Friction clutch, transmission and method for producing the same having a cover made of sheet metal with a folded anti-friction bearing seat

Abstract

The invention relates to a friction clutch (1) for a drive train (2) of a motor vehicle (3), the friction clutch having a cover (8) which, for installation in a transmission housing (4) and / or for mounting a shaft (5), has an inner bearing seat (6) and / or an outer bearing seat (7) for receiving an anti-friction bearing (9, 10) respectively, wherein the cover (8) is a (deep-drawn) sheet metal component and wherein a contour (11) with a fold is present in the region of at least one of the bearing seats (6 and / or 7) / the bearing seat (6 or 7). The invention also relates to a transmission having a transmission housing (4), into which the friction clutch (1) according to the invention is inserted in a manner supported via an anti-friction bearing (9 or 10), and in which the input shaft (5) is mounted in the cover (8) of the friction clutch (1) via a further anti-friction bearing (10 or 9). The invention also relates to a method for producing a friction clutch (1) according to the invention, wherein a bearing seat (6 or 7) or a plurality of bearing seats (6 and 7) are folded.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a friction clutch for a drive train of a motor vehicle, the friction clutch having a cover which, for installation in a transmission housing and / or for mounting a shaft, has an inner bearing seat and / or an outer bearing seat for correspondingly accommodating anti-friction bearings, wherein the cover is a (deep-drawn) sheet metal component. Background Art

[0002] Many friction clutches are already known in the prior art, including those used in hybrid vehicles. Thus, for example, DE 10 2017 127 917 A1 also discloses a clutch device for a vehicle. The clutch device comprises a friction clutch, which is arranged between a drive shaft and a transmission input shaft for transmitting torque. The clutch device also comprises a transmission input shaft and a release bearing, the friction clutch having a matching plate, a pressure plate that can be displaced in the axial direction by the release bearing to open and close the friction clutch, and a clutch disc arranged between the matching plate and the pressure plate. The transmission input shaft extends from a main bearing that carries the transmission input shaft through the release bearing, the pressure plate and the clutch disc to a first end, which is mounted in the matching plate via a guide bearing. In the clutch device, the first end of the transmission input shaft is surrounded by a compensating element, which is in operative connection with the guide bearing when the friction clutch is tilted relative to the transmission input shaft. Summary of the invention

[0003] Friction clutches are often used as rotor carriers in electric machines for hybrid modules in motor vehicles. This is also the object of the present invention.

[0004] Covers formed from one sheet steel piece for clutch pressure plates and dual clutches are known in the field of motor vehicle applications, these covers having a bearing seat arranged coaxially with the axis of rotation of the clutch. The bearing seat can be provided for both the outer ring and the inner ring of the anti-friction bearing. The bearing seat can be equipped with a shoulder for supporting the anti-friction bearing in the axial direction. The bearing seat can be provided with one or more grooves for mounting a retaining ring. The bearing seat is usually machined after the cover has been formed. In some cases, it is necessary to provide two bearing seats for the cover, i.e., a bearing seat for the inner ring of the anti-friction bearing, for example, mounted in the gear housing, and a bearing seat for the outer ring of the anti-friction bearing, for example, resting on the shaft. The bearing seats must be arranged so that one is located above the other in the radial direction or has only a small axial offset, so that the entire construction can be as compact as possible in the axial direction. The two diameters of the outer ring and the inner ring of the selected anti-friction bearing usually differ in the following way: the cover must be made of at least two parts connected to each other, or the metal sheet thickness in other areas other than the bearing seat does not need to be large.

[0005] The present invention solves the problem of overcoming or at least alleviating the disadvantages known in the prior art. In particular, the task is to find a solution that shows a way to manufacture the cover from one piece despite the given difference between the outer ring of the inner anti-friction bearing and the inner ring of the outer anti-friction bearing, which has a small sheet metal thickness. Furthermore, the aim is to be able to manufacture the shoulder and the groove for assembling the retaining ring despite the axial offset between the outer anti-friction bearing and the inner anti-friction bearing.

