Cyclic clutch

Claim 2

A cyclic phasing clutch comprising normal drive means rotating at constant speed, a clutch output drive adapted to transmit rotary motion to equipment driven by said clutch, a pair of acceleration-deceleration generators driven at a constant speed directly related to the speed of said normal drive means, said generators each having an output delivered to an alternative drive means rotating with cyclical sinusoidal variations in angular velocity with time such that one revolution of said alternative drive means occurs for each two revolutions of said normal drive means, said cyclical variations reaching a minimum angular velocity value of about zero and a maximum angular velocity of about that of said normal drive means, said cyclical variations of each alternative drive means being similar but out of phase with one another by approximately 360* of rotation of said normal drive means, and means for selective engagement of said clutch output drive with said normal drive means and with either of said alternative drive means.

Claim 3

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 1 in which said selective engagement with a said alternative drive means is adapted to occur at approximately the point of maximum angular velocity thereof.

Claim 4

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 2 in which each of said acceleration-deceleration generators comprise a drag link having an elliptical input constraint.

Claim 5

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 3 in which the elliptical input constraint of said drag link of each acceleration-deceleration generator is developed by an eccentric pin maintained in a fixed nonrotatable relationship with a pinion, said pinion being associated with a fixed gear having a pitch diameter double that of the pinion, said association permitting said pinion to remain in driving engagement with said gear while moving in a circular path, the center of said circular path corresponding with the axis of said gear, the drive to said generator serving to move said pinion in its circular path, said drag link including an output link which is mounted to rotate about one of its ends, said one end being adapted to drive the alternative drive means of the generator and the other end of said output link being pivoted to a coupler link extending to said eccentric pin.

Claim 6

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 4 in which the said drag link parameters are based on the following relative lengths: A. a radius of said circular path of about 1.0 unit; B. a distance from the axis of said pinion to that of said eccentric pin of about 0.2 unit; C. a coupler link length of about 0.8941 unit; and D. an output link length of about 0.4119 unit.

Claim 7

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 4 in which said gear and pinion form an epicyclic train with an idler gear intermediate the two.

Claim 8

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 4 in which each generator has a pair of identically proportioned said drag links associated therewith, said drag links being oriented so that the pinions and eccentric pins thereof are associated with the same gear at positions spaced from one another by about 180* and simultaneously moved by the drive to said generator, the said one end of the output link of each of said drag lInks being adapted to cooperatively drive the alternative drive means of the generator with the axis of rotation of each said one end being coincident with the axis of said gear.

Claim 9

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 1 in which said means for selective engagement also is adapted to alternatively engage said clutch output drive with a locking means to retain said clutch output drive in a stationary position.

Claim 10

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 8 in which said selective engagement with said locking means is adapted to occur following the engagement of said clutch output drive with a said alternative drive means and at about the point in time approximately corresponding with that at which the minimum angular velocity of the engaged alternative drive means is reached

Claim 11

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 9 in which the selective engagement with a said alternative drive means and with said normal drive means is adapted to occur at the point in time approximately corresponding with that at which the maximum angular velocity of the alternative drive means involved is reached.

Claim 12

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 10 in which any selective engagement of said clutch output drive with the normal drive means and with said alternative drive means occurs at the same radial position of said clutch output shaft and in which any such selective engagement with said locking means occurs at a location spaced radially from said radial position.

Claim 13

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 11 in which said location is spaced by approximately 215* in the direction of rotation of said output shaft.

Claim 14

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 10 in which each of said acceleration-deceleration generators comprises a drag link having an elliptical input constraint.

Claim 15

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 13 in which the elliptical input constraint of said drag link of each acceleration-deceleration generator is developed by an eccentric pin maintained in a fixed nonrotatable relationship with a pinion, said pinion being associated with a fixed gear having a pitch diameter double that of the pinion, said association permitting said pinion to remain in driving engagement with said gear while moving in a circular path, the center of said circular path corresponding with the axis of said gear, the drive to said generator serving to move said pinion in its circular path, said drag link including an output link which is mounted to rotate about one of its ends, said one end being adapted to drive the alternative drive means of the generator and the other end of said output to link being pivoted to a coupler link extending to said eccentric pin.

Claim 16

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 14 in which the said drag link parameters are based on the following relative lengths: A. a radius of said circular path of about 1.0 unit; B. a distance from the axis of said pinion to that of said eccentric pin of about 0.2 unit; C. a coupler link length of about 0.8941 unit; and D. an output link length of about 0.4119 unit.

Claim 17

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 13 in which said gear and pinion form an epicyclic train with an idler gear intermediate the two.

Claim 18

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 13 in which each generator has a pair of identically proportioned said drag links associated therewith, said drag links being oriented so that the pinions and eccentric pins thereof are associated with the same gear at positions spaced from one another by about 180* and simultaneously moved by the drive to said generator, the said one end of the output links of each of said drag links being adapted to cooperatively drive the alternative drive means of the generator with the axis of rotation of each said one end being coincident with the axis of said gear.

