WO2010048978A1

WO2010048978A1 - Adapter, in particular for fastening a bellows to a component, having at least one guide means

Info

Publication number: WO2010048978A1
Application number: PCT/EP2008/009996
Authority: WO
Inventors: Markus Deisinger; Olaf Wolf
Original assignee: Gkn Driveline International Gmbh
Priority date: 2008-10-29
Filing date: 2008-11-26
Publication date: 2010-05-06
Also published as: WO2010048978A8

Abstract

To solve the problem of providing an adapter (10) which can be arranged more easily on a component (12), in particular a component with a lobed outer contour, the invention proposes an adapter, in particular for fastening a bellows to a component, in particular having a lobed region (46), with the adapter having at least one guide means for guidance on the component, which guide means (14) extends beyond the edge of the adapter in a direction of a longitudinal axis of the adapter.

Description

Adapter, in particular for fastening a bellows to a component, having at least one guide means

The present invention relates to an adapter, in particular for fastening a bellows to a component, in particular a component having at least one, preferably at least three lobed regions, and to a system comprising an adapter of said type and also a bellows.

Adapters and systems according to the invention serve to seal off joint components, in particular of a drivetrain of motor vehicles. Here, constant-velocity joints according to the prior art conventionally have, on their joint outer part, three radial depressions which are indicated on the periphery. The outer contour which is created in this way is referred to as tri- lobed, and reference is made generally to tri-lobed constant-velocity joints or tripod joints. An object of an adapter and/or bellows of said type is to seal off the joint region in order to firstly prevent the infiltration of dirt and moisture and secondly prevent the grease filling of the joint component from escaping.

Various approaches are known from the prior art for this purpose. For example, that collar region of a bellows which faces toward the joint housing may be designed so as to be matched, with its inner side of the tri-lobed outer contour of the joint housing, by means of the provision of thickened material portions at the corresponding points. This is the case for example in WO 2004/104438 Al. The thickened portions serve to compensate the radius differences in the tri- lobed outer contour of the joint component, such that it is possible to use in particular annular fastening elements such as a tensioning belt, a compression ring or a gripping clamp for fastening the bellows.

As an alternative to this, it is known for a bellows having a collar region, which faces towards a joint housing outer part, with an equal inner diameter to be combined with an adapter, with the adapter being integrally formed with its inner side on the tri-lobed outer contour of the joint housing, while the outer side comes into contact with the inner side of the corresponding collar region of the bellows. Such a system composed of an adapter and a bellows is disclosed for example in US 5,529,538 or WO

2002/0134447 Al.

A problem of said systems which are known from the prior art is that it is made difficult for the bellows or the adapter to be pushed onto the joint housing; problems occur in particular if the adapter or the bellows are to be produced from a soft material or if the adapter is to be of relatively short construction in relation to its width. Furthermore, if a joint housing outer part is provided whose end surfaces which face toward the bellows or a shaft, constitute a non- machined forged surface, it is made even more difficult for an adapter or bellows to be pushed on.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an adapter and a system which can be arranged more easily in particular on components with at least one, preferably precisely three lobed regions.

Said object is achieved according to the invention by means of an adapter, in particular for fastening a bellows to a component, in particular having at least one lobed region, with the adapter having at least one guide means for guidance on the component, which guide means extends beyond an edge of the adapter in a direction of a longitudinal axis of the adapter. For clarity, it should be noted that the references to the component on which the adapter according to the invention can be arranged serve merely for clarification purposes; the component itself is not encompassed by the subject matter according to the invention relating to an adapter.

As a result of the provision of a guide means of said type, it is possible for not only particularly short adapters and/or adapters produced from particularly soft materials, but also for conventional adapters composed of more rigid materials and/or adapters with a relatively great thickness in relation to their width to be pushed onto a joint housing outer part.

A first thickened portion is advantageously arranged on an inner side of the guide means at least in one partial region. Said first thickened portion is preferably integrally formed on the outer contour of a lobed region of a joint housing outer part. It is also preferable if the thickness of the first thickened portion increases proceeding from an outer edge of the guide means in the direction of the outer edge of the adapter. In this way, a sufficiently firm seating of the adapter on the joint housing outer part is obtained, as well as, on account of the chamfer which is formed as viewed in cross section, facilitated handling when pushing the adapter onto a joint housing outer part. In a further preferred embodiment, the at least one guide means has assigned to it at least one second thickened portion which is arranged on an inner side of the adapter. It may particularly preferably be provided here that the first thickened portion and the second thickened portion merge into one another, and in particular form a uniform transition. Here, it may also be provided that a bevel region is also provided between the first thickened portion and the second thickened portion, such that there is a slight step in the transition from the first thickened portion to the second thickened portion. An essential feature of the transition is an increasing thickness of the material which is arranged on the inner side of the guide means in the region of the first thickened portion via the bevel which may be provided into the region of the second thickened portion. The second thickened portion is conventionally otherwise formed with a uniform thickness over the entire width of the adapter.

