| United States Patent | 5,275,247 |
| Weisgerber, et. al. | Jan. 4, 1994 |
Powertrain-driven electromagnetic rear steering system
| Inventors: | Weisgerber; Thomas W. (Saginaw, MI); Zuraski; Jeffery A. (Saginaw, MI); Babineau; James W. (Saginaw, MI); McDonald; Brian P. (Saginaw, MI). |
| Assignee: | General Motors Corporation (Detroit, MI). |
| Appl. No.: | 886,217 |
| Filed: | May 21, 1992 |
Related U.S. Application Data
| Division of Ser No. 638,242, Jan. 7, 1991, Pat. No. 5,147,004. |
| Intl. Cl. : | B60K 25/08 |
| U.S. Cl.: | 180/53.6; 180/79.3; 280/91; 74/13; 475/323; 475/329 |
| Current U.S. Class: | 180/53.6 |
| Field of Search: | 180/53.6, 53.61, 53.62, 53.8, 140, 148, 79.1, 79.3; 280/91, 98, 99; 74/11, 13, 14, 422, 421 R, 665 R, 15.4, 15.69; 475/323, 325, 329 |
References Cited
U.S. Patent Documents
| 876,070 | Jan., 1908 | MacFarren | 180/79.3 |
| 1,454,178 | May, 1923 | Moore | 180/79.3 |
| 2,252,967 | Aug., 1941 | Forton | 74/421R |
| 2,424,617 | Jul., 1947 | Hoyle | 180/70.3 |
| 2,900,835 | Aug., 1959 | Winkelmann et al. | 74/388 |
| 2,967,980 | Jan., 1961 | Ovshinsky | 317/123 |
| 2,978,058 | Apr., 1961 | Orr | 180/79.3 |
| 2,987,132 | Jun., 1961 | Reiter | 180/1 |
| 4,078,438 | Mar., 1978 | Starbard | 74/34 |
| 4,467,885 | Aug., 1984 | Furukawa et al. | 180/140 |
| 4,496,016 | Jan., 1985 | Unsworth et al. | 180/53.6 |
| 4,741,409 | May, 1988 | Westercamp et al. | 180/79.1 |
| 4,779,471 | Oct., 1988 | Rettig | 74/13 |
| 5,135,066 | Aug., 1992 | Kashihara | 180/79.1 |
Foreign Patent Documents
| 002722 | Jan., 1988 | JP | 180/53 .6 |
| 1206211 | Sept., 1970 | GB | 180/79 .3 |
Primary Examiner: Focarino; Margaret A.
Assistant Examiner: Boehler; A. M.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Conkey; Howard N., Simon; A.
Luke, Navarre; Mark A.
Abstract
A rear steering system in which a rotary mechanical input obtained from one of the rear wheels is controllably applied to a rear steering rack through an electromagnetic clutch apparatus operated by an electronic control unit. The rotary mechanical input is achieved with a flexible cable gear driven by the rear wheel. The cable provides a rotary mechanical input to a magnetic particle clutch assembly, which in turn, interfaces with the rear steering rack via a bevel gearset. The clutch assembly is controlled by an electronic control unit which responds to a variety of system parameters such as the front and rear rack positions, forward/reverse indication and the speed of the vehicle.
6 Claims, 19 Drawing Figures
Last Updated : Sun Mar 9 23:30:03 EST 2008
Back to Jerry Z's Home Page