RUNNING ROLLER FOR A POD JOINT

Abstract

A cam roller for a pod joint, comprising an inner rolling path and an outer ring unit, wherein a rolling path for the rolling on a bell housing section is arranged on an outer side of the outer ring unit, a plurality of rolling elements, wherein the plurality of rolling elements are arranged between the inner rolling path and the outer ring unit, and a cage device, wherein the plurality of rolling elements are arranged within the cage device, wherein the cage device includes at least one separating point in circumferential direction.

Claims

1. A cam roller for a pod joint, comprising: an inner rolling path; an outer ring unit, wherein a rolling path configured to allow rolling on a bell housing section is arranged on an outer side of the outer ring unit; a plurality of rolling elements, wherein the plurality of rolling elements are arranged between the inner rolling path and the outer ring unit; a cage device, wherein the plurality of rolling elements are arranged within the cage device, wherein the cage device includes at least one separating point in circumferential direction.

2. The cam roller of claim 1, wherein the inner rolling path is formed at an inner ring unit configured to receive a pin of a shaft stub section.

3. The cam roller of claim 1, wherein the cage device features exactly one separating point.

4. The cam roller of claim 1, wherein the cage device is designed as a segment cage and/or features more than one separating point.

5. The cam roller of claim 4, wherein the cage device is designed as a window cage.

6. The cam roller of claim 3, wherein the cage device is designed as a center cage.

7. The cam roller of claim 6, wherein the outer ring unit comprises a circulating guiding groove for the plurality of rolling elements.

8. The cam roller of claim 7, wherein a securing side ring is arranged within the outer ring unit and secures the plurality of rolling elements in an axial direction.

9. The cam roller of claim 8, wherein the cam roller further includes an inner ring unit formed in a single piece and is configured to carry an outer rolling path for the plurality of rolling elements.

10. (canceled)

11. A cam roller for a pod joint, comprising: an inner ring device configured to receive a pin of a shaft stub portion; an outer ring device, wherein a running path for running on a bell housing portion is arranged on an outer side of the outer ring device; a plurality of rolling bodies arranged between the inner ring device and the outer ring device; and a cage device that includes rolling bodies and at least one separating point in a circumferential direction.

12. The cam roller of claim 11, wherein the inner ring device is formed as a single piece and is configured to carry an outer rolling path for the plurality of rolling bodies.

13. The cam roller of claim 11, wherein the outer ring device is formed as a single piece and is configured to carry an inner rolling path for the plurality of rolling bodies.

14. The cam roller of claim 11, wherein the cam roller includes at least one securing side configured arranged within the outer ring and configured to secure the rolling bodies in an axial direction.

15. The cam roller of claim 14, wherein the outer ring unit includes circulating ring grooves configured to allow the securing side ring to be placed in a form-fit manner.

16. The cam roller of claim 11, wherein the pod joint is a tripod joint.

17. The cam roller of claim 11, wherein the cage device includes a continuous connect link formed in an axial direction between respective rolling bodies.

18. The cam roller of claim 17, wherein the cage device includes a window that encloses one of the rolling bodies.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] Further characteristics, advantages and effects of the disclosure can be derived from the following description of preferred embodiments of the disclosure as well as from the attached figures. It is shown:

[0031] FIG. 1 a highly schematic representation of a pod joint as an embodiment of the disclosure;

[0032] FIGS. 2a, b schematic longitudinal sectional representations of two different embodiments of cam rollers for the pod joint in FIG. 1;

[0033] FIGS. 3, 4, 5 in a respective three-dimensional representation, an embodiment of a cage device for the cam rollers in the FIGS. 2a, b or in the pod joint according to FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] FIG. 1 depicts a highly schematic representation of a pod joint 1 for a motor vehicle 2, which is only depicted as a block, as an embodiment of the disclosure.

[0035] Pod joint 1 is arranged within the drive train between transmission output 3, in particular a differential transmission, and an intermediate shaft 4, in particular a driving shaft for a wheel or a cardan shaft. Transmission output 3 defines an output shaft 5, the intermediate shaft 4 defines a shaft axis 6. Pod joint 1 is designed to transmit a rotation and thus a drive torque from output 3 to the intermediate shaft 4 and at the same time to enable a tilting or angular adjusting between the output axis 5 and the shaft axis 6, as it can e.g. occur during the deflection of a wheel that is driven and connected to the intermediate shaft 4. The intermediate shaft 4 comprises a shaft stub section 7, onto which a plurality of pins 8, in this embodiment three pins 8, are arranged, which extend in radial direction with reference to the shaft axis 6. Pins 8 are arranged in circumferential direction in regular intervals around shaft axis 6, so that they form a pod star, in this example a tripod star. In FIG. 1, only one of the pins 8 is graphically depicted. On the pins 8, one respective cam roller 9 is arranged, which features a cam roller axis 30 as rotation axis, which is arranged in radial direction with reference to the shaft axis 6.

[0036] The pod joint 1 further comprises a bell housing section 10, which is coupled to output 3 in a non-rotatable manner and which provides rolling paths for the cam rollers 9.

[0037] While an embodiment is depicted in FIG. 1, in which the bell housing section 10 is coupled to output 3 in a non-rotatable manner and in which the shaft stub section 7 is coupled to the intermediate shaft 4 in a non-rotatable manner, it is also possible in other embodiments that the shaft stub section 7 is coupled to output 3 in a non-rotatable manner and that the bell housing section 10 is coupled to the intermediate shaft 4. It is furthermore possible that the bell housing section 10 is designed in such a way that it is circumferentially enclosed or that it features open sections.

