Patent ID: 8079914

Claim:
A plunging constant velocity universal joint comprising: an outer joint part having a plurality of track grooves formed on a cylindrical inner circumferential surface thereof and extending in an axial direction; an inner joint part having a plurality of track grooves formed on a spherical outer circumferential surface thereof and extending in the axial direction; n number of torque transmitting balls, each torque transmitting ball being disposed in a ball track formed by a pair of a track groove of said plurality of track grooves of said outer joint part and a track groove of said plurality of track grooves of said inner joint part; a cage having pockets configured to retain said torque transmitting balls, wherein a center of a spherical outer circumferential surface and a center of a spherical inner circumferential surface of said cage are offset by the same distance in opposite directions along an axis about the center of said constant velocity universal joint; and an arrangement configured to reduce an nth component of an induced thrust that occurs and acts on said cage or said outer joint part when rotating with torque, said arrangement being a circumferential arrangement of said ball tracks with a uniform pitch, a circumferential arrangement of the pockets of the cage with a uniform pitch, and circumferential lengths of said pockets being uneven at least at one location, wherein at least one pocket of said pockets has a first pillar on a first side and a second pillar on a second side, and a width of said first pillar is different that a width of said second pillar.