Patent ID: 6925902

Claim:
A worm speed change apparatus comprising: a housing having at least one bearing hole, the bearing hole having a peripheral groove formed therein: a worm shaft having first and second end portions; a worm wheel meshed with the worm shaft; a raceway groove formed directly in at least the first end portion of the worm shaft; a bearing outer ring which is held within the bearing hole of the housing and which is concentrically disposed around the raceway groove; a plurality of rolling elements rotatably disposed between the bearing outer ring and the raceway groove, the first end portion of the worm shaft being directly received and rotatably supported by the rolling elements; a bearing rotatably supporting the second end portion of the worm shaft; and a snap ring disposed in the peripheral groove, the snap ring having a resilient tongue that extends therefrom, the resilient tongue being in contact with an end face of the bearing outer ring, the resilient biasing the bearing outer ring toward the bearing supporting the second end portion of the worm shaft.