Patent ID: 8053691

Claim:
An assembly disposed within a transmission for controlling the movement of a lever between a first position and a second position, the first position corresponding to a first mode of transmission operation and the second position corresponding to a second mode of transmission operation, the assembly comprising: a housing having a longitudinal axis; an inner sleeve attached to and disposed within the housing, wherein the inner sleeve is coaxial with the longitudinal axis, and wherein the inner sleeve defines an aperture that extends from an inner surface of the inner sleeve to an outer surface of the inner sleeve; a bearing element disposed within the aperture of the inner sleeve; an outer sleeve connected to and moveable by the lever, the outer sleeve disposed between the inner sleeve and the housing, the outer sleeve coaxial with the longitudinal axis, the outer sleeve having an inner surface that defines a detent, and wherein the bearing element is aligned with the detent of the outer sleeve when the lever is in the second position; and an armature slidably disposed within the inner sleeve and coaxial with the longitudinal axis, the armature having an outer surface that defines a detent, wherein the armature is moveable along the longitudinal axis between an unlocked position and a locked position, and wherein the bearing element is aligned with the detent of the armature when the armature is in the unlocked position and the bearing element is not aligned with the detent of the armature when the armature is in the locked position, and wherein the lever is prevented from moving from the second position to the first position when the armature is in the locked position and the bearing element prevents the outer sleeve from moving relative to the inner sleeve.