Planetary transmission

Abstract

A planetary transmission comprising an encircling housing (100), a rotary housing (103) arranged inside the encircling housing (100), a first shaft (300), multipurpose ring gears (111, 112) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), holding devices arranged at the encircling housing for limiting the rotation of the multipurpose ring gears, and planet gears. Some of the components are functionally connected to each other for forming the planetary transmission. The planetary transmission comprises an auxiliary rotary mechanism arranged inside the encircling housing (100) coaxially with the rotary housing ( 103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprising at least one switch and corresponding rotary mechanism for providing reverse gears to the output shaft.

Description

[0001] PLANETARY TRANSMISSION

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present invention relates to planetary transmissions.

[0004] BACKGROUND OF THE ART

[0005] In case a gearbox is coupled to an electrical motor reverse gears are typically not required because they can be easily generated from forward gears by reverting the current of the electrical motor. However, in case of a combustion engine, turbine engine or hybrid engine the reverse gears are typically required. Furthermore, even in electrical motors the reverse gears are advantageous from the point of view that one does not need to run the electrical motor through a low power output stage that takes place during the current reversion, i.e.» with the help of both forward and reverse gears an electrical motor can continuously rotate to the same direction ata high enough angular velocity providing continuously high efficiency and high power output or high efficiency and high power generation.

[0006] OBJECTIVE OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The objective of the invention is to provide a rotary planetary transmission equipped with a proper set of reverse gears.

[0008] SUMMARY

[0009] According to a first aspect, the present invention provides a planetary transmission comprising

[0010] - an encircling housing,

[0011] - a rotary housing arranged inside the encircling housing so that the rotary housing is arranged to rotate about an axis of rotation,

[0012] - a first shaft,

[0013] - a first multipurpose ring gear located inbetween the encircling housing and the rotary housing and arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation,

[0014] - a first holding device located inbetween the encircling housing and the rotary housing and arranged at the encircling housing for limiting the rotation of the first multipurpose ringgear,

[0015] - a second multipurpose ring gear located inbetween the encircling housing and the rotary housing and arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation,

[0016] - a second holding device located inbetween the encircling housing and the rotary housing and arranged at the encircling housing for limiting the rotation of the second multipurpose ring gear, wherein the rotary housing comprises

[0017] - a first set of planetary gear carriers each attached to the rotary housing at a similar radial distance from the axis of rotation,

[0018] - a second set of planetary gear carriers each attached to the rotary housing at a similar radial distance from the axis of rotation, and

[0019] - a third set of planetary gear carriers each attached to the rotary housing at a similar radial distance from the axis of rotation, and wherein

[0020] - a first set of planet gears each of similar size and toothing is attached to the first set of planetary gear carriers so that each planet gear is arranged to rotate about the planetary gear carrier to which it is attached, wherein the first multipurpose ring gear and the first set of planet gears are functionally connected via compatible toothing,

[0021] - a second set of planet gears each of similar size and toothing is attached to the second set of planetary gear carriers so that each planet gear is arranged to rotate about the planetary gear carrier to which it is attached, wherein the second multipurpose ring gear and the second set of planet gears are functionally connected via compatible toothing, and

[0022] - a third set of planet gears each of similar size and toothing is attached to the third set of planetary gear carriers so that each planet gear is arranged to rotate about the planetary gear carrier to which it is attached, wherein the first shaft and the third set of planet gears are functionally connected via compatible toothing, and wherein

[0023] - a third multipurpose ring gear is arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation, the third multipurpose ring gear being functionally connected via compatible toothing to the first set of planet gears from the opposite side than the first multipurpose ring gear,

[0024] - a fourth multipurpose ring gear is arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation, the fourth multipurpose ring gear being functionally connected via compatible toothing to the second set of planet gears from the opposite side than the second multipurpose ring gear,

[0025] - a fifth multipurpose ring gear is arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation, the fifth multipurpose ring gear being functionally connected via compatible toothing to the third set of planet gears from the opposite side than the first shaft, and wherein the third multipurpose ring gear, the fourth multipurpose ring gear, and the fifth multipurpose ring gear form functional connections among each other for enabling setting an angular velocity ratio between the first shaft and the rotary housing and wherein setting an angular velocity ratio between the first shaft and the rotary housing necessitates the application of the first holding device and / or the second holding device, and the planetary transmission comprises

[0026] - an output shaft, and

[0027] - an auxiliary rotary mechanism arranged inside the encircling housing coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation, the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprising at least one mechanism incorporating at least one holding device for enabling a functional chain to form between the first shaft and the output shaft and for determining the sign of the angular velocity of the output shaft.

[0028] In an embodiment of the device, the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises

[0029] - a reverse rotary housing arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation,

[0030] - an input shaft fixed at the reverse rotary housing,

[0031] - an intermediate shaft functioning as the output of the reverse rotary housing

[0032] - a mechanism associated to the reverse rotary housing and incorporating holding devices for transmitting the angularvelocityofthe input shaft to the intermediate shaft, and

[0033] - a mechanism associated to the reverse rotary housing and incorporating a holding device for providing to the intermediate shaft an angular velocity having an equal magnitude but an opposite sign with respect to the angular velocity of the input shaft.

[0034] In an embodiment of the device,

[0035] - the auxiliary rotary mechanism is associated to the rotary housing,

[0036] - the planetary transmission comprises an interjacent shaft arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation and wherein the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft can be adjusted by applying the first and / or the second holding device, and

[0037] - the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises a three-node configuration for absorbing the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft, for subtracting the said absorbed angular velocity from the angular velocity of the rotary housing and for providing the outcome angular velocity to the output shaft.

[0038] In an embodiment of the device, the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises

[0039] - an interjacent shaft arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation and wherein the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft can be adjusted by applying the first and / or the second holding device,

[0040] - a mechanism incorporating a holding device for transmitting the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft to the output shaft, and

[0041] - a mechanism incorporating a holding device for absorbing the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft, for changing the sign of the said absorbed angular velocity, and for providing the outcome angular velocity to the output shaft.

[0042] In an embodiment of the device, the rotary housing is associated to a main rotary gearbox and the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises

[0043] - a secondary rotary housing arranged coaxially with the rotary housing, being rotary about the axis of rotation, and associated to a secondary rotary gearbox incorporating two subunits, a first subunit and a second subunit,

[0044] - an intermediate shaft, arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation, for forming a functional connection between the main rotary gearbox and the said two subunits, - a mechanism incorporating holding devices for operating the main gearbox either in noninverted or in inverted mode, and

[0045] - a mechanism incorporating holding devices for forming a functional connection either between the first subunit and the output shaft or between the second subunit and the output shaft.

[0046] In an embodiment of the device, the rotary housing is associated to a main rotary gearbox and the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises

[0047] - a secondary rotary housing arranged coaxially with the rotary housing, being rotary about the axis of rotation, and associated to a secondary rotary gearbox incorporating two subunits, a first subunit and a second subunit,

[0048] - an intermediate shaft arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation for forming a functional connection between the two subunits,

[0049] - an input shaft for forming a functional connection to the first subunit,

[0050] - the second subunit forming a functional connection to the output shaft,

[0051] - a reverse rotary housing arranged coaxially with the rotary housing being rotary about the axis of rotation, and associated to a reverse rotary gearbox,

[0052] - a mechanism incorporating holding devices for operating the main rotary gearbox either in noninverted or in inverted mode and for enabling a functional chain to form between the secondary rotary housing and the intermediate shaft wherein the main rotary gearbox and the reverse rotary gearbox are associated to the same functional chain and located in the said functional chain in between the secondary rotary housing and the intermediate shaft, and

[0053] - a mechanism incorporating holding devices either for bypassing the reverse rotary gearbox or for operating the reverse rotary gearbox either in noninverted or inverted mode, as well as for enabling the said functional chain to form.

[0054] In an embodiment of the device, the rotary housing is associated to a main rotary gearbox and the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises

[0055] - a planetary inversion coupler arranged coaxially and being rotary about the axis of rotation and incorporating an input node, an output node, a steplike coupling node, and a hooklike coupling node and wherein the output node is functionally connected to the output shaft and the input node is functionally connected to the input shaft,

[0056] - a reverse rotary housing arranged coaxially with the rotary housing, being rotary about the axis of rotation, and associated to a reverse rotary gearbox,

[0057] - a mechanism incorporating holding devices for operating the main rotary gearbox either in noninverted or in inverted mode and for enabling a functional chain to form between the steplike coupling node and the hooklike coupling node wherein the main rotary gearbox and the reverse rotary gearbox are associated to the same functional chain and located in the said functional chain in between the steplike coupling node and the hooklike coupling node, and

[0058] - a mechanism incorporating holding devices either for bypassing the reverse rotary gearbox or for operating the reverse rotary gearbox either in noninverted or inverted mode, as well as for enabling the said functional chain to form. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0059] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description help to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings:

[0060] Figs. 1 to 32 show different embodiments of the invented planetary transmission.

