Patent ID: 8105194

Claim:
A pivot joint comprising: a pressure plate having a pressure plate surface; a clutch plate having a clutch plate hole extending through the clutch plate, a clutch plate surface in contact with the pressure plate surface, and at least one inclined clutch contact area opposite the clutch plate surface; a pivot arm having a pivot hole and comprising at least one inclined arm contact area in contact with and complementary in shape to the inclined clutch contact area; a pivot pin comprising a pivot pin head and a pivot pin shaft extending through the pivot hole and the clutch plate hole and into the pressure plate; a first spring mounted on the pivot pin between the pivot pin head and the pivot arm, wherein the first spring urges the pivot arm away from the pivot pin head, provides a first spring preload on the pivot arm and the clutch plate, and provides an end gap between the pivot pin head and the pivot arm to be taken up by a relative rotation around the pivot pin of the at least one inclined clutch contact area and of the at least one inclined arm contact area; and a second spring mounted on the pivot pin and acting on a surface of the clutch plate to bias the clutch plate toward the pressure plate and providing a second spring preload on the clutch plate; such that when the end gap has not been taken up and the pivot arm rotates in a compression direction, the inclined arm contact area rotates around the pivot pin relative to the inclined clutch contact area, thereby increasing a distance between the inclined arm contact area and the pressure plate and increasing a stack height of the clutch plate and the pivot arm; and such that when the end gap has been taken up, the pivot arm binds against the pivot pin, loading the pivot pin directly in tension.