never occurs differential between first and second shafts. As a result, the drive wheel on snow or the like does not slip. As to the embodiment in which the case is rotated by the first rotary means, the worm wheel is rotated by the second rotary means at the number of revolutions same as or slight higher than that of the case at the time of straight driving. In this embodiment, similarly, even if any of drive wheels runs onto snow or the like, the drive wheel does not slip because there never occurs substantial difference of number of revolutions between the first or second shaft having the worm wheel and the case. According to the embodiment, the worm wheel is always rotated at the number of revolutions corresponding to a vehicle speed. However, the second rotary means needs only a small torque capacity for rotating the worm wheel because driving torque required for running the vehicle is transmitted to the first and second shafts through the first rotary means, driven means and case. The control device calculates the difference between the number of revolutions of the drive wheel located at an outside of turning and that of the drive wheel located at an inside of turning from a steering angle and vehicle speed at the time of turning of the vehicle and controls the second rotary means to give the difference to both drive wheels. Since the differential gear is provided with original driven means and first rotary means and further the worm wheel and second rotary means which has the worm and operates independently of said first rotary means, and the difference between the numbers of revolutions of the first and second shafts is held substantially zero at the time of straight driving and held within a predetermined range at the time of turning, one of a plurality of drive wheels is prevented from slipping. Also, smooth turning can be ensured. Since the second rotary means is operated by the control device, a driver can be released from complexities. Since a differential lock and limited slip differential are not needed, the construction of the differential gear can be simplified. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The other objects and features of the invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a sectional view taken along a rotary axis of a case of a differential gear; Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2-2 in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the rotary axis of the case in another embodiment of the differential gear; Figs. 4 and 5 are schematic views showing specific embodiments of the present invention; Fig. 6 is a view showing turning angle and other dimensions of a vehicle in turning; and Fig. 7 is a graph showing relation between a steering angle and a differential number of revolutions. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A differential gear 30 shown in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises a case 32, pinion gears 34 and side gears 36 disposed respectively in the case 32. The case 32 is a so-called differential case which is disposed in a differential carrier 38 and supported rotatably by a pair of roller bearings 40 attached to the differential carrier 38. At least one pinion shaft is fixed in the case 32. In an embodiment shown in Fig. 2, two short pinion shafts 43 are disposed orthogonally to a long pinion shaft 42. These pinion shafts have their axes arranged orthogonally to a rotary axis of the case 32. By the long pinion shaft 42 and short pinion shafts 43 are rotatably supported a pair of pinions 34 axially spaced from each other. When a single pinion shaft is used, two pinions 34 are rotatably supported by the pinion shaft. Two side gears 36 are disposed in the case 32 and spaced from each other to mesh with four pinions 34 respectively. A first shaft 44 is connected through serrations with one side gear 36 and extends from the case 32 in one direction. The shaft 44 projects from the differential carrier 38. The shaft 44 is supported through a boss 37 of the side gear 36 by a shoulder of the case 32 and through a first driven means which will be later described by a pair of bearings 46, said shaft 44 being rotatable about the rotary axis of the case 32. A second shaft 48 is connected through serrations with the other side gear 36 and extends from the case 32 in the opposite direction to the first shaft 44. The shaft 48 projects from the differential carrier 38. The shaft 48 is supported through a boss 37 of the other side gear 36 by a shoulder of the case 32 and by bearings (not shown), said shaft 48 being rotatable about the rotary axis of the case 32. A first driven means 50 is provided in one of the case 32, the first shaft 44 and the second shaft 48. In the construction shown in Fig. 1, the driven means 50 is a spur gear which connected through serrations with the first shaft 44. The pair of roller bearings 46 are attached between bosses 51 protruding from both sides of the spur gear 50 and the differential carrier 38, the spur gear 50 being rotatable about the same axis as the first shaft 44. A first rotary means which will be later described engages with the first driven means 50, both means giving driving force to the first and second shafts 44,48. A second driven means 52 is provided in one of the case 32, the first shaft 44 and the second shaft 48 which is not provided with the first driven means 50. In the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the second driven means 52 is a worm wheel which is fixed in the case 32 by press fitting or threading engagement well known per se. A second means 54 for rotating the second driven means 52 comprises a worm 55 which is rotatably supported by the differential carrier 38. On the other hand, an