[0061] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0062] In the accompanied embodiments of the invention the sun to planet gear ratio has always an integer value and all the planet gears are the same. In this manner any planet gear design can be utilized, and thereby the cost should be minimized. This is, however, by no means a mandatory requirement. Another convenient choice is that the sun to planet gear ratio 1 is utilized in axels whenever possible. Optional ball bearings are depicted in the accompanied figures with a box marked with a cross.

[0063] All the embodiments correspond to a special case of planetary transmission comprising at least one rotary housing incorporating planetary gearing. In general, a planetary gearing comprises sun gears, ring gears and carrier frames to which planetary gear carriers of planet gears are attached to. The angular velocity of the sun gear the angular velocity of the ring gear ox, and the angularvelocityofthe carrier frame obey the following equation wherein n is the sun to planet gear ratio, if the carrier frame corresponds to the rotary housing (i.e., the angular velocity of the rotary housing is the same as ) and one writes and are the sun gear's and ring gear's relative angular velocities with respect to rotary housing, then one can rewrite equation (1) as

[0064] Furthermore, if the ring gear corresponds to the rotary housing (i.e., the angular velocity of the rotary housing is the same as ) and one writes is carrier frame's relative angular velocity with respect to rotary housing, then one can rewrite equation (1) as Moreover, if the sun gear corresponds to the rotary housing (i.e., the angular velocity of the rotary housing is the same as ), then one can rewrite equation (1) as

[0065] A functional chain consists of a set of multipurpose ringgears that are functionally coupled as a chain in such a manner that two adjacent multipurpose ring gears and the rotary housing have each one function of the following: sun gear, ring gear, carrier frame, i.e., each three have a separate role. Another way to form a functional chain is to connect to multipurpose ring gears together. With the help of equations (2), (3), and (4) it is possible to calculate a transmission coefficient for the transmission of relative angular velocity with respect to rotary housing between two adjacent multipurpose ring gears in a functional chain wherein j refers to the location in the functional chain. Consequently, it is possible to write for a functional chain wherein are the angular velocities of the first (number 0) and last (number m) multipurpose ring gears in the functional chain comprising m+1 multipurpose ring gears. Furthermore, if the angular velocity of the said first multipurpose ring gear in the functional chain is set to zero then it is possible to write

[0066] The equation (6) is hereinafter utilized for calculating angular velocity ratios for different gears. For reduction gears an inverted relation is utilized, namely. wherein is the angular velocity of the input shaft 301 that is the last multipurpose ring gear in a functional chain corresponding to a specific reduction gear. The parameters Ytcorrespond to transmission coefficient in the reduction gear functional chain. The reason for the inverted relation is that it is easy to calculate the angular velocity ratio between the output and input shafts by writing

[0067] Hereinafter an abbreviation MPRG can be utilized for multipurpose ring gear.

[0068] Figure 1 shows a wireframe model of a cross section of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission enabling the generation of a proper set of reverse gears in a planetary rotary gearbox arrangement wherein a separate reverse rotary gearbox (RB) is placedin between the rotary gearbox (GB) and an input shaft 301. Alternatively, the reverse rotary gearbox (RB) can be placed in between the rotary gearbox (GB) and the output shaft 303. The reverse rotary gearbox (RB) comprises two selection mechanisms and corresponding rotary mechanisms. The first of said two mechanisms is for absorbing and transmitting an angular velocity of an input shaft 301 to an intermediate shaft 302. The second of said two mechanisms is for absorbing the angular velocity of the input shaft 301, for changing the sign (i.e., changingthe polarity) of the angular velocity of the input shaft 301, and for transmitting the angular velocity of opposite polarity than the angular velocity of the input shaft 301 to the intermediate shaft 302, i.e., the reverse rotary gear box (RB) enables to change the sign of the angular velocity provided by the rotary gearbox (GB). In this manner the reverse rotary gearbox (RB) can mirror all the gears of the rotary gearbox (GB) as reverse gears. It is important to note that the order of the rotary gearbox (GB) and the reverse rotary gearbox (RB) is not relevant and that their order could be reversed. Furthermore, the angular velocity of a motor / engine can be transmitted via a separate input shaft 301 to the reverse rotary gearbox (RB) or to the rotary gearbox (GB) or the motor / engine could be directly connected either to the reverse rotary gearbox (RB) or to the rotary gearbox (GB). It is also possible to place a reduction gear ora set of reduction gears between the motor / engine and the reverse rotary gearbox (RB) or the rotary gearbox (GB).

[0069] Figure 2 shows a cross-section of an upper half of a planetary rotary gearbox with 8 forward gears (G1 - G8), one reverse gear(R) and a park gear (P). Due to rotational symmetry with respect to an axis of rotation (A) it is not necessary to present the lower half of the rotary gearbox. The different gears are arranged by placingthe ring gears 111, 112 to which the brake discs of different gears are attached at different distances from an axis of rotation (A). Otherwise, the remaining part of the functional chain (i.e., transmission chain) of different gears is the same: a multipurpose ring gear (MPRG) 201 acting as sun gear for all the gears and as a ring gear to an MPRG 202. The MPRG 202 further acts as a carrier frame to the MPRG 201 and as a ring gear to an MPRG 203 acting as a sun gear to the multipurpose ring gear 202. The MPRG 203 further acts as a sun gear to an MPRG 204 acting as the ring gear to the MPRG 203. The MPRG 204 further acts as a ring gear to an output shaft 303 that acts as a sun gear to the MPRG 204. The MPRG 203 can be considered to correspond to a first shaft. In these multipurpose ring gear configurations, the third node is always the rotary housing 103, that is in this case directly connected to the motor / engine via an intermediate shaft 302. The gear selection is performed by applying a corresponding gear specific holding device, i.e., by grabbing with the gear specific holding device to a desired brake disc (the brake disc being attached e.g. to ring gears 111, 112).

[0070] With the planetary rotary transmission presented in Figure 2 it is possible to generate the following gears:

[0071]

[0072] The planetary arrangement between the MPRGs 201 and 202 generates the transmission coefficient 5 / 8, and the planetary arrangement between the MPRGs 202 and 203 generates the transmission coefficient (-7 / 5), which are common for all the gears. The role of the MPRG 204 is to transmit rotary motion from inside the rotary housing to outside the rotary housing and to enable at least some range of inclination for the output shaft 303. As can be seen from the set of gears that a reduction gear arrangement is likely not required for most applications. It can further be seen from the set of gears that there is only one reverse gear and that the forward gears (G1 - G8) turn in opposite direction with respect to the motor / engine, which maybe an issue at least in some applications. Consequently, the planetary transmission presented in figure 2 would benefit from an arrangement wherein the forward gears could be converted to reverse gears and vice versa - an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to such an arrangement is presented in figure 3. It is important to note that in the embodiment of figure 2 it is also possible to connect the motor / engine from the output shaft 303 side instead of the intermediate shaft 302 side. In this manner it is possible to generate very high overdrive gear ratios (that are inverse of the ones presented above) that could be beneficial for example in windmill applications.

[0073] A cross section of a separate planetary reverse rotary gearbox is shown in figure 3 wherein the reverse rotary housing 1003 is associated to the auxiliary rotary mechanism enabling the generation of reverse gears. The reverse rotary gearbox of figure 3 can be placed in between a motor / engine and the rotary gearbox of figure 2 or the rotary gearbox of figure 2 can be placed in between the motor / engine and the reverse rotary gearbox of figure 3. Furthermore, the combination of the planetary rotary gearbox of figure 2 and of the auxiliary rotary mechanism presentedin figure 3 corresponds to an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission, in figure 3 the reverse rotary gearbox comprises an intermediate shaft 302 and an input shaft 301; the input shaft 301 functions as an input and the intermediate shaft as an output, but their roles could be interchanged, in the reverse rotary gearbox arrangement presented in figure 3 reverse gears are enabled by selecting the switch R, i.e„ by activating the corresponding holding device providing an angular velocity ratio 1 - (-6 / 5)*(-5 / 3) = -1 between the intermediate shaft 302 and the input shaft 301 wherein the transmission coefficient from a switch R associated MPRG to an MPRG 310 is (-6 / 5) and the transmission coefficient from an MPRG 310 to the intermediate shaft 302 is (-5 / 3). In the functional chain corresponding to the holding device R all the planetary gear carriers of planet gears are connected to the reverse rotary housing 1003. By simultaneously selecting two (forward) switches F* and it is possible to provide a transmission coefficient 1 between the intermediate shaft and the input shaft 301, wherein MPRGs 311 , 312, 313, and 314 are involved. By applying the forward switch , the MPRG 313 is set to 0 angular velocity and by applying both forward switches the MPRG 314 is set to the same angular velocity as the reverse rotary housing 1003. The axis of rotation (A) is also depicted in figure 3.

