By this, the purpose of the invention is to conceive an attaching unit of such a transmission means, where any requirements related to orientation would be omitted on the one hand, and on the other hand, a quick and simple one-hand mounting thereof would be enabled into appropriate recess on the connecting plate, by which also any undesired removing thereof from the said engagement would have to be disabled.

EP 0 763 172 B1 relates to a transmission unit of a gearbox for motor vehicles, namely to a unit, which enables transferring appropriate movement of the gearshift lever to a gearshift rod of the gearbox. The gearshift lever is placed in adjacency of a driver, while the gearbox is located outside of this area. Each movement of the gearshift lever is transferred via appropriate transmission means to the said gearbox rod, by means of which appropriate elements, which are arranged inside of the gearbox, are then moved, by which either the velocity or also the direction of rotation of corresponding shafts may be varied.

Displacements of the gearshift lever may be transferred either by means of rigid or flexible transmission means. Whenever the displacements are transferred by flexible transmission means, two such means are required and each of them comprises a transmission element, which is placed within appropriate guiding wrapper. One transmission element serves for transmission of displacements in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, while the other element transfers the displacements of the gearshift lever in the transversal direction of the vehicle, i. e. towards the left or right side of the vehicle. One end of the said wrapper is attached to the casing, in which the gearshift lever is mounted, while the opposite end of the wrapper is mounted onto appropriate connecting plate, which is available on the casing of the gearbox. The flexible transmission element, which is guided within the said wrapper, is on the one end connected to the gearshift lever, and on the other end to the said gearbox rod. Although it is not described in the aforementioned patent, in practice the wrapper of the transmission element is attached to the gearbox in such a way, that the wrapper is equipped with a tubular member on its end, which is provided with a groove, which extends in the circular direction of the said member. The said tubular member is furthermore equipped with an arresting means on its circumference, which may be locked into appropriate arresting nest on the connecting plate. The said connecting plate, which is placed on the gearbox casing, has namely an U-shaped recess. The wrapper of the transmission means may thus be inserted laterally with its groove into the said recess, whereupon the arresting means is moved towards the plate. Accordingly, any undesired removing the wrapper from the said recess is therefore disabled by means of the arresting means. However, the arresting nest, which is adapted for receipt of the arresting means, is located in a desired location on the connecting plate, so that by placing the transmission means into corresponding recess of the connecting plate ensuring a correct orientation of the transmission means is very important. It may be taken into account, that each of the said transmission elements is flexible, however, it is in fact still relatively rigid. The reason for that is, that the element is relatively thick, by which a reliable transfer of displacements of a gearshift rod is achieved, which however is connected with another requirement, namely about establishment appropriate orientation. Since the stiffness is relatively high, is then inserting of the said tubular member into the said recess relatively difficult, especially since there is always lack of space available in the area of assembling this parts into the vehicle. In addition, the transmission element extends in various directions close to various vehicle parts or even through certain parts, so that is never easy to achieve a really correct orientation in the adjacency of the gearbox. Despite to use of both hands is therefore placing the tubular member into the belonging recess really a very comprehensive task, by which it is especially difficult to achieve a correct position of the tubular member, which must exactly correspond to the position of the seat, in which the arresting means can be activated in order to ensure holding the wrapper of the transmission element and protection thereof against undesired removing thereof from the said recess in the connecting plate.

The present invention refers to an attaching unit of a flexible transmission means, which is intended for transferring displacements from one element to another element. The said transmission means consists at least of a flexible transmission element, which is surrounded by appropriate wrapper and is movable along this wrapper. In addition, the attaching means comprises at least essentially tubular housing, through which at the one hand the said flexible transmission element of the transmission means is inserted, and onto which on the other hand the wrapper of the said transmission means is attached.

Furthermore, the said transmission means comprises a seat, in the area of which the attaching unit is inserted into appropriate U-shaped recess, which is available on the belonging connecting plate, which is mounted in appropriate manner in adjacency of an element, which is displaced by means of the said transmission means. In such a way any undesired movements of the attaching unit and herewith also of the wrapper in the longitudinal direction thereof is disabled.

