Vented gear spline lubrication

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10228052-B2
Application number	US-201514961014-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 7, 2015
Priority date	Dec 7, 2015
Publication date	Mar 12, 2019
Grant date	Mar 12, 2019

Abstract

A gear box assembly includes an outer housing and a gear box shaft at least partially disposed in the outer housing. The gear box shaft includes an interior region, a reservoir dam that separates the interior region into a reservoir volume and a spline volume and one or more gear box shaft venting holes formed through the gear box shaft near an end thereof. The assembly also includes a regulator disposed at least partially within the gear box shaft, the regulator including one or more regulator vent holes, wherein at least one of the regulator venting holes is in fluid communication with one of the one or more gear box shaft vent holes.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A gear box assembly comprising:
an outer housing;
a gear box shaft at least partially disposed in the outer housing, the gear box shaft comprising:
an interior region;
a reservoir dam that separates the interior region into a reservoir volume and a spline volume; and
one or more gear box shaft venting holes formed through the gear box shaft near an end thereof; and

a regulator disposed at least partially within the gear box shaft, the regulator including one or more regulator vent holes, wherein at least one of the regulator venting holes is in fluid communication with one of the one or more gear box shaft vent holes;
wherein the one or more gear box shaft venting holes includes four gear shaft venting holes and the one or more regulator venting holes includes four venting holes that are directly aligned with the four gear shaft venting holes; and
wherein the regulator includes tabs that mate with slots in gear box shaft that maintaining alignment of the four venting holes with the four gear shaft venting holes.

2. The gear box assembly of claim 1 , wherein the regulator further includes:
a base; and
feed holes formed through the base.

3. The gear box assembly of claim 2 , further comprising:
a lubrication jet that directs lubricant towards the base of the regulator.

4. The gear box assembly of claim 3 , wherein the regulator includes:
a tubular sidewall extending from the base; and
a feed dam formed on the tubular side wall.

5. The gear box assembly of claim 4 , wherein a height of the feed dam and a length of the tubular sidewall define a feed volume.

6. The gear box assembly of claim 2 , wherein the base is upstream of the regulator venting holes.

Assignees

• Hamilton Sundstrand Corp

Inventors

• Slayter Matthew Allen
• Roberts Jeffrey Todd

Classifications

• F16N7/363

  Centrifugal lubrication · CPC title

• F16H57/0431

  Means for guiding lubricant directly onto a tooth surface or to foot areas of a gear, e.g. by holes or grooves in a tooth flank · CPC title

• F16H57/043

  within rotary parts, e.g. axial channels or radial openings in shafts · CPC title

• F02C7/36

  Power transmission arrangements between the different shafts of the gas turbine plant, or between the gas-turbine plant and the power user ({F02C3/107 - F02C3/13 and} F02C7/32 take precedence; couplings for transmitting rotation F16D; gearing in general F16H) · CPC title

• F16H57/027 Primary

  characterised by means for venting gearboxes, e.g. air breathers · CPC title