Lightweight replaceable drive shaft

Abstract

The utility model provides a light weight replaceable drive shaft, can choose corresponding spline specification to design according to different torque demand, has the advantage of modularization, replaceable, thereby significantly improve the convenience of dismounting and assembling, reduce maintenance cost, and prolong the service life of assembly.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of automotive parts, specifically to a lightweight replaceable drive shaft. Background Technology

[0002] As a key component of a vehicle's transmission system, the drive shaft plays a crucial role in transmitting power from the engine or transmission to the wheels. Its performance directly affects the vehicle's transmission efficiency, handling stability, and NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness) performance.

[0003] With the automotive industry's increasing demands for energy conservation and environmental protection, lightweighting has become a crucial development trend. Traditional drive shaft intermediate shafts often employ a solid structure, resulting in significant weight and hindering overall vehicle weight reduction. To address this, hollow intermediate shafts manufactured using rotary forging have emerged. This process effectively reduces weight while maintaining shaft strength and torque transmission capacity. These drive shaft assemblies are typically integrated or non-removable designs. When a component (such as the inner or outer CV joints or the intermediate shaft itself) fails, the entire drive shaft assembly usually needs to be replaced. This not only increases maintenance costs and wastes resources but also reduces product maintainability and economic efficiency. Furthermore, traditional drive shafts lack flexible modular adaptability to meet the varying torque-carrying requirements of different vehicle models or different performance versions of the same model. Utility Model Content

[0004] In order to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, this utility model provides a lightweight replaceable drive shaft, which mainly solves the problem that most current drive shafts are integrated or non-disassembled, resulting in increased maintenance costs and waste of resources.

[0005] The technical solution of this utility model is as follows: A lightweight, replaceable drive shaft includes an intermediate shaft, one end of which has a first universal joint and the other end has a second universal joint. The intermediate shaft includes a hollow tube and a half-shaft, one end of which is connected to the first universal joint. It also includes... The first spline portion is located on the inner wall of the hollow tube; An annular groove is provided on the inner wall of the hollow tube; The second spline portion is provided on the circumferential outer wall of the half-shaft that extends into the hollow tube, and is used to mate with the first spline portion. An annular groove is provided on the circumferential outer wall of the half-shaft; The spring is elastic, with part of the spring disposed in the groove and part of the spring disposed in the slot.

[0006] It also includes a sealing ring, which is disposed on the circumferential outer wall of the half shaft and correspondingly disposed behind the second spline portion.

[0007] The slot has a bevel on one side wall, which is used to contact the retaining spring when the half shaft is pulled out, causing the retaining spring to retract.

[0008] The hollow tube has a structure that is thicker in the middle and thinner at both ends.

[0009] It also includes a dust cover, one end of which is connected to the half shaft and the other end of which is connected to the first universal joint.

[0010] The first universal joint is a ball cage type universal joint.

[0011] The second universal joint is a three-ball pin universal joint.

[0012] The beneficial effects of this utility model are: This utility model provides a lightweight replaceable drive shaft, which can be designed according to the corresponding spline specifications according to different torque requirements. It has the advantages of modularity and replaceability, thereby significantly improving the convenience of disassembly and assembly, reducing maintenance costs, and extending the service life of the assembly. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of one embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] Figure 2 for Figure 1 Enlarged diagram of point A in the middle. Detailed Implementation

[0015] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. A lightweight replaceable drive shaft includes an intermediate shaft 1, with a first universal joint 2 at one end and a second universal joint 3 at the other end. The intermediate shaft includes a hollow tube 11 and a half shaft 12, with one end of the half shaft connected to the first universal joint. It also includes a first spline portion 111 disposed on the inner wall of the hollow tube; an annular groove 112 disposed on the inner wall of the hollow tube; a second spline portion disposed on the circumferential outer wall of the half shaft extending into the hollow tube, for engaging with the first spline portion; an annular groove 121 disposed on the circumferential outer wall of the half shaft; and an elastic retaining spring 4, part of which is disposed in the groove and part of which is disposed in the groove. The snap ring has radially opening elasticity. When it moves inside the hollow tube wall, it is compressed and contracts. When it contacts the snap groove, it will partially extend into the half shaft to achieve axial positioning. At the same time, when rotating, it transmits torque through the first spline and the second spline.

