Outboard Motor Shift Shaft Rotating Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Prior outboard motors face challenges in accurately attaching the shift actuator due to varying relative positional relationships between the shift shaft and actuator, and suffer from reduced durability due to bending stress on the shift arm during motion.
Innovation Solution
The shift shaft rotating mechanism is fixed to the exhaust guide, allowing for a constant relative positional relationship and reducing heat and vibration exposure to the shift actuator, while a lever shift rod minimizes bending stress through axial movement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the shift actuator is fixed to the top cowling and the rotational support is fixed to the exhaust guide, then the shifting mechanism can be assembled, but the relative positional relationship between the shift shaft and actuator varies making it difficult to attach with high accuracy
Solution Approach 1:
The shift actuator and rotational support are merged into a single integrated unit that is fixed to the exhaust guide together. This eliminates the relative positional variation between separate components and enables high-accuracy attachment to the predetermined position without requiring complex adjusters
2Reliability
If the shift arm swings to advance and retract the link rod, then the shifting function is achieved, but the shift arm undergoes bending stress which decreases durability
Solution Approach 1:
The swinging motion of the shift arm is replaced with a linear reciprocating motion of the link rod. The link rod moves back and forth in a straight line along its longitudinal axis to advance and retract the shift fork, eliminating the bending stress that would occur with angular swinging motion and thereby improving durability
Data Source
AI summary
An outboard motor is provided that can include an exhaust guide, a shift shaft, a shift shaft rotating mechanism, and a shifting mechanism. The exhaust guide, on which an engine can be mounted, can be utilized to fix the relative positions of an axis of the shift shaft and a body of the shift shaft rotating mechanism for facilitating highly accurate and well-executed shifting of a propeller to or from one of forward and reverse rotating directions. The shift shaft can be rotatably supported by the exhaust guide, and the shift shaft rotating mechanism can be fixed to the exhaust guide. Further, the shift shaft rotating mechanism can be configured to selectively rotate the shift shaft.