| 摘要 |
<p>A retarder adapted for use on a vehicle comprises: a blower (6) connected to a crankshaft (2) of the vehicle; a clutch (4) provided between the blower (6) and the crankshaft (2) for selectively disconnecting the blower (6) from the crankshaft (2); a speed change mechanism (5) including a plurality of shafts, gears and bearings (13) and provided between the crankshaft (2) and the blower (6); an oil pump (7) driven by an energy transmitted from the clutch (4) and the blower (6) for supplying a lubrication oil to the speed change mechanism (5); a sensor (8) for detecting a pressure of the lubrication oil supplied to the bearing (13) of the speed change mechanism (5); and a control unit (9) for allowing the clutch (4) to disconnect the blower (6) from the crankshaft (2) when the lubrication oil pressure detected by the sensor (8) is below a certain value. The blower (6) consumes an energy of the engine which is transmitted from the crankshaft (2), thereby applying a brake force to the engine. When a trouble, such as a seize up of the bearings (13), occurs in the speed change mechanism (5), the rotation of the shafts of the speed change mechanism (5) is decelerated. Thereupon, the oil pressure from the oil pump (7) drops since the pump (7) is driven by an energy derived from the speed change mechanism (5). An excessive brake force is not applied to the crankshaft (2) since the blower (6) is disconnected from the crankshaft (2) promptly by the control unit (9).</p> |