electric motor 56 is mounted on the differential carrier 38 and a shaft of the worm 55 is connected through serrations with an output shaft 57 of the motor 56. As will be later described, when signals from a steering angle sensor and a vehicle speed sensor are inputted to a control device, the control device calculates number of revolutions and direction of rotation of the second rotary means 54 on the basis of these signals and controls the same to maintain the difference between the numbers of revolutions of the first and second shafts 44,48 within a predetermined range including zero. A differential gear 60 shown in Fig. 3 is similar in its basic constitution to that of the differential gear 30 shown in Figs. 1 and 2. That is, the differential gear 60 comprises the case 32 supported rotatable by the differential carrier 38, pinions 34 supported rotatably by the pinion shaft 42 disposed in the case 32 and a pair of side gears 36 disposed in the case 32 to mesh with the pinions 34. The differential gear 60 further comprises the first shaft 44 extending from one side gear 36 and the second shaft 48 extending from the other side gear 36 in the opposite direction to the first shaft 44. In the differential gear 60, a first driven means 62 is formed of a spur gear fixed to the case 32 by bolts 64. The first driven means 62 is rotated by a first rotary means to give driving force to the first and second shafts 44,48. On the other hand, a second driven means 66 is formed of a worm wheel which is connected through serrations with the first shaft 44. The worm wheel 66 is rotated by a worm 68 included in a second rotary means to maintain the difference between the numbers of revolutions of the first and second shafts 44,48 within a predetermined range. In the differential gear 60 shown in Fig. 3, the case 32 is rotated at the time of straight driving and the worm wheel 66 is also rotated at the number of revolutions same as or slight higher than that of the case 32. At the time of turning of the vehicle, the worm wheel 66 is rotated at the number of revolutions which gives the required difference between the number of revolutions of the first shaft 44 and that of the second shaft 48. According to the differential gear 60, frictions between pinions 34 and the pinion shaft 42 and between the pinions 34 and the side gears 36 can be reduced. Said differential gears are used in various forms. In Fig. 4 showing schematically an embodiment of the invention, in which the differential gear 30 is used for a front differential gear in a front wheel drive car, the differential gear 30 is interposed between the front wheels 90,90. A spur gear 116 is fixed to the first shaft 44 of the differential gear 30. On the other hand, a spur gear 120 is fixed to a left drive shaft 118 to mesh with the spur gear 116. The numbers of teeth of both spur gears are equal to each other, so that the rotation of the first shaft 44 is reversed and taken out to the left drive shaft 118. A sprocket or pulley 122 is fixed to the second shaft 48 of the differential gear 30. On the other hand, a sprocket or pulley 126 is fixed to a right drive shaft 124. A chain or belt 128 is trained over the second shaft 48 and the right drive shaft 124. The spur gear 98 included in the first rotary means is connected to the transmission 100 to mesh with the spur gear of the first driven means 50. As a result, power from the transmission 100 is transmitted to the left front wheel 90 through a pair of spur gears 116,120 and left drive shaft 118 on one hand and to the right fromt wheel 90 through the differential gear 30, chain or belt 128 and right drive shaft 124 on the other hand. The control device 106 receives signals from the steering angle sensor 108 and vehicle speed sensor 110 to control the number of revolutions and directions of rotation of the motor 56. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 4, the rotation of the first shaft 44 of the differential gear 30 is reversed to transmit to the left drive shaft 118. In Fig. 5 showing schematically the embodiment, in which two differential gears 30 are used for front and rear differential gears in a four wheel drive car and an ordinary differential gear is used for a center differential gear 130, the differential carrier of the front side differential gear 30 and the differential carrier of the rear side differential gear 30 are respectively disposed between the front wheels 90,90 and between the rear wheels 132,132 to be fixed to the car body. Since the basic arrangement of the front side differential gear 30 is substantially similar to that shown in Fig 4, detailed description is abbreviated by giving same numerals to same parts. A bevel gear 134 included in the first rotary means is connected to a shaft 136 of the differential gear 130 and to the transmission 100 through the differential gear 130. The first driven means 50 is a bevel gear meshing with the bevel gear 134. A spur gear 140 is fixed to the first shaft 44 of the rear side differential gear 30. On the other hand, a spur gear 144 is fixed to the right drive shaft 142 to mesh with the spur gear 140. The number of teeth of the spur gear 140 is equal to that of the spur gear 142, thereby being reversed the rotation of the first shaft 44 to be taken out to the right drive shaft 142. A sprocket or pulley 146 is fixed to the second shaft 48 of the rear side differential gear 30. On the other hand, a sprocket or pulley 150 is fixed to a left drive shaft 148, a chain or belt 152 being trained over the second shaft 48 and the left drive shaft 148. A bevel gear 154 included in the first rotary means is connected to a shaft 156 of the differential gear 130 and to the transmission 100 through the differential gear 