According to the invention, the said the attaching unit is adapted for inserting into an U- shaped recess of the connecting plate, which is equipped with a circularly extending groove arranged adjacent to the said recess; the said attaching unit consists at least of a housing, which is equipped with a seat intended for receipt the plate and arranged between appropriate thickened forward portion and thickened central portion, as well as of an attaching ring. This ring is placed onto the said housing and may be moved, namely slid, in axial direction and is moreover supported by appropriate spring, which is pressed towards the said plate. At the same time, the ring is equipped with a desired number of peripheral teeth, which protrude towards the plate and are thanks to the compression of the said spring inserted through appropriate openings in the housing and protrude due to the said compression into the said groove of the connecting plate, while by displacing the attaching ring opposite to the compression of the said spring i. e. in the direction away from the plate, the said teeth are removed from the said groove.

Preferred embodiment of the attaching unit consists at least of a housing, an attaching ring as well as of a sleeve, and is adapted for co-operation with the connecting plate, which is for this purpose equipped with an U-shaped recess, adjacent to which there is a circular groove, which is at least essentially rectangular in profile. The housing consists at least of a thickened or widened central portion as well as of a thickened or widened forward portion, between which there is a seat, in the area of which the housing may be laterally, i. e. from the side, inserted into appropriate recess of each belonging connecting plate, and moreover also of a resilient rearward portion, which is diminished by means of longitudinally extending slots and has a smooth outward surface and is moreover in addition to the said slots equipped with openings, which are available in equidistant arrangement in the circumferential direction, and by which the said central portion is equipped with openings, which are also available in equidistant arrangement in the circumferential direction. Furthermore, a step-like seat is available within the housing in the area of the central portion; the said seat is widened on the side of a diminished rearward portion and is adapted for receipt of the wrapper of each available transmission means, while the inner surface of the housing in the area of the forward portion is widened conically outwards, which is intended for guidance appropriate transmission element of each belonging transmission means. Each opening in the central portion of the housing comprises a widened seat, which is faced away from the connecting plate, as well as a narrowed passage, which is faced towards the connecting plate.

At least essentially tubular attaching ring, which is movable along the outward surface of the housing in the axial direction thereof, namely along the rearward portion of the said housing, comprises a plurality of teeth, which are equidistantly arranged on the side, which is faced towards the plate, while its size and arrangement are adapted to size and arrangement of openings, which are available on the central portion of the housing, as well as to size of the circular groove, which is available on the connecting plate. The attaching ring comprises on its inner surface a cylindrical step-like seat, which extends away from the connecting plate and is adapted for receipt of the compression helical spring. Each tooth on the attaching ring consists of a thickened or widened bearing portion as well as of a narrowed arresting protrusion, the length of which is determined in such a way, that upon displacing the ring into its end position towards the plate, the said arresting protrusion of each corresponding tooth, when being inserted into a groove on the plate, extends throughout the belonging opening in the central portion of the housing and projects into the groove on the plate.

The sleeve, which is essentially tubular, comprises an opening, which is arranged in the front wall, which is faced away from the connecting plate and intended for receipt the wrapper of each corresponding transmission means with the belonging transmission element, while on the opposite side thereof a seat is arranged on the inner surface thereof and adapted for receipt the spring, while on the neighboring inner surface appropriate arresting means are foreseen, and each of these arresting means comprises an inwardly and from the plate away extending inclined surface as well as an inwardly and in radial direction extending arresting surface, and may be inserted into each belonging opening, which is available on the diminished rearward portion of the housing.

By the preferred embodiment of the invention, an attaching ring is placed on the rearward portion of the housing and may be moved axially towards the central portion or in the opposite direction, and also turned in the circumferential direction, and is moreover supported by the compression helical spring, which surrounds the said rearward portion of the housing between the attaching ring and the sleeve, which also surrounds the rearward portion of the housing, while the arresting protrusions are inserted into the belonging openings in the rearward portion of the housing.

The attaching unit is, when it is inserted into a recess of a connecting plate in the area of its seat, which is foreseen between the thickened or widened forward portion and the thickened or widened central portion, held within the said recess and protected against undesired removing thereof by means of teeth, which extend throughout the openings in the central portion of the housing and are by means of appropriate displacement of the attaching ring in the direction of compression of the spring towards the connecting plate inserted into the groove on the connecting plate.

