Vehicular driving axle

Claim 1

AN AXLE FOR DRIVING ROAD WHEELS OF A MOTOR VEHICLE, INCLUDING AN AXLE CASING, A BEVEL DRIVING GEAR INCLUDING A DRIVING STUB SHAFT, A THRUST BEARING RECEIVING SAID STUB SHAFT THEREIN FOR SUPPORTING THE DRIVING GEAR IN SAID AXLE CASING FOR ROTATION ABOUT ITS AXIS, A BEVEL DRIVEN GEAR MESHING WITH SAID DRIVING GEAR AND CONSTITUTING PART OF A DRIVING AXLE DIFFERENTIAL, SAID DRIVING GEAR WHEN TRANSMITTING TORQUE TO THE DRIVEN GEAR FOR DRIVING SAID MOTOR VEHICLE FORWARD GENERATING AN AXIAL THRUST IN ONE DIRECTION, SAID THRUST BEARING BEING POSITIONED CLOSELY ADJACENT SAID DRIVING GEAR TO TRANSMIT THE AXIAL THRUST GENERATED BY SAID DRIVING GEAR TO SAID CASING, A TWO-SPEED EPICYCLIC GEARING CARRIED BY SAID AXLE CASING ADJACENT SAID THRUST BEARING BUT ON THE SIDE THEREOF REMOTE FROM SAID DRIVING GEAR, A REACTION MEMBER FOR SAID EPICYCLIC GEARING, AN AXIALLY MOVABLE FRICTION ENGAGING MEMBER ROTATIVELY FAST WITH SAID REACTION MEMBER, A STATIONARY MEMBER MOUNTED ON THE AXLE CASING AND DEFINING A BRAKE SUFACE, A POWER OUTPUT MEMBER FOR SAID EPICYCLIC GEARING INCLUDING A HOLLOW STUB SHAFT ENCLOSED IN SAID THRUST BEARING TO BE SUPPORTED THEREBY, THE STUB SHAFT OF SAID DRIVING GEAR BEING KEYED WITHIN SAID HOLLOW STUB SHAFT OF SAID POWER OUTPUT MEMBER OF THE EPICYCLIC GEARING, SAID POWER OUTPUT MEMBER OF THE EPICYCLIC GEARING BEING AXIALLY LOCATED BY SAID THRUST BEARING, SAID POWER OUTPUT MEMBER OF THE EPICYCLIC GEARING DEFINING A CLUTCH SURFACE FACING GENERALLY AWAY FROM SAID DRIVING GEAR, FLUID OPERATED MEANS FOR URGING SAID FRICTION ENGAGING MEMBER INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID STATIONARY MEMBER TO TRANSMIT DRIVE AT THE PLANETARY RATIO AND BIASING MEANS TO NORMALLY URGE SAID FRICTION ENGAGING MEMBER INTO A ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID CLUTCH SURFACE SO THE THE EPICYCLIC GEARING WILL TRANSMIT DRIVE AT UNIT RATIO, THE ENGAGEMENT OF SAID FRICTION ENGAGING MEMBER BY SAID BIAS MEANS URGING SAID FRICTION ENGAGING MEMBER IN THE DIRECTION TO OPPOSE THE AXIAL THRUST BY SAID DRIVING GEAR IN THE SAID ONE DIRECTION SO AS TO REDUCE THE TOTAL AXIAL THRUST TRANSMITTED BY SAID THRUST BEARING TO THE CASING.