CN215360772U

CN215360772U - Axle assembly and all-terrain vehicle

Info

Publication number: CN215360772U
Application number: CN202022695771.0U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 不公告发明人
Original assignee: Segway Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Segway Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-11-18
Filing date: 2020-11-18
Publication date: 2021-12-31
Anticipated expiration: 2030-11-18

Abstract

The embodiment of the utility model provides an axle assembly and an all-terrain vehicle, wherein the axle assembly comprises: an axle housing provided with a first opening; the axle end cover is connected with the axle shell to form an axle cavity, and a second opening is formed in the axle end cover; the axle shaft connecting body is arranged in the axle cavity and comprises a first end part and a second end part, the first end part extends to the first opening and is used for connecting a first axle, and the second end part extends to the second opening and is used for connecting a second axle; first sealing elements are arranged between the outer side wall of the first end portion and the inner wall of the first opening and between the second end portion and the inner wall of the second opening. The axle assembly and the all-terrain vehicle provided by the embodiment of the utility model can seal the interior of the axle assembly, prevent the interior of the axle assembly from being oxidized and rusted, and prolong the service life of the axle assembly.

Description

Axle assembly and all-terrain vehicle

Technical Field

The utility model relates to the technical field of vehicle structure design, in particular to an axle assembly and an all-terrain vehicle.

Background

In the related art, the axle housing of the axle assembly is provided with a sealing element between the axle housing and the axle during the loading process, so as to achieve the effect of sealing the axle assembly, but after the axle assembly is disassembled from the axle or before the axle assembly is loaded, the axle assembly cannot form a sealing structure and cannot seal the inside of the axle assembly, so that external moisture can easily enter the inside of the axle assembly, and when the axle assembly is stored for too long, the inside of the axle assembly rusts, which causes waste and affects the service life.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

In view of the above, the present invention has been developed to address, or at least partially address, the above-discussed problems, and all terrain vehicles.

A first aspect of an embodiment of the present invention provides an axle assembly, including:

an axle housing provided with a first opening;

the axle end cover is connected with the axle shell to form an axle cavity, and a second opening is formed in the axle end cover;

the axle shaft connecting body is arranged in the axle cavity and comprises a first end part and a second end part, the first end part extends to the first opening and is used for connecting a first axle, and the second end part extends to the second opening and is used for connecting a second axle;

first sealing elements are arranged between the outer side wall of the first end portion and the inner wall of the first opening and between the second end portion and the inner wall of the second opening.

Further, step portions are arranged on the first end portion and the second end portion, and the first sealing element is abutted to the step portions.

Furthermore, the first opening and the second opening are both provided with annular bosses, and the first sealing element is abutted against the annular bosses.

Further, the outer ends of the stepped portion and the annular boss are provided with guide surfaces, and the cross-sectional dimension formed by the guide surface of the stepped portion and the guide surface of the annular boss is larger than the cross-sectional dimensions of the stepped portion and the annular boss at other positions.

Furthermore, the cross section of the first sealing element is U-shaped, the first side surface of the first sealing element abuts against the step part, and the second side surface of the first sealing element abuts against the inner wall of the annular boss.

Furthermore, the bottom surface of the first sealing element is connected between the first side surface and the second side surface, and the outward surface of the bottom surface of the first sealing element is connected with a sealing ring.

Further, the half shaft connecting body is an integrally formed part.

Further, in the above-mentioned case,

the axle assembly includes a differential housing disposed within the axle cavity;

the axle side connectors include a first axle side connector and a second axle side connector, the first end being one end of the first axle side connector, the other end of the first axle side connector being in gear engagement with the differential case;

the second end portion is one end portion of the second half-axle connector, and the other end portion of the second half-axle connector is in gear engagement with the differential case.

Further, the other end portions of the first half-shaft connecting body and the second half-shaft connecting body are each provided with a second seal.

In a second aspect, the embodiment of the present invention provides an all-terrain vehicle, including an axle as described in any one of the above, a powertrain in transmission connection with the axle assembly, and wheels connected to both the first half shaft and the second half shaft.

