Power steering mechanism

Claim 1

A CONTROL MEANS FOR CONTROLLING THE POWER MEANS FOR A POWER STEERING MECHANISM COMPRISING: A DRIVING MEANS; A SENSING MEANS HAVING CONCENTRIC TELESCOPICALLY RELATED INPUT AND OUTPUT SHAFTS, SAID INPUT SHAFT ADAPTED TO BE DRIVEN BY SAID DRIVING MEANS, A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL, AXIALLY-SPLIT BAND SPRING ENCIRCLING THE OUTER OF SAID SHAFTS SO AS TO CONTRACT THEREON, AND PRESENTING OPPOSED ENDS IN SPACED RELATIONSHIP, A RADIALLY EXTENDING ARM FIXED TO THE INNER OF SAID SHAFTS AND EXTENDING THROUGH AN OPENING IN THE OUTER OF SAID SHAFTS LOCATED SO AS TO BE INTERPOSED BETWEEN SAID OPPOSED ENDS OF SAID SPRING, AN ABUTMENT MEMBER CARRIED BY THE OUTER OF SAID SHAFTS LONGITUDINALLY LOCATED WITH RESPECT TO SAID SHAFTS SO AS TO BE INTERPOSED BETWEEN SAID OPPOSED ENDS OF SAID SPRING, AND HAVING SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME CHORDAL THICKNESS AS SAID ARM, SAID INPUT SHAFT ADAPTED TO BE ROTATED RELATIVE TO SAID OUTPUT SHAFT AGAINST THE FORCE OF SAID AXIALLY-SPLIT BAND SPRING WHEN THE TORQUE APPLIED TO SAID DRIVING MEANS EXCEEDS A SELECTED VALUE, A MOVABLE VALVE ELEMENT AND ACTUATING MEANS MOVABLE IN RESPONSE TO RELATIVE ROTATION OF SAID SHAFTS OF SAID SENSING MEANS AND ADAPTED TO MOVE THE MOVABLE VALVE ELEMENT, WHEREBY THE RELATIVE ROTATION OF SAID INPUT AND OUTPUT SHAFTS CAUSES SAID VALVE ACTUATING MEANS TO ACTUATE SAID MOVABLE VALVE ELEMENT TO CONTROL THE POWER MEANS OF A POWER STEERING MECHANISM.