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:
Dec. 04, 2001
Filed:
Jul. 07, 1999
NSK Ltd., Tokyo, JP;
Abstract
The universal joint of this invention comprises a hub interposed between an upper shaft and a middle shaft, an upper pin coupling together the upper shaft and the hub, a lower pin coupling together the middle shaft and the hub, and a stopper ring fitting over the outside of the middle shaft at an end thereof on the side of the upper shaft. The hub is formed in such a manner that the outer shape thereof is a spindle shape narrowing in the fore-and-aft direction with respect to the upper pin, and a bottomed hole provided with a taper portion is formed in the axial center thereof, opening towards the rear of the upper pin. In a front end portion of the upper shaft are formed a taper portion contracting towards the front of the upper pin and a groove portion engaging with the lower pin. The upper and lower pins are disposed adjacent to one another in the central axial direction of the hub and are also at a phase angle difference of, for example, 90 degrees. This invention provides a universal joint that has a simpler structure and a reduced manufacturing cost.