The axle assembly and the all-terrain vehicle provided by the embodiment of the utility model comprise an axle shell and an axle end cover, wherein the axle shell is internally provided with a first opening, the axle shell is connected with the axle end cover to form an axle cavity, and the axle end cover is provided with a second opening; the axle die cavity is located to the semi-axis connector, the semi-axis connector has the first end of connecting first open-ended and connects the second open-ended second end, be equipped with first sealing member between first end and the first opening, be equipped with first sealing member from this between second end and second opening, through the clearance between first sealing member sealed semi-axis connector and the axle casing, make axle assembly internal seal, inside external moisture can't get into the axle assembly, effectively prevent the inside rust of axle assembly, the life of axle assembly is improved.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly described below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are some embodiments of the present invention, and those skilled in the art can also obtain other drawings according to the drawings without creative efforts.

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural view of an axle assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural view of an axle assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The technical solution in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. It is to be understood that the described embodiments are merely exemplary of the utility model, and not restrictive of the full scope of the utility model. All other embodiments, which can be derived by a person skilled in the art from the embodiments given herein without making any creative effort, shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

In the following description and in the claims, the terms "include" and "comprise" are used in an open-ended fashion, and thus should be interpreted to mean "include, but not limited to. "substantially" means within an acceptable error range, and a person skilled in the art can solve the technical problem within a certain error range to substantially achieve the technical effect.

Furthermore, the term "coupled" is intended to include any direct or indirect coupling. Thus, if a first device couples to a second device, that connection may be through a direct connection, or through an indirect connection via other devices. The following description is of the preferred embodiment for carrying out the utility model, and is made for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the utility model and not for the purpose of limiting the scope of the utility model. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims.

It should be understood that the term "and/or" as used herein is merely one type of association that describes an associated object, meaning that three relationships may exist, e.g., a and/or B may mean: a exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone. In addition, the character "/" herein generally indicates that the former and latter related objects are in an "or" relationship.

Example one

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of an axle assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention. The present embodiments provide an axle assembly that is typically attached to a vehicle frame or body by a suspension, with the ends being used to mount wheels. The axle is used for bearing the load of the vehicle and maintaining the normal running of the vehicle on the road. The axle assembly provided by the embodiment can be applied to electric vehicles, automobiles, karts, tractors, drifting vehicles, all-terrain vehicles and the like. Referring to fig. 1, the axle assembly of the present embodiment includes: axle housing 11, axle end cap 12, half shaft connector 20, first seal 30. The axle shaft connectors 20 are used to connect the axle shafts, and the axle shafts may include a first axle shaft and a second axle shaft, which may be used to connect the respective wheels.

The axle housing 11 is connected with the axle end cover 12 to form an axle cavity 13, the axle housing 11 is provided with a first opening 111, and the axle end cover 12 is provided with a second opening 121. Disposed within the axle cavity 13 is a half axle connector 20, the half axle connector 20 including a first end 21 and a second end 22, the first end 21 extending to a first opening 111 for attachment to a first half axle and the second end 22 extending to a second opening 121 for attachment to a second half axle. First seals 30 are disposed between the outer side wall of the first end portion 21 and the inner wall of the first opening 111, and between the second end portion 22 and the inner wall of the second opening 121.

Specifically, the axle housing 11 and the axle end cover 12 may be end-sealed and tightened with fasteners such as bolts. Therefore, the sealing performance in the axle assembly is ensured while the detachable connection of the two is ensured. The axle housing 11 and axle end caps 12 may be cast or stamped and welded bridges of ductile iron, malleable cast iron, cast steel, or die cast aluminum alloy, and the stamped and welded bridges may be formed by stamping into half shells and welding the two half shells together. The bearing capacity of the cast axle housing is stronger than that of a punching and welding bridge, the process requirement is low, the punching and welding bridge is lighter in weight, the lightweight requirement can be met, and the process requirement is high. Those skilled in the art can specifically select the method according to actual conditions, and the method is not limited.

The axle assembly provided by the utility model can be a drive axle, and an axle cavity 13 enclosed by the axle housing 11 and the axle end cover 12 can be used for accommodating transmission components, such as a main speed reducer, a differential mechanism, a wheel transmission device and the like.

The wall thicknesses of the various side walls of the axle housing 11 and axle end cap 12 may or may not be equal, it being understood that the thicker the wall thickness, the stronger, given the same material. The wall thickness of the axle housing 11 may be determined at various locations depending on the location and size of the components that need to be housed within the cavity, and may also be determined based on the distribution of the load that the axle needs to withstand, where the wall thickness is higher than where the load needs to be less.

