CN114439663A

CN114439663A - Engine starter and engine starting system

Info

Publication number: CN114439663A
Application number: CN202011202745.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 唐泽; 周灵晶; 李江龙
Original assignee: Thornger Automotive Parts China Co ltd
Current assignee: Thornger Automotive Parts China Co ltd
Priority date: 2020-11-02
Filing date: 2020-11-02
Publication date: 2022-05-06

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an engine starter and an engine starting system. The engine starter includes: a housing; a motor housed within the housing; a drive shaft rotatably received within the housing and coaxially connected to an output end of the motor; an output shaft rotatably received within the housing and not coaxial with the drive shaft; a transmission mechanism including a first transmission assembly and an overrunning clutch, the first transmission assembly and the overrunning clutch being drivingly connected between the drive shaft and the output shaft such that the drive shaft is capable of transmitting power to the output shaft and the output shaft is incapable of transmitting power to the drive shaft; and a pulley connected to an end of the output shaft protruding out of the housing for drivingly connectable with a crankshaft pulley of an engine.

Description

Engine starter and engine starting system

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of vehicles, in particular to an engine starter and an engine starting system.

Background

In the related art, a belt-driven engine starter generally includes a drive shaft and an output shaft, and the drive shaft is disposed coaxially with the output shaft. A planetary gear mechanism is generally used for speed reduction between the drive shaft and the output shaft, and the transmission ratio of the planetary gear mechanism is generally within 10, so that the motor working current of the engine starter is large. Thus, the motor life of the engine is difficult to meet vehicle requirements. Further, if it is desired to increase the gear ratio of the planetary gear mechanism, the size of the engine starter is significantly increased, requiring a large installation space.

In addition, belt-driven starters also typically include an overrunning clutch, which is typically mounted between the starter motor output shaft and the pulley to decouple the starter speed from the engine speed in the non-operating state. The engine operating speed is typically between 600 rpm and 6000 rpm and the transmission ratio of the starter pulley to the engine crankshaft pulley is typically 2 to 3, thus requiring the maximum overrunning speed of the overrunning clutch to be greater than 10000 rpm. Overrunning clutch life on the market with maximum overrunning speed greater than 10000 rpm is generally not able to meet vehicle requirements.

Disclosure of Invention

The present disclosure is directed to solving, at least to some extent, one of the technical problems in the related art.

Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide an engine starter, which can provide a relatively large transmission ratio from a motor output end of the engine starter to an output shaft, thereby facilitating to reduce the working current of a motor and improve the service life of the engine starter.

It is another object of the present disclosure to provide an engine starting system including the above-described engine starter.

According to the engine starter of this disclosed embodiment, include: a housing; a motor housed within the housing; a drive shaft rotatably received within the housing and coaxially connected to an output end of the motor; an output shaft rotatably received within the housing and not coaxial with the drive shaft; a transmission mechanism including a first transmission assembly and an overrunning clutch, the first transmission assembly and the overrunning clutch being drivingly connected between the drive shaft and the output shaft such that the drive shaft is capable of transmitting power to the output shaft and the output shaft is incapable of transmitting power to the drive shaft; and a pulley connected to an end of the output shaft protruding out of the housing for drivingly connectable with a crankshaft pulley of an engine.

In the engine starter according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, the drive shaft is not coaxial with the output shaft, the drive shaft is drivingly connected with the output shaft through the transmission mechanism, and the overrunning clutch is further included in the transmission mechanism, so that the engine starter according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can separate the motor rotational speed from the engine rotational speed by separating the output end of the motor from the pulley in the non-operating state.

In addition, the engine starter according to the above-described embodiment of the present disclosure may also have the following additional technical features.

In at least one embodiment, the axis of the drive shaft is parallel to the axis of the output shaft.

In at least one embodiment, the transmission ratio of the transmission mechanism from the drive shaft to the output shaft is greater than 1.

In at least one embodiment, the overrunning clutch is disposed between the first transmission assembly and the output shaft, and a transmission ratio of the first transmission assembly from the drive shaft to the output shaft is greater than 1.

In at least one embodiment, the first transmission assembly includes a first gear and a second gear in mesh with each other, the first gear being fixedly connected to the drive shaft, the second gear being fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch, an inner race of the overrunning clutch being fixedly connected to the output shaft.

In at least one embodiment, the transmission mechanism further includes a first intermediate shaft and a second transmission assembly, the first intermediate shaft, the second transmission assembly and the overrunning clutch being drivingly connected between the drive shaft and the output shaft.

In at least one embodiment, the first transmission assembly is disposed between the drive shaft and the first countershaft, the second transmission assembly is disposed between the output shaft and the first countershaft, and the overrunning clutch is disposed between the second transmission assembly and the first countershaft; the first transmission assembly has a gear ratio from the drive shaft to the first countershaft greater than 1.