[0074] Figure 4 shows a cross-section of an upper half of a planetary rotary gearbox with four forward gears (G1 - G4) and four reverse gears (R1 - R4); the four reverse gears are taken from the gearbox of figure 2. Due to rotational symmetry with respect to an axis of rotation (A) it is not necessary to present the lower half of the rotary gearbox. The combination of the planetary rotary gearbox of figure 4 and of the auxiliary rotary mechanism of figure 3 corresponds to an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission. Different forward gears (providing different gear ratios) are realized by placing the ring gears 111, 112 to which brake discs of different gears are attached at different distances from the axis of rotation (A). Otherwise, all the forward gears share the same functional chain (i.e., transmission chain): an MPRG 401 acting as a sun gear for all the brake disc associated MPRGs of forward gears and as a ring gear to an MPRG 402. The MPRG 402 further acts as a carrier frame to the multipurpose ring gear 401 and as a ring gear to the output shaft 303 that acts as a sun gear to the MPRG 402. The output shaft 303 can be considered to act as the first shaft. In these MPRG configurations, a third planetary node is always the rotary housing 103, which is directly connected intermediate shaft 302. The forward gear selection is performed by grabbing with a desired holding device at a corresponding brake disc (attached e.g. at ring gears 111, 112).

[0075] Different reverse gears (providing different reverse gear ratios) are arranged by placing the ring gears of different reverse gears (R1 - R4) to which the brake discs are attached at different distances from the axis of rotation (A). Otherwise, all the reverse gears share the same functional chain: an MPRG 403 acting as a sun gear for all the brake disc associated MPRGs of reverse gears and as a ring gear to the MPRG 402 which acts as a carrier frame to the MPRG 403 - after this point the forward and reverse gears share the same functional chain (i.e. the forward and reverse furcate functional chains share the same stem functional chain). In these MPRG configurations, the third planetary node is always the rotary housing 103. The reverse gear selection is performed by grabbing with a corresponding holding device at a corresponding disc brake (attached e.g. to ring gears 111, 112).

[0076] With the rotary planetary transmission presented in Figure 4 it is possible to generate the following gears:

[0077] The transmission coefficient from MPRG 401 to MPRG 402 is (7 / 12), and the transmission coefficient from MPRG 402 and to the output shaft 303 is (-7 / 5), both of which are common for all the forward gears.

[0078] As can be seen from the above set of gears, it is likely that a reduction gear arrangement is not required for example in automotive applications. It can further be seen from the set of forward and reverse gears that a separate reverse gear arrangement enabling changing the sign of the output angular velocity would be beneficial for the arrangement of figure 4 since one could utilize the reverse gears R1 - R4 also as forward gears and the gears G1 - G4 also as reverse gears. In this manner one could add 4 extra gears to both directions. Not all the new gears would be useful as such (since some of them are almost the same as the existing ones), but the principle is important. Particularly, an extra forward gear between G1 and G2, an extra reverse gear below R1, and an extra reverse gear above R4 would be generated thereby extending the reverse gear range roughly by 7-fold. Moreover, to achieve the aforesaid in the embodiment of figure 4 one could utilize the separate planetary reverse rotary gearbox arrangement presented in figure 3 for example by joining the intermediate shaft 302 of figure 3 to the intermediate shaft 302 of figure 4. Due to the large gear reduction, it would be, however, more advantageous from friction point of view to connect the reverse rotary gearbox arrangement of figure 3 to the output shaft 303. It is self-evident that in the embodiment of figure 4 very high overdrive gear ratios can be generated by connecting the motor / engine to the output shaft 303.

[0079] It is important to note that in some applications high gear reduction ratios are desired and that in the gearbox arrangements of figures 2 and 4 the high gear reduction ratios are achieved by forming gears wherein the angular velocity of the output shaft is much smaller than that of the rotary housing.

[0080] Figure 5 shows a wireframe model of a cross-section of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission enabling the generation of a proper set of reverse gears in a rotary planetary transmission wherein both gears and reverse gears are preferably generated within the same rotary housing 103. It is, however, also possible to utilize the reverse rotary gearbox arrangement of figure 3 for generating reverse gears. In figure 5 it is also depicted that the rotary housing 103 may comprise a planetary rotary mechanism (RG) for providing a reduction gear or several selectable reduction gears, i.e., the front part of the rotary housing (RG) utilized for generating reduction gears sets an angular velocity ratio between the rotary housing 103 and the input shaft 301. In the embodiment of figure 5 initial gears and preferably also initial reverse gears are generated within the middle part (G & R) of the rotary housing 103 and the final gears and preferably also final reverse gears are generated in the last section of the rotary housing (-z+1). An embodiment of the last section of the rotary housing (-z+1) is presentedin figure 13 and embodiments of the front (RG) and middle (G & R) parts of the rotary housing are presented in figures 6 - 12. Numbering in figures 6 - 13 is provided only to the upperhalfofthe figures because the upper and lower cross-sections are symmetrical about the axis of rotation (A). Furthermore, holding devices are hereinafter also referred to as switches.

[0081] The part of the rotary housing 103 utilized for generating initial gears and initial reverse gears (G & R) sets an angular velocity ratio between the interjacent shaft 3020 and the rotary housing 103; in case of the embodiments of figure 5 the angular velocity ratio z refers to the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft 3020 divided by the angular velocity of the rotary housing 103. The last section of the rotary housing (-z+1) sets an angular velocity ratio between the output shaft 303 and the rotary housing 103 wherein the last section of the rotary housing (-z+1) absorbs the angular velocity ratio z and generates an embodiment specific angular velocity ratio -z+1 that is the angular velocity of the output shaft 303 divided by the angular velocity of the rotary housing 103. In other words, the rotary mechanism in the last section of the rotary housing (-z+1) subtracts the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft 3020 from the angular velocity of the rotary housing 103 and provides the subtracted value to the output shaft 303. Consequently, forward gears are realized whenever the middle part of the rotary housing (G & R) provides angular velocities to the interjacent shaft 3020 that are smaller than the angularvelocityofthe rotary housing 103. Similarly, reverse gears are realized whenever the middle part of the rotary housing (G & R) provides angular velocities to the interjacent shaft 3020 that are larger than the angularvelocityofthe rotary housing 103. An advantageous way to utilize this feature is to provide gears and reverse gears having z values close to 1 for enabling simultaneously low friction as well as large gear reduction (so that the GR unit could be omitted).

[0082] Figure 13 shows a part of a cross-section of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the of the righthand side (comprising the -z+1 part) of the wireframe model presented in figure 5. The (-z+1) functionality it is realized via a three- node configuration comprising three functional chains which are herein depicted to start from a multipurpose ring gear that is located furthest from the three-node configuration. Furthermore, in the description of the said three functional chains the abbreviation MPRG is utilized for the word multipurpose ring gear. The first functional chain starts from the interjacent shaft 3020 acting as a sun gear to an MPRG 1301 that acts in turn as a ring gear to the interjacent shaft 3020. The planetary gear carriers of planet gears in between the interjacent shaft 3020 and MPRG 1301 are attached to the rotary housing 103. The MPRG 1301 further acts as a earner frame for planet gears having the rotary housing 103 as the ring gear and an MPRG 1302 as the sun gear. The MPRG 1302 acts as a carrier frame to the three-node configuration. The second functional chain starts from the output shaft 303 acting as the sun gear for planet gears for which an MPRG 1305 acts as the ring gear -the rotary housing 103 acts as the carrier frame for the planet gears. The MPRG 1305 further acts as the ring gear for planet gears for which an MPRG 1304 acts as the sun gear -the rotary housing 103 acts as the carrier frame for the planet gears. The MPRG 1304 also acts as the carrier frame for planet gears for which an MPRG 1303 acts as a sun gear- the rotary housing 103 acts as the ring gear for the planet gears. The MPRG 1303 further acts as the sun gear in the three- node configuration. The third functional chain starts from an MPRG 1306 acting as a counterpart to the holding device S4 and as a ring gear for planet gears for which an MPRG 1307 acts as the sun gear- the rotary housing 103 acts as the carrier frame for the planet gears. The MPRG 1307 further acts as the ring gear in the three-node configuration. The interjacent shaft 3020 can be considered to correspond to the first shaft.

