Abstract: The driving force can be transmitted at the time of both acceleration and deceleration in an engaged state where a first engagement face of a strut is forced to protrude inside a cutaway of a gear. The driving force is transmitted at the time of acceleration and the transmission of the driving force can be cut off at the time of deceleration in a one-way state where the first engagement face of the strut and the cutaway of the gear are made either to engage with or to disengage from each other in accordance with the rotational direction of the gear relative to the rotational shaft. The transmission of the driving force can be cut off at the time of both acceleration and deceleration in a disengaged state where the first engagement face of the strut is forced to withdraw from the cutaway of the gear. In addition, the decreasing of the transmission efficiency caused by friction between the strut and the gear can be prevented.

Abstract: The driving force can be transmitted at the time of both acceleration and deceleration in an engaged state where a first engagement face of a strut is forced to protrude inside a cutaway of a gear. The driving force is transmitted at the time of acceleration and the transmission of the driving force can be cut off at the time of deceleration in a one-way state where the first engagement face of the strut and the cutaway of the gear are made either to engage with or to disengage from each other in accordance with the rotational direction of the gear relative to the rotational shaft. The transmission of the driving force can be cut off at the time of both acceleration and deceleration in a disengaged state where the first engagement face of the strut is forced to withdraw from the cutaway of the gear. In addition, the decreasing of the transmission efficiency caused by friction between the strut and the gear can be prevented.

Abstract: Provided is a transmission in which gears of a first-speed to a seventh-speed shift stages are relatively rotatably supported on an outer circumference of a rotational shaft with clutch mechanisms. A desired shift stage is achieved by selectively engaging or disengaging the clutch mechanisms by moving, in an axial direction, the slide cam disposed inside the rotational shaft. While the slide cam is formed into a cylindrical shape, a cylinder, as an actuator, is disposed in a space inside the cylindrical slide cam. Oil chambers are formed inside the cylinder respectively to sandwich a piston therebetween. Oil pressure is supplied to the oil chambers to move the slide cam in the axial direction. The provided transmission with such a configuration has a smaller size than a transmission with the actuator disposed outside the slide cam.

Abstract: An expander (M) employing steam as a working medium is formed from a first radially inner group of axial piston cylinders (49) arranged annularly on a rotor (27) so as to surround the axis (L) of an output shaft (28), and a second radially outer group of axial piston cylinders (57) arranged annularly so as to surround the first group of axial piston cylinders (49). The first and second groups of axial piston cylinders (49, 57) are driven by a common swash plate (39), and the first and second groups of axial piston cylinders (49, 57) are arranged with circumferentially displaced pitches. High-temperature, high-pressure steam firstly operates the first group of axial piston cylinders (49), then operates the second group of axial piston cylinders (57), and the outputs from the two are combined to drive the output shaft (28). This achieves a further reduction in the size and a further increase in the output of the axial type expander (M).

Abstract: An expander that converts the thermal energy and the pressure energy of a working medium into mechanical energy includes, within a casing (12, 15, 18), an operating part such as a group of axial piston cylinders operated by the working medium introduced into an operating chamber, and a hermetically sealed lubrication chamber (102) in which oil for lubricating at least the operating part resides. Breather chambers (101, 103) are provided in an upper part of the lubrication chamber (102), and a working medium discharge chamber (90) into which the working medium is discharged from the operating chamber is made to communicate with the breather chambers (101, 103) via breather passages (B1 to B4).

Abstract: An expander (M) employing steam as a working medium is formed from a first radially inner group of axial piston cylinders (49) arranged annularly on a rotor (27) so as to surround the axis (L) of an output shaft (28), and a second radially outer group of axial piston cylinders (57) arranged annularly so as to surround the first group of axial piston cylinders (49). The first and second groups of axial piston cylinders (49, 57) are driven by a common swash plate (39), and the first and second groups of axial piston cylinders (49, 57) are arranged with circumferentially displaced pitches. High-temperature, high-pressure steam firstly operates the first group of axial piston cylinders (49), then operates the second group of axial piston cylinders (57), and the outputs from the two are combined to drive the output shaft (28). This achieves a further reduction in the size and a further increase in the output of the axial type expander (M).

Abstract: An endless metal belt with reduced friction and increased durability comprises a pair of layered ring structures (31) each formed by superposing a plurality of thin metal rings in layers so as to be slidable relative to each other, and a plurality of metal blocks (32) arranged along the length of the pair of layered ring structures (31) and supported on the pair of layered ring structures (31) so as to be slidable relative to the pair of layered ring structures (31), and the inner circumferences of the thin metal rings excluding the innermost thin metal ring (R1) are provided with oil retaining grooves (34), and the inner circumference in sliding contact with saddle surfaces (324) of the metal blocks (32) of the innermost thin metal ring (R1) is a flat, smooth surface (35) not provided with any oil retaining grooves and having a small surface roughness.

