Clutch Plate and Friction Clutch

Abstract

A plurality of annular clutch disks (12) is manufactured by blanking or die-cutting a flat sheet metal strip (2) during which the flat sheet metal strip (2) is advanced relative to a blanking or cutting tool along a feed direction between individual blanking or cutting processes with the blanking or cutting tool in order to form the annular clutch disks (12) from the flat sheet metal strip (2). Each of the annular clutch disks (12) is asymmetric with respect to a center point of a respective ring and includes an axis of symmetry (18) which is not orthogonal to the feed direction of the flat sheet metal strip. Each of the annular clutch disks (12) is axially symmetric at least to such an extent that each of the annular clutch disks (12) is installable in a multi-disk clutch (26) in precisely one first installation position (A) and in one second installation position (B). The second installation position results from the first installation position via turning over about the axis of symmetry (18).

Claims

1-8. (canceled)

9. A plurality of annular clutch disks (12) manufactured by blanking or die-cutting a flat sheet metal strip (2) during which the flat sheet metal strip (2) is advanced relative to a blanking or cutting tool along a feed direction between individual blanking or cutting processes with the blanking or cutting tool in order to form the annular clutch disks (12) from the flat sheet metal strip (2), wherein each of the annular clutch disks (12) is asymmetric with respect to a center point of a respective ring and includes an axis of symmetry (18) which is not orthogonal to the feed direction of the flat sheet metal strip, and wherein each of the annular clutch disks (12) is axially symmetric at least to such an extent that each of the annular clutch disks (12) is installable in a multi-disk clutch (26) in precisely one first installation position (A) and in one second installation position (B), the second installation position resulting from the first installation position via turning over about the axis of symmetry (18).

10. The annular clutch disks (12) of claim 9, wherein the axis of symmetry (18) of each of the annular clutch disks (12) is aligned with the feed direction (4) of the sheet metal strip during manufacture of the annular clutch disks (12).

11. The annular clutch disks (12) of claim 9, wherein each of the annular clutch disks (12) comprises an alignment feature (20) indicative of alignment with respect to the sheet metal strip (2) is establishable.

12. The annular clutch disks (12) of claim 11, wherein each of the annular clutch disks (12) comprises: a driving toothing which is asymmetrical with respect to the center point of the respective ring; at least one non-toothed sector; and the axis of symmetry (18) which is not aligned orthogonally to the feed direction, the driving toothing being axially symmetric to the axis of symmetry (18) at least to such an extent that the driving toothing is installable in the multi-disk clutch (26) in precisely the first installation position (A) and the second installation position (B), the second installation position resulting from the first installation position via turning over about the axis of symmetry (18), wherein the alignment feature is at least one reference tooth (20) of the driving toothing, the at least one reference tooth (20) positioned on only one side of the axis of symmetry (18).

13. The annular clutch disks (12) of claim 12, wherein: a tooth pitch angle increment of the driving toothing is 10; a 0 position is located on the axis of symmetry; and the driving toothing consists of a driving tooth at angular positions of 0, 10, 20, 30, 50, 70, 90, 110, 160, 170, 180, 190, 200, 250, 270, 290, 300, 310, 330, 340 and 350.

14. A multi-disk clutch (26) or brake comprising a stack of the annular clutch disks (12) of claim 9, wherein the annular clutch disks (12) are alternatingly stacked one on top of another in the first and the second installation positions such that, in the stack, sectors of the annular clutch disks (12) having increased thickness (14) adjacent to sectors of the annular clutch disks (12) having decreased thickness (16) are aligned in a manner that at least partially compensates for thickness fluctations in the annular clutch disks (12) within the stack.

15. A multi-disk clutch (26) or brake comprising a disk carrier (30) and a stack of the annular clutch disks (12) of claim 12, wherein: the annular clutch disks (12) are alternatingly stacked one on top of another in the first and the second installation positions such that, in the stack, sectors of the annular clutch disks (12) having increased thickness (14) adjacent to sectors of the annular clutch disks (12) having decreased thickness (16) are aligned in a manner that at least partially compensates for thickness fluctations in the annular clutch disks (12) within the stack; and the disk carrier (30) comprises a driving toothing which matches the driving toothing of the annular clutch disks (12), at least one non-toothed sector, and a tooth gap matched to the reference tooth (20) in the first and the second installation positions of the annular clutch disks (12).

16. A multi-disk clutch (26) or brake comprising a disk carrier (30) and a stack of the annular clutch disks (12) of claim 13, wherein: the annular clutch disks (12) are alternatingly stacked one on top of another in the first and the second installation positions such that, in the stack, sectors of the annular clutch disks (12) having increased thickness (14) adjacent to sectors of the annular clutch disks (12) having decreased thickness (16) are aligned in a manner that at least partially compensates for thickness fluctations in the annular clutch disks (12) within the stack; the disk carrier (30) comprises a driving toothing which matches the driving toothing of the annular clutch disks (12), at least one non-toothed sector, and a tooth gap matched to the reference tooth (20) in the first and the second installation positions of the annular clutch disks (12); a tooth pitch angle increment of the driving toothing of the disk carrier is 10; and the driving toothing of the disk carrier consists of a tooth gap for accommodating the driving tooth of the annular clutch disks (12) at angular positions of 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 110, 160 , 170, 180, 190, 200, 210, 250, 270, 290, 300, 310, 330, 340 and 350.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Advantageous embodiments of the invention are explained in greater detail with reference to the attached figures. Wherein:

[0017] FIG. 1 shows clutch disks in a sheet metal strip before the blanking;

[0018] FIG. 2 shows a disk stack; and

[0019] FIG. 3 shows a multi-disk clutch in a transmission housing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] Reference will now be made to embodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which are shown in the drawings. Each embodiment is provided by way of explanation of the invention, and not as a limitation of the invention. For example, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be combined with another embodiment to yield still another embodiment. It is intended that the present invention include these and other modifications and variations to the embodiments described herein.

