Patent ID: 8813484

Claim:
A launch device connected between an engine and a transmission in a motor vehicle, the launch device comprising: a pump driven by the engine, the pump having a plurality of impeller blades connected to and circumferentially spaced around an inside surface of the pump; a turbine connected to the transmission, the turbine having a plurality of turbine blades connected to and circumferentially spaced around an inside surface of the turbine; a fluid disposed between the pump and the turbine for hydrodynamically connecting the pump to the turbine; and a stator assembly disposed between the pump and the turbine, the stator assembly having a plurality of circumferentially spaced stator vanes connected to a stator hub and having a throttle plate slidably connected to the stator hub, wherein the throttle plate is moveable between a first position and a second position, wherein the throttle plate partially blocks a flow of the fluid through the stator vanes when the throttle plate is in the first position and the throttle plate does not block a flow of the fluid through the stator vanes when the throttle plate is in the second position.