In the condition of the axle assembly mounted to the vehicle, the axle shaft connectors 20 may be in communication with the driveline for transmitting power. The power of the transmission system is transmitted to the half shaft connecting body 20, and the half shaft connecting body 20 is fixed with the circumference of the half shaft of the vehicle, and the half shaft is connected with the wheel, so that the transmission system drives the half shaft connecting body 20 to rotate, and the half shaft and the wheel are driven to rotate.

It should be noted that, as for the way of the half shaft connecting bodies 20 transmitting the power of the transmission system, a feasible implementation is that the outer side wall of the half shaft connecting bodies 20 can have a gear structure, the gear of the half shaft connecting bodies 20 is meshed with the gear in the transmission system, for example, the gear of the speed reducer, so as to transmit the power, and the gear transmission mode is compact in structure and reasonable in layout. Alternatively, the half-shaft connecting body 20 may also be fixedly connected to one or more transmission components of the transmission system, as long as the half-shaft connecting body 20 can transmit power of the transmission system under the condition of proper structural layout, and the embodiment is not limited.

It should be noted that, the axle shaft connecting body 20 is provided with a transmission portion for connecting or meshing with the gear structure, and the transmission portion may be integrally formed with, welded to, or detachably and fixedly connected to the axle shaft connecting body 20, which is not limited in this embodiment. In the present embodiment, it is preferable that the transmission portion is integrally formed with the half shaft connecting body 20 to simplify the process. More preferably, the connection between the transmission portion and the half-shaft connecting body 20 may be rounded to prevent stress concentration at the corners and reduce the risk of cracking between the transmission portion and the half-shaft connecting body 20.

In this embodiment, the half axle connectors 20 may be integrally formed, and the power transmitted to the half axle connectors 20 by the transmission system in the axle cavity 13 causes the half axle connectors 20 to rotate at a certain speed, and the half axle connectors 20 drive the half axles therein to rotate, thereby causing the wheels to rotate at a certain speed.

In addition, the transmission portion may be disposed at an end portion or a middle portion of the half shaft connecting body 20, and may be determined according to a layout of the transmission component inside the axle assembly, and the embodiment is not particularly limited.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a bearing 50 may be provided between the axle link 20 and the axle housing 11. Since the half-shaft link 20 needs to rotate inside the axle housing 11, the smoothness of transmission is ensured by providing a bearing 50 between the half-shaft link 20 and the axle housing 11 to support the half-shaft link 20 and reduce the friction coefficient during rotation of the half-shaft link 20.

As shown in fig. 1, the half shaft connecting body 20 has an opening 24 for passing the half shafts (the first half shaft and the second half shaft), and the opening 24 may have the same or different hole diameters at different positions in the axial direction, and as shown in fig. 1, the opening 24 may have different hole diameters at different positions in the axial direction, and correspondingly, the half shafts may have the same or different diameter diameters at different positions in the axial direction, so that the half shafts can be axially restrained in at least one direction after the axle (not shown) of the vehicle passes through the opening 24. The opening 24 may be a blind hole or a through hole.

Alternatively, the axle shaft and bore 24 axial stop may be removably coupled therebetween such that the axle shaft can be axially withdrawn from within the bore 24 to facilitate assembly and disassembly of the axle assembly.

The half-shaft connecting body 20 is circumferentially fixed to the half-shaft, so that the transmission system can drive the half-shaft connecting body and the half-shaft and the wheel to rotate, in order to circumferentially fix the half-shaft connecting body 20 to the half-shaft, the half-shaft and the opening 24 can be circumferentially fixedly matched, for example, in some embodiments, the hole wall of the opening 24 can have a first fixing structure (not shown in the figure) for circumferentially fixedly connecting with the half-shaft. The axle shaft connecting body 20 and the axle shaft may be fixed by providing a first fixing structure on a hole wall of the hole of the axle shaft connecting body 20, and a second fixing structure cooperating with the first fixing structure may be provided on an outer side wall of the axle shaft.