On the other hand the unit may, when being inserted into a recess of a connecting plate in the area of its seat, which is available between a thickened or widened forward portion and a thickened or widened central portion, be removed from the said recess by means of displacing the attaching ring in the direction from the plate away opposite to the compression of the spring, since in such manner the teeth of the attaching ring are removed from the groove on the plate.

The invention will be described on the basis of an embodiment, which is presented in the attached drawing, showing thereby Fig. 1 a cross-section along the diametrical plane of an attaching unit, placed on the belonging connecting plate; Fig. 2 a front view of the relevant portion of the connecting plate; Fig. 3 a cross-section of the connecting plate along the plane Ill-Ill ; Fig. 4 a cross-section in a diametrical plane of a housing of the attaching unit according to Fig. 1, Fig. 5 a cross-section of a housing along the plane V-V according to Fig. 4; Fig. 6 a left side view of the housing according to Fig. 4 ; Fig. 7 a right side-view of the housing according to Fig. 4 ; Fig. 8 a cross-section of the attaching ring in its diametrical plane; Fig. 9 a side-view of the attaching ring; Fig. 10 a cross-section of the sleeve in its diametrical plane; and Fig. 11 is a side-view of the said sleeve.

Attaching unit 1 according to Fig. 1 consists of a housing 2, an attaching ring 3, a sleeve 4 and a spring 5. The said attaching unit 1 is adapted for placing onto each available connecting plate 7, and must than in such engaged position also be secured against undesired removing from the said plate 7.

The connecting plate 7 is intended for receipt of the said attaching unit 1 and is placed adjacent to the not-shown transmission means, which serves for transferring any displacement of another element intended for co-operation therewith. The attaching unit 1 according to Fig. 1 serves for attaching a not-shown transmission means, which is intended for transmission of displacements of a gearshift lever (not shown) to a gearshift rod (also not shown) of gearbox of a motor vehicle. If desired, such transmission means may also serve for transferring displacements from a commanding lever of a boat to the rudder or a steering link rod of an outboard engine. Several other application modes of the invention are also possible.

With respect to the embodiment according to Fig. 1, the connecting plate 7 is mounted onto the gear casing or also on any other reliable place, which may be available in the adjacency. The said transmission unit consists of a flexible transmission means, e. g. a rope or similar, which is on the one side connected to the gearshift lever and on the other side to the gearshift rod of a gearbox, as well as of a wrapper, by which the said transmission means is surrounded and may in addition be displaced along the said wrapper. The said wrapper is equipped at least on the one of its ends by the attaching unit 1 according to the invention. The said unit 1 according to Fig. 1 may be attached on the right side thereof to the said wrapper, whilst the transmission element extends outwards from the wrapper towards the left, namely throughout the complete attaching unit 1, the connecting plate 7 and towards the gearshift rod of the gearbox. The plate 7 is intended for maintaining the said transmission means, especially of its wrapper, in each place and in each desired position, by which the unit 1 has to be secured against any undesired removing from the plate 7, which will be described in more detail in the further explanation.

The said connecting plate 7 may essentially be a plate of a desired thickness and stiffness or may also be any other part having a required stiffness and an appropriate flat area.

Furthermore, the said plate 7 is equipped with an U-shaped recess 71. In such way-like e. g. by any other already known solution-the attaching unit 1 may be laterally-i. e. from the side-placed onto the connecting plate 7 in order to prevent the wrapper from any displacements in its longitudinal direction. In order to secure the unit 1 against removing thereof along the said recess 71 on the plate 7 due to appropriate movement in its transversal direction, the said plate 7 is equipped by a circular groove 72, which is faced towards the transmission means and is rectangular in profile, but the purpose thereof will be described in more detail in the further text.

The housing 2 of the attaching unit 1 is axially-symmetric and by this embodiment consists of a single piece comprising thereby a thickened central portion 21, a thickened forward portion 22 and a thinner, diminished and correspondingly resilient rearward portion 23. Between the central portion 21 and the forward portion 22 there is a seat 24, the width and diameter of which are adapted to the thickness of the connecting plate 7 as well as to the width of the recess 71. Accordingly, due to presence of the said seat 24, the housing 2 may be inserted into the recess 71 of the connecting plate 7, by which upon such inserting on the one side of the plate 7 the thickened forward portion 22 of the housing 2 is placed, and on the other side 70, where the said groove 72 is available, the central portion 21 and the rearward portion 23 of the housing 2 of the attaching unit 1 according to the invention are arranged.

The said housing 2, which consists of an elastic material, is essentially diminished by means of appropriate slots 25, which are foreseen in the area of its tubular rearward portion 23. Between the said slots 25, appropriate openings 26 are arranged in the area of the rear portion 23. In this particular embodiment six slots 25 are foreseen, which extend in the longitudinal direction of the housing 2, and moreover six openings 26 of a rectangular shape, which are available in equidistant arrangement with respect to the circumferential direction, and extend along the said housing 2.

In the central portion 21 of the housing 2 there are also openings 27, which are however- when observed from the rear portion 23 of the housing 2 towards the forward portion 21- step-like narrowed. By this, each of the said openings 27 in the central portion 21 consists of a broader seat 271, which is available on the side of the rearward portion 23, as well as of a narrower passage 272, which is faced towards the forward portion 22 of the housing 2. In this particular embodiment, twelve openings 27 are available in equidistant arrangement with respect to the circumferential direction of the housing 2.

Within the said housing 2 there is a seat 28, which is on the one side step-like broadened towards the interior of the said resilient rearward portion 23, and on the other side step- like narrowed towards the interior of the forward portion 21 of the housing 2.

The forward portion 22 is broadened in the area adjacent to the said seat 24 and intended for receipt of the connecting plate 7, which is in this particular embodiment achieved by means of plurality of ribs 221, which are available in equidistant arrangement with respect to the circumferential direction, and which protrude radially outwards. The internal surface 222 of the forward portion 22 may be cylindrical in the area of the said seat 24, while in the area, where the forward portion 22 is broadened, i. e. in the area of ribs 221 in this particular embodiment, it is conically broadened outwardly, which may result in certain benefits with respect to efficient guidance of the non-shown transmission element towards the each belonging gearshift rod.

An essentially tubular attaching ring 3 has a smooth external surface 30. On the one side thereof, which is faced towards the sleeve 4, the ring 3 is equipped with a step-like internal surface 33, which is at the one hand in the area 332 adapted for resting on the external surface of the rearward portion 23 of the housing 2, and on the other hand also for receipt and appropriate placing a spring 5 (Fig. 1), which is inserted between the ring 3 and the sleeve 4 in the area 331. On the opposite side 31, which is faced towards the central portion 21 of the housing 2, there is a plurality of teeth 35 available on the front wall 34 in equidistant arrangement in the circumferential direction of the ring 3, by which the arrangement and dimensions of the said teeth 35 should be determined on the basis of arrangement and dimensions of the said openings 27 in the central portion 21 of the housing 2. Each tooth 35 consists of a thickened bearing portion 351, which is adapted to the belonging seat 271 of the opening 27 of the housing 1, as well as of a narrower arresting protrusion 352, which can be inserted throughout the passage 272 of the said opening 27 on the central portion 21 of the housing 2, so that in the end position (i. e. on the left according to Fig. 1) of the ring 3 it even protrudes out from the said passage 272.

The front wall 41 of the tubular sleeve 4, which is faced away from the said housing 2 and the ring 3, comprises an opening 410, which serves for inserting a not-shown flexible transmission means, i. e. a transmission element, which is surrounded by corresponding wrapper. The outward i. e. circumferential surface 42 of the said sleeve may be smooth, since the configuration thereof is in fact irrelevant for the purpose of the present invention. However, when bearing in mind the invention, it is important, that the inner surface 43 of the sleeve is adapted for co-operation with the attaching ring 3 and the housing 2, and moreover also for receipt of an compression helical spring 5, which is placed between the attaching ring 3 and the sleeve 4.

Due to insertion the said spring 5, the inner surface 43 of the sleeve 4 comprises a step- like broadened cylindrical portion 431, which is available on the side, which is faced towards the attaching ring 3. Appropriate arresting means 44, which protrude radially inwards, are arranged on the neighboring portion 432 of the inner surface 43 with preferably slightly smaller diameter, which is adapted for resting on diminished rearward portion 23 of the housing 2. The number, position and arrangement of the said arresting means 44 are parameters, which need to be synchronized with analogous parameters of the openings 26 on the rearward portion 23 of the housing 2 of the assembly 1 according to the invention. Each of the said means 44 comprises an inclined surface 441, which is arranged on the side faced towards the housing 1, and moreover also a radially inwards extending arresting surface 442, which is arranged on the opposite side. In a preferred embodiment of the sleeve 4, in addition to the said arresting means 44, particularly adjacent to arresting surfaces 442, appropriate openings 45 may be foreseen, which extend radially outwards.

Now the functioning of such an assembly 1, which consists of the described parts 2,3, 4, 5, will be disclosed. The ring 3 is placed onto the housing 2 over the rearward portion 23, by which the teeth 35 rest either on the wall of the central portion 21 or are upon appropriate rotation of the ring 3 inserted into the belonging openings 27. After that, the compression helical spring 5 is placed over the rearward portion 23 of the housing 2, so that it is pressed towards the ring 3 in the area 331. The sleeve 4 is placed over the non- shown wrapper and is secured against being removed there-from by means of appropriate securing means, which is also not shown, while the flexible transmission element extends throughout the complete assembly 1. After that, the sleeve 4 is pushed along the rearward portion 23 of the housing 2 into the attaching ring 3, by which the spring 5 is compressed and the arresting means 44 are inserted into the corresponding openings 26 in the rearward portion 23 of the housing 2, which is thanks to its elasticity and diminishing by moving the said arresting means 44 along its outward surface slightly narrowed, while after insertion of the said means 44 into the openings 26 it is reversed back to its original state.

In such a way the attaching unit 1 according to the invention is placed onto a not-shown wrapper of each corresponding transmission means. The sleeve 4 and the housing 2 are fixedly placed on the wrapper of the said transmission means, by which the ring 3 may be displaced along the said housing 2 forwards or rearwards in the longitudinal direction or also rotated in the circumferential direction of the housing 2.

In the embodiment according to Fig. 1, the attaching ring 3 may be displaced towards the right against the pressure of the spring 5 i. e. towards the sleeve 4, by which the teeth 35 of the ring 3 are removed from the belonging openings 27 of the housing 2. In such position appropriate turning of the ring 3 may lead to resting the teeth 35 on the central portion 21 of the housing 2 outside of the said openings 27.

In the last mentioned state of the attaching unit 1 the seat 24 is free, so that the assembly 1 may be placed into the recess 71 of the connecting plate 7. By this, any further displacement of the unit 1 in its longitudinal direction, i. e. along each belonging transmission means with respect to the said plate 7, is then disabled. However, when the attaching unit 1 is placed within the recess 71 of the connecting plate 7, only a slight rotation of the attaching ring 3 may be sufficient, that thanks to previously pressed spring 5 the teeth 35 are inserted into the belonging openings 27 and further throughout the corresponding passages 272 into the circular groove 72 on the connecting plate 7. Thanks to these teeth 35, which are then held within the said groove 72 on the plate 7 against the pressure of the spring 5, in such a state the attaching unit 1 cannot be anymore removed from the area of the recess 71 of the connecting plate 7. Accordingly, the attaching unit 1 according to invention enables a quick attachment of each corresponding transmission means onto each belonging connection plate 7, so that undesired removing the said assembly 1 as well as of the said transmission means from the said plate 7 is impossible.

When required, the attaching unit 1 may easily be removed from the said recess 71 by means of appropriate displacing the ring 3 towards the right according to Fig. l, i. e. towards the sleeve 4, by which the teeth 35 are removed from the groove 72 of the connecting plate 7.

Although it is ordinary not necessary at all, the invention enables even a possibility of disassembling of the said attaching unit 1 and removing thereof from. the each corresponding transmission means: This may be achieved by temporary inserting appropriate pins or stick-like elements through the openings 45 on the sleeve 4, so that the arresting means 44 are deflected from the openings 26 of the housing 2, whereupon the sleeve 4 may be removed from the housing 2