Park lock device for use with automatic transmission

Claim 1

In an automatic transmission having an output shaft and a transmission casing, a park lock device comprising: a parking gear coaxially and securedly mounted on said output shaft to rotate therewith; a parking pawl having an axis pivotally connected to said casing for locking and unlocking said parking gear, said pawl including first and second wing portions which extend in opposing directions from the pivoted connection of the pawl, said first wing portion being formed with a tooth engageable with one of a plurality of tooth gaps of said parking gear; an actuating mechanism, including: a support shaft; a cam member secured along an axial length of said support shaft and being slidably engageable with said second wing portion thereby to reversibly pivot said parking pawl in a direction to achieve locking engagement between the tooth of the pawl and the tooth gap of said parking gear, said actuating mechanism being positioned essentially inboard of said parking pawl with respect to the transmission casing; wherein said first wing portion is arcuate and said second wing portion is shorter in length than said first wing portion, wherein said park lock device further includes positioning means for moving said support shaft in an axial direction and thereby positioning said cam member to achieve said reversible pivot of said parking pawl, said positioning means including a pivot plate secured at a first end to said supporting shaft and at a second end to a detent producing means, wherein said pivot plate pivots in a direction parallel to an inboard surface of said transmission casing.