Preferably, the first fixing structure may include an internal spline, and then, correspondingly, the axle may have an external spline, so that the axle shaft and the axle shaft connecting body 20 are connected by the spline, so that the axle shaft and the axle shaft connecting body are uniformly stressed in all circumferential directions in the transmission process, the power of the axle can be stably transmitted to the axle shaft, the stability of the whole vehicle is improved, and the number of the splines is large, the total contact area is large, so that a large load can be borne. Optionally, the half shaft and the half shaft connector 20 may be connected by other connection methods, which may include detachable connection or non-detachable connection methods, such as flat key connection, threaded connection, mortise and tenon structure connection, interference fit, and the like. The present invention can be designed according to actual needs, and is not limited in the present invention.

A first seal 30 is compressed between the half axle connectors 20 and the axle housing 11, and a first seal 30 is compressed between the half axle connectors 20 and the axle end caps 12 to effect a seal between the axle housing 11, the axle end caps 12 and the half axle connectors 20.

Specifically, the first seal 30 may be secured to an outer wall of the axle shaft interface 20, for example, the first seal 30 may be bonded to the axle shaft interface 20, or the first seal 30 may be secured to the axle housing 11 and/or the axle cap 12, for example, the first seal 30 may be bonded to the axle housing 11 and/or the axle cap 12.

Alternatively, in other embodiments, the first seal 30 may not be coupled to the first opening 111 of the axle housing 11 and to the first end 21 of the axle link 20, but merely may be held between the first opening 111 of the axle housing 11 and the outer wall of the first end 21 of the axle link 20. Likewise, the first seal 30 may be free of connection with the second opening 121 of the axle cap 12 and with the second end 22 of the axle link 20, and merely be held in place between the second opening 121 of the axle cap 12 and the outer wall of the second end 22 of the axle link 20.

It should be noted that in the present embodiment, the gap between the axle housing 11, the axle end cover 12 and the axle shaft connector 20 can be completely sealed by the first sealing member 30. Therefore, external moisture, dust and the like cannot enter the interior of the axle assembly, particularly cannot enter the cavity in the interior of the axle assembly, the transmission precision of a transmission system in the cavity cannot be influenced, the interior of the axle assembly is not easy to oxidize and rust, and the service life of the axle assembly is effectively prolonged.

The axle assembly provided by the embodiment of the utility model comprises an axle shell and an axle end cover, wherein a first opening is formed in the axle shell, the axle shell is connected with the axle end cover to form an axle cavity, and the axle end cover is provided with a second opening; the half shaft connecting body is arranged in the axle cavity, the half shaft connecting body is provided with a first end part connected with the first opening and a second end part connected with the second opening, a first sealing piece is arranged between the first end part and the first opening, and a first sealing piece is arranged between the second end part and the second opening. Therefore, the gap between the half shaft connecting body and the axle shell is sealed through the first sealing piece, so that the interior of the axle assembly is sealed, external moisture cannot enter the interior of the axle assembly, the interior of the axle assembly is effectively prevented from being oxidized and rusted, and the service life of the axle assembly is prolonged.

In addition to the above embodiment, as shown in fig. 1, the first end portion 21 and the second end portion 22 are both provided with a step portion 23, and the first sealing member 30 abuts against the step portion 23. By providing the step portions 23 on the first end portion 21 and the second end portion 22, on one hand, positioning and installation of the first sealing element 30 can be facilitated, and on the other hand, the first sealing element 30 can be limited in the axial direction, so that the first sealing element 30 is prevented from moving in the axial direction.

Further, with reference to fig. 1, the first opening 111 and the second opening 121 may be provided with an annular boss 131, the first sealing element 30 abuts against the annular boss 131, and specifically, the annular boss 131 may be formed by extending an edge of the first opening 111 inward for a certain distance and extending an edge of the second opening 121 inward for a certain distance. By designing the annular boss 131, the contact area of the axle housing 11 and the axle end cover 12 with the first sealing member 30 is ensured, so as to ensure the stability of the first sealing member after installation.

As shown in fig. 1, the outer ends of the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131 are each provided with a guide surface P, and the cross-sectional dimension formed by the guide surface of the step portion 23 and the guide surface of the annular boss 131 is larger than the cross-sectional dimensions of the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131 at other positions. Specifically, the guide surface P may be a rounded or inclined surface formed at the outer ends of the stepped portion 23 and the annular boss 131. The first sealing member 30 is mounted along the outer ends of the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131 so as to be inserted into the space between the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131, therefore, since the first sealing member 30 needs to abut against the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131, the size of the first sealing member 30 should be slightly larger than the size between the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131, and the guide surface P is provided on the outer side of the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131, so that the space between the outer ends of the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131 is increased, the first sealing member 30 is further mounted conveniently, and the operation convenience is improved.

