The Gates Rubber Company

The Gates Corporation

John D Redmond

Robert P Tone

Richard R Batzer

A belt drive cantilever tensioner. The tensioner is particularly suited to belt drive systems having a high belt tension. The tensioner comprises a pulley journaled to a cantilever arm. The cantilever arm is pivotably attached to a mounting surface by a fastener at a pivot. The cantilever arm further comprises a hole disposed radially from the pivot for containing an embedded resilient member. A second fastener extends through the resilient member fixing it in a position relative to the first fastener. A load applied to the pulley causes the arm to pivot thereby causing a lever action to exert a force upon the resilient member. The resilient member has a limit of movement as well as an asymmetric force characteristic which increases in proportion to an arm rotation.

Belt drive cantilever tensioner

A belt drive system and toothed idler sprocket having an arcuate pitch to significantly reduce noise. The toothed idler sprocket having a pitch sufficient to cause proper engagement between a belt and the sprocket at a minimal belt wrap angle.

Idler sprocket

An idler having a flexible member. The flexible member comprises a rubber or elastomeric material. The flexible member also defines a gas chamber. The spring rate of the flexible member is a function of the flexible material and the size of and pressure in the gas chamber. A belt or chain bearing surface of the flexible member bears upon a belt or chain trained between two pulleys. The flexible member is compressible in response to a preload caused as the idler is pressed against the chain or belt. The flexible member damps vibrations in the belt or chain during operation. This results in quieter operation of the idler/pulley system as well as increases the operating life of the belt.

Flexible idler

A toothed sprocket with rim portion made of a first composite material of discontinuous fiber disposed in a plastic matrix and where the teeth of the rim portion are covered with an encircling layer of a second composite material that includes a fibrous material and an elastomeric matrix and fibers embedded in the matrix.

Sprocket

A tension compensating gear set of the eccentric type for use with a flexible power transmission member with a gear member having at least one external circumferential surface in rolling contact with an internal circumferential surface of an annular gear method for controlling tooth meshing while inhibiting noise or vibration. An eccentric gear set is used as a method or means for automatically adjusting for fluctuations in center distance of a power transmission drive system.

Torque reactive tension mechanism and method

A reinforced, mechanical splice for toothed belts, the splice defined by overlapping belt end portions that interfit with each other with a male-end belt tongue portion having transversely oriented belt teeth with molded end receiving openings, and a female-end belt U-portion dimensioned to receive the male-end portion and having transversely aligned belt teeth with molded pin receiving openings so adapted and arranged for coaxial alignment with the male-end pin receiving openings such that the belt teeth of the male-end portion are aligned with the belt teeth of the female-end portion, the belt teeth of both end portions having an embedded reinforcement circumjacent to the pin receiving openings. The belt splice is formed by positioning a twined reinforcement around a polymeric rod, placing the rod with reinforcement in a mold such as successive tooth cavities, placing a circumferentially oriented tensile member next to the rod and reinforcement, embedding the rod, reinforcement, and tensile member in an elastomeric matrix forming a toothed belt, and cutting through the belt at the tensile member, rod and reinforcement and forming a male-end belt tongue portion and a female-end belt U-portion.

Reinforced belt splice

A sprocket for use with positive drive belts of the type with oppositely facing curvilinear driving surfaces, the sprocket having improved symmetrical teeth with a cross-section profile defined by axially oriented, oppositely facing driving surface portions that extend from the top land of the tooth at an angle of about 15 degrees or less to the sprocket tooth, each driving surface of the sprocket tooth blending into an oppositely facing oblique surface at an angle of about 150 to about 170 degrees that provides a positive clearance between the sprocket tooth and side portions of a meshing belt tooth to direct egress of material away from the sprocket, the oblique surfaces define a sprocket tooth base that is wider than the sprocket tooth top land and bottom land portions between sprocket teeth providing positive clearance between the bottom land portions and belt tooth tips.

Belt sprocket

A method for casting cog-type power transmission belts from flowable elastomeric materials including the steps of forming a mold cavity defined by a mold mandrel and an outer mold shell, one of which has a plurality of axially disposed notches; wrapping preferably an extensible fabric about the surface of the notched mold portion; placing preferably fibrous loading members on the extensible fabric and superimposed over the axial notches; forcing the fibrous loading members and extensible fabric into the bottom contour of the notches; and introducing a substantial liquid elastomeric material into the mold cavity and polymerizing the elastomeric form in the mold to produce a sleeve containing one or more unitary endless cog-type belts.

Method for producing a positive drive belt

A cotton doffer with integrally molded elastomeric teeth in an annulus projecting from at least one side thereof, the doffer reinforced with a perforated disk having at least an annular portion embedded in the doffer to a point generally radially inward of the mid diameter of the annulus.

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Littleton, CO, United States of America

John D Redmond