Patent ID: 7651099

Claim:
A method for sealing a cavity between a shaft and a housing, the method comprising: inserting a seal into the cavity between the shaft and the housing; engaging a first wall contacting portion of a first leg of a first monolithic member of the seal with the shaft such that the first member is substantially stationary relative to the shaft and to inhibit passage of contaminants from an exterior of the cavity through the cavity toward an axis of the shaft; engaging a second wall contacting portion of a second leg of a second monolithic member of the seal with the housing to inhibit passage of the contaminants from the exterior of the cavity through the cavity toward the axis and such that the second member is substantially stationary relative to the housing; the first leg having a first free axial portion and the second leg having a second free axial portion, the first leg having a first radial portion connected to the first axial portion and the second leg having a second radial portion connected to the second axial portion; the first wall contacting portion connected to the first radial portion and the second wall contacting portion connected to the second radial portion, the first wall contacting and the second wall contacting portion extending away from each other; engaging a first engaging portion of the first member and a second engaging portion of the second member with each other to inhibit passage of the contaminants from the exterior of the cavity through the cavity toward the axis such that the first engaging portion and the second engaging portion directly contact each other and such that the first member and the second member are rotatable relative to each other about the axis; and wherein the first leg and the second leg are axially separated from each other by an opening, the first leg having a first inner surface and the second leg having a second inner surface, the first inner surface and the second inner surface bounding an opening separating the first leg and the second leg from each other such that the seal avoids extending into the opening between the first free axial portion and the second free axial portion, and the first leg and the second leg avoiding contacting each other.