Joints and connections – Structurally installed in diverse art device
Patent
1987-12-24
1989-03-28
Kundrat, Andrew V.
Joints and connections
Structurally installed in diverse art device
403 76, 403141, F16D 100
Patent
active
048158836
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns a spherical head coupling for Bowden cables, particularly for establishing a connection between an actuator and a control element in automotive vehicles, wherein the Bowden cable is equipped with a terminal piece comprising a ball socket and the actuator or control element exhibits a spherical head held in the ball socket.
2. Description of the Related Technology
In a known spherical head coupling for the above purpose, the opening diameter of the essentially closed ball socket and the diameter of the spherical head are correlated so that the spherical head may be brought to snap into the socket with a certain force by utilizing the elasticity of the material and is held in a freely gliding manner after the insertion or snapping in. The disadvantage of the Bowden coupling is that their mounting, alignment and potential disassembling involves considerable difficulties, if the application must take place under tight space conditions and/or in poorly accessible locations as in the engine compartment of automotive vehicles. This is in order to assure a joint of adequate strength; the opening of the ball socket and spherical head itself must be dimensioned in an overlapping manner so that considerable force is required, which under the tight space conditions and in less accessible locations is difficult to apply. The same is true to an even greater extent if removal of the Bowden cable is necessary, as the tensile forces required in this case are significantly more difficult to apply. Furthermore, after repeated mounting and removal operations expanded locations appear generally in the plastic ball socket, whereby the holding force of the connection is weakened, so that after only a few such mountings the Bowden cable must be replaced entirely.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a Bowden connection enabling simple mounting and removal, and insuring a connection satisfying all operational requirements relative to strength. The invention includes a ball socket formed by a spherical cap having a low height, i.e. a height that is less than the length of a half diameter of the spherical head. The spherical head is encompassed on the side facing away from the spherical cap by a counter support that is held by a lateral spring elastic bar extending parallel to the center plane of the spherical had, where the spring bar is offset toward the insertion side of the spherical head from the center plane and the counter support encompasses the spherical head on the side opposite the insertion opening.
The invention provides a Bowden cable connection that is simple to mount and to remove and satisfies all operational requirements relative to its stength. By means of the positive connection between the spherical cap on the one side and the counter support fastened to a spring bar and holding the spherical head on the side opposite the spherical cap, the counter support may be bend readily in the lateral direction during the insertion of the spherical head for mounting, so that the mounting operation may be carried out with application of the slightest force possible. In contrast, following the entry of the spherical head into the spherical cap and the corresponding resnapping of the counter support on its spring bar, any unintentional extraction of the spherical head is excluded by the extra-axial position of the spring bar, which results in the counter support occupying, in its "normal position", relative to the pivoting circle of the counter support, a position bend out from the radial center location and in the case of tension applied to the spherical head would have to be drawn into this radial center position. In this manner, the spherical head is pressed by a tensile force applied to it with a higher force into the spherical cap, so that any unintentional extraction of the spherical head from its holder is prevented in a self-reinforcing fashion. An intentional extraction, on the other hand, is again
REFERENCES:
patent: 4084913 (1978-04-01), Schenk
patent: 4118131 (1978-10-01), Schnitzius
patent: 4590816 (1986-05-01), Spease et al.
Koch Robert J.
Kundrat Andrew V.
Max Kammerer GmbH
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