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:
Apr. 29, 2003
Filed:
Dec. 06, 2001
Vernon E. Gleasman, Pittsford, NY (US);
Keith E. Gleasman, Fairport, NY (US);
Warren R. Alexander, Pittsford, NY (US);
Robert C. Horton, Canandaigua, NY (US);
Torvec, Inc., Pittsford, NY (US);
Abstract
A steer-drive for vehicles primarily operated in fluids (e.g., boats and planes) interposes respective left and right orbital gear drives into the vehicle drivetrain between the engine/transmission or/speed-reducer and the vehicle's respective port and starboard propulsion elements. The orbital drive units comprise only an input gear and an output gear interconnected by at least one orbiting cluster gear that is supported in a rotating housing and also meshes only with the input and output gears. The orbital units are designed so that (a) when rotation of the housing is prevented, driving torque is transferred at speed ratios selected to be as close to 1:1 as is practical, and (b) when steering torque causes rotation of the housing, the steering torque is added or subtracted from the driving torque. Steering torque is applied simultaneously in equal and opposite directions to the orbital units, causing the vehicle's respective propulsion element on one side of the vehicle to speed up and the vehicle's respective propulsion element on the other side of the vehicle to slow down at the same rate.