Claim 19

A cyclic phasing clutch comprising a constant speed clutch input shaft and a clutch output shaft in alignment with the clutch input shaft; a pair of acceleration-deceleration generators Driven at a constant speed directly related to the speed of said clutch input shaft, each generator having an output shaft concentric with said clutch input shaft, each said generator producing a single-cyclical revolution of the associated generator output shaft for each two revolutions of constant speed input by said clutch input shaft, each revolution of a generator output shaft comprising a complete cycle in which angular velocity varies sinusoidally with time, decelerating from a maximum value approximately identical to that of said clutch input shaft, reaching an instantaneous value of about zero and accelerating to the said maximum value, the cyclical output of the generator output shafts being substantially identical and out of phase with one another by approximately 360* of clutch input shaft rotation; and means for selective engagement of said clutch output shaft with said clutch input shaft, with the output shaft of either generator and with a locking means to retain said clutch output shaft in a stationary position.

Claim 20

A cyclic phasing clutch comprising a constant speed clutch input shaft and a clutch output shaft in alignment with the clutch input shaft; a pair of acceleration-deceleration generators Driven at a constant speed directly related to the speed of said clutch input shaft, each generator having an output shaft concentric with said clutch input shaft, each said generator producing a single-cyclical revolution of the associated generator output shaft for each two revolutions of constant speed input by said clutch input shaft, each revolution of a generator output shaft comprising a complete cycle in which angular velocity varies sinusoidally with time, decelerating from a maximum value approximately identical to that of said clutch input shaft, reaching an instantaneous value of about zero and accelerating to the said maximum value, the cyclical output of the generator output shafts being substantially identical and out of phase with one another by approximately 360* of clutch input shaft rotation; and means for selective engagement of said clutch output shaft with said clutch input shaft, with the output shaft of either generator and with a locking means to retain said clutch output shaft in a stationary position.

Claim 21

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 18 in which each of the acceleration-deceleration generators comprises a drag link having an elliptical input constraint.

Claim 22

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 19 in which the elliptical input constraint of said drag link of each acceleration-deceleration generator is developed by an eccentric pin maintained in a fixed nonrotatable relationship with a pinion, said pinion being associated with a fixed gear having a pitch diameter double that of the pinion, said association permitting said pinion to remain in driving engagement with said gear while moving in a circular path, the center of said circular path corresponding with the axis of said gear, the drive to said generator serving to move said pinion in its circular path, said drag link including an output link which is mounted to rotate about one of its ends, said one end being adapted to drive the output shaft of the generator and the other end of said output link being pivoted to a coupler link extending to said eccentric pin.

Claim 23

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 20 in which said gear and pinion form an epicyclic train with an idler gear intermediate the two.

Claim 24

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 20 in which the said drag link parameters are based on the following relative lengths: A. a radius of said circular path of about 1.0 unit; B. a distance from the axis of said pinion to that of said eccentric pin of about 0.2 unit; C. a coupler link length of about 0.8941 unit; and D. an output link length of about 0.4119 unit.

Claim 25

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 20 in which each generator has a pair of identically proportioned said drag links associated therewith, said drag links being oriented so that the pinions and eccentric pins thereof are associated with the same gear at positions spaced from one another by about 180* and simultaneously moved by the drive to said generator, the said one end of the output links of each of said drag links being adapted to cooperatively drive the output shaft of the generator with the axis of rotation of each said one end being coincident with the axis of said gear.

Claim 26

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 23 in which the said drag link parameters are based on the following relative lengths: A. a radius of said circular path of about 1.0 unit; B. a distance from the axis of said pinion to that of said eccentric pin of about 0.2 unit; C. a coupler link length of about 0.8941 unit; and D. an output link length of about 0.4119 unit.

Claim 27

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 23 in which the output link of both said drag links of a generator are combined into an integral output link adapted to be rotated about a location intermediate the pivotal connections to the coupler links.

Claim 28

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 18, in which said means for selective engagement comprises an interloCk member drivingly connected to and adapted to move in a radial direction from said clutch output shaft to assume one of three alternative radial positions, a first said position in which said member can be engaged with said clutch input shaft, a second said position in which said member can be engaged with either of the output shafts of said generators and a third said position in which said member is engaged with said locking means, said clutch including actuator means for controlling the movement of said member.

Claim 29

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 26 in which said actuator means causes movement of said member between said first and said second positions only at the point in time approximately corresponding with that at which the maximum angular velocity of an output shaft of a said generator is reached, movement between said second and third positions occurs only at the point in time approximately corresponding with that at which the minimum angular velocity of an output shaft of a said generator is reached and which prevents movement of said member between said first and said third positions without first moving to said second position.

Claim 30

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 27 in which said locking means is a slot in a stationary frame member of said clutch. pg, 38

Claim 31

The cyclic phasing clutch of claim 28 in which the output shafts of said generators and the clutch input shaft are each provided with a clutch plate having a radially oriented slot therein adapted to accept said member and in which said member is a spring-biased drive pin.