In at least one embodiment, the axis of the first intermediate shaft is parallel to the axis of the drive shaft and the axis of the output shaft.

In at least one embodiment, the first transmission assembly includes a first gear and a second gear in mesh with each other, the first gear being fixedly connected to the drive shaft, the second gear being fixedly connected to the first countershaft; and the second transmission assembly includes a third gear and a fourth gear in mesh with each other, the third gear being fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch, an inner race of the overrunning clutch being fixedly connected to the first intermediate shaft, and the fourth gear being fixedly connected to the output shaft.

In at least one embodiment, the first transmission assembly includes a first gear fixedly connected to the drive shaft, a second gear fixedly connected to the first countershaft, a second countershaft rotatably received within the housing, and a fifth gear fixedly connected to the second countershaft and meshing with the first gear via a fifth gear on the second countershaft; and the second transmission assembly includes a third gear fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch, an inner race of the overrunning clutch fixedly connected to the first countershaft, a fourth gear fixedly connected to the output shaft, the third countershaft rotatably received within the housing, and a sixth gear fixedly connected to the third countershaft and meshing with the fourth gear through the sixth gear on the third countershaft.

In at least one embodiment, the axis of the first intermediate shaft is perpendicular to the axis of the drive shaft and the axis of the output shaft.

In at least one embodiment, the first transmission assembly includes a first bevel gear and a second bevel gear in meshing engagement with each other, the first bevel gear fixedly connected to the drive shaft, the second bevel gear fixedly connected to the first countershaft; and the second transmission assembly comprises a third bevel gear and a fourth bevel gear which are meshed with each other, the third bevel gear is fixedly connected to an outer ring of the overrunning clutch, an inner ring of the overrunning clutch is fixedly connected to the first intermediate shaft, and the fourth bevel gear is fixedly connected to the output shaft.

In at least one embodiment, the engine starter further comprises a planetary gear mechanism connected between the output of the motor and the drive shaft to increase a gear ratio from the output of the motor to the drive shaft.

In at least one embodiment, the planetary gear mechanism comprises: a sun gear fixedly connected to an output of the motor; a ring gear fixedly connected to the housing; a planet carrier fixedly connected with the drive shaft; and a plurality of planet gears, each of the plurality of planet gears being in simultaneous mesh with the ring gear and the sun gear, and the plurality of planet gears being rotatably mounted to the planet carrier.

An engine starting system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: an engine including a crankshaft pulley; and the engine starter according to the above embodiment, a pulley of the engine starter and a crankshaft pulley of the engine are drivingly connected by a belt.

The engine starter according to the above-described embodiment is included in the engine starting system according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, so that the same advantages as those of the engine starter according to the above-described embodiment can be achieved.

Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.

Drawings

Further features and advantages of the invention are described in the following description, which explains the invention in more detail on the basis of embodiments, in conjunction with the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an engine starting system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of an engine starting system according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an engine starter according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of an engine starting system according to yet another embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram of an engine starting system according to yet another embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood that the terms "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "front", "back", and the like as used herein are for purposes of illustration only and are not limiting of the present disclosure.

The

engine starter

100, 100 ', 100 ", or 100'" according to the embodiment of the present invention is described in detail below with reference to fig. 1 to 5.

As shown in fig. 1, an engine starter 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: a housing 110; a motor 120, the motor 120 being accommodated in the housing 110; a drive shaft 130, the drive shaft 130 being rotatably accommodated within the housing 110, and the drive shaft 130 being coaxially connected to the output end 122 of the motor 120; an output shaft 140, the output shaft 140 being rotatably accommodated within the housing 110, and the output shaft 140 being non-coaxial with the drive shaft 130; a transmission mechanism 150, the transmission mechanism 150 including a first transmission assembly 152 and an overrunning clutch 154, the first transmission assembly 152 and the overrunning clutch 154 being drivingly connected between the drive shaft 130 and the output shaft 140 such that the drive shaft 130 is capable of transmitting power to the output shaft 140 and the output shaft 140 is incapable of transmitting power to the drive shaft 130; and a pulley 142, the pulley 142 being connected to the end of the output shaft 140 that protrudes out of the housing 110 for drivingly connecting with a crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200.

It will be appreciated that the drive shaft 130, the output shaft 140 may be rotatably supported within the housing 110 by bearings. The overrunning clutch 154 may be a sprag or roller clutch.

In engine starter 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, drive shaft 130 is not coaxially disposed with output shaft 140, drive shaft 130 is drivingly connected with output shaft 140 through transmission 150, and overrunning clutch 154 is further included in transmission 150, so engine starter 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can separate the rotational speed of motor 120 from the rotational speed of engine 200 by separating output end 122 of motor 120 from pulley 142 in a non-operating state.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1, the axis of the drive shaft 130 is parallel to the axis of the output shaft 140. Thus, the structure of the engine starter 100 is simple, and reduction in the radial dimension of the engine starter 100 is facilitated.

