Patents by Inventor Stefan Froehlich

Stefan Froehlich 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: 8960052
    Abstract: A device for exposing at least one opening in a housing part of a steering gear in a vehicle steering system is provided with a closure element, which closes the opening, and an operating element. At least one of the properties of the operating element changes when coming in contact with a liquid so that the opening can be exposed by the closure element after cooperation of the operating element with the closure element. The closure element is at least partially covered by a cover part and is designed as a buoyant body, or is provided with one or more buoyant bodies, wherein the cover part completely exposes the opening when liquid makes contact with the cover part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: ZF Lenksysteme GmbH
    Inventor: Stefan Froehlich
  • Patent number: 8720639
    Abstract: In an electric auxiliary power steering system a rotating component driven by a servomotor includes a rolling bearing for axially and radially supporting the component. At least one inner race or one outer race of the rolling bearing is split into two race parts along a parting plane that runs approximately perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the rotating component. The two parts are axially spring-loaded against one another. The ends of the race parts facing one another are aligned at an angle from the radial outer side thereof to the radial inner side thereof. The element with a conical cross section and having a higher coefficient of thermal expansion than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the outer ring or the inner ring is placed between the ends so that when heat is introduced, the element expands and the race parts are able to move toward one another. When the element cools the race parts can move apart axially.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2014
    Assignee: ZF Lenksysteme GmbH
    Inventor: Stefan Froehlich
  • Publication number: 20140007738
    Abstract: A device for exposing at least one opening in a housing part of a steering gear in a vehicle steering system is provided with a closure element, which closes the opening, and an operating element. At least one of the properties of the operating element changes when coming in contact with a liquid so that the opening can be exposed by the closure element after cooperation of the operating element with the closure element. The closure element is at least partially covered by a cover part and is designed as a buoyant body, or is provided with one or more buoyant bodies, wherein the cover part completely exposes the opening when liquid makes contact with the cover part.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 7, 2013
    Publication date: January 9, 2014
    Applicant: ZF LENKSYSTEME GMBH
    Inventor: Stefan FROEHLICH
  • Publication number: 20130206498
    Abstract: An electric auxiliary power steering system for a vehicle, comprises a rotating component driven by a servomotor and comprises a rolling bearing for axially and radially supporting the component in the frame. At least one inner race or one outer race of the rolling bearing is split into two race parts along a parting plane that runs approximately perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the rotating component, the two parts being axially spring-loaded against one another, wherein the ends of the race parts facing one another are aligned at an angle from the radial outer side thereof to the radial inner side thereof, and an element with a conical cross section and having a higher coefficient of thermal expansion than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the outer ring or the inner ring is placed between the ends so that when heat is introduced, the element expands and the race parts are able to move toward one another, and when the element cools the race parts can move apart axially.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 20, 2012
    Publication date: August 15, 2013
    Inventor: Stefan FROEHLICH
  • Publication number: 20070256883
    Abstract: A toothed belt gearing includes a toothed pulley including pulley teeth having a first configuration and a toothed belt including belt teeth having a second configuration. The belt teeth are meshable with the pulley teeth, the first configuration and the second configuration being different from one another and being selected so as to minimize air present in tooth spaces between meshed ones of the belt and pulley teeth as compared to other toothed belt and pulley combinations which share a substantially same tooth configuration, thereby reducing noise radiation resulting from a resonance behavior of the toothed belt normally present in the other toothed belt and pulley combinations.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 10, 2005
    Publication date: November 8, 2007
    Inventors: Martin Budaker, Stefan Froehlich, Klaus-Dieter Leimbach, Wolfgang Reuter, Ralf Duschek, Detlef Beck, Andreas Lay, Torsten Hesse, Michael Yankonis
  • Patent number: 7028803
    Abstract: An electromechanical steering system for a vehicle comprises a steering shaft, which is mounted rotatably in an accommodating space of a steering housing, and an electric motor, which, acts upon steering shaft over a transmission. Furthermore, a coil spring housing with a coil spring is provided in the accommodating space. The accommodating space is divided by a partition into a section accommodating the coil spring and a section accommodating the transmission. A damping almond is integrated in the partition. The housing of the coil spring forms part of the partition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2002
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2006
    Assignee: ZF Lenksysteme GmbH
    Inventors: Wolfgang Abele, Gerhard Ruf, Stefan Froehlich
  • Patent number: 6952973
    Abstract: In a method for fastening a torque measurement device for detecting a relative torque between an input shaft and an output shaft of a steering system, e.g., of a rack-and-pinion power-assisted steering system, the torque measurement device is integrally formed locally into the input shaft and/or the output shaft by deformation elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2005
    Assignee: ZF Lenksysteme GmbH
    Inventors: Wolfgang Abele, Matthias Fahrian, Gerhard Ruf, Stefan Froehlich, Werner Habbel, Thomas Weese, Anton Wettemann, Christoph Ziller
  • Publication number: 20040207278
    Abstract: An electrical steering system for a vehicle comprises a steering shaft, which is mounted rotatably in an accommodating space of a steering housing, and an electric motor, which, acts upon steering shaft over a transmission. Furthermore, a coil spring housing with a coil spring is provided in the accommodating space. The accommodating space is divided by a partition into a section accommodating the coil spring and a section accommodating the transmission. A damping almond is integrated in the partition. The housing of the coil spring forms part of the partition.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 5, 2004
    Publication date: October 21, 2004
    Inventors: Wolfgang Abele, Gerhard Ruf, Stefan Froehlich
  • Publication number: 20040144187
    Abstract: In a method for fastening a torque measurement device (4) for detecting a relative torque between an input shaft (2) and an output shaft (3) of a steering system (1), in particular of a rack-and-pinion power-assisted steering system, the torque measurement device (4) is integrally formed locally into the input shaft (2) and/or the output shaft (3) by means of deformation elements (8).
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 25, 2003
    Publication date: July 29, 2004
    Inventors: Wolfgang Abele, Matthias Fahrian, Gerhard Ruf, Stefan Froehlich, Werner Habbel, Thomas Weese, Anton Wettemann, Christoph Ziller