In one particularly preferred embodiment, precisely three guide means are provided in the adapter according to the invention. Said adapter is then particularly suitable for providing simple handling during the pushing of the adapter onto a tri-lobed joint housing outer part. However, the pushing-on of the adapter is still considerably simplified according to the invention even in the event of only one guide means or else two guide means being provided. Within the context of the present invention, the provision of the guide means is otherwise not restricted to adapters for joint housing outer parts with lobed regions; it is rather fundamentally also possible for other components, for example machine components, to be prepared for sealing by means of the adapter according to the invention, for example even machine components as are disclosed in DE 100 58 172 Al. Here, a common feature of the components in question should be that said components preferably have at least one recess or depression on their outer peripheral surface, which recess or depression is assigned at least one guide means of the adapter according to the invention.

In a further preferred embodiment, the outer edge of the guide means of the adapter according to the invention is of rounded design at least in partial regions. In this way, a tilting or folding of the guide means as the adapter is pushed onto a component is prevented.

In a further preferred embodiment, the thickness of the first thickened portion on the inner side of the guide means decreases in the direction of side regions of the guide means. In this way, in principle, two relatively thin-walled side vanes are formed in the guide means, with said side regions, preferably the outer edge of the guide means, preferably being of rounded design. The relatively thin-walled side regions serve firstly to make it even easier for an operator to push the adapter onto a component. In particular, said side regions serve to provide an enlarged surface area for the fingers of the person pushing the adapter on, or else for the relevant machine in the case of an automated process, such that it is possible for the adapter to be reliably arranged with respect to the component which receives it. Here, the thin-walled side regions need not be situated within the lobed region in the event of a joint housing outer part with a tri- lobed outer contour being provided, but rather may also project to both sides of the lobed region. A corresponding situation applies for example when assembling the adapter according to the invention onto machine components which have at least one recess or depression. In any case, the guide means together with the side regions is preferably assigned to a recess arranged on the outer peripheral surface of a component, in particular to a lobed region of a tripod joint .

In a further preferred embodiment, the outer edge of the guide means has, at least in a partial region, a surface which is formed perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the adapter; it is even more preferable for the surface to be arranged approximately centrally at the outer edge of the guide means. Said surface which is formed perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of an associated adapter advantageously serves to provide an external axial stop for positioning the adapter on a joint housing outer part or else on some other component including machine components where the latter are of corresponding design .

In a further preferred embodiment, a wall part is arranged between at least two guide means. Said wall part may have a wall thickness in a range from approximately 0.3 mm to 1 mm at least in partial regions. A corresponding wall part is preferably arranged between all the guide means. Said wall part is attached to the edge of the adapter means and extends beyond the latter in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the adapter. However, in contrast to the preferred embodiment of the guide means, the wall part has no thickened portions at its inner side which preferably faces toward a joint housing outer part; in particular, the inner side is of substantially uniform, planar design, though the surface of the inner side may also have projections and recesses et cetera, in particular in the form of a uniform pattern, preferably a channel pattern or waffle pattern. In one preferred embodiment, an outer edge of the wall part adjoins an outer edge of the two adjacent guide means, wherein the connection may take place in any desired manner. Here, it need not be provided that the extent of the wall part beyond the edge of the adapter means in the direction of a longitudinal axis of the adapter is the same (though this is preferable) as that of the guide means or vice versa. In one particularly preferred embodiment, the wall part has, at least in a partial region at its outer edge, a surface which is arranged perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the adapter. Said surface may form an encircling stop surface with the corresponding surface of the guide means, which stop surface simplifies the assembly of the adapter according to the invention. It may however alternatively also be provided that the guide means themselves as well as the wall parts show corresponding surfaces, with said surfaces not merging into one another, such that no encircling stop surface is formed but rather for example a total of six partial surfaces.

The present invention also relates to a system comprising an adapter according to the invention and a bellows, preferably comprising a component, wherein the component is also preferably embodied as a tripod joint. As has however already been described above, the component may also be some other component, for example a machine component, if the latter has, on its outer contour, a recess or depression which can be assigned at least one guide means of the adapter according to the invention. Here, said recess or depression is particularly preferably accessible from a side edge of the component in question.

