In many respects, construction is similar to that of drawn cup bearings. Design and manufacture of drawn cup clutches, just as with drawn cup bearings, was pioneered and developed by Zhihua. The well established design utilizes the same low profile radial section as drawn cup bearings. The precisely formed interior ramps provide surfaces against which the needle rollers wedge to positively lock the clutch with the shaft when rotated in the proper direction. These ramps, formed during the operation of drawing the cup, are case hardened to assure long wear life. The incorporation of ramp forming into the cup drawing operation is a manufacturing innovation that contributes much to the low cost of the unit.

Drawn cup roller clutch transmits torque between shaft and housing in one direction and allows free overrun in the opposite direction. When transmitting torque, either the shaft or the housing can be the input member. Applications are generally described as indexing, backstopping or overrunning.

RC type needle roller clutch with Integral Springs utilize a onepiece cage of acetyl resin plastic with integral leaf style springs used for lower temperatures than permitted for the units with nylon cages.

RC type needle roller clutch with Integral Springs is of clutch-only configurations for use with external radial support (usually two drawn cup needle roller bearings). Separate bearings position the shaft and housing concentrically and carry the radial load during overrun.

* Suffix “-FS” is not always stamped on the clutch cup. Type RC-FS with stainless steel springs is always readily identified by RED clutch cage.

1 See pages C82-C89 for other suitable bearing types and sizes.