BALL-AND-SOCKET JOINT, PREFERABLY FOR USING IN VEHICLES

摘要

The invention relates to a ball-and-socket joint, preferably for using in vehicles, especially in the region of the chassis of a motor vehicle. Said joint comprises a housing provided with a joint opening, a ball pivot on which a shaft is formed, said ball pivot being arranged in the housing and extending through the joint opening, a supporting ring arranged on the shaft of the ball pivot, and a sealing element arranged between the supporting ring and a connecting component surrounding the shaft of the ball pivot. The aim of the invention is to improve one such ball-and-socket joint in such a way that the operability thereof is maintained over a comparatively long period of time, without being negatively influenced by the appearance of corrosion in the region of the ball pivot. To this end, the sealing element is embodied as an elastically and/or plastically deformable profiled body (15), the effective cross-section thereof, uninfluenced by force, being defined by a continuously extending, curved contour (19) that is deformed in the mounted state, such that at least part of the contour (19) lies on the adjacent regions (10, 13, 14) to be sealed.