Patent ID: 8425364

Claim:
A continuously variable transmission arranged in a housing, said transmission comprising an input shaft receiving power from an external power source and having a sun gear rotatable therewith, a carrier plate rotatably mounted to and positioned coaxially with said input shaft, an output gear rigidly connected to said carrier and positioned coaxially therewith, at least two planet gears arranged equidistant around and meshing with said sun gear, each planet gear being mounted to planet gear shafts through a free wheeling clutch assembly which allows said planet gears to freely rotate in a first direction with respect to said gear shaft yet prevent rotation of the planet gear in an opposite direction with respect to said planet gear shaft, wherein each planet gear is thus rotatably mounted to said carrier, a cam having a cross section elongated in an axial direction and shaped so that the cross section changes along the axial direction, said cam being positioned coaxially with said input shaft and rigidly mounted to said housing as to be unable to rotate, at least two followers positioned to be reciprocated by said cam which are mounted on each planet gear so that they are free to move linearly along the axis thereof but rotatably engaged each planet gear shaft, said cam followers each including rollers rotatably mounted on the end of each follower distal from the said planet gear shaft, and a mechanism for positioning each follower along its planet gear shaft axis while said transmission is in motion.