Zf Sachs Ag

Hermann Schleicher

Jürgen Ackermann

Peter Frey

Georg Mencher

Horst Breier

Ralf Rönnebeck

Jürgen Dacho

Bernd Schöder

A hydrodynamic torque converter which has at least a hydrodynamic circuit including at least one pump wheel and one turbine wheel, wherein each of these wheels is provided with an outer shell to accept a set of vanes which form flow chambers, the inner edges of the vanes away from the outer shell being connected to an inner shell, which acts as part of an internal torus. At least the vanes of the turbine wheel have connecting elements both on the inner edges and on the outer edges, which connecting elements pass through openings in the shells to fasten the vanes to the shells, being provided for this purpose with a predetermined minimum overhang with respect to the edge of the associated vane, this minimum overhang making it possible for the connecting elements to be plastically deformed in such a way that they can grip the rear surfaces of the shells, i.e., the surfaces facing away from the vanes, and thus fasten the vanes to the shells. The connecting elements are designed in such a way that, without detriment to the predetermined ability to withstand the pressure produced by the hydrodynamic circuit, it is possible to introduce and to fasten the vanes easily, even in the case of rotors with extremely small radial dimensions and thus with very sharply curved outer and inner shells for the vanes.

Hydrodynamic torque converter

A bridging clutch is installed in a fluid medium-filled housing of a hydrodynamic coupling device located between a drive shaft and a transmission input shaft, the coupling device also containing a pump wheel and a turbine wheel. The bridging clutch is provided with a piston, which, when moved into a first axial position, brings at least one friction element into working connection with at least one friction surface, and when moved into a second axial position, at least partially releases this working connection, and with a torsional vibration damper, which is designed with at least one drive element and with at least one takeoff element, at least one of which has openings for circumferential springs and actuating areas for these springs. At least one of the takeoff elements acts a carrier element for the turbine wheel, which is held otherwise without radial support in the housing. At least one of these elements, namely, either the drive element or the takeoff element, has at least one radial area which is brought up in the axial direction essentially without play to the other one of the elements in question, which radial area serves as axial support for the positioning of the turbine wheel in this direction with respect to the housing of the coupling device.

Bridging clutch

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Wonfurt, Germany

Hermann Schleicher