[0083] The arrangement of figure 13, depicting the last section of the rotary housing 103 of the embodiment of figure 5, corresponds to a three-node configuration comprising the MPRG 1307 acting as the ring gear, the MPRG 1302 acting as the carrier frame, and the MPRG 1303 acting as the sun gear- the sun to planet gear ratio being 1. The MPRGs 1302, 1303, and 1307 correspond also to the ends of three different functional chains. The change in relative angular velocity (actual angular velocity minus the angular velocity of the rotary housing 103) between two MPRGs in a functional chain is hereinafter described by transmission coefficients. In the first functional chain starting from the interjacent shaft 3020 there isa (-1 / 3*) transmission coefficient from the interjacent shaft 3020 towards the MPRG 1301 and a (3*) transmission coefficient from the MPRG 1301 towards the MPRG 1302. Furthermore, the second functional chain observed from left to right comprises a (1 / 3*) transmission coefficient from the MPRG 1303 towards the MPRG 1304, a (-1 / 3*) transmission coefficient from the MPRG 1304 towards the multipurpose ring gear 1305, and a (-3*) transmission coefficient from the MPRG 1304 to the output shaft 303. Moreover, the third functional chain observed from the holding device towards the axis of rotation (A) comprises a (-4 / 3*) transmission coefficient from the MPRG 1306 towards the MPRG 1307. An important point is, that the embodiment of figure 13 is just one three-node configuration enabling the -z+1 functionality- there are also countless of other ways to realize a three-node configuration enabling the -z+1 functionality. Another important observation is that the MPRG 1304 and the output shaft 303 tu with the same angular velocity, i.e., the MPRG could be utilized as the output shaft; the arrangement is made simply to add stability to the three-node configuration as well as to enable at least some inclination for the output shaft 303.

[0084] Figure 6 shows a part of a cross-section of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the lefthand side (comprising RG and G & R parts) of the wireframe model presented in figure 5 and comprising four reduction gears (RG1 - RG4), five gears (G1 - G5), a switch (i.e., a holding device) for the selection of forward gears (SF), and a switch for the selection of reverse gears (SR) as well as a release switch (S1) that must be on or otherwise no power is transmitted to the interjacent shaft 3020 that connects to the last section of the rotary housing (-z+1) an embodiment of which is presentedin figure 13.

[0085] By applying corresponding reduction gear switch (RG1 -RG4) in the planetary transmission of figure 6 it is possible to generate the following reduction gears, i.e., angular velocity ratios between the rotary housing 103 and the input axis 301:

[0086] It is important to note that the switch S4 must be turned on to enable power transmission via the output shaft 303 as well as to enable subtracting the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft 3020 from the angular velocity of the rotary housing 103. Furthermore, with the planetary transmission depicted on figures 6 and 13 and when switches SI, SF, S4, and corresponding gear switch (G1, G2, G3, G4, or G5) are applied it is possible to generate the following forward gears F1 - F5 (i.e. angular velocity ratios between the output shaft 303 and the rotary housing 103):

[0087] Moreover, when switches S1, SR, S4, and corresponding gear switch are applied it is possible to generate the following reverse gears R1 - R5 (i.e. angular velocity ratios between output shaft 303 and the rotary housing 103):

[0088] Based on the explanation concerning figures 5, 6, and 13 it is evident that in the embodiment presented in figures 6 and 13 the combination comprising the selection mechanisms (SF, SR) depicted in figure 6 as well as the planetary arrangement of figure 7 enabling the (-z + 1) functionality is associated to the auxiliary rotary mechanism. This applies also to embodiments of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to a combination comprising the planetary arrangement of figure 13 and any one of the gearbox arrangements of figures 7, 9, 12, and 32 wherein the latter ones incorporate forward and reverse selection mechanisms.

[0089] Figure 7 shows a part of a cross-section of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the lefthand side (comprising RG and G & R parts) of the wireframe model presented in figure 5. The arrangement of figure 7 can be realized from the embodiment of figure 6 by carrying out just one small change so that the reduction gear generating functional chain and the gear / reverse gear functional chains are selected by the same holding device, i.e., the one functional chain branches off into two. The planetary transmission depicted in figures 7 and 13 provides the following reduction gears, i.e., angular velocity ratios between the rotary housing 103 and the input shaft 301:

[0090] Furthermore, when in the planetary transmission depicted in figures 7 and 13 the switches S1, SF, S4, and corresponding gear switch (G1 - G8) are applied it is possible to generate the following forward gears F1 -F8 (i.e. angular velocity ratios between the output shaft 303 and the input shaft 301):

[0091] As one can clearly see, in practice it is only possible to generate one forward gear (and one backward gear). However, it is possible to utilize the embodiment of figures 7 and 13 as an 8-gear flywheel wherein the 8 gears of the flywheel set the angular velocity ratio between the input shaft and the rotary housing. Such an arrangement can be used for storing kinetic energy on the flywheel (corresponding to the rotary housing 103 in this case) for example in automotive applications for improving acceleration and / or for momentarily storing kinetic energy mechanically in the flywheel for converting it later to kinetic or electrical energy. The reverse gears, i.e., practically a one reverse gear, are generated by applying the SR switch instead of the SF switch. An embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to a special case is realized by joining the embodiment of figure 13 to one side of a gearbox and a mirrored embodiment of figure 13 to the other side (same embodiment but rotated by 180°). In this manner the gear calculations in the central part of the gearbox are reduced to multiplications of the transmission coefficients - there are no subtractions / additions involved which is also the case when the rotary housing is not rotating (i.e., <Ok = 0). A cross-section of a part of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission is depicted in figure 31 wherein the righthand side can be connected to the embodiment of figure 13 and the mirrored embodiment of figure 13 can be connected to the lefthand side of the embodiment. In this manner one can generate a flywheel configuration with one single angular velocity ratio between the output and input, i.e., (1 / 4)5= 1 / 1024 (the shaft 3020* corresponds to the mirrored shaft 3020). It has, however, 5 different selectable ‘gears' (G1 - G5) for choosing different angular velocities for the rotary housing 103 operating as a flywheel. For generating a reverse gear in the embodiment of 31 one must use the reverse rotary gearbox arrangement of figure 3 by functionally connecting it either to the output shaft 303 or to a output shaft 303 ' of the mirrored embodiment of figure 13.

[0092] Figure 8 shows a cross-section of a part of another embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the lefthand side of the wireframe model presented in figure 5 wherein the righthand side corresponds to the angular velocity reduction unit(-z+1) of figure 13. in this case, however, the reverse gears are not provided by the gearbox arrangement of figures 8 and 13 but with the reverse rotary gearbox arrangement of figure 3 by functionally connecting it either to the input shaft 301 or to the output shaft 303. The reduction gear arrangement of figure 7 comprises only one switch RGO - when connected power is transmission is enabled and when disconnected power transmission is disabled.

[0093] When RGO switch is applied the angular velocity reduction from the input shaft 301 to the rotary housing 103 is:

[0094] Furthermore, by applying the switches RGO, 34 and corresponding gear switch it is possible to generate the following gears, which refer in this case to angular velocity ratios between the input shaft 301 and the output shaft 303:

[0095] By connecting the reverse rotary planetary transmission configuration of figure 3 for example to the input shaft 301 it is possible to generate reverse gears with similar absolute magnitude but with opposite polarity (i.e. with different sign). One also could utilize the above presented forward gear arrangement for example in an electric bike by connecting the pedal crank directly to the rotary housing 103 and the electric motorto the input shaft 301.

[0096] Figure 9 shows a cross-section of a part of yet another embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the lefthand side of the wireframe model presented in figure 5 wherein the righthand side corresponds to the angular velocity reduction unit (-z+1) presented in figure 13. The switch RGO is provided for connecting or disconnecting the reduction gear and thereby the power transmission. In this case the forward and reverse gears are generated similarly as in case of the embodiment presented in figure 6 with the switches S1, SF, and SR as well as with the multipurpose ring gears 901, 902, 903, and 904 that are almost identical with respect to the multipurpose ring gears 601, 602, 603, and 604 of figure 6.