Finally, the present invention also encompasses a system comprising an adapter according to the invention and also at least one component. Said component is preferably embodied as a machine component and/or joint component, in particular as a tripod joint. It is also preferable for said component to have, on its outer contour, at least one recess or depression which can be assigned a guide means of the adapter according to the invention. Said recess or depression is preferably formed proceeding from at least one side edge of the component, such that a guide means of the adapter according to the invention can engage therein.

The system according to the invention, comprising at least one component and the adapter according to the invention, or else the adapter according to the invention and a bellows, may preferably also have fastening means, preferably a tensioning belt, a compression ring or a gripping clamp.

The advantages of the present invention are explained in more detail on the basis of the following figures, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of an adapter according to the invention for a tripod joint;

Fig. 2 shows a side view of the adapter according to

Fig. 1; Fig. 3 shows the assembly of an adapter according to

Fig. 1 on a joint housing outer part with a tri-lobed contour in a partially pushed-on position of the adapter, in a longitudinal view,

Fig. 4 shows a perspective view of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 shows a perspective view of the adapter which has been pushed fully onto the joint housing outer part with the tri-lobed outer contour.

It should firstly be noted that the features shown in the Figures are not restricted to the individual embodiments; in fact, the features shown and specified in each case in the description including the description of the Figures may be combined with one another in order to refine the invention. Here, identical features are denoted by the same reference symbols. In particular, the subject matter of the present invention is not restricted to the embodiment of the adapter according to the invention for a tripod joint, as shown in the Figures. In fact, the present invention may be transferred to components of any type which must be sealed off. In particular, a restriction to tripod joints in automobiles is neither provided nor desired. In fact, the adapter according to the invention may be used in a multiplicity of fields of application .

Fig. 1 shows the adapter 10 according to the invention with three guide means 14.1, 14.2 and 14.3, the inner sides 22 of which guide means have a thickened portion 24.1, 24.2 (not denoted in Fig. 1) and 24.3, the thickness of which thickened portions increases in the direction of second thickened portions 26 which are arranged on an inner side 28 of the adapter. Here, the second thickened portions 26 are assigned to in each case one of the guide means 14.1, 14.2, 14.3. Formed in the transition region between the first thickened portions 24.1 to 24.3 and the second thickened portions 26 is a bevel 42, which is otherwise arranged in an encircling fashion on an outer edge 16 of the adapter 10 and faces toward the component (not shown in Fig. 1) . The three guide means 14.1 to 14.3 are likewise arranged on the outer edge 16 of the adapter 10. Situated opposite said outer edge 16 is a further outer edge 17 which, in the event of the adapter 10 being arranged on a tripod joint, for example, faces toward a bellows.

An encircling annular groove 38 is arranged on an outer side 36 of the adapter 10, into which annular groove 38 can engage an encircling annular bead, which is arranged on an inner side of a collar region, of a bellows which is not shown here. Here, it may also be provided that a plurality of encircling grooves 38 or else one wide groove can be arranged on the outer side 36 of the adapter 10. The cross-sectional profile of the corresponding groove may be matched to the design of the respective bellows.

Furthermore, three encircling annular grooves 40.1, 40.2 and 40.3 are arranged on the inner side 28 of the adapter 10, which annular grooves 40.1, 40.2 and 40.3 serve, in particular in the event of the adapter according to the invention being fastened to a component by means of, for example, a tensioning belt or some other fastening means, to provide a sufficiently fixed and secure seat, with it then being possible for material of the bellows to be pressed into the inner region of said grooves 40.1 to 40.3.

The guide means 14.1 to 14.3 have side regions 30.1 and 30.2 with a reduced thickness of the first thickened portion 24.1 to 24.3. The side regions 30.1 and 30.2 may therefore be referred to as being of vane-like design. Here, an outer edge 20 of the guide means 14.1 to 14.3 is of rounded design in the region of the side regions 30.1 and 30.2. In the central region, the outer edge 20 of the guide means 14.1 to 14.3 has a stop surface 32 which is formed so as to be perpendicular to a longitudinal axis 18 of the adapter 10 (in this regard, see Fig. 2) . Said stop surface 32 may, with a corresponding design of the component on which the adapter 10 can be arranged, serve to facilitate the positioning of the adapter.

Fig. 2 now shows the adapter 10 according to Fig. 1 in a side view, with the design of the outer edge 20 of the guide means 14.1 to 14.3 being particularly clearly visible with the rounded design in the side regions

30.1 and 30.2 and with the design of the central region of the guide means 14.1 to 14.3, which runs substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 18 of the component 10, and also with the design of the stop surface 32. It is also possible to particularly clearly see in Fig. 2 the design of the annular groove

38, which is formed on the outer side 36 of the adapter 10, with a rounded cross-sectional base profile.

Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 otherwise show that a wall part 52 can be arranged between guide means 14.1 and 14.2, which wall part 52 has an outer edge 54. Here, it is possible for a stop surface 56 to be formed approximately centrally in the corresponding wall part 52. Said stop surface 56 may merge into the stop surface 32 of the guide means 14 and thereby provide a (partially) encircling stop surface. However, as can be seen from Fig. 1, it is also possible to select a design such that the stop surfaces 56 of the wall part 32 and the stop surfaces 32 of the guide means 14 do not adjoin one another directly but rather form separate partial surfaces. The wall part 52 may likewise be arranged between the guide means 14.2 and 14.3 and also 14.1 and 14.3, and preferably extends in the direction of the longitudinal axis 18 of the adapter 10 to the same extent as the guide means 14.

Fig. 3 shows a system 50 comprising the adapter 10 according to Figures 1 and 2 and a joint housing outer part 34 with a tri-lobed outer contour, with a lobed region 46.1 being shown particularly clearly in Fig. 3. There are also two lobed regions 46.2 and 46.3 (not shown in Fig. 3) . Fig. 3 shows the adapter 10 in a position in which it has been partially pushed onto the component 34, with guide means 14.1 and 14.2 (guide means 14.3 not shown here) being assigned to the lobed regions 46.1 and 46.2 (the lobed region 46.3 is not shown here) . The pushing-on takes place in the direction of an arrow 48, parallel to the longitudinal axis 18 of the adapter 10. Fig. 4 shows the arrangement of Fig. 3 in a perspective view for greater clarity.

Fig. 5 finally shows the system 50 according to Figures 3 and 4, with the adapter 10 having been pulled completely onto the component 34. The guide means 14.1 is assigned to the lobed region 46.1 and it can be clearly seen that side surfaces 30.1 and 30.2 of the guide means 14.1 are not arranged in the lobed regions 46.1, but rather extend into the region of the more planar regions which are arranged between the lobed regions 46. In contrast, the surface 32 which is arranged centrally at the outer edge 20 of the guide means 14.1 comes to rest substantially completely in the lobed regions 46.1 and, for example in the case of a different design of the component 34, may serve to provide a stop surface for positioning.

With the adapter and system according to the invention, it is in particular advantageously possible, in the case primarily of non-machined forged surfaces of components with at least one recess or depression, to permit a simple arrangement and positioning of an adapter according to the invention which is required for sealing off the respective components.

Claims

Patent Claims

1. Adapter (10), in particular for fastening a bellows to a component (12), in particular having at least one lobed region, characterized in that the adapter (10) has at least one guide means (14) for guidance on the component (12), which guide means (14) extends beyond an edge (16) of the adapter means in a direction of a longitudinal axis (18) of the adapter (10) .

2. Adapter according to Claim 1, characterized in that a first thickened portion (24) is arranged on an inner side (22) of the guide means (14) in at least one partial region.

3. Adapter according to Claim 2, characterized in that the thickness of the first thickened portion (24) increases proceeding from an outer edge (20) of the guide means (14) in the direction of the outer edge (16) of the adapter (10) .

4. Adapter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one guide means

(14) has assigned to it at least one second thickened portion (26) on an inner side (20) of the adapter (10) .

5. Adapter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said adapter has three guide means (14 ) .

6. Adapter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the outer edge (20) of the guide means (14) is of rounded design at least in partial regions.

7. Adapter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the thickness of the first thickened portion (24) on the inner side (22) decreases in the direction of side regions (30.1,

30.2) of the guide means (14) .

8. Adapter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the outer edge (20) of the guide means (14) has, at least in a partial region, a surface (32) which is arranged perpendicular to the longitudinal axis (18) of the adapter (10) .

9. Adapter according to Claim 8, characterized in that the surface (32) is arranged approximately centrally at the outer edge (20) of the guide means (14) .

10. Adapter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a wall part (52) is arranged between at least two guide means (14) .

11. Adapter according to Claim 10, characterized in that an outer edge (54) of the wall part (52) adjoins the outer edge (20) of the guide means (14) .

12. Adapter according to one of Claims 10 or 11, characterized in that the wall part (52) has, at least in a partial region of the outer edge (54), a surface (56) which is arranged perpendicular to the longitudinal axis (18) of the adapter (10) .

13. System (50) comprising an adapter (10) according to one of Claims 1 to 12 and a bellows.

14. System according to Claim 13, also comprising at least one component (12) .

15. System according to Claim 14, characterized in that the component (12) is a tripod joint.

16. System (50) comprising an adapter according to one of Claims 1 to 12 and at least one component.