Device for the frictional interconnection of two structural parts

Claim 1

A device, for the frictional interconnection of first and second structural parts, at least one of which is rotatable about an axis, including a plurality of substantially parallel disks coaxial with such axis and connected non-rotatably and in alternation to the respective structural parts and displaceable axially to effect engagement and disenagement of axial adjacent disks relative to each other, said device comprising, in combination, said first structural part being a housing and said second structural part being a shaft rotatably mounted in said housing for relative rotation of said housing and said shaft about the axis of said shaft; said disks having symmetrically located openings therethrough so arranged that at least a part of the openings in all the disks coincide at least partly in certain relative angular positions of said parts to form passages extending axially through the assembly of disks; all of said openings being circular and of substantially the same size; all those disks connected non-rotatably to said housing having their openings aligned in the direction of the axis of rotation, and all those disks connected non-rotatably to said shaft having their openings aligned in the direction of the axis of rotation; a working fluid inlet adjacent one axial end of said housing; a working fluid outlet adjacent the opposite axial end of said housing; a plate arranged parallel to said disks at that end of the assembly of disks adjacent said one axial end of said housing and displaceable in the direction of the axis of relative rotation; means connecting said plate non-rotatably with one of said structural parts; said plate being formed with bores therethrough each in alignment with a respective opening in an adjacent disk connected non-rotatably to said one structural part; said plate being formed with a slot arrangement communicating with said working fluid inlet for distributing the working fluid through said bores and the openings of said disks; means engageable with said plate and operable to displace said plate axially to displace said disks axially into engagement with each other; and a pump impeller connected non-rotatably to said shaft adjacent the disk assembly and adjacent said axially opposite end of said housing; said pump impeller having radially extending impeller blades communicating axially with the openings in said disks and communicating, at their radially outer ends, with said working fluid outlet.

Claim 2

A device, for the frictional interconnection of first and second structural parts, at least one of which is rotatable about an axis, including a plurality of substantially parallel disks coaxial with such axis and connected non-rotatably and in alternation to the respective structural parts and displaceable axially to effect engagement and disenagement of axial adjacent disks relative to each other, said device comprising, in combination, said first structural part being a housing and said second structural part being a shaft rotatably mounted in said housing for relative rotation of said housing and said shaft about the axis of said shaft; said disks having symmetrically located openings therethrough so arranged that at least a part of the openings in all the disks coincide at least partly in certain relative angular positions of said parts to form passages extending axially through the assembly of disks; all of said openings being circular and of substantially the same size; all those disks connected non-rotatably to said housing having their openings aligned in the direction of the axis of rotation, and all those disks connected non-rotatably to said shaft having their openings aligned in the direction of the axis of rotation; a working fluid inlet adjacent one axial end of said housing; a working fluid outlet adjacent the opposite axial end of said housing; a plate arranged parallel to said disks at that end of the assembly of disks adjacent said one axial end of said housing and displaceable in the direction of the axis of relative rotation; means connecting said plate non-rotatably with one of said structural parts; said plate being formed with bores therethrough each in alignment with a respective opening in an adjacent disk connected non-rotatably to said one structural part; said plate being formed with a slot arrangement communicating with said working fluid inlet for distributing the working fluid through said bores and the openings of said disks; means engageable with said plate and operable to displace said plate axially to displace said disks axially into engagement with each other; and a pump impeller connected non-rotatably to said shaft adjacent the disk assembly and adjacent said axially opposite end of said housing; said pump impeller having radially extending impeller blades communicating axially with the openings in said disks and communicating, at their radially outer ends, with said working fluid outlet.