Of course, the axis of the driving shaft 130 may be perpendicular to the axis of the output shaft 140, or the axis of the driving shaft 130 may be inclined with respect to the axis of the output shaft 140 to meet the actual arrangement requirement.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1, the transmission 150 has a transmission ratio from the drive shaft 130 to the output shaft 140 that is greater than 1. Therefore, the power required by the engine 200 is not changed, and the power required to be output by the motor 120 is smaller, so that the operating current of the motor 120 of the engine starter 100 is reduced, and the service life of the engine starter 100 is prolonged.

It will be appreciated that the position of the overrunning clutch 154 does not affect the gear ratio of the transmission 150, and therefore the overrunning clutch 154 may be disposed between the first transmission assembly 152 and the drive shaft 130, or between the first transmission assembly 152 and the output shaft 140. In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1, the overrunning clutch 154 is disposed between the first transmission assembly 152 and the output shaft 140, and the first transmission assembly 152 has a transmission ratio from the drive shaft 130 to the output shaft 140 greater than 1.

Since the transmission ratio of the first transmission assembly 152 from the driving shaft 130 to the output shaft 140 is greater than 1, the rotating speed of the overrunning clutch 154 can be reduced under the condition that the output rotating speed required by the motor 120 is not changed, so that the requirement of the maximum overrunning rotating speed of the overrunning clutch 154 is favorably reduced, the overrunning clutch 154 meeting the requirement can be easily found on the market, and the service life of the engine starting system 1000 can be prolonged while the total transmission ratio of the engine starting system 1000 is ensured.

It should be noted that in these embodiments, the overrunning clutch 154 is of an outer-ring drive type, i.e., the outer ring can drive the inner ring to rotate while the inner ring cannot drive the outer ring to rotate in the engaged state of the overrunning clutch 154, so that the power input end needs to be connected to the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1, the first transmission assembly 152 includes a first gear 1522 and a second gear 1524 that mesh with each other, the first gear 1522 being fixedly connected to the drive shaft 130, the second gear 1524 being fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch 154, and an inner race of the overrunning clutch 154 being fixedly connected to the output shaft 140. Therefore, the transmission between the driving shaft 130 and the output shaft 140 is realized through the gear mechanism, so that the engine starter 100 is simple in structure, stable and reliable in transmission, and beneficial to reducing the radial size of the engine starter 100.

It should be noted that in other embodiments, the first transmission assembly 152 may be a pulley belt mechanism, or a sprocket chain mechanism.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 2 and 3, transmission 150 further includes a first countershaft 156 and a second transmission assembly 158, first transmission assembly 152, first countershaft 156, second transmission assembly 158, and overrunning clutch 154 being drivingly connected between drive shaft 130 and output shaft 140. By providing a multi-stage transmission structure, it is advantageous to further increase the transmission ratio of the transmission mechanism 150 from the drive shaft 130 to the output shaft 140, thereby further reducing the operating current of the motor 120 of the engine starter 100'.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 2 and 3, a first transmission assembly 152 is disposed between drive shaft 130 and first countershaft 156, and a second transmission assembly 158 is disposed between output shaft 140 and first countershaft 156. It will be appreciated that the position of the overrunning clutch 154 does not affect the gear ratio of the transmission 150, and therefore the overrunning clutch 154 may be disposed between the first drive assembly 152 and the drive shaft 130, between the first drive assembly 152 and the first countershaft 156, between the second drive assembly 158 and the output shaft 140, or between the second drive assembly 158 and the first countershaft 156. In some examples, as shown in fig. 2 and 3, overrunning clutch 154 is disposed between second drive assembly 158 and first countershaft 156; the first transmission assembly 152 has a gear ratio greater than 1 from the drive shaft 130 to the first countershaft 156.

Since the transmission ratio of the first transmission assembly 152 from the drive shaft 130 to the intermediate shaft is greater than 1, the rotation speed of the overrunning clutch 154 can be reduced without changing the output rotation speed required by the motor 120, which is beneficial to reducing the maximum overrunning rotation speed requirement of the overrunning clutch 154, so that the overrunning clutch 154 meeting the requirement can be easily found on the market, and the service life of the engine starting system 1000 can be prolonged while the total transmission ratio of the engine starting system 1000 is ensured.

It should be noted that in these embodiments, the overrunning clutch 154 is of the inner race drive type, i.e., the inner race can drive the outer race to rotate while the outer race cannot drive the inner race to rotate in the engaged state of the overrunning clutch 154, and thus the power input end needs to be connected to the inner race of the overrunning clutch 154.

