Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Makoto Watanabe

Tetsurou Hamada

Kazuhiko Shimada

Shoji Tokushima

Masami Takano

Naoya Akama

Noboru Ashikawa

Yoshinobu Ezure

Shinji Sakuma

Shyoji Tokushima

An apparatus for controlling the distribution of drive power in an all-wheel-drive motor vehicle which has main drive wheels, auxiliary drive wheels, and a drive power transmitting system for transmitting the drive power to the auxiliary drive wheels. The apparatus has a hydraulic pressure source, a hydraulic system, a hydraulic clutch disposed in the drive power transmitting system, which varies the drive power transmitted to the auxiliary drive wheels, depending on the hydraulic pressure supplied from the hydraulic pressure source to the hydraulic clutch through the hydraulic system, and a control system for controlling the ratio at which the drive power is distributed between the main and auxiliary drive wheels, through regulation of the hydraulic pressure supplied from the hydraulic pressure source to the hydraulic clutch. The apparatus further includes a failure detecting system for detecting a failure of the hydraulic system, and a hydraulic pressure lowering system for lowering the hydraulic pressure supplied from the hydraulic pressure source to the hydraulic clutch when a failure of the hydraulic system is detected by the failure detecting system.

Apparatus for controlling the distribution of drive power for motor

A dog clutch mechanism for use as a clutch for switching drive power in a four-wheel-drive vehicle has a case, first and second rotatable shafts rotatably supported coaxially in the case for transmitting a relative torque between front and rear wheels of the vehicle, and a dog clutch comprising a dog piece having first dog teeth and fixedly mounted on the first rotatably shaft and a hub having second dog teeth capable of axially meshing with the first dog teeth and axially slidably mounted on the second rotatable shaft. The dog clutch is selectively engageable for transmitting the relative torque between the first and second rotatable shafts. The first and second dog teeth having respective meshing tapered surfaces for producing thrust forces acting on the hub and tending to move the hub in a direction away from the dog piece when the vehicle is braked while a relative forward torque is being transmitted between the first and second rotatable shafts through the dog clutch.

Dog clutch mechanism

A dog clutch mechanism includes a case, first and second rotatable shafts rotatably disposed coaxially in the case, the second rotatable shaft having an annular groove defined in an outer periphery thereof, a dog piece fixedly mounted on the first rotatable shaft and having first dog teeth confronting an end of the second rotatable shaft, a hub axially slidably mounted on the second rotatable shaft and having second dog teeth meshingly engageable with the first dog teeth, the second dog teeth being movable out of meshing engagement with the first dog teeth under a thrust force in response to relative torque transmission between the first and second rotatable shafts. The hub has guide holes extending radially therethrough toward the second rotatable shaft and a plurality of balls are retained respectively in the guide holes are and engageable in the annular groove. A sleeve is axially slidably disposed on an outer periphery of the hub for engaging the balls and pressing the balls into at least the annular groove.

Growing community of inventors

Tochigi, Japan

Makoto Watanabe