Electromagnetic clutch

• US 4,471,860 A
• Filed: 04/23/1982
• Issued: 09/18/1984
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/1981
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamada, Toshiaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Bonck, Rodney H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Merek, James J.
• Application Number:
  US06/371,423
• Time in Patent Office: 879 Days
• Field of Search: 192/84 C, 192/84 B, 192/84 R, 192/52, 192/53 D
• US Class Current: 192/52.2
• CPC Class Codes: F16D 2027/008 Details relating to the magnetic circuit, or to the shape of the clutch parts to achieve a certain magnetic path
• CPC Class Codes: F16D 27/112 with flat friction surfaces, e.g. discs

Abstract

An electromagnetic clutch comprises a driving member (1) comprising a pulley yoke (105) and a touching part (103), an electromagnet (2) magnetically coupled to the yoke (105), a driven member (4) to be connected to a shaft of a load machine and having at least two ring-shaped armatures, an inner armature (7) and an outer armature (8) independent movably connected by a spring member (5) to said driven member (4); and by making the attracting motion characteristic of the two armatures different from each other, a clutching face of the inner armature (7) firstly contact the touching part (103) and that of the outer armature (8) subsequently contact the same, thereby attaining gradual and gentle coupling.

Claims

1. An electromagnetic clutch comprising:

an electromagnet,

a driving member for receiving a revolving force and forming a magnetic yoke, said driving member having a touching part, said magnetic yoke being magnetically coupled to said electromagnet,

a driven member for transmitting revolving power to a load to be connected thereto,

at least two armatures of substantially ring shape of different sizes, including an inner armature and an outer armature disposed concentrically to each other, each said armature having clutching faces opposing to said touching part,

each said armature being connected to said driven member through a spring member, said spring member connecting said inner armature having a larger compliance than that of said spring member of said outer armature, whereby said two armatures are operable independently of one another in response to energization and deenergization of said electromagnet to allow said inner armature to transmit revolution torque prior to the outer armature.

2. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 1, wherein

area of magnetic paths to said inner armature and said outer armature are selected to make a difference in magnetic flux density thereof to allow said inner armature to transmit revolution torque prior to the outer armature.

3. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 2, wherein:

said electromagnet is energized at the initial stage by an exciting current which is larger than a minimum attraction current for said inner armature and smaller than a minimum attraction current for said outer armature, thereby to attract only said inner armature, and

at the subsequent stage by a rated exciting current which is larger than said minimum attraction current for said outer armature thereby adding the attracting of said outer armature to complete the entire coupling of the clutch.

4. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 1, wherein

coefficients of friction between contacting faces of said touching part of driving member and clutching faces of said inner armature and said outer armature are selected such that the coefficient of friction for said inner armature is smaller than that for said outer armature.

5. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 1, wherein said touching part of the driving member has two substantially ring-shaped through hole grooves disposed in concentric relation and two ring-shaped clutch linings of different coefficients of friction from each other disposed above said substantially ring-shaped through hole grooves.

6. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 1, wherein said electromagnet is constructed and arranged to be energized

at the initial stage by an exciting current which is larger than a minimum attraction current for said inner armature and smaller than a minimum attraction current for said outer armature, thereby to attract only said inner armature, and

at the subsequent stage by a rated exciting current which is larger than said minimum attraction current for said outer armature thereby adding the attracting of said outer armature to complete the entire coupling of the clutch.

7. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 1, wherein

said armatures are connected by means of rivets and the inner armature is connected by rivets of smaller head size than those connecting the outer armature.

8. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 1, wherein

said armatures are connected by means of rivets and the inner armature is connected by rivets of a shorter rod part than those connecting the outer armature.

9. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 1, wherein

opposing areas of contacting faces of said touching part and the clutching faces of said armatures are made different from each other in such a manner that said contacting face and said clutching face for said inner armature is smaller than those for the outer armature.

10. An electromagnetic clutch in accordance with claim 1, wherein

said spring member connecting said armatures is a spongy substance to which said armatures are connected by means of rivets, the spongy substance having vacant space under heads of said rivets with a supporting part of a predetermined thickness of the same substance immediately under said heads, and vacant spaces for said inner armature being larger than those for said outer armature.