It will be appreciated that in these embodiments, the transmission ratio of the second transmission assembly 158 from the first countershaft 156 to the output shaft 140 may be greater than 1 or less than 1 while ensuring that the transmission ratio of the transmission 150 from the drive shaft 130 to the output shaft 140 is greater than 1.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 2 and 3, the axis of the first intermediate shaft 156 is parallel to the axis of the drive shaft 130 and the axis of the output shaft 140. Thus, the structure of the engine starter 100 'is simple, and reduction in the radial dimension of the engine starter 100' is facilitated.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 2 and 3, first transmission assembly 152 includes a first gear 1522 and a second gear 1524 that mesh with each other, first gear 1522 being fixedly connected to drive shaft 130, second gear 1524 being fixedly connected to first countershaft 156; and the second transmission assembly 158 includes a third gear 1582 and a fourth gear 1584 that mesh with each other, the third gear 1582 is fixedly connected to the outer race of the over running clutch 154, the inner race of the over running clutch 154 is fixedly connected to the first intermediate shaft 156, and the fourth gear 1584 is fixedly connected to the output shaft 140. Therefore, the transmission among the driving shaft 130, the first intermediate shaft 156 and the output shaft 140 is realized through the gear mechanism, so that the engine starter 100 'has a simple structure, the transmission is smooth and reliable, and the reduction of the radial dimension of the engine starter 100' is facilitated.

It will be appreciated that the first and

second drive assemblies

152, 158 may each be a pulley belt mechanism, or the first and

second drive assemblies

152, 158 may each be a sprocket chain mechanism. Further, the first drive assembly 152 and the second drive assembly 158 may also be a combination of a gear mechanism, a pulley belt mechanism, and a sprocket chain mechanism. That is, the first drive assembly 152 may be one of a gear mechanism, a pulley belt mechanism, and a sprocket chain mechanism, and the second drive assembly 158 may be another of a gear mechanism, a pulley belt mechanism, and a sprocket chain mechanism.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 4, the first transmission assembly 152 includes a first gear 1522, a second gear 1524, a second countershaft 1526 and a fifth gear 1528, the first gear 1522 is fixedly connected to the drive shaft 130, the second gear 1524 is fixedly connected to the first countershaft 156, the second countershaft 1526 is rotatably received within the housing 110, the fifth gear 1528 is fixedly connected to the second countershaft 1526, and the first gear 1522 is meshed with the second gear 1524 via the fifth gear 1528 on the second countershaft 1526; and the second transmission assembly 158 includes a third gear 1582, a fourth gear 1584, a third countershaft 1586, and a sixth gear 1588, the third gear 1582 is fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch 154, an inner race of the overrunning clutch 154 is fixedly connected to the first countershaft 156, the fourth gear 1584 is fixedly connected to the output shaft 140, the third countershaft 1586 is rotatably received in the housing 110, the sixth gear 1588 is fixedly connected to the third countershaft 1586, and the third gear 1582 is meshed with the fourth gear 1584 through the sixth gear 1588 on the third countershaft 1586. By providing a multi-stage transmission configuration, it is advantageous to further increase the transmission ratio of the transmission mechanism 150 from the drive shaft 130 to the output shaft 140, thereby further reducing the operating current of the motor 120 of the engine starter 100 ".

It will be appreciated that first drive assembly 152 and second drive assembly 158 may also include more intermediate shafts to further reduce the operating current of engine starter 100 "motor 120.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 5, the axis of the first intermediate shaft 156 is perpendicular to the axis of the drive shaft 130 and the axis of the output shaft 140. Thereby, the arrangement form of the engine starter 100' ″ is diversified.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 5, the first transmission assembly 152 includes a first bevel gear 1522 'and a second bevel gear 1524' meshed with each other, the first bevel gear 1522 'being fixedly connected to the drive shaft 130, the second bevel gear 1524' being fixedly connected to the first countershaft 156; and the second transmission assembly 158 includes a third bevel gear 1582 'and a fourth bevel gear 1584' meshed with each other, the third bevel gear 1582 'is fixedly connected to an outer race of the over running clutch 154, an inner race of the over running clutch 154 is fixedly connected to the first intermediate shaft 156, and the fourth bevel gear 1584' is fixedly connected to the output shaft 140. Thereby, it is achieved that the axis of the first intermediate shaft 156 is perpendicular to the axis of the drive shaft 130 and the axis of the output shaft 140, and the transmission ratio is accurate and efficient.

