Daimler Chrysler Ag

Mercedes-benz Aktiengesellschaft

Dieter Kandert

Dittmar Wieland

Bertold Ediger

Juergen Braun

J&uuml;rgen Braun

Harmut Albers

Karl-Heinz Ilzhofer

A center bearing for a shaft, in particular a propeller shaft, has a rolling bearing arranged on the propeller shaft and a bearing housing surrounding the center bearing. A slide ring in which the rolling bearing is axially displaceable is arranged over the outer periphery of the rolling bearing. A decoupling element is arranged between the slide ring and the bearing housing.

Center bearing for a shaft

A two-part hollow drive shaft for motor vehicles in a light-weight construction, having two shaft sections and a total of three cardan joints, with a pivot bearing being arranged close to the center cardan joint. For compensating load-change-caused distance changes of the rearward cardan joint from the pivot bearing, a length compensation is provided in the second shaft section. The first shaft section is axially divided in the proximity of the pivot bearing in order to be able to mount the bearing element. For designing the drive shaft to be as light as possible and for being able to produce it at reasonable cost, the center cardan joint is constructed as a disk joint with a flexible ring disk arranged perpendicularly to the axis of rotation. Furthermore, the rearward cardan joint is constructed as a homokinetic cardan joint in a construction which permits an axial length compensation so that a separate length compensation in the rearward shaft section is not necessary. In the area of the axial division of the first shaft section, one toothing respectively with radially extending teeth which toothings engage in one another in a mutually centering and non-rotatable manner is worked onto mutually facing front sides of the hollow shaft, which toothing can be axially braced by a screwed connection arranged in the interior of the hollow shaft. As an alternative, the shaft can be welded at this point also after the mounting of the bearing.

Drive shaft

A drive shaft with an endless-fiber-reinforced plastic tube made of a thermosetting plastic matrix material and with a joint-connecting body that is connected nonrotatably with a plastic tube by means of a pin inserted into the plastic tube. The drive shaft is intended to be capable of being manufactured universally in large quantities efficiently and in different lengths for use, and can also handle severe loads mechanically even at high operating temperatures. For this purpose, an internal layer with axially aligned fibers or fiber strands, preferably made of carbon, is provided in the plastic tube, on which at least one double layer with fibers arranged inclined symmetrically to the axial direction is applied. The plastic tube is provided internally with axially aligned profiling that remains constant over the entire length of the plastic tube and is formed of the matrix material, in the manner of a spline bore. The pin, provided on its outer circumference with a negatively shaped matching opposite profile, engages positively by a sliding fit or gentle press fit in the internal profile of the plastic tube. The pin is also secured in the plastic tube in the axial direction by gluing or by a locking connection using a snap ring.

Drive shaft with reinforced plastic tube and a joint-connecting body

Growing community of inventors

Wiernsheim, Germany

Dieter Kandert