Abstract: A clutch including a pawl having a base portion and an arm portion extending from the base portion; a drive disk adapted to be engaged by the pawl; a friction seal adapted to receive the drive disk; a drive retainer adapted to receive the pawl and a biasing spring that is engaged with the pawl and the drive retainer; and a pinion wheel having a plurality of teeth, wherein said pinion wheel is adapted to receive the drive retainer. The teeth of the pinion wheel operatively mesh with similarly designed teeth on a traction drive wheel which is also included in the traction drive wheel assembly. The clutch operates without the need for manual de-clutching and further without the need for the existence of frictional differentials between clutch members, induced through axial pressing together of clutch components by a thrust spring and through different sizes of frictional contact areas.

Abstract: A bi-directional freewheeling clutch suitable for operatively coupling a driven member with a driving member is disclosed. The clutch, which is part of a traction drive wheel assembly included on a self-propelled, walk-behind lawn mower, or other powered implement, comprises a pawl having a base portion and an arm portion extending from the base portion, and further having a neutral, un-extended state and an engaged, extended state relative to the driving member; a drive disk concentric to the driving member and adapted to be engaged by the pawl; a friction seal concentric to the driving member and adapted to receive the drive disk; a drive retainer concentric to the driving member and adapted to receive the pawl and the biasing means; a biasing means engaged with the pawl and the drive retainer; and a pinion wheel concentric to the driving member and adapted to receive the drive retainer.