As for the first sealing member 30, specifically, as shown in fig. 1, the cross section of the first sealing member 30 may be U-shaped, the first side surface 31 of the first sealing member 30 abuts against the step portion 23, and the second side surface 32 of the first sealing member 30 abuts against the inner wall of the annular boss 131. The U-shaped first sealing element 30 has a large amount of elastic deformation, so that the first sealing element 30 can be conveniently installed, and after installation, the supporting force formed by the step portion 23 and the annular boss 131 is large, and the sealing performance is good.

The bottom surface of the first sealing member 30 is connected between the first side surface 31 and the second side surface 32, and the outward surface 33 of the first sealing member 30 is connected with the seal ring 34. The sealing performance of the first seal 30 can be further improved by providing the seal ring 34.

On the basis of the above embodiment, further, the axle cavity 13 may have an oil storage chamber therein. The oil storage cavity can be used for containing lubricating oil, and the lubricating oil is used for lubricating a transmission system inside the axle assembly so as to ensure transmission efficiency and transmission precision, reduce the abrasion risk of a transmission part and prolong the service life of the transmission part.

In particular, the gear structure of the outer wall of the half shaft connector 20 extends into the oil storage cavity, so that the lubricating oil in the oil storage cavity can effectively lubricate the gear structure of the outer wall of the half shaft connector 20, the gear transmission precision is guaranteed, the gear structure of the half shaft connector 20 is protected, the abrasion is reduced, and the service life is prolonged.

Specifically, at least a portion of the inner wall of the axle housing 11, at least a portion of the inner wall of the axle end cap 12, and at least a portion of the outer wall of the half shaft connector 20 may collectively define a chamber wall of the oil reservoir chamber (belonging to the axle cavity 13). In this way, when the axle housing 11 is removed from the axle cap 12, the oil reservoir is exposed for easy repair and replacement of the components within the oil reservoir.

The transmission system may be located wholly or largely at the axle housing 11. So that when the axle end cover 12 is detached from the axle housing 11, the transmission components inside the oil storage chamber can be almost completely exposed, which is convenient for maintenance. On the other hand, the weight of the axle end cover 12 can be much smaller than that of the axle housing 11, so that an operator can uncover the axle end cover 12 to expose the oil storage cavity, lubricating oil is added into the oil storage cavity, the operation convenience is improved, the weight of the axle end cover 12 is light, and the operation difficulty is reduced.

Of course, in some other embodiments, the axle housing 11 and the axle cover 12 may be divided into two halves, and the axle housing 11 and the axle cover 12 are divided into two halves having the same structure, or the axle housing 11 and the axle cover 12 may be divided into two halves having different structures, and the heights of the two halves may be close to each other, which is not limited in this embodiment.

Based on this, the inventor has also found through creative work that, in the related art, the sealing member is arranged between the axle and the axle housing, and the axle assembly cannot form an internal seal before being assembled with the axle of the whole vehicle. Thus, if lubrication is required to be added to the interior of the axle assembly, the lubrication can be added to the oil storage chamber in the interior of the axle housing only after the axle assembly is assembled with the vehicle, but not before the axle is assembled, which increases the difficulty of the assembly process. Moreover, the lubricating oil can play a role in isolating water vapor, so that the interior of the axle assembly in the prior art is communicated with the atmosphere due to the fact that no lubricating oil exists when the axle assembly is stored, the axle assembly is easy to oxidize and rust, and the service life of the axle assembly is influenced. In addition, after the axle assembly is assembled with the axle, lubricating oil is added into the axle assembly, but because the sealing element seals between the axle and the axle assembly, once the axle assembly is disassembled from the axle, the axle assembly loses sealing, and the lubricating oil in the axle shell overflows from a position between the axle shell and the half shaft connecting body, so that the oil leakage phenomenon is caused.