[0097] When the switch RGO is applied the angular velocity reduction between the input shaft 301 and the rotary housing 103 provided by the reduction gear is for the device of figure 9:

[0098] Furthermore, by applying the switches S1, SF, S4, and corresponding gear switch it is possible to generate the following gears, which refer in this case to angular velocity ratios between the output shaft 303 and the input shaft 301:

[0099] Moreover, by applying the switches S1, SR, S4, and corresponding gear switch it is possible to generate the following reverse gears, which refer in this case to angular velocity ratios between the output shaft 303 and the input shaft 301: Figure 10 shows a cross-section of a part of yet another embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the lefthand side of the wireframe model presented in figure 5 wherein the righthand side corresponds to the angular velocity reduction unit (-z+1) presented in figure 13. The reverse gears are generated in a similar manner than in the embodiment of figure 8, i.e., the reverse gears are not provided by the gearbox arrangement of figures 10 and 13 but with the reverse gearbox arrangement of figure 3 by functionally connecting it either to the input shaft 301 or to the output shaft 303. The switch RGO is provided for connecting or disconnecting the reduction gear and thereby the power transmission.

[0100] The reduction gear arrangement is the same as in the embodiment of figure 10, i.e., it provides 1 / 13 angular velocity reduction between the rotary housing 103 and the input shaft 301. By applying the switches RGO, S4, and a corresponding gear switch it is possible to generate the following gears, which refer in this case to angular velocity ratios between the output shaft 303 and the input shaft 301:

[0101] With the help of the planetary reverse rotary gearbox arrangement of figure 3 (i.e., by functionally connecting it to the input shaft 301 or to the output shaft 303) one can choose whether the above gears are forward or reverse gears.

[0102] Figure 11 shows a cross-section of a partofan embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the lefthand side of the wireframe model presented in figure 5 wherein the righthand side corresponds to the angular velocity reduction unit (- z+1) presented in figure 13. The reverse gears are generated in a similar manner than in the embodiment of figure 8 and 10, i.e., the reverse gears are not provided by the gearbox arrangement of figures 11 and 13 but with the reverse rotary gearbox arrangement of figure 3 by functionally connecting it either to the input shaft 301 or to the output shaft 303.

[0103] In the embodiment of figure 11 the reduction gears are incorporated in the rotary gear mechanism and the input shaft 301 is connected directly to the rotary housing 103. By applying the switch S4 and corresponding gear switch (i.e. holding device) it is possible to generate the following gears: With the help of the reverse rotary planetary transmission arrangement of figure 3 one can choose whether the above gears are forward or reverse gears.

[0104] Figure 12 shows a cross-section of a part of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the lefthand side of the wireframe model presented in figure 5 wherein the righthand side corresponds to the angular velocity reduction unit(- z+1) presented in figure 13. The embodiment of figure 12 comprises the same forward and reverse gear selection mechanism as the embodiment of figure 9. Furthermore, the input shaft 301 is connected directly to the rotary housing 103 and there is no reduction gear mechanism (other than what is provided by the actual gears). The marking of the forward and reverse selection mechanism differs only by the fact that instead of the marking of the SF the marking S2 is utilized and instead of marking SR the marking S3 is utilized.

[0105] By applying the switches S1 and S4, corresponding gear switch, and S2 or S3 switches it is possible to generate the following forward gears, which refer in this case to angular velocity ratios between the output shaft 303 and the input shaft 301:

[0106] By applying the switches SI and S4, corresponding gear switch, and S2 or S3 switches it is possible to generate the following reverse gears, which refer in this case to angular velocity ratios between the output shaft 303 and the input shaft 301:

[0107] The advantage of the embodiments of figures 6- 13 and 31 is thatthegears comprise many identical parts reducing thereby the cost. Another advantage of embodiments 6 - 13, and 31 is that all or at least major part of the gearing is associated to the rotary housing 103 meaning that changing the gearbox is easy facilitating thereby maintenance.

[0108] Figure 32 shows a cross-section of a part of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the lefthand side of the wireframe model presented in figure 5 wherein the righthand side corresponds to the angular velocity reduction unit (-z+1) presented in figure 13. The special feature of the embodiment of figure 32 is that the forward and reverse gear generating selection mechanism enables mirroring forward gears as reverse gears, i.e., for each forward gear there is one reverse gear of opposite sign / polarity. This feature is enabled by the fact that the forward functional chain (enabled when RGO, SF, S1, and one gear switch are selected) comprises specially selected MPRGs 1501 and 1502. When investigated from left to right, the product of transmission coefficients ofMPRG 1501 and MPRG 1502 corresponds to (-3 / 5)*(5 / 3) = (-1). Yet another special feature is that the RGO cancels the effect of the first transmission coefficient in each functional chain starting from the gear switches G1, G2, G3, and G4, i.e., their product yields (-1 / 3)*(-3) = 1. Consequently, G1, G2, G3, and G4 correspond to the gear ratios respectively (enabled when RGO, SF, S1, and one gear switch are applied); the reverse gears R1, R2, R3, and R4 correspond to gear ratios (-1 / 64), (-1 / 16), (-1 / 4), and (-1) respectively (enabled when RGO, SR, SI, and one gear switch are applied).

[0109] Figure 14 shows a cross-section of a wireframe model of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission comprising an input shaft 301, an intermediate shaft 302, an interjacent shaft 3020, an output shaft 303, a rotary gearbox (marked as GB), and an auxiliary rotary mechanism (marked as F& Ron the righthand side) wherein all gears can be mirrored as reverse gears, i.e., it is possible to change the sign / polarity of gear ratios provided by different gears. The auxiliary rotary mechanism (F& R) is utilized for absorbingthe angular velocity of the interjacent shaft 3020 and for providing it to the output shaft 303 or alternatively, for absorbing the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft 3020, for changing the sign / polarity of the said absorbed angular velocity, and for delivering the said angular velocity of opposite polarity to the output shaft 303.

[0110] Figure 15 shows a part of a cross-section of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the (F& R) section on the righthand side of the wireframe model presented in figure 14. in figure 15 the two subunits of the planetary transmission marked as provide rotary mechanisms that are utilized for modifying the properties of the planetary transmission - the number refers simply to the transmission coefficients that are utilized for this purpose. Examples of such subunits with 5 / 12 and 7 / 12 transmission coefficients in the direction of the corresponding arrow are presented in figures 16 and 17 respectively. It is important to note that the values 5 / 12 and 7 / 12 have been selected according to a planetary transmission design presented in figure 18 and if another design would be utilized then different transmission coefficients should be utilized.

[0111] The auxiliary rotary mechanism on the righthand side of figure 14 (i.e., the F& R section) can be realized for example with the arrangement of figure 15 comprising a box in a box type of arrangement wherein there is an internal rotary housing 1500 inside a main rotary housing 1330. The internal rotary housing 1500 and the main rotary housing 1330 are arranged coaxially with respect to each other and are rotary about the axis of rotation (A). By the application of a switch SO the angular velocity of the internal rotary housing 1500 is set to zero angular velocity. In this manner a three-node configuration is realized wherein the internal rotary housing 1500 associated to an internal gearbox is a third node of the three-node configuration, i.e., if the switch SO is not applied then power cannot be transmitted through the internal gearbox. The interjacent shaft 3020 rotates with the same angular velocity as an MPRG 3020' and consequently, they could be treated also as a single shaft. The MPRG 3020* acts as a sun gear fora set of planet gears having the internal gearbox 1500 as carrier frame and for an MPRG 1501 acting as a ring gear to the MPRG 3020*. This configuration sets the absolute value of the angular velocity of the multipurpose ring gear 1501 to (-3 / 5) fold with respect to the angular velocity of the MPRG 3020'. The MPRG 1501 further acts as a carrier frame for a set of planet gears having the internal rotary housing 1500 as the sun gear and on the opposite side of the planet gears there is an MPRG 1502 which absolute angular velocity is set to (-3 / 5)*(5 / 3) = (-1) fold with respect to the angular velocity of the MPRG 3020'. The angular velocity of the MPRG 1502 is further transmitted through the internal rotary housing 1500 in a 1-fold configuration [i.e., (-7 / 9)*(-9 / 7) = 1]to an MPRG 1503. Next there is a selection mechanism wherein the selection of a reverse switch SR and a switch S1 sets the angular velocity of the MPRG 1502 to an MPRG 303' rotating with the same angular velocity than the output shaft 303. If, on the other hand, forward gears are desired then the selection of a forward switch SF and the switch S1 transmits the angular velocity of the MPRG 3020' to the MPRG 303', i.e., the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft 3020 is transmitted to the output shaft 303 (in this case switches SO and SR are naturally not applied).

