Metal working – Means to assemble or disassemble – To apply or remove a resilient article
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-19
2001-09-04
Watson, Robert C. (Department: 3723)
Metal working
Means to assemble or disassemble
To apply or remove a resilient article
C029S275000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06282768
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Shaft assemblies such as motors and speed reducers generally include a housing in which a shaft is rotatably disposed. Motors generally include means for rotationally driving the shaft, which extends out of the housing through a bore. Speed reducers generally include a driven input shaft that rotationally drives one or more output shafts through gearing that controls the rotational speed of the output shaft(s). The input and output shafts extend into and out of the housing through respective bores. Shaft assemblies such as motors and speed reducers sometimes have a double output shaft.
Such assemblies often include a lip seal at the housing bore that extends between the housing and the shaft. The lip seal typically includes a rigid outer portion secured within the bore by an interference fit between the seal's outer circumferential surface and the bore's inner circumference. An elastomeric portion extends inward from the rigid outer portion to engage the shaft. This elastomeric lip bends axially inward toward the shaft assembly's interior, thus preventing the escape of lubricant from the interior area while providing an effective seal that prevents entrance of exterior contaminants into the interior area.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention recognizes and addresses disadvantages of prior art construction and methods.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a tool for driving an annular seal into a cavity defined by a shaft assembly housing that surrounds a rotatable shaft.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a seal cover for a shaft rotatably disposed in a cavity defined by a housing surrounding the shaft.
One or more of these objects are achieved by a tool for driving an annular seal into a cavity defined by a shaft assembly housing that surrounds a rotatable shaft. The tool includes an elongated body having an interior cavity that opens at a first end of the body for receiving the shaft. The body defines an annular surface at the first end to abut the seal. The annular surface has an inner diameter greater than an outer diameter of the shaft and an outer diameter forming a removable frictional seal with an inner diameter of the interior cavity.
In another embodiment, a seal cover for a shaft that is rotatably disposed in a cavity defined by a housing surrounding the shaft includes an elongated body having an enclosed, generally cup-shaped, interior cavity that opens at an end of the body for receiving the shaft. The body defines an annular outer surface at the end to abut the housing.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate one or more embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3896654 (1975-07-01), Mancini
patent: 3942234 (1976-03-01), Kepler
patent: 4586228 (1986-05-01), Rodolf
Farr Lloyd G.
Gerasimow Alexander M.
Reliance Electric Technologies LLC
Walbrun William R.
Watson Robert C.
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