US Patent 7284634 Electric power steering apparatus

An electric power steering apparatus comprises a rotary shaft member connected to a steering wheel, an elongate member, a rack-and-pinion mechanism, a ball screw mechanism constructed of a screw member, a nut member and a multiplicity of balls interposed between the screw member and the nut member, an electric motor unit, and a meshing type rotation decelerating mechanism including a plurality of meshing components. The meshing components include an output shaft pinion gear, a deceleration gear, and an intermediate gear, interposed between the output shaft pinion gear and the deceleration gear, having a contact portion composed of a synthetic resin.