INFINETELY VARIABLE GEAR RATIO TRANSMISSION

摘要

an infinetely variable gear ratio transmission includes plural cam followers (42) driven to oscillate by a rotating cam (40). The oscillatory motion of the cam followers (42) is combined through plural clutches (60) to provide an output drive. The cam (40) includes at least one surface formed to rotate the cam followers (42) at a constant velocity when the cam (48) rotates at a constant velocity, thereby permitting the output drive to be smooth. The cam (40) is tapered from one end to the other to permit the gear ratio of the transmission to be varied in infinite increments by adjusting the position of the cam (40) relative to the followers (42). Means (100) for manually or automatically adjusting the gear ratio is provided. Increased gear ratios may be obtained by separating the physical location of the follower mounting shaft (48) from the rotational axis of the follower arms (44). A universal joint (56), formed to uniformly transmit rotational velocity, is included to connect the inclined follower shafts (48) to the output drive. The follower arms (44) are oriented relative to the cam (40) such that the chords of follower movement during contact of the follower (42) with the constant velocity surface, at various gear ratios, are mutually parallel, and the chord of such follower movement at the highest gear ratio passes through the center of rotation of the cam (40), An alternative embodiment of the present invention further includes cooperating clutches which permit transmission of unidirectional shaft rotation between an input shaft (64) and an output shaft (62) regardless of the direction of torque applied to the shafts.