Patent ID: 7152400

Claim:
A hydrodynamic torque converter of the type comprising a pump wheel and a turbine wheel, each said wheel comprising an outer shell, an inner shell, and a plurality of vanes connecting the shells, each said vane comprising an inner edge facing said inner shell and an outer edge facing said outer shell, each said shell having at least one opening with a length and a rear surface facing away from the vanes, each said vane of at least the turbine wheel comprising: a plurality of connecting elements on said edges, said elements being received through respective openings in the shells and deformed against the rear surfaces of the shells to fasten the vanes to the shells, at least one connecting element on the inner edge comprising a pair of separately deformable connecting segments received in one of the openings corresponding to said at least one connecting element, said connecting segments, before being deformed against the rear surfaces of the shells, lying in respective planes which intersect at a first angle dependent on the curvature of said vanes, the one of the openings for receiving the connecting segments of the at least one connecting element comprises a narrow opening divided into two sections arranged at a second angle relative to each other, wherein said second angle corresponds to said first angle.