[0006] According to the invention, this object is achieved in a conventional friction clutch in that a contour having a fold is present in the region of at least one bearing seat / bearing seat of the plurality of bearing seats.

[0007] In other words, the solution of the invention is to fold the metal sheet in radial direction between the two future bearing seats after / during the formation of the cover, so that there is still material for later machining partly for the first bearing seat and partly for the second bearing seat. The proportion of material for the two bearing seats can be divided as required.

[0008] When forming the cover between the two future bearing seats, the metal sheet should be folded / tucked / bent in the axial direction so that there is still material partly for the first bearing seat and partly for the second bearing seat for later machining of the shoulder and the groove to accommodate the retaining ring of both bearing seats. The proportion of material for the two bearing seats can be divided as required.

[0009] Advantageous embodiments are claimed in the dependent claims and are described below.

[0010] Advantageously, radial folds are present in the bearing seat. The friction clutch can then include a cover made from one sheet steel part. The anti-friction bearing can then be inserted neatly into the bearing seat for supporting the input shaft. Furthermore, a groove can be introduced for mounting a retaining ring. The clutch can then be provided with an anti-friction bearing during assembly, which is mounted, for example, in a transmission housing of a motor vehicle. The clutch cover is inserted together with the bearing seat into the inner ring of the anti-friction bearing and is secured against axial displacement by means of a retaining ring mounted on the groove.

[0011] It has proven useful if the contour in the region of at least one or both bearing seats extends sinusoidally in the circumferential direction. The cover can then be manufactured in such a way that material for later machining of the bearing seat is obtained by folding / folding in the radial direction. The material distribution between the two bearing seats can be selected as desired.

[0012] It is advantageous for production that the radial folds are selected to be so thick and so close together that after the material planned to be removed is removed, enough / sufficient residual material remains for machining the bearing seat to provide the desired stability. Thus, a virtual material thickness is maintained, which is then reduced, for example, by machining, to reach the final state. The cover is therefore manufactured so that the material is large enough so that when machining is carried out, the shoulder for the anti-friction bearing ring and the groove for assembling the retaining ring are retained. Therefore, folds in the axial direction are used. These folds in the axial direction therefore facilitate the machining of the shoulder and the groove for the retaining ring. Here, with respect to the inner bearing seat and / or the outer bearing seat, the material distribution between the shoulder and the groove must also be selected according to the requirements.

[0013] It has proven useful to introduce a groove for receiving a fixing ring, preferably extending on the circumference, into the fold. Fixing against axial sliding can then be achieved in an inexpensive manner. Assembly also remains simple.

[0014] Adequate surface quality can also be provided if a profile with folds is machined on the inside and outside of the profile to form the bearing seat.

[0015] An advantageous embodiment is also characterized in that the cover has an axial fold on a surface oriented perpendicularly to the axis of rotation of the cover, for example an end face, in particular on one end.

[0016] For assembly purposes, it is advantageous if the groove for the securing ring assigned to the inner bearing is located further away from the region having the axial fold than the groove for the locking ring assigned to the outer bearing.

[0017] The invention also relates to a transmission having a transmission housing in which a friction clutch according to the invention is inserted so as to be supported via an anti-friction bearing and the input shaft is mounted in a cover of the friction clutch via a further anti-friction bearing.

[0018] Finally, the invention also relates to a method for producing a friction clutch as the core of the invention, in which the bearing seat or the bearing seats are folded (for example radially).

[0019] The focus of the invention is ultimately a clutch cover, of which a bearing seat (s) is obtained by radial folding of the metal sheet. The shoulder is obtained by axial folding. Machining can then be provided. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] The invention is further explained below with the aid of the accompanying drawings. A first embodiment is shown. In the accompanying drawings:

[0021] Figure 1A longitudinal section through a friction clutch according to the invention is shown, wherein not all components of interest for the friction clutch are shown.