[0016] In this embodiment, as shown in the figure, a sealing ring 5 is also included. The sealing ring is disposed on the circumferential outer wall of the half-shaft and is correspondingly disposed behind the second spline portion. It is used to seal the gap between the hollow tube and the half-shaft, prevent dust and moisture from entering the spline mating part, and extend the service life of the joint. Dustproof life can also be set. Here, "behind" refers to the direction in which the half-shaft extends into the hollow tube.

[0017] In this embodiment, as shown in the figure, a slope 113 is provided on one side wall of the slot. The slope is used to contact the retaining spring when the half shaft is pulled out, causing the retaining spring to retract. This slope is located on the side of the slot near the opening of the hollow tube, so that when the half shaft is pulled out, the retaining spring will contact the slope and then be radially compressed and retracted, making it easy to pull out and disassemble.

[0018] In this embodiment, as shown in the figure, the hollow tube has a structure that is thicker in the middle and thinner at both ends. Providing sufficient strength to the middle section, which bears the greatest torque, while reducing unnecessary material, is key to achieving the goal of lightweighting.

[0019] In this embodiment, as shown in the figure, a dust cover 6 is also included. One end of the dust cover is connected to the half-shaft, and the other end is connected to the first universal joint. This dust cover is used to protect the internal mechanism of the first universal joint from external contamination. Similarly, a dust cover can also be provided for the second universal joint, which can be fixed with clamps.

[0020] In this embodiment, as shown in the figure, the first universal joint is a ball cage type universal joint.

[0021] In this embodiment, as shown in the figure, the second universal joint is a three-ball pin universal joint.

[0022] In the description of this utility model, it should be understood that the terms "length", "width", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this utility model and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this utility model.

[0023] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this utility model, "a plurality of" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0024] The embodiments described with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and intended to explain the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. The embodiments should not be considered as limitations on the present invention, but any improvements made based on the spirit of the present invention should be within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A lightweight, replaceable drive shaft, comprising an intermediate shaft (1), wherein a first universal joint (2) is provided at one end of the intermediate shaft and a second universal joint (3) is provided at the other end, characterized in that: The intermediate shaft includes a hollow tube (11) and a half-shaft (12), one end of which is connected to the first universal joint; it also includes The first spline portion (111) is provided on the inner wall of the hollow tube; An annular groove (112) is provided on the inner wall of the hollow tube; The second spline portion is provided on the circumferential outer wall of the half-shaft that extends into the hollow tube, and is used to mate with the first spline portion; An annular groove (121) is provided on the circumferential outer wall of the half shaft; The spring clip (4) is elastic, with part of the spring clip located in the groove and part of the spring clip located in the slot.

2. A lightweight, replaceable drive shaft according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a sealing ring (5), which is disposed on the circumferential outer wall of the half shaft and correspondingly disposed behind the second spline portion.

3. A lightweight, replaceable drive shaft according to claim 1, characterized in that: The slot has a bevel (113) on one side wall, which is used to contact the retaining spring when the half shaft is pulled out, causing the retaining spring to retract.

4. A lightweight, replaceable drive shaft according to claim 1, characterized in that: The hollow tube has a structure that is thicker in the middle and thinner at both ends.

5. A lightweight replaceable drive shaft according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that: It also includes a dust cover (6), one end of which is connected to the half shaft and the other end of which is connected to the first universal joint.

6. A lightweight, replaceable drive shaft according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first universal joint is a ball cage type universal joint.

7. A lightweight, replaceable drive shaft according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second universal joint is a three-ball pin universal joint.

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