Abstract: A belt for a continuously variable transmission is provided, which is comprised of metal ring assemblies each having a plurality of endless metal rings laminated one on another, and a plurality of metal elements each having ring slots into which the metal ring assemblies are fitted, and the belt is wound around a drive pulley and a driven pulley to transmit a driving force between the pulleys. When the belt leaves the driven pulley, the metal element falls forward in the direction of advancement with respect to the metal ring assembly. For this reason, a rear end of a saddle surface of the ring slot in the direction of advancement is brought into strong abutment against an inner circumferential surface of the metal ring assembly to produce a concentrated stress, thereby shortening the life of the metal ring assembly. In order to prevent this, the radius of curvature of the rear end of the saddle surface in the direction of advancement is larger than that of its front end to reduce the concentrated stress.

Abstract: An endless metal belt comprises a pair of layered ring structures (31) each formed by superposing a plurality of thin metal rings (R1, R2, . . . and Rn) in layers so as to be slidable relative to each other, and a plurality of metal blocks (32) arranged along the length of the pair of layered ring structures (31) and supported on the pair of layered ring structures (31) so as to be slidable relative to the pair of layered ring structures (31). The inner circumferences of the thin metal rings (R2, R3, . . . Rn) excluding the innermost thin metal ring (R1) are provided with oil retaining grooves (34), and the inner circumference in sliding contact with saddle surfaces (324) of the metal blocks (32) of the innermost thin metal ring (R1) is a flat, smooth surface (35) not provided with any oil retaining grooves and having a small surface roughness.

Abstract: A continuously variable transmission having a metal belt and pulleys is provided to effectively lubricate the pulley contact surfaces of a metal element of the belt of the transmission with lubricating oil supplied via a rotary shaft of the pulley. This makes it hard for a contaminant present in the lubricating oil to adhere to the metal element. When the saddle surface of the metal element is taken as a reference, the height h1 to the inner end in the radial direction of a pulley contact surface is set to be smaller than the height h2 to the inner end in the radial direction of the lateral middle part of an element main body. The inner end in the radial direction of the middle part of the element main body protrudes inwards in the radial direction by a distance d from the inner end in the radial direction of the opposite ends thereof.

Abstract: A metal V-belt for transmitting power, looped between a drive pulley 6 and a driven pulley 11, and comprising endless belt-form metal rings 31 and numerous metal elements supported along these metal rings, wherein the metal rings comprise a plurality of thin, endless belt-form metal ring sheets 33(1) to 33(n) superposed in the radial direction, and of these, the thickness of the innermost metal ring sheet 33(1) is set to be less than the thickness of the other metal ring sheets 33(2) to 33(n). Here, the thickness of the innermost metal ring sheet is set on the basis of the ratio of the coefficient of friction between the innermost metal ring sheet and the metal element members to the coefficient of friction between the other metal ring sheets.

Abstract: A metal V-belt type continuously variable transmission in which the length of a side of an element contacting with a V-face of a pulley is shortened to increase a ratio range. If the element side length of a metal element is represented by L, the angle of the V-face of the pulley is represented by .alpha., and the hertz surface pressure between the pulley and the metal element is represented by .sigma..sub.H, the following relation is established: L .varies. sin .alpha./.sigma..sub.H.sup.2. When the hertz surface pressure .sigma..sub.H is determined to be between an upper limit value defined by the wear durability of the metal element and a lower limit value defined by the limit tensile force of an endless belt, the element side length L can be decreased by decreasing the angle of the V-face of the pulley. Thus, the distance through which the metal element can be moved radially of the pulley is increased to increase the ratio range.

Abstract: A lubricating structure for a wet multi-plate clutch is disclosed. The clutch comprises a clutch center member, a clutch guide member positioned radially outward with respect to said clutch center member, a plurality of friction plates disposed between the clutch center member and the clutch guide, the friction plates being alternately coupled to the clutch center member and the clutch guide member respectively. A clutch piston is located adjacent a first end one of the friction plates, for urging the friction plates into frictional engagement with one another, wherein a gap is formed between the piston and the end friction plate before the urging of the engagement of the friction plates. The lubricating structure comprises a first bore formed in the clutch guide member at a position near the first end one of the friction plates for discharging lubricating oil therethrough, and a second bore formed in the clutch center member for supplying lubricating oil to the clutch.

Abstract: A belt-type continuously variable transmission for use with a motor vehicle engine has a hydraulic actuator for effecting at least one of speed ratio control and clutch control. The belt-type continuously variable transmission is controlled by a control system including a solenoid-operated control valve for generating a controlling hydraulic pressure to be supplied to the hydraulic actuator, a hydraulic pressure generator for generating a hydraulic pressure corresponding to the rotational speed of the engine, a directional control valve for selectively connecting the solenoid-operated control valve and the hydraulic pressure generating means to the hydraulic actuator, and a solenoid-operated on-off valve for controlling the directional control valve.

Abstract: A belt-type continuously variable transmission in which a drive pulley mounted on an input shaft and a driven pulley mounted on an output shaft are connected by an endless belt, a forward- and backward-movement switchover mechanism for transmitting a driving force from an engine to the drive pulley is disposed adjacent the stationary pulley half of the drive pulley, and a starting clutch for transmitting the rotation of the output shaft to driving wheels is disposed adjacent stationary pulley half of the driven pulley. This ensures that dead spaces created in a section opposed to both the movable pulley halves which move axially can be utilized as spaces for disposition of the forward- and backward-movement switchover mechanism and the starting clutch, thereby enabling the forward- and backward-movement switchover mechanism and the starting clutch to be disposed in a compact layout.