Cone clutch explained

A cone clutch serves the same purpose as a disk or plate clutch; however, instead of mating two spinning disks, the cone clutch uses two conical surfaces to transmit torque by friction.^[1]

The cone clutch transfers a higher torque than plate or disk clutches of the same size due to the wedging action and increased surface area. Cone clutches are generally now only used in low-peripheral-speed applications, although they were once common in automobiles and other internal combustion engine transmissions.^[2]

They are usually now confined to very specialist transmissions used in racing, rallying, or extreme off-road vehicles, although they are common in power boats,^[3] dredge pumps and other ship-drive lines.^[4] This is because the clutch does not have to be pushed in all the way, which allows the gears to be changed more quickly. Small cone clutches are used in synchronizer mechanisms in manual transmissions and some limited-slip differentials.^[5]

Applications

• Cone clutches are used in various manual transmissions, such as synchronisers.
• They are used in various heavy machines, since they can transmit high torque.
• These clutches are generally used in low-peripheral-speed applications.
• Cone clutches are commonly used in power racing boats.
• Cone clutches are used in racing and rallying vehicles.
• Cone clutches are used in some automobiles and other combustion engine transmissions.

External links

• Automobile Informer (2021) | By Krushna Sawant - What is a Cone Clutch mechanism?
• Cone Clutch - Roymech - additional information about cone clutches (including diagrams)

Notes and References

1. Book: Design Of Machine Elements, Volume 2 . Rao, T Krishna . I. K. International Pvt Ltd . 2010 . 453 . 9789380026633 .
2. Book: Dick, Robert . Auto Racing Comes of Age: A Transatlantic View of the Cars, Drivers and Speedways, 1900-1925 . McFarland . 2013 . 22, 69, 80, 111, 164, 201 . 9780786488117 .
3. Diesel Power '88 . Motor Boating & Sailing . 160 . 1 . 74 . July 1987 .
4. Web site: MESLU clutch system. live. VULKAN. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202062055/https://www.vulkan.com/en-us/couplings/Documents/Technische-Datenbroschueren-original/technical_data_meslu_012019.pdf.pdf . 2022-02-02 .
5. Book: TechOne: Manual transmissions . Erjavec, Jack . Cengage Learning . 2003 . 9781401834005 . 215 .