Patents by Inventor Hanno Lieber

Hanno Lieber has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6030141
    Abstract: A ball joint, particularly a steering joint for motor vehicles, with a joint housing (1) having a spherical ring-shaped bearing surface (1b), in which a ball (2c) arranged on a ball pin (2) is seated so as to be able to rotate and tilt to a limited extent and which is closed off by a lid (3) which is formed in the initial state with an outer diameter exceeding the inner diameter of a smooth-walled cylindrical drillhole (1a) of the joint housing (1) and which in the installed state is supported at its rim (3c) in a force fit on the inner surface of the smooth-walled cylindrical drillhole (1a) in the joint housing (1), characterized in that the lid (3) is formed with a spherical ring-shaped bearing surface (3a) for the ball (2c) on the side of the ball equator away from the spherical ring-shaped bearing surface (1b) of the joint housing (1).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 1998
    Date of Patent: February 29, 2000
    Assignee: TRW Fahrwerksysteme GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventors: Hanno Lieber, Sabine Schmermbeck, Erhart Welchert, Horst Kozlowski
  • Patent number: 5672023
    Abstract: The invention pertains to a ball joint, having a ball joint socket (1), inside of which the ball (3c) of a ball-ended spindle (3) is arranged in a rotatable and tiltable manner by means of a bearing shell (2) that supports the ball (3c) below its largest diameter on a bearing surface that has the shape of a ball race, namely under the influence of spring force generated by a spring element (4) that simultaneously forms the upper bearing shell and is supported on the underside of a cover (5) that closes the ball joint socket (1). In order to entirely eliminate all manufacturing tolerances during assembly of the ball joint and provide defined spring forces that compensate for the wear-related elasticity of the ball joint until a defined wear is reached after assembly, the cover (5) which is realized in such a way that its outer diameter exceeds the inner diameter of the ball joint socket (1) in the initial state is nonpositively supported in the ball joint socket (1) with its edge (5c).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 1996
    Date of Patent: September 30, 1997
    Assignee: TRW Fahrwerksystems GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventors: Hanno Lieber, Erhard Welchert