[0038] Longitudinal sectional representations of two design forms of the cam roller 9 are depicted in FIGS. 2a, b. The cam rollers 9 comprise one respective inner ring unit 11 as well as one outer ring unit 12, which are arranged coaxially and concentrically with reference to the cam roller axis 30.

[0039] The inner ring unit 11 is designed as a single piece and/or one material inner ring and features a hollow cylindrical receiving slot 13 for pin 8 on the radial inner side. On the radial outer side, it provides a cylinder surface as inner rolling path 14.

[0040] The outer ring unit 12 is designed in a single piece and/or one material manner and features a rolling path 15 on the radial outer side for the rolling on an inner surface of the bell housing section 10. In the depicted longitudinal sectional representation, the rolling path 15 is designed in a convex manner and in this embodiment in a spherical manner with reference to the rolling path axis 10. On the radial inner side, the outer ring unit 12 carries an outer rolling path 16.

[0041] A plurality of rolling elements 17 is arranged between the inner ring unit 11 and the outer ring unit 12. The rolling elements 17 are designed as cylinder rollers and are implemented in both embodiments as needle rollers, wherein their longitudinal extension in axial direction with reference to the rolling path 30 is more than five times as large as the diameter of the rolling elements 17. On the one hand, the rolling elements 17 roll on the inner rolling path 14 and on the other side on the outer rolling path 16. It is thus possible to rotate the inner ring unit 11 in relation to the outer ring unit 12 via the rolling elements 17, wherein the inner ring unit 11 and the outer ring unit 12 roll in opposite direction via the rolling elements 17.

[0042] The rolling elements 17 are arranged within a cage device 18, which will be described in detail later by FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, wherein these Figures depict different embodiments of the cage device 18.

[0043] Cam roller 9 furthermore comprises two securing side rings 19, 20, which secure the rolling elements 17 in axial direction, optionally either directly (compare FIG. 5) or indirectly by the cage device 18 (compare FIG. 3, 4). The securing side rings 19, 20 are inserted into circulating ring grooves 21, 22, which are formed into the outer ring unit 12. The side rings 19, 20 extend in radial direction towards the inside to such an extent that they overlap with the inner ring unit 11 in axial direction and thus also secure the inner ring unit 11 against an axial sliding out.

[0044] In FIG. 2a, the outer rolling path 16 is formed in a hollow cylindrical manner and extends via an extension all the way until the securing side rings 19, 20. However, in the design form in FIG. 2b, the outer ring unit 12 features a circulating guiding groove 23, which is designed in its axial width in such a way, that the cage device 18 (compare FIG. 3, 4) or the rolling elements 17 (compare FIG. 5) are guided by the side walls of the guiding groove 23.

[0045] FIG. 3 depicts a first embodiment of a cage device 18 with inserted rolling elements 17. Cage device 18 is designed as a window cage, wherein a continuous connecting link 24 is formed in axial direction between the respective rolling elements 17, which leads into a circulating ring section 25 or 26, so that each rolling element 17 is arranged within a window 27 that fully encloses the rolling element.

[0046] However, cage device 18 is not fully enclosed in circumferential direction around the cam roller axis 10, but it rather features a separating point 28, so that cage device 18 is completely interrupted at one point in circumferential direction.

[0047] In the embodiment in FIG. 3 however, the cage device 18 comprises two separating points 28 which are set at an offset of 180 degrees towards each other, so that two cage segments 29a, 29b are formed, which are designed as a respective half shell.

[0048] By utilizing the at least one separating point 28, it can be achieved that the assembling of cage device 18 is simplified. Thus, the embodiment of cage device 18 in FIG. 3 can be varied in its open diameter by a bending open or close. Cage device 18 in FIG. 4 can be placed onto the inner ring unit 11 by the two cage segments 29a, b which are designed as two separate half shells.

[0049] Another design form of cage device 18 is depicted in FIG. 5, wherein this one is implemented as a center cage. In its configuration as a center cage, the rolling elements 17 are only guided in a central area of the center cage, whereas the rolling elements 17 protrude out of cage device 18 on both sides. Rolling elements 17 are inserted and may be clipped into receiving slots 31 of cage device 18, so that these are at least held in a form-fit manner in radial direction with regard to cam roller axis 10. Cage device 18 also features a separating point 28, so that the cage device 18similar to the one in FIG. 3can be mounted onto the inner ring unit 11 in a simple manner. For adapted embodiments it is also possible that the center cage is designed as a segment cage and that it features several center cage segments.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0050] 1 Pod joint [0051] 2 Motor vehicle [0052] 3 Transmission output [0053] 4 Intermediate shaft [0054] 5 Output axis [0055] 6 Shaft axis [0056] 7 Shaft stub section [0057] 8 Pin [0058] 9 Cam roller [0059] 10 Bell housing section [0060] 11 Inner ring unit [0061] 12 Outer ring unit [0062] 13 Hollow cylindrical receiving slot [0063] 14 Inner rolling path [0064] 15 Rolling path [0065] 16 Outer rolling path [0066] 17 Rolling element [0067] 18 Cage device [0068] 19 Securing side ring [0069] 20 Securing side ring [0070] 21 Ring groove [0071] 22 Ring groove [0072] 23 Guiding groove [0073] 24 Connecting link [0074] 25 Ring section [0075] 26 Ring section [0076] 27 Window [0077] 28 Separating point [0078] 29a, b Cage segments [0079] 30 Cam roller axis [0080] 31 Receiving slot