130. The first driven means 50 is a bevel gear meshing with the bevel gear 154. As a result, power transmitted from the transmission 100 is transmitted to the first shaft 44 through the differential gear 130 and bevel gears 154, 50 and then transmitted on one hand to the right rear wheel 132 through a pair of spur gears 140,144 and the right drive shaft 142 and on the other hand to the left rear wheel 132 through the differential gear 30, chain or belt 152 and left drive shaft 148. The control device 106 calculates on the basis of signals from the steering angle sensor 108 and vehicle speed sensor 110. The device controls the number of revolutions of the motor 56 for the front side differential gear 30 to maintain the difference between the numbers of revolutions of the left and right front drive shafts 118,124 within a predetermined range. The device 106 also controls the number of revolutions of the motor 56 for the rear side differential gear 30 to maintain the difference between the numbers of revolutions of the left and right rear drive shafts 148,142 within a predetermined range. The calculation in the control device is carried out by properly using the following formulas. As shown in Fig. 6, it is assumed that the number of revolutions of the front propeller shaft is set as N₁, a wheel base of the vehicle as ℓ, a wheel tread as m, a tire turning angle as δ and the final reduction ratio of the front side differential gear as i₁. Among said factors are detected the number of revolution N₁ and the tire turning angle δ respectively from the vehicle speed sensor and steering angle sensor. Then, the average turning radius R₁(OB) of the front wheels, average turning radius R₂(OA) of the rear wheels, turning radius R₁₁(OC) of a front inner wheel, turning radius R₁₂(OD) of a front outer wheel, turning radius R₂₁(OE) of a rear inner wheel and turning radius R₂₂(OF) of a rear outer wheel are given as shown in Fig. 6. The number of revolutions N₂ of the rear propeller shaft, the difference ΔN between the numbers of revolutions of the front and rear propeller shafts, the average number of revolutions n₁ of the front wheels and the average number of revolutions n₂ of the rear wheels are respectively obtained from the following formulas; N₂ = cos δ N₁ ΔN = N₁ - N₂ = (1 - cosδ)N₁ The number of revolutions n₂₁ of the rear inner wheel is obtained as follows; from the following relationship Similarly, the number of revolutions n₂₂ of the rear outer wheel is obtained as follows: from the following relationship Thus, the differential number of revolutions Δn₂ of the rear wheels is obtained as follows; On the other hand, the number of revolutions n₁₁ of the front inner wheel is obtained as follows; from the following relationship Similarly, the number of revolutions n₁₂ of the front outer wheel is obtained as follows; from the following relationship Accordingly, the differential number of revolution Δn₁ of the front wheels is obtained as follows; Δn₁ = (n₁₂ - n₁₁) When the electric motor 56 is rotated at the theoretical differential number of revolutions obtained by using aforementioned formulas, reaction force against the worm 55 hardly generates. Then, as shown in Fig. 7, it is preferable to utilize modified value Δ o which is slight larger than the theoretical difference Δ.

Claims: A differential gear (30) system comprising an epicyclic gear train having three rotary parts comprising a rotatable pinion gear (34) carrier assembly, and a pair of side gears (36), and having coaxial drive transmitting shafts (44,48) associated with said side gears (36); drive means (50,98) to rotate one of said rotary parts of the gear train; and a worm and wheel drive means (54) for driving another of said rotary parts; and a control device (106) for calculating, on the basis of signals from a steering angle sensor (108) and a vehicle speed sensor (110), and controlling the number of revolutions of said worm and wheel drive means (54); characterized in that the differential gear (30) has a single epicyclic gear train and is disposed between right and left drive shafts (118,124), and in that one of said first and second drive transmitting shafts (44,48) is connected to one of the right and left drive shafts (118,124) through a gear train (116,120) and the other of the first and second drive transmitting shafts is connected to the other of the right and left drive shafts (118,124) through a drive coupling (122,126,128) which transmits the drive therebetween in the same rotational direction. A differential gear system as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said worm and wheel device (54) drives said rotatable pinion gear (34) carrier assembly, and said drive means (50,98) drives one of said drive transmitting shafts (44,48). A differential gear system as claimed in Claim 2, wherein said control device (106) controls said worm and wheel drive means (54) so as to maintain the difference between the number of revolutions of said shafts (44,48) within a predetermined range. A differential gear system as claimed in Claim 3, wherein an electric motor (56) is included in said worm and wheel drive means (54) and rotated at the number of revolutions slightly higher than the theoretical value obtained by calculation. A differential gear system as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said worm and wheel drive means (66,68) drives one of said shafts (44,48) and said drive means (62) drives said rotatable pinion gear (34) carrier assembly.

Inventors: AZUMA HITOSHI, TOMO KENTARO, AZUMA, HITOSHI, TOMO, KENTARO
Applicants: TOYOTA MOTOR CO LTD, TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
Application year: 1987
Main classification: B60K17
IPC codes: B60K17, B60K23, F16H48, F16H59