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Rotatable coupling

  • US 9,866,035 B2
  • Filed: 03/27/2015
  • Issued: 01/09/2018
  • Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2015
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A continuously rotatable coupling, comprisingan input housing rotatably coupled to an output housing by a hollow tube fixed to the output housing and on which tube the input housing rotates, the hollow tube defining a central passage;

  • two cooperating magnetic flux concentrators disposed about the tube and defining therebetween an annular cavity, the flux concentrators comprising a first flux concentrator fixed to the input housing and a second flux concentrator fixed to the output housing, such that relative rotation of the input and output housings causes relative rotation of the flux concentrators on either side of the annular cavity;

    concentric coils disposed within the annular cavity and positioned to permit electrical contact-free power transfer across the coupling, a first of the concentric coils fixed to the input housing and a second of the concentric coils fixed to the output housing;

    an optical data emitter fixed to the input housing and positioned to transmit optical signals through the central passage; and

    an optical data receiver fixed to the output housing and positioned to receive the optical signals from the input optical data emitter during the relative rotation of the input and output housings.

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