GB2053339A - A support and clamping ring - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a support and clamping ring comprising two trapezium section half rings 2 and 3 which are connected together by two screws 4,5 which engage in holes provided in ears at the ends of each half ring. The dual support and clamping action is provided by the sliding action of the inclined inner face 8 of the ring on a correspondingly inclined surface 9 of a groove 7 provided in body 6 onto which the ring is clamped. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION A support and clamping ring The invention relates to a support and clamping ring for mechanical uses.

At present, to create the support and/or clamping of mechanical units on a shaft, various systems or mechanisms exist which hardly constitute contemporaneously means both of support and of clamping. The means most generally adopted for the support are shoulders made by machining the shaft of a given diameter from a bar of greater diameter, whilst Seeger rings or circlips not only are unable to withstand strong axial thrust but often require, where ball bearings are to be supported, a stop ring because of the radius of the bearings. The only known clamping system involves chasing the shaft and using a nut or ring nut.It is obvious that in all the systems examined the shaft requires precise, and thus costly, machining, that good quality materials have to be employed for all the devices, that wastage is high and that in all cases it is necessary to contemporaneously resort to various expedients, that is to say, one for achieving the support and one for achieving the clamping.

According to the invention there is provided a support and clamping ring comprising two trapezium section half rings, the half rings being adapted to be coupled by two screws which engage in holes provided in ears located in diametrically opposed positions on each half ring, the support and clamping action thereof being achieved by the sliding action of the inner inclined face of the half rings on a surface whose inclination corresponds, and which is provided in a groove constituting the race for the ring.

In an embodiment, the ring comprises two metal half rings, the extremities of which each terminate in an ear. Both ears of each half ring are provided with through holes, one of which only is threaded. Each half ring thus has one smooth through hole and one threaded hole and they are arranged so that a smooth hole in one half ring matches with a threaded hole in the other and vice versa. In this way, coupling is achieved using two screws (hexagonal head, for example) placed one on each side of the two half rings. The two half rings have a chamfered rectangular or trapezium section, the sloping side of which is the inner face of the ring. The body to which the ring is to be clamped, e.g. a shaft, has machined in it a symmetrical profile groove so that the inclined face of the ring engages with a corresponding inclined face of the groove.With a configuration of this nature, the tightening of the two screws causes the two half rings to approach one another and since the two adjacent coupling faces of the ring and the groove are sloping, the former is able to slide in an axial direction on the shaft and to contemporaneously create a support and clamping action.

The invention will be more fully understood from the following description of an embodiment thereof, given by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: Figure 1 is an end view of an embodiment of a ring, showing part in section; Figure 2 is a side view of the ring shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 shows an application of a ring according to the invention in association with two ball bearings and a gear mounted on a shaft, the upper part of Figure 3 showing a conventional Seeger ring/ring nut assembly, and the lower part of the Figure an assembly including two rings according to the present invention; and Figure 4 shows in detail the coupling surfaces between the ring and the shaft.

As shown in the drawing, a ring 1 made up of the two half rings 2 and 3 is tightened by screws 4 and 5 onto a shaft 6 in the region of a groove 7.

The sloping face 8 of the half ring 3 slides on the face 9 of a groove 7 and creates both a support buffer for the spacer 10 and a tightening member with respect to the spacer 10. Figure 3 shows in its upper part a known type of assembly comprising a Seeger ring 11 which creates the head support for an ensemble consisting of a ring 12, ball bearing 13, a spacer 14, gear 15, a spacer 10 and a ring nut 16 which effects the tightening action. An identical result can be obtained using two rings 1 7 and 18, respectively, as the support and tightening members.

It is understood that the present invention, described and illustrated herein, can be extended to include any ancillary variant which, as such, falls within the framework thereof.

There is thus provided a support and clamping ring which is contemporaneously able to achieve both the support and the clamping function, without any necessity for modifications to be made for one or the other function. Furthermore, since no particularly accurate machining of the shaft is needed, the cost is reduced considerably.

1. A support and clamping ring comprising two trapezium section half rings, the half rings being adapted to be coupled by two screws which engage in holes provided in ears located in diametrically opposed positions on each half ring, the support and clamping action thereof being achieved by the sliding action of the inner inclined face of the half rings on a surface whose inclination corresponds, and which is provided in a groove constituting the race for the ring.

2. A support and clamping ring comprising two half rings adapted to be engaged together to clamp the ring around a cylindrical body, the ring having an inner face which is generally frusto conical for engagement with a correspondingly shaped surface on the cylindrical body and forming a face of a groove therein.