[0112] Based on afore description the auxiliary rotary mechanism presented in figure 15 can be utilized for selecting either forward mode (SF) or reverse mode (SR); by choosing the reverse mode all forward gears can be mirrored as reverse gears, i.e., it is possible to change the sign / polarity of gear ratios provided by different gears, it is important to note that the embodiment of figure 15 could still be utilized also as an auxiliary rotary mechanism even if an optional brake switch (B) would be applied in which case the angular velocity of the main rotary housing 1330 would be zero, i.e., the same as the angular velocities of the internal rotary housing 1500 and the encircling housing 100. In this case, however, one could fuse the internal rotary housing 1500 and the main rotary housing 1330 together and remove the SO switch. Furthermore, one could fuse both the main rotary housing 1330 and the internal rotary housing 1500 to the encircling housing 100 and remove the optional brake switch (B) so that no rotary housing would be associated to the auxiliary rotary mechanism. One should note that it would be also possible to operate the auxiliary rotary mechanism of figure 15 in a separate and independent fashion without the optional brake switch (B), but in this case the main rotary housing 1330 could rotate freely around the axis of rotation (A), which is not preferable.

[0113] Figure 18 shows a cross-section of the upper half of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission comprising all other parts of the wireframe model presented in figure 14 except the last part (F & R). The planetary transmission of figure 18 comprises a rotary housing 103 incorporating initial gear mechanisms (G1 - G6), a first shaft 300 common to all initial gear mechanisms, switches (S4-S10), an intermediate shaft 302, an input shaft 301 , an interjacent shaft 3020, and a secondary rotary housing 1300. The gear mechanisms (G1 - G6) associated to the rotary housing 103 enable the generation of initial gear ratios (marked as z) as well as of initial inverted gear ratios (marked as 1 / z). The secondary rotary housing 1300 comprises two subunits marked with respective transmission coefficients and with corresponding orientations (examples of similar subunits are also presented in figures 16 and 17 respectively). The subunit on the lefthand side establishes the 5 / 12 transmission coefficient from the intermediate shaft 302 to the input shaft 301 and the subuniton the righthand side establishes the 7 / 12 transmission coefficient from the intermediate shaft to the interjacent shaft 3020.

[0114] Based on equation (5) one can write for the arrangement of figure 18 the following equations wherein corresponds to the angular velocity of the secon dary rotary housing 1300, corresponds to the angular velocity of the input shaft 301, corresponds to the angular velocity of the intermediate shaft 302, corresponds to the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft 3020, and z or 1 / z is the angular velocity ratio between the intermediate shaft 302 and the secondary rotary housing 1300.

[0115] The initial gear ratio z and the initial inverted gear ratio 1 / z are generated by the gear mechanisms associated to the rotary housing 103- if the switches S6, S3, and S 10 are applied, then z values are obtained, and if the switches S6, S7, and S9 are applied, then 1 / z values are obtained. Furthermore, the rotary gearbox configuration of figure 18 corresponds to equation (11), i.e., to casez, if the secondary rotary housing 1300 is connected to the same angular velocity as the rotary housing 103 and it corresponds to equation (12), i.e., to case1 / z, if the secondary rotary housing 1300 is connected to the same angular velocity as the intermediate shaft 302 and the first shaft 300.

[0116] Based on equations (9) and (10) and by inserting the numerical values for the transmission coefficients it is possible to write if the equation (11) applies, then the angular velocity ratio between the the interjacent shaft 3020 and the input shaft 301 is and if the equation (12) applies, then the angular velocity ratio between the interjacent shaft 3020 and the input shaft 301 is

[0117] Consequently, it is possible to write

[0118] The planetary rotary gearbox arrangement of figure 18 provides the following gears:

[0119] Based on the above list of gears it can be easily seen that the equation (16) holds true.

[0120] Reverse gears can be obtained with the reverse rotary planetary transmission arrangement of figure 15 wherein the main rotary housing 1330 is associated to the auxiliary rotary mechanism providing the reverse gears. In this case, the secondary rotary housing 1300andthe main rotary housing 1330 are arranged coaxially with respect to each other and are rotary about the axis of rotation (A). Beneficially, the secondary rotary housing 1300 and the main rotary housing 1330 are fused together to rotate with the same angular velocity so that rigidity is maximized. One could, however, also keep the secondary rotary housing 1300 and the main rotary housing 1330 as separate entities and utilize the optional brake switch (B) of figure 15 to set the main rotary housing 1330 to zero angular velocity. In any case, one should connect the interjacent shaft 3020 of figure 18 to the interjacent shaft 3020 or alternatively, to connect the output shaft 303 of figure 15 to the input shaft 301 or to the interjacent shaft 3020 of figure 18. Yet another option to provide the reverse gears would be to utilize the arrangement of figure 3 instead of the arrangement of figure 15.

[0121] If the enormous gear range of of the embodiment of figure 18 is not required in an application it is easy to simplify the design by removing the selection mechanisms (S5, S6, S7, S8, S9, andSIO) as is done in the embodiment of figure 19 wherein MPRGs of the first four gears are also fused together as a single entity. In the embodiment of figure 20 the afore said selection mechanisms are also not present and only the first four gears are utilized. Furthermore, the subunit is removed because in this case it is not relevant. In addition, the embodiment of figure 19 is provided with a gear dependent reduction gear mechanism.

[0122] Figure 21 shows a cross-section of a wireframe model of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission wherein the reverse gears are realized without a separate reverse rotary gearbox. Instead, the gears and reverse are realized with selectable subunits labelled as . Most of the reverse gears are realized with the subunit and with inverted initial gears (1 / z). Similarly, most of the forward gears are realized with the subunit and with noninverted initial gears (z).

[0123] Figures 22 and 23 show a cross-section of an upper half of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission corresponding to the wireframe model of figure 21. Two figures are utilized to provide enough space, and the cutline C shows how the device is split between the two figures 22 and 23. The embodiment of figures 22 and 23 resembles in many aspects the embodiment presented in figure 18-two selection switches S11 and S12 and corresponding multipurpose ring gears 2303 and 2304 are included to enable selection between the two subunits .

[0124] Based on equation (10) It is possible to write the following equation for the two subunits Consequently, by substituting one receives the following two equations

[0125] The planetary rotary gearbox arrangement of figures 23 and 24 enables 12 reverse gears corresponding to equations (23) and (21), 12 forward gears corresponding to equations (20) and (22), as well as to 3 extra forward gears, but not all of them are meaningful, in the embodiment of figures 22 and 23 the selection of S8 and S10 results in initial noninverted gears (z), the selection ofS7 and S9 results in initial inverted gears (1 / z), the selection ofS12 results in utilization of equation (20) or (21), and the selection ofS11 results in utilization of equation (22) or (23). Belowthere is an example of a list of relevant gears and reverse gears. Based on the explanation concerning the embodiment of figures 22 and 23 it is evident that the selection mechanisms (S5 - S12) and the secondary rotary housing 1300 incorporating the afore described subunits are associated to the auxiliary rotary mechanism.

[0126] Figure 24 shows a cross-section of a wireframe model of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission comprising the afore described subunits , a rotary gearbox (GB), as well as a reverse rotary gearbox (RB) that is specific to the rotary gearbox and that is associated to the auxiliary rotary mechanism generating reverse gears.

[0127] A cross-section of an upper half of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission according to the wireframe model of figure 24 is presented in figures 25 and 26 wherein the cutline D shows how the device is split between the two figures. The embodiment of figures 25 and 26 resembles in many aspects the embodiment presented in figure 18, i.e., in the embodiment of figures 25 and 26 an auxiliary rotary mechanism is included, but otherwise the design is the same. In the embodiment of figures 25 and 26 a reverse rotary housing 1030 associated to a reverse rotary gearbox, an auxiliary first shaft 3000 associated to the reverse rotary gearbox, and selection mechanisms S13-S17 are all associated to the auxiliary rotary mechanism. By applying the selection switches S13 and S16 (or alternatively S14 andS15) the auxiliary rotary mechanism does not have any effect on the rest of the device, i.e., one can generate the same forward gears as in the embodiment of figure 18. By applying the selection switches S14, S16, andS17the reverse rotary gearbox operates in noninverted mode (i.e., z'mode). Byapplyingthe switches S13, S15, and S17 the reverse rotary gearbox operates in inverted mode (i.e., 1 / z* mode).