[0022] Figure 2 Shown through Figure 1 An enlarged longitudinal section of the cover of the friction clutch shown separately,

[0023] Figure 3 Shown along Figure 2 The line III passes through the cross section of the cover of the friction clutch according to the invention,

[0024] Figure 4 Shown through Figure 1 A cross section of a cover of a friction clutch with anti-friction bearings which are assigned to the inner and outer bearing seats, and

[0025] Figure 5 The motor vehicle is shown to be inserted according to Figure 1 The structure of the transmission system of the friction clutch.

[0026] The drawings are merely schematic in nature and are only useful for understanding the present invention. Identical elements have the same reference numerals. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] Figure 1 A first exemplary embodiment of a friction clutch 1 according to the invention is shown. The friction clutch 1 is intended to be installed in a drive train 2 of a motor vehicle 3, for which particular reference is made to Figure 5 .

[0028] Back to Figure 1 It should be noted that the friction clutch 1 is inserted in the transmission housing 4 so that the friction clutch can rotate. Inside the friction clutch 1, a shaft 5, such as an input shaft, is inserted in a rotatable manner. For this double installation, there are an inner bearing seat 6 and an outer bearing seat 7 on the cover 8 of the friction clutch 1. Bearings are arranged at the inner bearing seat and the outer bearing seat.

[0029] The cover 8 is a sheet metal component, in particular a deep-drawn component. The inner bearing seat 6 is provided for accommodating an inner anti-friction bearing 9, while the outer bearing seat 7 is provided for accommodating an outer anti-friction bearing 10. More precisely, the inner (bearing) ring 25 of the outer anti-friction bearing 10 sits on the outer bearing seat 7, while the outer (bearing) ring 26 of the inner anti-friction bearing 9 sits on the inner bearing seat 6.

[0030] In the region of the inner bearing seat 6 and the outer bearing seat 7, a profile 11 with folds is formed. In the region of this profile 11 extending about the axis of rotation 12, radial folds 13 are present. Figure 3 and Figure 4These radial folds 13 of the cover 8 can also be clearly seen in FIG. However, it is worth noting that, due to the corrugation of the folds 13, the bearing seat 6 is not located above the axis of rotation 12 in the longitudinal cross-sectional plane.

[0031] In the region of the inner bearing seat 6 and in the region of the outer bearing seat 7 there are grooves 14 for receiving the securing ring 15. The axis of rotation 12 specifies an axial direction 16, wherein a radial direction 17 runs perpendicular to this axial direction. The use of a counterplate 18, which, in the force transmission / torque transmission state, together with a pressure plate 19, clamps a clutch disk 20, is of value to the principle of the friction clutch 1.

[0032] exist Figure 2 It can be seen in the figure that there are radial folds 13 in the region of the inner bearing seat 6 and the outer bearing seat 7. The material 21 removed during machining is indicated by dashed lines. In the case of this machining operation, the shoulder 22 is then also machined to the same Figure 2 The anti-friction bearings 9 and 10, not shown in the figure, are in axial contact. There is a region with an axial fold 23 centrally between the bearing seat 6 and the bearing seat 7. The inner bearing seat 6 is finally produced by machining the outer side.

[0033] The thickness of the metal sheet which is set after the non-cutting forming and before the milling is denoted by reference numeral 24 .

[0034] The radial folds 13 are chosen to be so thick and so close together that when the material 21 to be removed is removed, sufficient / sufficient remaining material remains for the machining of the bearing seat 6 and / or the bearing seat 7 for a given / desired stability. The thickness is measured in the radial direction. Before machining, the initial thickness / virtual thickness (in Figure 2 The thickness of the substrate (shown by a dotted line) is greater than the thickness after machining. Figure 4 The processing state is shown. The area of ​​the bearing seat is thus artificially thickened by the folding. The area of ​​the bearing seat is thickened to such an extent that sufficient material is available so that the desired contour can be obtained during machining and sufficient residual material still remains.

