Case Assembly, Differential: Operation
| 1 - IN STRAIGHT AHEAD DRIVING EACH WHEEL ROTATES AT 100% OF CASE SPEED |
| 2 - PINION GEAR |
| 3 - SIDE GEAR |
| 4 - PINION GEARS ROTATE WITH CASE |
In operation, power flow occurs as follows:
- The pinion gear (2) rotates the ring gear
- The ring gear (bolted to the differential case) rotates the case
- The differential pinion gears (mounted on the pinion mate shaft in the case) rotate the side gears
- The side gears (1) (splined to the axleshafts) rotate the shafts
During straight-ahead driving, the differential pinion gears do not rotate on the pinion mate shaft. This occurs because input torque applied to the gears is divided and distributed equally between the two side gears. As a result, the pinion gears revolve with the pinion mate shaft but do not rotate around it.
| 1 - PINION GEARS ROTATE ON PINION SHAFT |
When turning corners, the outside wheel must travel a greater distance than the inside wheel to complete a turn. The difference must be compensated for to prevent the tires from scuffing and skidding through turns. To accomplish this, the differential allows the axleshafts to turn at unequal speeds. In this instance, the input torque applied to the pinion gears is not divided equally. The pinion gears now rotate around the pinion mate shaft in opposite directions. This allows the side gear and axleshaft attached to the outside wheel to rotate at a faster speed.