Conveyors: power-driven – Conveyor or accessory therefor specialized to convey people – By stairway having steps forming an endless member
Patent
1993-12-22
1995-05-16
Dayoan, D. Glenn
Conveyors: power-driven
Conveyor or accessory therefor specialized to convey people
By stairway having steps forming an endless member
198330, B66B 2106
Patent
active
054152658
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a drive mechanism of an endless track conveyor apparatus comprising individual treads connected integrally one another so that all the treads are kept level, more particularly to a drive mechanism preferably applied to an escalator or a moving sidewalk.
BACKGROUND ART
An escalator, in which treads are held level, and tracks for going trip and return trip are integrally constructed, is well known. Driving mechanism of such an escalator, however, fundamentally relies on a flexible chain. A disadvantage of the flexible chain resides in difficulty in putting it to practical use. The inventor of present application has already applied for a patent right to the Japanese Patent Office, regarding the invention relating to an endless track conveyor apparatus utilizing a parallel link mechanism with flexible links (the Japanese Patent Application No. HEI 1-230458/1989, which is later published as the Laid-open Japanese Patent Application No. HEI 3-95095/1991). Furthermore, the inventor of this application has applied for a patent right to the Japanese Patent Office, regarding the invention relating to an endless track conveyor apparatus utilizing flexible connecting links and auxiliary guide rails capable of keeping the treads level (the Japanese Patent Application No. HEI 1-241770/1989, which is later published as the Laid-open Japanese Patent Application No. HEI 3-106790/1991). These prior arts basically rely on a method, in which driving power is derived from "pushing" force. In this method, therefore, the connecting links and treads are required to have the rigidity of the connecting links and the treads. However, increasing the rigidity entails a disadvantage such that overall weight of the apparatus increases correspondingly. Furthermore the driving mechanism used in these prior arts employs gears or the like means; therefore, accuracy requirement to be met is too high to put the apparatus to practical use.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a driving mechanism for an endless track conveyor apparatus capable of saving driving power with utilization of weight of a descending stairway without increasing height of steps, without accumulating loads on the treads, and without requiring high accuracy in the drive of treads.
In order to accomplish above purpose, the present invention provides a drive mechanism for an endless track conveyor apparatus comprising: a guide mechanism for guiding a conveyor frame of an endless track conveyor apparatus along an endless travelling track, the endless travelling track including an ascending section, a descending section, and horizontal straight sections and U-turn sections connecting the ascending and descending sections; a drive chain provided along said ascending section of the endless travelling track; a drive mechanism for rotating said drive chain in a predetermined direction; a driven medium comprising a plurality of piled-up hard slats, each of the slats being swingably installed on the conveyor frame and engageable with teeth provided on either of upper and lower portions of a chain link of the drive chain; the conveyor frame being transmitted a driving force from the drive chain through the driven medium so that the endless track conveyor apparatus always positions above a surface defined by the endless travelling track and circulates along said endless travelling track; and a reversal transmission mechanism for converting a load acting on a drive chain at the descending section of the endless travelling track into rotational motion, then reversing this rotational force, to transmit to the drive mechanism.
It will be preferable ill the above-identified drive mechanism that the reversal transmission mechanism is provided along the descending section of the endless travelling track, and the reversal transmission mechanism comprising: a chain having chain links provided with teeth engageable with the slats installed on the conveyor frame, a chain sprocket entraining
REFERENCES:
patent: 888949 (1908-05-01), Wheeler
patent: 888950 (1908-05-01), Wheeler
patent: 889080 (1908-05-01), Wheeler
patent: 5052539 (1991-10-01), Fillingsness et al.
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