[0035] exist Figure 3 In the figure, the sinusoidal profile 11 including the radial folds 13 becomes clear. Furthermore, a machined shoulder 22 at the base of each radial fold 13 is evident.

[0036] If, when installing the anti-friction bearings 9 and 10, a cross section is taken through the cover 8 in the region of the inner bearing seat 6 and the outer bearing seat 7, Figure 4In this case, the inner anti-friction bearing 9 and the outer anti-friction bearing 10 are ball bearings. The inner ring of the outer anti-friction bearing 10 is denoted by reference numeral 25. The outer ring of the inner anti-friction bearing 9 is denoted by reference numeral 26.

[0037] Finally Figure 5 , in which the drive train 2 of a motor vehicle 3 also has a hybrid module 27. In addition, the internal combustion engine 28 is coupled to a flywheel 29 in order to finally selectively transmit torque to the hybrid module via a friction clutch and then to two drive wheels 31 via a transmission 30.

[0038] Reference numerals list

[0039] 1 Friction clutch

[0040] 2 Drivetrain

[0041] 3 Motor vehicles

[0042] 4 Transmission housing

[0043] 5 Axis

[0044] 6 Inner bearing seat

[0045] 7 Outer bearing seat

[0046] 8 Cover

[0047] 9 Internal anti-friction bearing

[0048] 10 External anti-friction bearing

[0049] 11 Profile with folds

[0050] 12 Axis of rotation

[0051] 13 Radial folding section

[0052] 14 slots

[0053] 15 Fixing ring

[0054] 16 Axial direction

[0055] 17 Radial direction

[0056] 18 Pairing Board

[0057] 19 Pressure Plate

[0058] 20 Clutch disc

[0059] 21 Materials removed / materials disposed of

[0060] 22 Shoulders

[0061] 23 Axial fold

[0062] 24 Metal sheet thickness

[0063] 25 Inner ring of external anti-friction bearing

[0064] 26 Outer ring of internal anti-friction bearing

[0065] 27 Hybrid Module

[0066] 28 Internal combustion engine

[0067] 29 Flywheel

[0068] 30 Transmission

[0069] 31 driving wheel

Claims

1. A friction clutch (1) for a drive train (2) of a motor vehicle (3), the friction clutch having a cover (8) which, for installation in a transmission housing (4), has an outer bearing seat (7) for correspondingly receiving an anti-friction bearing and / or for mounting an input shaft (5), has an inner bearing seat (6) for correspondingly receiving an anti-friction bearing, wherein: The cover (8) is a sheet metal component, characterized in that a contour (11) with a fold is present in the region of the inner bearing seat (6) and / or the outer bearing seat (7), and in a region of the contour (11) extending around the axis of rotation (12) of the friction clutch (1) there is a radial fold (13).

2. The friction clutch (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: The profile (11) extends sinusoidally in the circumferential direction.

3. The friction clutch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The radial folds (13) are chosen to be so thick and so closely located together that when the material (21) to be removed is removed, sufficient and adequate remaining material remains for machining of the inner bearing seat (6) and / or the outer bearing seat (7) for a given and desired stability.

4. The friction clutch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: A groove (14) for receiving a securing ring (15) is introduced into the radial fold (13).

5. The friction clutch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The profile (11) with the folded portion is machined on the inside and outside of the profile to form the inner bearing seat (6) and the outer bearing seat (7), respectively.

6. The friction clutch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The cover (8) has an axial fold (23) on a surface oriented perpendicularly to the axis of rotation (12) of the cover (8).

7. The friction clutch (1) according to claim 6, characterized in that The groove for the securing ring assigned to the inner bearing is further away from the region having the axial fold (23) than the groove for the securing ring assigned to the outer bearing.

8. A transmission having a transmission housing (4), in which a friction clutch (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 7 is supported via an anti-friction bearing, and the input shaft (5) is mounted in the cover (8) of the friction clutch (1) via another anti-friction bearing.

9. A method for producing a friction clutch (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The inner bearing seat (6) and / or the outer bearing seat (7) are folded.

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