It will be appreciated that the first and

second drive assemblies

152, 158 may also each be a worm and gear mechanism. Further, the first transmission assembly 152 and the second transmission assembly 158 may be a combination of a bevel gear mechanism and a worm gear mechanism, i.e., the first transmission assembly 152 is one of a bevel gear mechanism and a worm gear mechanism, and the second transmission assembly 158 is the other of a bevel gear mechanism and a worm gear mechanism.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1-5, the engine starter 100, 100 ', 10 ", or 100'" further includes a planetary gear mechanism 190, the planetary gear mechanism 190 being connected between the output 122 of the motor 120 and the drive shaft 130 to increase the gear ratio from the output 122 of the motor 120 to the drive shaft 130. Thus, at a given gear ratio, it is beneficial to reduce the radial size of the motor 120, and to reduce the operating current of the motor 120 for the engine starter 100, 100 ', 10 ", or 100'" and to reduce the maximum overrunning speed requirement for the overrunning clutch 154.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1-5, the planetary gear mechanism 190 includes: a sun gear 192, the sun gear 192 being fixedly connected to the output 122 of the motor 120; ring gear 194, ring gear 194 being fixedly connected to housing 110; a carrier 196, the carrier 196 being fixedly connected with the drive shaft 130; and a plurality of planet gears 198, each of the plurality of planet gears 198 meshing simultaneously with the ring gear 194 and the sun gear 192, and the plurality of planet gears 198 being rotatably mounted to the planet carrier 196. Therefore, the transmission ratio of the output end 122 of the motor 120 to the driving shaft 130 is increased, the structure is light, the transmission ratio is accurate, and the efficiency is high.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1-5, the overrunning clutch 154 is a one-way overrunning clutch 154. Thus, engine starter 100 is able to drive engine 200 crankshaft pulley 210 in a single direction, with the rotational speed of engine starter 100, 100 ', 10 ", or 100'" always decoupled from engine 200 rotational speed in the opposite direction.

An engine starting system 1000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: an engine 200, the engine 200 including a crankshaft pulley 210; and the engine starter 100, 100 ', 10 ", or 100'" according to the above-described embodiment, the pulley 142 of the engine starter 100, 100 ', 10 ", or 100'" is drivingly connected with the crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200 via the belt 300.

The engine starter 100, 100 ', 10 ", or 100'" according to the above-described embodiment is included in the engine starting system 1000 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, so that the same advantages as the engine starter 100, 100 ', 10 ", or 100'" according to the above-described embodiment can be achieved.

An engine starter 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is described below with reference to fig. 1.

As shown in fig. 1, an engine starter 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: a housing 110, a motor 120, a drive shaft 130, an output shaft 140, and a transmission 150.

The drive shaft 130 is disposed coaxially with the output end 122 of the motor 120 (i.e., the output end 122 of the armature shaft of the motor 120). The axis of the drive shaft 130 and the axis of the output shaft 140 are arranged in parallel. The drive shaft 130 and the output shaft 140 are rotatably supported in the housing 110 by bearings, respectively.

The transmission mechanism 150 includes a first transmission assembly 152 and an overrunning clutch 154. A first transmission assembly 152 and an overrunning clutch 154 are drivingly connected between the drive shaft 130 and the output shaft 140 such that the drive shaft 130 is capable of transmitting power to the output shaft 140 and the output shaft 140 is incapable of transmitting power to the drive shaft 130.

The driving shaft 130 is provided with a first gear 1522, the output shaft 140 is provided with a second gear 1524, and the first gear 1522 is meshed with the second gear 1524 (i.e. the first gear 1522 and the second gear 1524 form the first transmission assembly 152). The overrunning clutch 154 is a one-way clutch and has an inner race and an outer race. The inner race of the overrunning clutch 154 is fixedly disposed on the output shaft 140, and the second gear 1524 is fitted over the outer race of the overrunning clutch 154 and fixedly connected to the outer race of the overrunning clutch 154. Also provided on the output shaft 140 is a pulley 142, the pulley 142 being connected to the end of the output shaft 140 protruding out of the housing 110 for drivingly connecting with a crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200.

The number of teeth of the first gear 1522 is smaller than that of the second gear 1524, i.e., the transmission ratio of the drive shaft 130 to the output shaft 140 is greater than 1.

Engine starter 100 also includes a planetary gear mechanism 190. The planetary gear mechanism 190 includes a sun gear 192, a ring gear 194, a planet carrier 196, and a plurality of planet gears 198. The sun gear 192 is fixedly connected to the output 122 of the motor 120. Ring gear 194 is fixedly connected to housing 110; the carrier 196 is fixedly connected to the drive shaft 130. Each of the plurality of planet gears 198 meshes with both the ring gear 194 and the sun gear 192, and the plurality of planet gears 198 is rotatably mounted to a planet carrier 196.

An engine starter 100' according to another embodiment of the present invention is described below with reference to fig. 2 and 3.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, an engine starter 100' according to another embodiment of the present disclosure includes: a housing 110, a motor 120, a drive shaft 130, an output shaft 140, and a transmission 150.

