| 摘要 |
A coupler (10) for connecting a drive shaft (12) to a driven member (14) and accommodating a substantial misalignment between the drive shaft and the driven member, while minimizing audible noise and vibration. The coupling includes a hollow core nest element (18) having a plurality of slots (34) formed in one end, two substantially identical elongate body elements (16, 20), and a plurality of spring elements (38). Each elongate body element has two ends, a first end being adapted to couple with either the drive shaft or the driven member, and a second end that includes a plurality of posts (33) that engage the slots of the hollow core nest. An aperture in the hollow cor e nest is larger than the diameter of the elongate bodies, allowing for the components to move radially relative to each other to accommodate for any offset and misalignment between the longitudinal axes of the drive shaft and the driven member, while the spring elements ensure that the components positively contact one another to reduce audible noise that is otherwise produced by loose fitting components. In one embodiment, a spring element (4 6) is integrally formed in the slots of the hollow core nest (18'), such that t he posts (22a, 24a) of the body elements are held in engagement with sides of t he slots (52) by the spring elements. This embodiment includes an end cap (40) that prevents the posts from becoming disengaged from the slots. Another embodiment employs helical coil springs (38) mounted externally around the hollow core nest.
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