Abstract: A ball joint comprised of a ball with a shank, a socket having slots on the open side thereof, a steel ring with a lever for accommodating the ball joint, and a clamping mechanism which is fitted as a one-piece unit to the socket, said clamping unit being adapted to also effect clamping of the upper portion of the socket and to afford force and form-locking stabilization thereof. The clamping unit for effecting biasing in axial direction of the socket with the steel ring forming the housing of the ball joint is in the form of a knee-lever mechanism. This mechanism includes hook-like members which are arranged on the socket, said hook-like members being linked with a centrally disposed and axially displaceable thrust member. The thrust member serves as a manipulating means for actuating the knee-lever mechanism.

Abstract: A decoupling device is used for the purpose of establishing a selective connection between two rods, especially two gearshift rods disposed between the transmission and gearshift lever of a motor vehicle. This device permits forward and backward movement of the decoupled gearshift rod after the transmission has been shifted into a gear and reduces the noise and vibrations transmitted from the transmission to the gearshift linkage and the body. The decoupling device, which is particularly adapted for installation into the tubular casing surrounding the gearshift linkage, includes a spring-biased, pivotally mounted latch, which establishes the selective connection between the ends of the gearshift rods. The latch is attached to the end of the one gearshift rod and cooperates with a drive pin or a second latch disposed on the end of the other gearshift rod. Either a form-locking connection or a force-locking connection between the gearshift rod can be employed.