According to the technical scheme of the axle assembly provided by the embodiment of the utility model, the first sealing element 30 is arranged between the half shaft connecting body 20 and the axle shell 11 and the axle end cover 12, and the interior of the axle assembly is sealed through the first sealing element 30, so that the axle assembly is a sealed whole, and therefore, lubricating oil can be added into the oil storage cavities of the axle shell 11 and the axle end cover 12 before the axle assembly is assembled to a whole vehicle, so that the process is simplified, and moreover, because the axle assembly is integrally sealed, the interior of the axle assembly cannot be oxidized and rusted, the storage requirement of the axle assembly is reduced, the service life of the axle is prolonged, and the cost is reduced. Moreover, even when the axle assembly is detached from the axle of the vehicle, the axle assembly does not leak oil.

Example two

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural view of an axle assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention. The present embodiment is substantially the same as the first embodiment, and differs from the first embodiment in that the axle connecting body 20 is a split structure, specifically, as shown in fig. 2, the axle assembly further includes a differential case 14 disposed in the axle cavity 13, the axle connecting body 20 includes a first axle connecting body 20a and a second axle connecting body 20b, the first end 21 is one end of the first axle connecting body 20a, and the other end of the first axle connecting body 20a is in gear engagement with the differential case 14; the second end portion 22 is one end portion of the second axle side connector 20b, and the other end portion of the second axle side connector 20b is in gear engagement with the differential case 14.

By making the half-axle connecting bodies 20 into a split structure, the differential case 14 can drive the first half-axle connecting body 20a and the second half-axle connecting body 20b to rotate respectively, so that the transmission of the first half-axle connecting body 20a and the second half-axle connecting body 20b is relatively independent, and therefore, the rotating speeds of the first half-axle connecting body 20a and the second half-axle connecting body 20b can be controlled respectively, and the differential operation of the vehicle can be realized.

Further, the other end portions of the first axle shaft connecting body 20a and the second axle connecting body 20b are each provided with a second seal 60. The second seal 60 seals the gap between the first and second

axle shaft connectors

20a, 20b and the differential case 14, ensuring sealing within the axle cavity 13.

EXAMPLE III

The all-terrain vehicle of the embodiment comprises an axle, a power assembly and wheels, and the axle assembly as described in the first embodiment or the second embodiment, wherein the power assembly is in transmission connection with the axle assembly, and the wheels are connected with the first half shaft and the second half shaft.

It should be noted that, the structure and the function of the axle assembly used in the vehicle in this embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment or the second embodiment, and specific reference may be made to the description of the first embodiment or the second embodiment, which is not repeated in this embodiment.

Various embodiments or examples and features of various embodiments or examples described in this specification can be combined and combined by one skilled in the art without contradiction.

Finally, it should be noted that: the above examples are only intended to illustrate the technical solution of the present invention, but not to limit it; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that: the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments may still be modified, or some technical features may be equivalently replaced; and such modifications or substitutions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the corresponding technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. An axle assembly, comprising:

an axle housing provided with a first opening;

2. The axle assembly of claim 1, wherein the first end portion and the second end portion are each provided with a step, the first seal abutting the steps.

3. The axle assembly of claim 2, wherein the first opening and the second opening are each provided with an annular boss, and the first seal abuts against the annular bosses.

4. The axle assembly of claim 3, wherein the step portion and the outer end of the annular boss are each provided with a guide surface, and the cross-sectional dimension formed by the guide surface of the step portion and the guide surface of the annular boss is greater than the cross-sectional dimension of the step portion and the annular boss elsewhere.

5. The axle assembly of claim 3, wherein the first seal is U-shaped in cross-section, a first side of the first seal abuts the step, and a second side of the first seal abuts the inner wall of the annular boss.

6. The axle assembly of claim 5, wherein the bottom surface of the first seal is coupled between the first side surface and the second side surface, and the outwardly facing surface of the bottom surface of the first seal is coupled to a seal ring.

7. An axle assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 6 wherein the axle shaft connectors are integrally formed pieces.

8. The axle assembly of any of claims 1-6, including a differential housing disposed within the axle cavity;

9. The axle assembly of claim 8, wherein the other end of each of the first and second axle shaft connectors is provided with a second seal.

10. An all-terrain vehicle comprising an axle assembly as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9, a powertrain in driving connection with the axle assembly, and wheels connected to both the first and second axle shafts.