Ball joint

Claim 1

IN A COMPRESSION LOADED BALL JOINT ASSEMBLY THE COMBINATION OF: A HOUSING PROVIDING THEREWITHIN A PRINCIPAL LOAD BEARING SURFACE OF PARTLY SPHERICAL FORM ADJACENT ONE END, A STUD HAVING A HEAD IN SAID HOUSING WITH A FIRST BEARING SURFACE THEREON ENGAGED ON SAID PRINCIPAL BEARING SURFACE FOR MOVEMEN RELATIVE THERETO, SAID STUD HEAD HAVING A SECOND BEARING SURFACE OPPOSED TO SAID FIRST BEARING SURFACE, SAID HOUSING INCLUDING A WALL STRUCTURE BEARING SURFACE, SAID HOUSING INCLUDING A WALL STRUCTURE WITH AN INTERNAL SURFACE ENCLOSING SAID SECOND BEARING SURFACE AND SPACED THEREFROM TO PROVIDE AN ANNULAR CAVITY OPENING OUTWARDLY AT AN APERTURE IN SAID WALL STRUCTURE OPPOSITE SAID ONE END OF SAID HOUSING AND THROUGH WHICH SAID STUD SHANK PROJECTS, A BEARING CUP MOUNTED IN SAID ANNULAR CAVITY IN BEARING ENGAGEMENT UPON SAID SECOND BEARING SURFACE OF SAID STUD HEAD AND HAVING A FIRST TERMINAL EDGE ADJACENT ONE END REMOTE FROM SAID SHANK AND EXTENDING ANGULARLY OUTWARDLY A SUFFICIENT DISTANCE RELATIVE TO SAID SECOND BEARING SURFACE AND WITHIN SAID ANNULAR CAVITY TO ENGAGE SAID INTERNAL SURFACE OF SAID WALL STRUCTURE UPON MOVEMENT OF SAID STUD HEAD, AND A SECOND TERMINAL EDGE EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY RELATIVE TO SAID STUD MEMBER AND DISPOSED CLOSELY ADJACENT SAID INTERNAL SURFACE, SAID CUP TERMINAL EDGES AND INTERNAL SURFACE DEFINING A GIVEN VOLUME AND AN ELASTOMERIC RING ELEMENT IN SAID ANNULAR CAVITY FORMED WITH AN INNER SURFACE ENGAGING SAID BEARING CUP, AN OUTER SURFACE BEARING ON SAID INTERNAL SURFACE OF SAID WALL STRUCTURE INWARDLY OF SAID APERTURE, SAID RING ELEMENT BEING INITIALLY COMPRESSED FOR YIELDINGLY LOADING SAID BEARING CUP INTO BEARING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID SECOND BEARING SURFACE OF SAID STUD HEAD AND NORMALLY EXERTING A PRELOAD ON SAID STUD HEAD TO RETAIN SAID FIRST BEARING SURFACE ON SAID STUD HEAD TO RETAIN SAID PRINCIPAL LOAD BEARING SURFACE OF SAID HOUSING IN ENGAGEMENT, SAID RING ELEMENT HAVING A VOLUME SO PROPORTIONED TO SAID GIVEN VOLUME THAT UPON EXTREME CONDITION OF COMPRESSION OF SAID RING ELEMENT, SUCH AS A LATERAL STRESS, SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER THAN NORMAL AND CONSEQUENT COLD FLOW THEREOF, NO PORTION OF SAID RING WILL EXTRUDE BEYOND OR FLOW INTO A POSITION THAT IT WOULD SUFFER DESTRUCTION BY EITHER OF SAID TERMINAL EDGES, SUCH THAT SAID RING ELEMENT IS FREE TO FURTHER COMPRESS AND ALTER ITS CROSS-SECTIONAL SHAPE WITHIN SAID ANNULAR CAVITY BETWEEN SAID BEARING CUP AND INTERNAL SURFACE OF SAID WALL STRUCTURE UPON MOVEMENT OF SAID BEARING CUP AND STUD HEAD IN A DIRECTION TO DISPLACE EITHER OF SAID TERMINAL EDGES TOWARD SAID WALL STRUCTURE, WHEREBY THE LATTER MOVEMENT OF SAID TERMINAL EDGES CONFINES SAID RESILIENT RING ELEMENT WITHIN SAID ANNULAR CAVITY.