Western Gear Corporation

Westech Gear Corporation

Donald P Shutt

William M Hallidy

Thurman W Jessup

Apparatus for protection against damage from excessive torque loads, including a fast-acting slip clutch to limit torque transmitted between a drive motor and a mechanical load, and an automatic device to protect the slip clutch from damage due to slippage in excess of a predetermined amount for a predetermined time. A slip measurement device detects the degree of slippage in the clutch, and a timing circuit coupled to the slip measurement device disconnects power from the drive motor after the predetermined time has elapsed. In the illustrative embodiment of the invention, the slip clutch includes an input shaft, a wrapped spring in interference-fit engagement with the input shaft, and an output shaft in engagement with one end of the spring. The spring tends to unwrap from the input shaft and to slip if a torque in excess of a threshold level is transmitted.

Slip clutch with slip detector and electrical disconnect

A marine transmission is capable of operating in three modes, normal ahead, maneuver ahead and reverse. It includes a positive engagement clutch for the normal ahead mode and modulated engagement mechanism (a clutch and a brake) for the maneuver ahead and reverse modes. Power is supplied to an output shaft through an external shaft. The maneuver ahead and reverse modes use an internal shaft concentric with the external shaft. In the reverse mode the direction of the external shaft is changed by employing a planetary gear arrangement.

Marine transmission

A starting power source is connected to a jet engine of an aircraft by alternative drive trains having different mechanical advantages, each associated with a clutch. The clutches are centrally supplied with cooling fluid and the discs and plates of the clutches are grooved to promote outward migration of the fluid resulting in a thin shear film of fluid on the opposing clutch surfaces to permit a soft, gradual engagement. It is possible to start the engine with only a single shift which occurs after the ignition point has been reached and during the assist phase of the starting procedure. The invention can be applied to aircraft having more than one engine.

On-board aircraft engine starting apparatus

The disclosure is of an improvement of automatic load brakes, of the type generally and generically known as a Weston disk brake, as used, for example, in braking a hoisting drum adapted for reeling in and reeling out a cable suspending a load. The frictional brake disks and plates, while lowering the load, experience a feed-back torque from the load. Means are provided for feeding only a proportional part of the total energy so fed back to only a fraction of the brake plates, whereby to instantly break these loose for relative rotation in response to lowering inputs. By this feature, response is instantaneous, and no further provisions are required to break away or accelerate the plates. Improvements are also disclosed by which, when feed-back is controlling the application of the brake, the usual oscillatory application of the brake, i.e., chatter, is stabilized and virtually eliminated. Another feature is continuous oil cooling of the brake disks and rings during the duty cycle of the brake (reeling out) and also during the off-duty cycle of the brake (reeling in), thus lowering the average temperature of the cooling oil. This is accomplished by an integral gear pump which pumps cooling oil continuously, and automatically reverses position to accomplish this as the direction of cable travel reverses.

Automatic load brake

The disclosure is of an effort limiting actuator, comprising an arm system which is subject to lateral deflection when subjected to a predetermined force or torque, but which withstands deflection until such force or torque reaches a predetermined magnitude. The arm system is stabilized against exerted force or torque until a pre-compressed helical compression spring incorporated in the device has been compressed sufficiently under said force or torque to overcome the force of pre-compression, at which time the aforementioned deflection occurs. This deflection will be in either of two directions depending upon the direction of the force or torque. Switch means are selectively actuated in response to the direction of the force or torque thereto to interrupt that force or torque, or in other words the initially mentioned effort, which the actuator is intended to limit. The device is operative with the effort exerted in either direction of operation, and is thus directionally discriminative.

Effort limiting and interrupting actuator

The disclosure is of a system for maintaining tension in a cable during winding off or on a power driven cable drum. The cable winds off or back onto the cable drum over a roller means, e.g., between a pair of parallel geared-together traction rollers, or over a sheave, as another example, with a non-slip engagement therewith. The non-slip engagement avoids wear on the cable, and the life of the cable is greatly extended. To permit this, a frictional slip clutch is placed in a power transmission interposed between the power driven cable drum and the non-slip drive rollers, or sheave. The wear that formerly eroded the cable now occurs in the friction slip clutch, whose parts can always be quickly and inexpensively replaced. The system also includes certain one-way roller clutches, and gears, so arranged as to normally overdrive the roller means, or sheave, in paying out cable, and to retard the cable during winding in. The arrangement provides gearing of a drive ratio tending to overdrive the cable in paying out, and to underdrive, or retard, during winding in, the necessary slip always being accommodated by the slip-clutch. The cable is thus always under tension, and fouling of the cable is prevented.

Winch with cable tensioning device operable during reeling out and

A device is disclosed by which two paired controls in an aircraft flight control system, such as pitch controls, or the roll controls, which are ordinarily operated in coordination by the pilot by use of a single operating control may, when the control on one side of the airplane is damaged and jammed, accomplish a disconnect of that side, and so free the opposite side control for operation. The aircraft can often be flown with just the one side control in commission, if freed from the opposite side. The device is in the nature of a bell crank, and the disconnect means is in the hub thereof. Also disclosed is a novel bi-directional sensor incorporated in the input arm of the bell crank, and which gives an indication to the pilot when the linkage to the corresponding control surface, or the control surface, is damaged and jammed. This sensor has application other than in aircraft control systems.

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Long Beach, CA, United States of America

Donald P Shutt