3. A ring as claimed in claim 2, wherein the half rings are provided with ears by which they are engaged together.

4. A ring as claimed in either claim 2 or claim 3,

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (5)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. SPECIFICATION A support and clamping ring The invention relates to a support and clamping ring for mechanical uses. At present, to create the support and/or clamping of mechanical units on a shaft, various systems or mechanisms exist which hardly constitute contemporaneously means both of support and of clamping. The means most generally adopted for the support are shoulders made by machining the shaft of a given diameter from a bar of greater diameter, whilst Seeger rings or circlips not only are unable to withstand strong axial thrust but often require, where ball bearings are to be supported, a stop ring because of the radius of the bearings. The only known clamping system involves chasing the shaft and using a nut or ring nut.It is obvious that in all the systems examined the shaft requires precise, and thus costly, machining, that good quality materials have to be employed for all the devices, that wastage is high and that in all cases it is necessary to contemporaneously resort to various expedients, that is to say, one for achieving the support and one for achieving the clamping. According to the invention there is provided a support and clamping ring comprising two trapezium section half rings, the half rings being adapted to be coupled by two screws which engage in holes provided in ears located in diametrically opposed positions on each half ring, the support and clamping action thereof being achieved by the sliding action of the inner inclined face of the half rings on a surface whose inclination corresponds, and which is provided in a groove constituting the race for the ring. In an embodiment, the ring comprises two metal half rings, the extremities of which each terminate in an ear. Both ears of each half ring are provided with through holes, one of which only is threaded. Each half ring thus has one smooth through hole and one threaded hole and they are arranged so that a smooth hole in one half ring matches with a threaded hole in the other and vice versa. In this way, coupling is achieved using two screws (hexagonal head, for example) placed one on each side of the two half rings. The two half rings have a chamfered rectangular or trapezium section, the sloping side of which is the inner face of the ring. The body to which the ring is to be clamped, e.g. a shaft, has machined in it a symmetrical profile groove so that the inclined face of the ring engages with a corresponding inclined face of the groove.With a configuration of this nature, the tightening of the two screws causes the two half rings to approach one another and since the two adjacent coupling faces of the ring and the groove are sloping, the former is able to slide in an axial direction on the shaft and to contemporaneously create a support and clamping action. The invention will be more fully understood from the following description of an embodiment thereof, given by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: Figure 1 is an end view of an embodiment of a ring, showing part in section; Figure 2 is a side view of the ring shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 shows an application of a ring according to the invention in association with two ball bearings and a gear mounted on a shaft, the upper part of Figure 3 showing a conventional Seeger ring/ring nut assembly, and the lower part of the Figure an assembly including two rings according to the present invention; and Figure 4 shows in detail the coupling surfaces between the ring and the shaft. As shown in the drawing, a ring 1 made up of the two half rings 2 and 3 is tightened by screws 4 and 5 onto a shaft 6 in the region of a groove 7. The sloping face 8 of the half ring 3 slides on the face 9 of a groove 7 and creates both a support buffer for the spacer 10 and a tightening member with respect to the spacer 10. Figure 3 shows in its upper part a known type of assembly comprising a Seeger ring 11 which creates the head support for an ensemble consisting of a ring 12, ball bearing 13, a spacer 14, gear 15, a spacer 10 and a ring nut 16 which effects the tightening action. An identical result can be obtained using two rings 1 7 and 18, respectively, as the support and tightening members. It is understood that the present invention, described and illustrated herein, can be extended to include any ancillary variant which, as such, falls within the framework thereof. There is thus provided a support and clamping ring which is contemporaneously able to achieve both the support and the clamping function, without any necessity for modifications to be made for one or the other function. Furthermore, since no particularly accurate machining of the shaft is needed, the cost is reduced considerably. CLAIMS

1. A support and clamping ring comprising two trapezium section half rings, the half rings being adapted to be coupled by two screws which engage in holes provided in ears located in diametrically opposed positions on each half ring, the support and clamping action thereof being achieved by the sliding action of the inner inclined face of the half rings on a surface whose inclination corresponds, and which is provided in a groove constituting the race for the ring.

2. A support and clamping ring comprising two half rings adapted to be engaged together to clamp the ring around a cylindrical body, the ring having an inner face which is generally frusto conical for engagement with a correspondingly shaped surface on the cylindrical body and forming a face of a groove therein.

3. A ring as claimed in claim 2, wherein the half rings are provided with ears by which they are engaged together.

4. A ring as claimed in either claim 2 or claim 3, wherein each ring has a generally trapezoidal section, the parallel sides thereof in use extending perpendicular to the axis of the cylindrical body.

5. A support and clamping ring substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawing.