Rubber crawler

Details Rubber crawler Rubber crawler

2001-08-31

2003-11-25

Stormer, Russell D. (Department: 3617)

Wheel substitutes for land vehicles

Endless belt having nonmetallic track or tread

Track formed of endless flexible belt

C305S167000, C305S177000, C305S195000, C305S171000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06652044

ABSTRACT:

TECHNICAL BACKGROUND
An iron crawler has been much used for an endless track running gear, which is used for running parts of the construction machine etc. However, recently a rubber crawler has been preferably used not to damage a pavement.
FIG. 101
is a plan view showing an example of a conventional rubber crawler.
FIG. 102
is an X—X line sectional view in
FIG. 101
, and
FIG. 103
is a Y—Y line sectional view in FIG.
101
. In the figures,
67
is a core guide protrusion,
64
is a core,
65
is a rubber elastic body, and
66
is an extensible reinforcing layer.
Recently, since the construction machine using the rubber crawler is comfortable to drive and is little fatiguing a driver, it has been more often used under severe conditions except the pavement etc.
Therefore, the construction machine often runs over sharp rocks and scrap wood in civil engineering works. In an operating condition, a foreign substance is caught between the rubber crawler and a driving wheel or an idler wheel, thereby generating unusual tension on the rubber crawler. Therefore, a steel cord of the extensible reinforcing layer is cut, or a steel cord wrapping part is pulled out.
Catching the foreign substance as above-mentioned, or inverse warping of the rubber crawler during running on rough terrain, causes the core guide protrusion to be caught on a chassis. Since the cord adds mighty driving force from the driving wheel, the catching phenomenon destroys adhesion between the core and the steel cord. Owing to this, the core protrudes.
Moreover, during running on rough terrain, a cut crack occurs in a rubber part. In this case, when the crack reaches the steel cord of the extensible reinforcing layer of the rubber crawler, the steel cord is severed due to a cut or corrosion, thereby making the machine unusable as a rubber crawler, though the rubber part can be still used.
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, this invention aims to provide a rubber crawler to be usable under severe operating conditions.
The Indication of Invention
The present invention relates to a rubber crawler comprising a core consisting of generally parallelepiped blocks each having two longitudinally spaced through holes in the lower surface region and bars inserted in the through holes. The generally parallelepiped blocks are arranged in two series, with the blocks of one of the series laterally overlapping the blocks of the other series, and with sprocket engaging holes disposed therebetween, and the bars are inserted in alternately corresponding through holes in adjacent generally parallelepiped blocks. The bars are connected within the generally parallelepiped blocks and embedded in the rubber crawler.
Besides, the above-mentioned problems can be solved by means of choosing and combining the following listing compositions suitably.
1. At least, a minimum rubber crawler unit is formed from two generally parallelepiped blocks and one bar to insert into the through hole. Then, a rubber crawler unit comprising of plural generally parallelepiped blocks and plural bars is formed from the minimum rubber crawler unit. The generally parallelepiped blocks are arranged in two series, with the blocks of one of the series laterally overlapping the blocks of the other series, and with sprocket engaging holes disposed therebetween, and the bars are inserted in alternately corresponding through holes in adjacent generally parallelepiped blocks. The bars are connected within the generally parallelepiped blocks and embedded in the rubber crawler unit.
The generally parallelepiped blocks are provided at both ends of the rubber crawler unit in a crawler circumferential direction, and at one side of right and left of the rubber crawler unit in a crawler width direction with the engaging holes disposed therebetween. Connecting bars are inserted in connecting generally parallelepiped block through holes and connecting bar insertion holes of the generally parallelepiped blocks, respectively, thereby connecting adjacent rubber crawler units in the crawler circumferential direction at their ends. Thus, an endless rubber crawler can be formed.
2. The bar is a stick member having a circular section, and a bush is fitted in a sprocket engaging part of the bar.
3. A diameter of the through hole of the generally parallelepiped block is larger than the outer diameter of the bar. Filling a gap between the through hole and the bar with rubber, the bar can be connected through the rubber of an elastic material.
4. The through hole of the generally parallelepiped block is formed into different sizes in its front face and back face, one side small and the other side large. Besides, a bar shake stop protrusion is provided within the through hole.
5. An upper surface region of the generally parallelepiped block protrudes out of an inner circumference side of the rubber crawler. In this case, the protrusion may be formed in a horn shape, or its top part may be formed flat so as to serve as a travelling rolling surface which a rolling wheel contacts.
6. A wing part is provided on an outside of the generally parallelepiped block in the crawler width direction. In this case, the wing part is formed so as to be located between the bar and the bar, or so as to extend in the crawler circumferential direction.
7. Lateral shift control parts are provided to both ends of the generally parallelepiped block in its length direction. When embedded in the rubber crawler, the lateral shift control parts may be overlapped with those of an adjoining generally parallelepiped block in view of the crawler circumferential direction, respectively.
8. In order to reinforce the rubber crawler, a reinforcing layer is embedded in the rubber crawler in all its circumference, the reinforcing layer distributed on both sides in the crawler width direction. Here, the reinforcing layer may be embedded in both sides of the bar, the outer circumference side and the inner circumference side, or in either one of them. Besides, the reinforcing layer may be made to meander on inclining towards a center of the thickness of the rubber crawler between the bar and the bar, or in the inner circumference side and the outer circumference side alternately between two bars. In this case, a connecting ring and a generally parallelepiped auxiliary block may be arranged on the outside of the generally parallelepiped blocks, shifted by half a pitch relative thereto. Moreover, the reinforcing layer may be embedded on the outside of the connecting ring (tread side).
9. In the above-mentioned case, a lug is provided so as to shift by half a pitch to the connecting ring.
10. A top face of the generally parallelepiped auxiliary block in the inner circumference side of the rubber crawler is exposed, or covered with rubber to a degree of burr.
11. A pipe is fitted on the bar of the outside of the generally parallelepiped block. Besides, the outside part of the generally parallelepiped block may be attached and detached. Here, an inner wall of the pipe may be covered with a high molecular compound layer, such as rubber.
12. A band provided to the outside part of the generally parallelepiped block is divided into one to plural single substances or owner end bands, which have two or more bars. In this case, adjoining portions of ends of the divided single substance or the owner end band may touch face to face each other.
13. The end of the simple substance or the owner end band is located on a circle centering on the center of the bar in a right-angled section of the bar length direction.
Due to the present invention, the cores consisting of the bars and the generally parallelepiped blocks are connected endlessly. Here, the generally parallelepiped blocks having two through holes are arranged in two series, with the blocks of one of the series laterally overlapping the blocks of the other series, and with the engaging holes disposed therebetween, and the bars are inserted in these through holes one by one to connect the cores. Therefore, even if any deep external injury is inflicted on the rubber crawler, i

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