S.s. White Technologies, Inc.

Paul Michael Mellor

Tat Yuen

Tat M Yuen

A flexible shaft for transmitting torque, for example between a motor and an automobile seat to be adjusted. The shaft has a core including one or more wire layers helically wound in opposite winding directions. The outer layer has a number of wires with a circular cross-section and at least one flat wire. The wires of the outer layer are helically wound in a winding direction opposite to that of the adjacent layer. The flat wire has a thickness substantially less than the maximum diameter of the outer layer wires of circular cross-section. A strand of flocked yarn is wound on the flat wire and protrudes above the adjacent wires of the outer layer, to engage the inner wall of a surrounding casing and reduce noise when the shaft is rotated within the casing.

Flexible shaft with interference fit capability

A flexible shaft having ends of square cross-section for coupling a mating female driving member such as a square recess in a motor assembly, with a mating female driven member such as a square recess in a gearbox assembly, for positioning a seat in a motor vehicle. To decrease vibration and noise due to friction and relative movement between the shaft ends and the mating recesses, the sides of the shaft end portions are covered with a deformable polytetrafluoroethylene sheath applied by positioning a length of heat shrinkable tubing over each end portion and heating the tubing to shrink it onto the corresponding end portion so that it assumes the square cross-sectional shape of the end portion.

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Easton, PA, United States of America

Paul Michael Mellor