Drive train 150 includes a first drive assembly 152, a first countershaft 156, a second drive assembly 158, and an overrunning clutch 154. First drive assembly 152, first countershaft 156, second drive assembly 158, and overrunning clutch 154 are drivingly connected between drive shaft 130 and output shaft 140 such that drive shaft 130 is capable of transmitting power to output shaft 140 and output shaft 140 is incapable of transmitting power to drive shaft 130.

The drive shaft 130 is disposed coaxially with the output end 122 of the motor 120 (i.e., the output end 122 of the armature shaft of the motor 120). The axis of the drive shaft 130, the axis of the first intermediate shaft 156, and the axis of the output shaft 140 are arranged in parallel, and the first intermediate shaft 156 is arranged between the drive shaft 130 and the output shaft 140. The drive shaft 130, the first intermediate shaft 156, and the output shaft 140 are rotatably supported in the housing 110 by bearings, respectively.

The driving shaft 130 is provided with a first gear 1522, the first intermediate shaft 156 is provided with a second gear 1524, and the first gear 1522 is meshed with the second gear 1524 (i.e. the first gear 1522 and the second gear 1524 form the first transmission assembly 152). An overrunning clutch 154 is also provided on the first intermediate shaft 156. The overrunning clutch 154 is a one-way clutch and has an inner race and an outer race. The inner race of the overrunning clutch 154 is fixedly disposed on the first intermediate shaft 156 and the third gear 1582 fits over the outer race of the overrunning clutch 154 and is fixedly connected to the outer race of the overrunning clutch 154. The output shaft 140 is provided with a fourth gear 1584, and the fourth gear 1584 is meshed with the third gear 1582 (i.e. the third gear 1582 and the fourth gear 1584 form a second transmission assembly 158). The output shaft 140 is also provided with a pulley 142, and the pulley 142 is connected to the end of the output shaft 140 protruding out of the housing 110 for driving connection with a crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200.

The number of teeth of the first gear 1522 is smaller than that of the second gear 1524, i.e., the transmission ratio of the drive shaft 130 to the first intermediate shaft 156 is greater than 1; the number of teeth of the fourth gear 1584 is smaller than that of the third gear 1582, namely, the transmission ratio from the output shaft 140 to the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154 is greater than 1; and the overall gear ratio of the transmission 150 from the drive shaft 130 to the output shaft 140 is greater than 1.

Engine starter 100' also includes a planetary gear mechanism 190. The planetary gear mechanism 190 includes a sun gear 192, a ring gear 194, a planet carrier 196, and a plurality of planet gears 198. The sun gear 192 is fixedly connected to the output 122 of the motor 120. Ring gear 194 is fixedly connected to housing 110; the carrier 196 is fixedly connected to the drive shaft 130. Each of the plurality of planet gears 198 meshes with both the ring gear 194 and the sun gear 192, and the plurality of planet gears 198 is rotatably mounted to a planet carrier 196.

As shown in fig. 1 to 3, an engine starting system 1000 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes: engine 200 and engine starter 100 or 100' according to the above embodiments. The engine 200 includes a crankshaft pulley 210; pulley 142 of engine starter 100 or 100' is drivingly connected to crankshaft pulley 210 of engine 200 by a belt 300.

The operation of engine starter 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is briefly described below with reference to fig. 1.

When it is necessary to pull engine 200 to a predetermined rotation speed by engine starter 100, motor 120 is controlled to start operating. The motor 120 power is transmitted to the sun gear 192, the planetary gear 198, and the planet carrier 196 of the planetary gear mechanism 190 in this order. The planet carrier 196 rotates the driving shaft 130 fixedly connected with the planet carrier 196, and then the power is transmitted to the second gear 1524 on the output shaft 140, which is meshed with the first gear 1522, through the first gear 1522 on the driving shaft 130. The second gear 1524 is sleeved on the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154 and fixedly connected with the outer ring, so that the second gear 1524 drives the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154 to rotate, the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154 drives the inner ring to synchronously rotate, and the rotating speed of the inner ring is the same as that of the output shaft 140.

Because the overall gear ratio between motor 120 and engine 200 is constant, the ratio of the speed of motor 120 to the speed of engine 200 remains constant until the inner and outer races of overrunning clutch 154 are disengaged.

When the crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200 reaches a predetermined rotational speed, the motor 120 is controlled to stop operating. The crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200 can drive the pulley 142 of the output shaft 140 to rotate, so as to drive the inner ring of the overrunning clutch 154 to rotate, however, the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154 is reduced in rotation speed due to the stop of the motor 120, so that the rotation speed of the inner ring of the overrunning clutch 154 exceeds the rotation speed of the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154, and at this time, the overrunning clutch 154 is disconnected. I.e., the rotational speed of engine 200 is decoupled from the rotational speed of motor 120 of engine starter 100.

