The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Feb. 11, 1997
Filed:
Dec. 05, 1995
Chun W Chan, Indianapolis, IN (US);
Robert F Weaver, Brownsburg, IN (US);
Emerson Electric Co., St. Louis, MO (US);
Abstract
The clutch is an integral gear stage in a subfractional horsepower motor gear train that is used in an appliance such as an icemaker or cam-operated timer. The clutch has an inner member with arc-shaped springs that carry curved protrusions and an outer member with sinusoidally shaped contours. The curved protrusions engage the sinusoidally shaped contours to permit the clutch to transmit torque to an appliance component. When the torque applied to the clutch exceeds a predetermined level, the curved protrusions disengage from the contours and permit the inner member to rotate independently from the outer member. The curved protrusions disengage from the sinusoidally shaped contours and then reengage the sinusoidally shaped contours causing the arc-shaped springs to compress and extend as a function of the sinusoidally shaped contours, gradually compressing and gradually extending, thereby reducing vibration and noise.