[0128] During noninverted mode of operation the reverse rotary gearbox provides 25 / 49 = 1 -(- 8 / 7)*(-5 / 6)*(7 / 15)*(-6 / 7)*(-9 / 7) output and in inverted mode 49 / 25 output. In other words, when the reverse rotary gearbox is not in operation the initial angular velocity ratio provided by the rotary gearbox (associated to the rotary housing 103) with respect to the secondary rotary housing 1300 is not altered and it is transmitted to the intermediate shaft 302. When the reverse rotary gearbox operates in noninverted mode the said initial angular velocity ratio provided by the gearbox is multiplied by 25 / 49 and the outcome is transmitted to the intermediate shaft 302. Furthermore, when the reverse rotary gearbox operates in inverted mode the said initial angular velocity ratio (z'or 1 / z*) provided by the gearbox is multiplied by 49 / 25. Moreover, the angular velocity at the intermediate shaft 302 divided by the angular velocity of the secondary rotary housing 1300 is in this embodiment hereinafter referred to as intermediate angular velocity ratio (z or 1 / z) and the final angular velocity ratio between output shaft 303 and the input shaft is derived from the equation (14) by setting for z either ; wherein z'and 1 / z* correspond to the initial angular velocity ratios generated by the rotary gearbox arrangement. An important observation concerning the equation (14) is that it changes sign from positive to negative at location z = -7 / 5 (discontinuity point wherein the function diverges to and from negative to positive atz = -5 / 7 (zero point of the function). Furthermore, the distance between these two points is 49 / 25. Another important observation is that the initial noninverted gear values (corresponding to z') in the embodiment of figure 18 have been chosen such that they are located in between and therefore whenever any one of them is multiplied by 49 / 25 and then substituted to the equation (14) the sign of the equation (14) is changed. Similarly, the initial inverted gear values (corresponding to 1 / z‘) are located in between and therefore whenever any one of them is multiplied by 25 / 49 and then substituted to the equation (14) the sign of equation (14) is changed. Consequently, in the embodiment of figures 25 and 26 it is possible to generate reverse gears by utilizing simultaneously the rotary gearbox in noninverted mode and the reverse rotary gearbox in inverted mode as well as by utilizing simultaneously the rotary gearbox in inverted mode and the reverse rotary gearbox in noninverted mode. The forward gears are, on the other hand, generated as in the embodiment of figure 18, by utilizing the rotary gearbox in noninverted or inverted mode while simultaneously bypassing the reverse rotary gearbox, i.e., the list of forward gears presented in conjunction with the embodiment of figure 18 applies also to the embodiment of figures 25 and 26. Bearing this in mind one can generate the following reverse gears with the embodiment of figures 25 and 26:

[0129] The rotary gearbox specific reverse rotary gearbox providing the gear ratios 25 / 49 and 49 / 25 is presented also individually in figure 27.

[0130] In figure 28 a wireframe model of a part of an invented planetary transmission corresponding to a planetary inversion coupler is presented comprising an input node 2801 corresponding to a carrierframe of a set of planet gears, an output node 2802 corresponding to a carrier frame of another set of planet gears, a steplike coupling node acting as a sun gear to the former set of planet gears and as a ring gear to the latter set of planet gears, and a hooklike coupling node acting as a ring gear to the former set of planet gears and as a sun gear to the latter set of planet gears. The coupling between the input node and the output node is as such not strong enough for the inversion coupler to transmit power between the input node 2801 and the output node 2802, but to do so one has to provide a rotary gearbox in between the steplike coupling node 2803 and the hooklike coupling node 2804.

[0131] Figure 29 shows a cross-section of an upper half of an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission comprising a planetary inversion coupler arranged coaxially with the rotary housing 103 and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), wherein the planetary inversion coupler comprises an input node 2901, an output node 2902, a steplike coupling node 2903, and a hooklike coupling node 2904. An interesting feature of the planetary inversion coupler is that if both the input and output sides have similar sized planetary gears, if the sun to planetary gear ratio is 5 both on input and output side, and if a planetary rotary gearbox is connected between the steplike coupling node and a hooklike coupling node, then the transmission function corresponds exactly to the function f(z) presented in equation (14). Consequently, if the rotary gearbox and reverse rotary gearbox in the embodiments of figures 25, 26, and 27 are the same as in the embodiment of figure 29 and the afore said conditions apply for the planetary inversion coupler, then both embodiments generate the same gears and reverse gears. It is important to note, that due to lack of space, only schematic representations of the rotary gearbox (marked as GB and to which the rotary housing 103 is associated) and reverse rotary gearbox (marked as RB and to which the reverse rotary housing 1030 is associated) are depicted in figure 29.

[0132] In figure 29 the input node 2901 of the planetary inversion coupler is connected to a rotor 2910 of an electric motor and the output node 2902 is connected to the output shaft (303). The stator 2920 of the electric motor is also depicted in figure 29. The input node 2901 corresponds to a carrier frame for planet gears for which the steplike coupling node 2903 acts as the ring gear and the hooklike coupling node 2904 as the sun gear. The output node 2902 corresponds to a carrier frame for planet gears for which the steplike coupling node 2903 acts as the sun gear and the hooklike coupling node 2904 acts as a ring gear. The switches 85 -S17 are operated similarly as in the embodiment of figures 25 and 26, i.e.» the switches S7-S10 are utilized for establishing noninverted or inverted mode of operation for the rotary gearbox (GB) and the switches 813 -816 are utilized for establishing noninverted or inverted mode of operation for the reverse rotary gearbox (RB). The switch S17 must be applied for rendering the reverse rotary gearbox operational and similarly and one of the gears (G1 - G6, but the gears G4 -G6 are not depicted in figure 29 due to lack of space) of the rotary gearbox must be applied for rendering the rotary gearbox operational. The application of switch 85 and 86 set the steplike coupling node 2903 to zero angular velocity and the application of 85 as well as of 87, S10, S13, and 816 set the hooklike coupling node 2904 to zero angular velocity. Furthermore, the application of 86 as well as 87, 810, 813, and 816 set the steplike coupling node 2903 to the same angular velocity as the hooklike coupling node 2904. It should be also noted that in the embodiment of figure 29 the output shaft 303 provides output at both ends of the device. In figure 29 a cutline E is depicted along which the righthand part of the device incorporating the reverse rotary gearbox could be replaced by the arrangement of figure 30 comprising switches S18- S21 and wherein a rotary housing is not associated to the auxiliary rotary mechanism. In this case the combination of figure 30 and of the lefthand side of figure 29 corresponds to an embodiment of the invented planetary transmission. If the switches S18 and S20 or the switches S19 and S21 are applied the initial gear values (z) and initial reverse gear values (1 / z) are transmitted unaltered to the hooklike coupling node 2904. If the switches S18 andS21 are applied, then the initial gear and reverse gear values are multiplied by 25 / 49 and the multiplied value is transmitted to the hooklike coupling node 2904. If the switches S19 and S20 are applied, then the initial gear and reverse gear values are multiplied by 49 / 25 and the multiplied value is transmitted to the hooklike coupling node 2904.

[0133] It is important to note that a gearbox requires proper lubrication provided by oil or grease. One way to facilitate spreading of oil or grease in a planetary rotary gearbox is to pump the oil or grease to a mid-shaft (located at the axis of rotation (A)) and spread the oil via small holes provided in the mid-shaft and as well as in other components. Another important aspect is also that it is possible to connect a motor either to the input or output of the gearbox and in this manner a gearbox with high gear reduction ratios can be converted to a gearbox with high overdrive ratios. Furthermore, it is important to note that it is possible to utilize the reverse rotary gearbox arrangement of figure 15 also in conjunction with the embodiments 2 and 4.

[0134] A general benefit of the rotary gearbox arrangement is that the electrical, hydraulic, and / or pneumatic functions can be restricted to the encircling housing and that the encircling housing does not need to comprise any mechanical functions involving gears, i.e., the electrical, hydraulic, and / or pneumatic components can be compartmentalized from the mechanic ones, which facilitates repair and maintenance and thereby shortens the downtime. To facilitate the repair and maintenance the encircling housing can be equipped with a fixable lid that may comprise electrical, hydraulic, and / or pneumatic functions for facilitating the changing of mechanical components.