It is understood that after the planetary gear mechanism 190 undergoes the first speed reduction, the rotation speed of the driving shaft 130 is less than that of the output end 122 of the motor 120, and the transmission ratio of the planetary gear mechanism 190 is greater than 1; after the second deceleration at the first transmission assembly 152, the rotational speed of the output shaft 140 is less than the rotational speed of the drive shaft 130, and the transmission ratio of the first transmission assembly 152 is greater than 1. Therefore, the transmission ratio from the output end 122 of the motor 120 to the output shaft 140 can be made large, which is advantageous for reducing the operating current of the motor 120 and improving the life of the engine starter 100.

The operation of engine starter 100' according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is briefly described below with reference to fig. 2 and 3.

When it is necessary to pull engine 200 to a predetermined rotation speed by engine starter 100', control motor 120 starts to operate. The motor 120 power is transmitted to the sun gear 192, the planetary gear 198, and the planet carrier 196 of the planetary gear mechanism 190 in this order. The planet carrier 196 rotates the driving shaft 130 fixedly connected with the planet carrier 196, and then the power is transmitted to the first intermediate shaft 156 through the first gear 1522 on the driving shaft 130 and the second gear 1524 on the first intermediate shaft 156 engaged with the first gear 1522. The first intermediate shaft 156 drives the inner ring of the overrunning clutch 154 fixedly connected with the first intermediate shaft to rotate, and the inner ring of the overrunning clutch 154 drives the outer ring to synchronously rotate at the same speed as the first intermediate shaft 156.

The outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154 drives the third gear 1582 fixedly connected with the overrunning clutch to rotate. Power is transmitted to the output shaft 140 through the fourth gear 1584 meshed with the third gear 1582. The output shaft 140 is transmitted to the crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200 via the pulley 142 and the belt 300, thereby driving the crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200 to rotate. Because the overall gear ratio between motor 120 and engine 200 is constant, the ratio of the speed of motor 120 to the speed of engine 200 remains constant until the inner and outer races of overrunning clutch 154 are disengaged.

When the crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200 reaches a predetermined rotation speed, the motor 120 is controlled to stop operating. The crankshaft pulley 210 of the engine 200 can drive the pulley 142 of the output shaft 140 to rotate, and further drive the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154 to rotate continuously through the second transmission assembly 158, however, the inner ring of the overrunning clutch 154 is reduced in rotation speed due to the stop of the motor 120, so that the rotation speed of the outer ring of the overrunning clutch 154 exceeds the rotation speed of the inner ring of the overrunning clutch 154, and at this time, the overrunning clutch 154 is disconnected. I.e., the engine 200 speed is decoupled from the motor 120 speed of the engine starter 100'.

It is understood that after the planetary gear mechanism 190 undergoes the first speed reduction, the rotation speed of the driving shaft 130 is less than that of the output end 122 of the motor 120, and the transmission ratio of the planetary gear mechanism 190 is greater than 1; after the second deceleration at the first transmission assembly 152, the rotation speed of the first intermediate shaft 156 is less than that of the driving shaft 130, and the transmission ratio of the first transmission assembly 152 is greater than 1; although the gear ratio of the second transmission assembly 158 is less than 1, the overall gear ratio of the transmission mechanism 150 is greater than 1. Therefore, the transmission ratio from the output end 122 of the motor 120 to the output shaft 140 can be made large, which is advantageous for reducing the operating current of the motor 120 and improving the life of the engine starter 100'.

Furthermore, the terms "first", "second" and "first" are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of the present disclosure, "a plurality" means two or more unless specifically limited otherwise.

In the present disclosure, unless otherwise expressly stated or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," "secured," and the like are to be construed broadly and can, for example, be fixedly connected, detachably connected, or integral; can be mechanically or electrically connected; either directly or indirectly through intervening media, either internally or in any other relationship. The specific meaning of the above terms in the present disclosure can be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art as appropriate.

In the present disclosure, unless otherwise expressly stated or limited, the first feature "on" or "under" the second feature may be directly contacting the first and second features or indirectly contacting the first and second features through an intermediate. Also, a first feature "on," "over," and "above" a second feature may be directly or diagonally above the second feature, or may simply indicate that the first feature is at a higher level than the second feature. A first feature being "under," "below," and "beneath" a second feature may be directly under or obliquely under the first feature, or may simply mean that the first feature is at a lesser elevation than the second feature.

In the description herein, references to the description of the term "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "an example," "a specific example," or "some examples," etc., mean that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the present disclosure. In this specification, the schematic representations of the terms used above are not necessarily intended to refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples. Furthermore, various embodiments or examples described in this specification can be combined and combined by one skilled in the art.

