A gyroscopic roll stabilizer comprises a gimbal having a support frame and enclosure configured to maintain a below-ambient pressure, a flywheel assembly including a flywheel and flywheel shaft, one or more bearings for rotatably mounting the flywheel inside the enclosure, a motor for rotating the flywheel, and bearing cooling system for cooling the bearings supporting the flywheel. For smaller units, the bearing cooling system is effective to enable a flywheel with a moment of inertia less than 40,000 lb in.sup.2 to be accelerated at a rate of 5 rpm/s or greater. For larger units, the bearing cooling system is effective to enable a flywheel with a moment of inertia greater than 40,000 lb in.sup.2 to be accelerated at a rate of 2.5 rpm/s or greater.

A gyroscopic roll stabilizer comprises a gimbal having a support frame and enclosure configured to maintain a below-ambient pressure, a flywheel assembly including a flywheel and flywheel shaft, one or more bearings for rotatably mounting the flywheel inside the enclosure, a motor for rotating the flywheel, and bearing cooling system for cooling the bearings supporting the flywheel. For smaller units, the bearing cooling system is effective to enable a flywheel with a moment of inertia less than 40,000 lb in.sup.2 to be accelerated at a rate of 5 rpm/s or greater. For larger units, the bearing cooling system is effective to enable a flywheel with a moment of inertia greater than 40,000 lb in.sup.2 to be accelerated at a rate of 2.5 rpm/s or greater.

A gyroscopic roll stabilizer comprises a gimbal having a support frame and enclosure configured to maintain a below-ambient pressure, a flywheel assembly including a flywheel and flywheel shaft, one or more bearings for rotatably mounting the flywheel inside the enclosure, a motor for rotating the flywheel, and bearing cooling system for cooling the bearings supporting the flywheel. The bearing cooling system enables heat generated by the bearings to be transferred through the flywheel shaft to a heat sink disposed within a cavity in the end of the flywheel shaft, or to a liquid coolant circulating within the cavity.

A torsional vibration damper in which vibration damping performance is ensured by preventing a contact between a rolling mass and a rotary member. A rolling mass includes a trunk penetrating through a bore. A first corner formed in an axial end of the trunk is rounded. A rotary member includes a second corner formed in the bore. an axial length of the first corner of the rolling mass is longer than an axial length of the second corner of the rotary member.

A pump system may include a pump, a driveshaft, driving equipment, and a vibration dampening assembly configured to reduce pump-imposed high frequency/low amplitude and low frequency/high amplitude torsional vibrations. The pump may have an input shaft connected to the driveshaft. The driving equipment may include an output shaft having an output flange connected to the driveshaft. The driving equipment may be configured to rotate the driveshaft to rotate the input shaft of the pump therewith. The vibration dampening assembly may include one or more flywheels operably connected to the input shaft and configured to rotate therewith.

A dome connector for a flywheel rim to shaft attachment is provided. The dome connector includes a helically wound composite band that extends from a first port to a second port. The helically wound composite band has a helical angle in relation to a line perpendicular to a center of axis of the dome connector. The helical angle is selected to at least in part achieve a desired stiffness in the dome connector.

A gyroscopic roll stabilizer comprises a gimbal having a support frame and enclosure configured to maintain a below-ambient pressure, a flywheel assembly including a flywheel and flywheel shaft, one or more bearings for rotatably mounting the flywheel inside the enclosure, a motor for rotating the flywheel, and bearing cooling system for cooling the bearings supporting the flywheel. For smaller units, the bearing cooling system is effective to enable a flywheel with a moment of inertia less than 40,000 lb in.sup.2 to be accelerated at a rate of 5 rpm/s or greater. For larger units, the bearing cooling system is effective to enable a flywheel with a moment of inertia greater than 40,000 lb in.sup.2 to be accelerated at a rate of 2.5 rpm/s or greater.

A device for generating electricity includes a rotatable flywheel assembly including a flywheel and an axle rotatable about a first axis to spin the flywheel, support means to suspend the rotatable assembly and to allow the flywheel assembly to rotate with respect to the support means about a second axis to perform rotary motion normal to the first axis, and track means contactable with a free end of the axle for augmenting the spinning of the flywheel while it is also in rotary motion about the first and second axes. The rotating assembly is initially rotated to induce spinning motion of the flywheel and the axle until the flywheel has a predetermined rotational energy, the flywheel assembly being engaged with an electrical generator for converting the spinning motion of the flywheel assembly into electricity. The track means provides augmenting rotation to the flywheel assembly in at least an intermittent manner.

A composite flywheel (13), comprising a primary flywheel (15) integral with an input shaft (31) and a secondary flywheel (17) coaxial with the primary flywheel (15). The secondary flywheel (17) and the primary flywheel (15) are constrained so that they can rotate freely with respect to each other. A coupling device (61) is further provided, adapted selectively to: transmit power from the input shaft (31) to the secondary flywheel (17); and disengage the secondary flywheel (17) from the input shaft (31).

A vehicle power transmission apparatus including: (i) a flywheel provided with a center hole in which an end portion of a crankshaft of an engine is inserted such that an outer circumferential surface of the end portion of the crankshaft is fitted in a fitting portion of the center hole; (ii) an input shaft to which a power of the engine is transmitted through the flywheel; and (iii) a disk including an outer peripheral portion connected to an outer peripheral portion of the flywheel, and provided with a center hole spline-fitted on an outer circumferential surface of an engine-side end portion of the input shaft. The outer circumferential surface of the engine-side end portion of the input shaft has a diameter larger than a diameter of the fitting portion of the center hole of the flywheel.