[0135] It should be noted that the term angular velocity ratio corresponds to gear ratio. The term multipurpose ring gear or simply MPRG refers to a planetary transmission component that in a planetary transmission arrangement corresponds to one planetary node: sun gear, carrier frame, ring gear. A functional chain refers to a chain of MPRGs wherein adjacent MPRGs correspond to one planetary node in the shared planetary arrangement wherein the third node corresponds to the rotary housing or alternatively, to the encircling housing (like in figure 30). A functional chain comprises a chain of MPRGs that have been functionally coupled together such that rotating one MPRG in the functional chain rotates all the other MPRGs in the same functional chain. The term functionally coupled means that the adjacent MPRGs share the same planetary transmission arrangement or, alternatively, it means that the adjacent MPRGs are connected (to rotate with the same angular velocity). In the prior art it is possible to equip a planetary rotary gearbox with several individual forward gear mechanisms as well as with at least one individual reverse gear mechanism wherein the individual forward gear and individual reverse gear mechanisms are associated to the same rotary housing. The aim of this invention is, however, to provide a planetary transmission wherein individual gear mechanisms associated to the same rotary housing of a planetary rotary gearbox can be converted with an auxiliary rotary mechanism either to forward gears or to reverse gears.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A planetary transmission comprising- an encircling housing (100),- a rotary housing (103) arranged inside the encircling housing (100) so that the rotary housing is arranged to rotate about an axis of rotation (A),- a first shaft (300),- a first multipurpose ring gear (111) located inbetween the encircling housing (100) and the rotary housing (103) and arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A),- a first holding device located inbetween the encircling housing (100) and the rotary housing (103) and arranged at the encircling housing for limiting the rotation of the first multipurpose ring gear,- a second multipurpose ring gear (112) located inbetween the encircling housing (100) and the rotary housing (103) and arranged coaxially with the rotary housing and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A),- a second holding device located inbetween the encircling housing (100) and the rotary housing (103) and arranged at the encircling housing for limiting the rotation of the second multipurpose ring gear, wherein the rotary housing (103) comprises- a first set of planetary gear carriers (1) each attached to the rotary housing (103) at a similar radial distance from the axis of rotation (A),- a second set of planetary gear carriers (1) each attached to the rotary housing (103) at a similar radial distance from the axis of rotation (A), and- a third set of planetary gear earners each attached to the rotary housing (103) at a similar radial distance from the axis of rotation (A), and wherein- a first set of planet gears (10) each of similar size and toothing is attached to the first set of planetary gear carriers (1 ) so that each planet gear is arranged to rotate about the planetary gear carrier to which it is attached, wherein the first multipurpose ring gear and the first set of planet gears are functionally connected via compatible toothing,- a second set of planet gears (10) each of similar size and toothing is attached to the second set of planetary gear carriers (1) so that each planet gear is arranged to rotate about the planetary gear carrier to which it is attached, wherein the second multipurpose ring gear and the second set of planet gears are functionally connected via compatible toothing, and- a third set of planet gears each of similar size and toothing is attached to the third set of planetary gear carriers so that each planet gear is arranged to rotate about the planetary gear carrier to which it is attached, wherein the first shaft and the third set of planet gears are functionally connected via compatible toothing, and wherein- a third multipurpose ring gear is arranged coaxially with the rotary housing (103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), the third multipurpose ring gear being functionally connected via compatible toothing to the first set of planet gears (10) from the opposite side than the first multipurpose ring gear,- a fourth multipurpose ring gear is arranged coaxially with the rotary housing ( 103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), the fourth multipurpose ring gear being functionally connected via compatible toothingto the second set of planet gears (10) from the opposite side than the second multipurpose ring gear,- a fifth multipurpose ring gear is arranged coaxially with the rotary housing (103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), the fifth multipurpose ring gear being functionally connected via compatible toothingto the third set of planet gears from the opposite side than the first shaft, and wherein the third multipurpose ring gear, the fourth multipurpose ring gear, and the fifth multipurpose ring gear form functional connections among each other for enabling setting an angular velocity ratio between the first shaft and the rotary housing and wherein setting an angular velocity ratio between the first shaft and the rotary housing necessitates the application of the first holding device and / or the second holding device, characterized in that the planetary transmission comprises- an output shaft (303), and- an auxiliary rotary mechanism arranged inside the encircling housing (100) coaxially with the rotary housing (103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprising at least one mechanism incorporating at least one holding device for enabling a functional chain to form between the first shaft (300) and the output shaft (303) and for determining the sign of the angular velocity of the output shaft (303).

2. Planetary transmission as claimed in claim 1, wherein the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises- a reverse rotary housing (1003) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing ( 103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A),- an input shaft (301) fixed at the reverse rotary housing (1003),- an intermediate shaft (302) functioning as the output of the reverse rotary housing (1003),- a mechanism associated to the reverse rotary housing (1003) and incorporating holding devicesfor transmitting the angular velocity of the input shaft (301) to the intermediate shaft (302), and- a mechanism associated to the reverse rotary housing (1003) and incorporating a holding device (R) for providing to the intermediate shaft (302) an angular velocity having an equal magnitude but an opposite sign with respect to the angular velocity of the input shaft (301).

3. Planetary transmission as claimed in claim 1, wherein- the auxiliary rotary mechanism is associated to the rotary housing (103),- the planetary transmission comprises an interjacent shaft (3020) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing (103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A) and wherein the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft (3020) can be adjusted by applying the first and / or the second holding device, and- the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises a three-node configuration for absorbing the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft (3020), for subtracting the said absorbed angular velocity from the angular velocity of the rotary housing (103), and for providing the outcome angular velocity to the output shaft (303).

4. Planetary transmission as claimed in claim 1, wherein the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises- an interjacent shaft (3020) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing ( 103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A) and wherein the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft (3020) can be adjusted by applying the first and / or the second holding device,- a mechanism incorporating a holding device (SF) for transmitting the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft (3020) to the output shaft (303), and- a mechanism incorporating a holding device (SR) for absorbing the angular velocity of the interjacent shaft (3020), for changing the sign of the said absorbed angular velocity, and for providing the outcome angular velocity to the output shaft (303).

5. Planetary transmission as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rotary housing 103 is associated to a main rotary gearbox and wherein the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises- a secondary rotary housing (1300) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing (103), being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), and associated to a secondary rotary gearbox incorporating two subunits, a first subunit and a second subunit,- an intermediate shaft (302), arranged coaxially with the rotary housing (103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), for forming a functional connection between the main rotary gearbox and the said two subunits,- a mechanism incorporating holding devices (S6 -S10) for operating the main gearbox either in noninverted or in inverted mode, and- a mechanism incorporating holding devices (S11, S12) for forming a functional connection either between the first subunit and the output shaft (303) or between the second subunit and the output shaft (303).

6. Planetary transmission as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rotary housing 103 is associated to a main rotary gearbox and wherein the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises- a secondary rotary housing (1300) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing ( 103), being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), and associated to a secondary rotary gearbox incorporating two subunits, a first subunit and a second subunit,- an intermediate shaft (302) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing (103) and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A) for forming a functional connection between the two subunits,- an input shaft (301) for forming a functional connection to the first subunit,- the second subunit forming a functional connection to the output shaft (303),- a reverse rotary housing (1030) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing (103), being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), and associated to a reverse rotary gearbox,- a mechanism incorporating holding devices (S5 - S10) for operating the main rotary gearbox either in noninverted or in inverted mode and for enabling a functional chain to form between the secondary rotary housing (1300) and the intermediate shaft (302) wherein the main rotary gearbox and the reverse rotary gearbox are associated to the same functional chain and located in the said functional chain in between the secondary rotary housing (1300) and the intermediate shaft (302), and- a mechanism incorporating holding devices (S13-S16) either for bypassing the reverse rotary gearbox or for operating the reverse rotary gearbox either in noninverted or inverted mode, as well as for enabling the said functional chain to form.

7. Planetary transmission as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rotary housing 103 is associated to a main rotary gearbox and wherein the auxiliary rotary mechanism comprises- a planetary inversion coupler arranged coaxially and being rotary about the axis of rotation (A) and incorporating an input node (2901), an output node (2902), a steplike coupling node (2903), and a hooklike coupling node (2904) and wherein the output node (2902) is functionally connected to the output shaft (303) and the input node (2901) is functionally connected to the input shaft (301),- a reverse rotary housing (1030) arranged coaxially with the rotary housing (103), being rotary about the axis of rotation (A), and associated to a reverse rotary gearbox,- a mechanism incorporating holding devices (S5 -S10)for operating the main rotary gearbox either in noninverted or in inverted mode and for enabling a functional chain to form between the steplike coupling node (2903) and the hooklike coupling node (2904) wherein the main rotary gearbox and the reverse rotary gearbox are associated to the same functional chain and located in the said functional chain in between the steplike coupling node (2903) and the hooklike coupling node (2904), and- a mechanism incorporating holding devices (S13-S16) either for bypassing the reverse rotary gearbox or for operating the reverse rotary gearbox either in noninverted or inverted mode, as well as for enabling the said functional chain to form.

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