Although embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown and described above, it is understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the present disclosure, and that changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations may be made to the above embodiments by those of ordinary skill in the art within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. An engine starter comprising:

a housing;

a motor housed within the housing;

a drive shaft rotatably received within the housing and coaxially connected to an output end of the motor;

an output shaft rotatably received within the housing and not coaxial with the drive shaft;

a transmission mechanism including a first transmission component and an overrunning clutch, the first transmission component and the overrunning clutch being drivingly connected between the drive shaft and the output shaft such that the drive shaft is capable of transmitting power to the output shaft and the output shaft is incapable of transmitting power to the drive shaft; and

a pulley connected to an end of the output shaft that protrudes out of the housing for drivingly connecting with a crankshaft pulley of an engine.

2. The engine starter according to claim 1, wherein an axis of the drive shaft is parallel to an axis of the output shaft.

3. The engine starter according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a gear ratio of the transmission mechanism from the drive shaft to the output shaft is greater than 1.

4. The engine starter of claim 3, wherein the overrunning clutch is disposed between the first transmission assembly and the output shaft, and a gear ratio of the first transmission assembly from the driveshaft to the output shaft is greater than 1.

5. The engine starter of claim 4, wherein the first transmission assembly includes a first gear and a second gear in mesh with each other, the first gear being fixedly connected to the drive shaft, the second gear being fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch, an inner race of the overrunning clutch being fixedly connected to the output shaft.

6. The engine starter of claim 3, wherein the transmission mechanism further includes a first intermediate shaft and a second transmission assembly, the first intermediate shaft, the second transmission assembly, and the overrunning clutch being drivingly connected between the drive shaft and the output shaft.

7. The engine starter of claim 6, wherein the first drive assembly is disposed between the drive shaft and the first countershaft, the second drive assembly is disposed between the output shaft and the first countershaft, and the overrunning clutch is disposed between the second drive assembly and the first countershaft; the first transmission assembly has a gear ratio from the drive shaft to the first countershaft greater than 1.

8. The engine starter according to claim 7, wherein an axis of the first intermediate shaft is parallel to an axis of the drive shaft and an axis of the output shaft.

9. The engine starter of claim 8, wherein the first transmission assembly includes a first gear and a second gear in mesh with each other, the first gear being fixedly connected to the drive shaft, the second gear being fixedly connected to the first countershaft; and

the second transmission assembly includes a third gear and a fourth gear in mesh with each other, the third gear being fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch, an inner race of the overrunning clutch being fixedly connected to the first intermediate shaft, and the fourth gear being fixedly connected to the output shaft.

10. The engine starter of claim 8, wherein the first transmission assembly includes a first gear fixedly connected to the drive shaft, a second gear fixedly connected to the first countershaft, the second countershaft rotatably received within the housing, and a fifth gear fixedly connected to the second countershaft and meshed with the first gear via a fifth gear on the second countershaft; and

the second drive assembly includes a third gear fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch, an inner race of the overrunning clutch fixedly connected to the first countershaft, a fourth gear fixedly connected to the output shaft, the third countershaft rotatably received within the housing, and a sixth gear fixedly connected to the third countershaft and meshing with the fourth gear through the sixth gear on the third countershaft.

11. The engine starter according to claim 7, wherein an axis of the first intermediate shaft is perpendicular to an axis of the drive shaft and an axis of the output shaft.

12. The engine starter of claim 11, wherein the first transmission assembly includes a first bevel gear and a second bevel gear in meshing engagement with each other, the first bevel gear fixedly connected to the drive shaft, the second bevel gear fixedly connected to the first countershaft; and

the second transmission assembly includes a third bevel gear and a fourth bevel gear that mesh with each other, the third bevel gear being fixedly connected to an outer race of the overrunning clutch, an inner race of the overrunning clutch being fixedly connected to the first intermediate shaft, the fourth bevel gear being fixedly connected to the output shaft.

13. The engine starter of claim 1 or 2, further comprising a planetary gear mechanism connected between the output of the motor and the drive shaft to increase a gear ratio from the output of the motor to the drive shaft.

14. The engine starter of claim 13, wherein the planetary gear mechanism includes:

a sun gear fixedly connected to an output of the motor;

a ring gear fixedly connected to the housing;

a planet carrier fixedly connected with the drive shaft; and

a plurality of planet gears, each of the plurality of planet gears being in simultaneous mesh with the ring gear and the sun gear, and the plurality of planet gears being rotatably mounted to the planet carrier.

15. An engine starting system comprising:

an engine including a crankshaft pulley; and

the engine starter according to any one of claims 1 to 14, a pulley of the engine starter being drivingly connected with a crankshaft pulley of the engine by a belt.