[0021] In FIG. 1, the reference numeral 2 marks a piece of sheet metal strip, which has been unrolled from a sheet metal coil and is aligned in the conveyance direction, which is indicated by the arrow 4, relative to the punch press. Due to the rolling process during the manufacture of the sheet metal strip, the sheet metal strip has one side with increased thickness 6 and one side with decreased thickness 8. The annular clutch disks 12 are blanked one after another from the sheet metal strip 2. Between the blanking processes, the sheet metal strip is advanced in the conveyance direction. As a result, the blanked clutch disk includes a sector having increased thickness 14 and a sector having decreased thickness 16. The clutch disks 12 include a driving toothing on their external contours.

[0022] With respect to the center point of the ring, the driving toothing and, therefore, the clutch disk, are asymmetrically designed, i.e., point-symmetry is not given. The clutch disks 12 have an axis of symmetry 18, however, which is aligned in the feed direction of the sheet metal strip in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. The clutch disks are designed to be axially symmetric with respect to this axis of symmetry to such an extent that the clutch disks can be installed, in a multi-disk clutch, in precisely one first installation position and one second installation position, wherein the second installation position results from the first installation position via turning over about the axis of symmetry. A complete axial symmetry is not given, however: The mirror image of the reference tooth of the driving toothing marked with 20 is not present. At this point, which is marked with 22, the clutch disk includes a so-called missing tooth. The alignment of the blanked clutch disk with respect to the sheet metal strip can be established on the basis of the reference tooth 20, and, therefore, the side including the sector having increased thickness 14 can be differentiated from the other side including the sector having decreased thickness 16.

[0023] FIG. 2 shows a disk stack, in which the clutch disks 12 have been stacked one on top of another in the first installation position and in the second installation position in alternation, wherein a lined disk 24, which is assigned to a second clutch half, is situated in the stack between adjacent clutch disks 12 which are assigned to a first clutch half. In this case, one sector having decreased thickness 16 of a clutch disk 12 is located over a sector having increased thickness 14 of an adjacent clutch disk 12 in each case, and so the thickness fluctuations in the stack compensate each other.

[0024] FIG. 3 shows a multi-disk clutch 26 in a transmission housing 28 in two representations A and B. In FIG. 3, a disk carrier into which clutch disks 12 have been placed is marked with 30. In representation A, the uppermost clutch disk 12 has been installed in a first installation position, while, in representation B, the uppermost clutch disk 12 has been installed in the second installation position. In this case, the second installation position results from the first installation position by turning the clutch disk 12 over about the axis of symmetry 18. The two installation positions differ by the position of the reference tooth 20 and the opposed missing tooth 22 of the driving toothing.

[0025] In this case, the disk carrier 26 includes a tooth gap at the position of the reference tooth 20 as well as at the position of the missing tooth 22, which is opposed with respect to the axis of symmetry 18, whereby the installation in both installation positions is made possible. Due to the asymmetry of the driving toothing of the clutch disks 12 and the matching driving toothing of the disk carrier with respect to the center point of the ring, other installation positions are ruled out, however, which ensures failsafe installation.

[0026] In the case of the clutch disks 12 shown in FIG. 3, the tooth pitch angle increment of the driving toothing is 10, wherein the 0 position is located on the axis of symmetry, on which the angle 32 is based. In representation B, the driving toothing includes a driving tooth only at the angular positions 0, 10, 20, 30, 50, 70, 90, 110, 160, 170, 180, 190, 200, 250, 270, 290, 300, 310, 330, 340 and 350. The missing tooth 22 is located at the position 60 and the reference tooth 20 is located at the position 300. The driving toothing of the disk carrier 30 includes a tooth gap for accommodating a driving tooth of the clutch disks only at the angular positions 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 110, 160, 170, 180, 190, 200, 210, 250, 270, 290, 300, 310, 330, 340 and 350. In this case, a non-toothed sector is therefore given at the angular positions 60 and 300, which includes a tooth gap which matches the reference tooth 20 in the first as well as the second installation positions.

[0027] Modifications and variations can be made to the embodiments illustrated or described herein without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

Reference Characters

[0028] 2 sheet metal strip [0029] 4 conveyance direction [0030] 6 side having increased thickness [0031] 8 side having decreased thickness [0032] 12 disk [0033] 14 sector having increased thickness [0034] 16 sector having decreased thickness [0035] 18 axis of symmetry [0036] 20 reference tooth [0037] 22 missing tooth [0038] 24 lined disk [0039] 26 multi-disk clutch [0040] 28 transmission housing [0041] 30 disk carrier [0042] 32 angle