Track belt for snowmobile

Details Track belt for snowmobile Track belt for snowmobile

1998-09-25

2001-03-20

Stormer, Russell D. (Department: 3617)

Wheel substitutes for land vehicles

Endless belt having nonmetallic track or tread

Track formed of endless flexible belt

C305S170000, C305S179000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06203125

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a track belt for a snowmobile. More particularly, the invention relates to a track belt for a snowmobile, which provides improved high-speed running performance for the snowmobile.
Conventionally, for example as shown in
FIG. 10
, a snowmobile that runs on snow comprises one or two steering skis
2
provided in the front lower part of a car body
1
and an endless track belt main body (caterpillar)
31
in its rear side.
An output from an engine
4
is transmitted to the track belt main body
31
via an automatic transmission
5
and a wheel sprocket
6
. Then, the engine output is transmitted to a snow surface by the track belt main body
31
. Reference numerals
7
and
8
respectively denote a suspension rail for the track belt main body
31
and a steering handle.
The track belt main body
31
is constructed, for example as shown in
FIG. 11
, in a manner that reinforcing woven cloths
3
a
and
3
b
are respectively disposed in the outside and inside of a core body
9
composed of an organic fiber cord such as a polyester cord, the core body being disposed along a longitudinal direction of the track belt main body
31
, the reinforcing woven cloths
3
a
and
3
b
are covered respectively with outer and inner cover layers
11
a
and
11
b
which are made of elastic rubber materials or the like and, further, in order to increase surface rigidity of a snow contact surface by reinforcing the track belt main body
31
, between the core body
9
and the outer reinforcing woven cloth
3
a
, a plurality of horizontal rigid members
12
(rods) are buried at specified intervals in the longitudinal direction of the track belt main body
31
and in a cross direction of the same.
In the outside of the outer cover layer
11
a
, a plurality of traction projections
13
are provided at specified intervals in the longitudinal direction of the track main body
3
and in the cross direction of the same. In the inside of the inner cover layer
11
b
, a driving projection
14
engaged with a pin of the wheel sprocket
6
is integrally provided at a specified interval with respect to the longitudinal direction of the track belt main body
3
.
Concerning the reinforcing woven cloths
10
a
and
3
b
provided in the outside and inside of the foregoing conventional track belt main body
31
, joined parts thereof on the circumference of the track belt main body
3
are formed to have specified overlapping (overlapping between ends and the other ends of the respective reinforcing woven cloths in the longitudinal direction) in places where the horizontal rigid member
12
, the traction projections
13
and the driving projection
14
are not positioned. During operation of the track belt, bending occurs repeatedly in the joined parts. However, because of the improvement in snowmobile track belt performance in recent years, bending fatigue in the joined parts has increased, and such bending fatigue causes failures such as peeling or fracture in the joined parts. Consequently, there was a limit to the improvement in high-speed running performance.
In addition, the existence of the joined parts causes rigidity to be non-uniform on the circumference of the track belt main body
31
. Because of such non-uniform rigidity, vibrations are generated in the track belt main body
31
, or peeling, fracture or other failures have occurred in the joined parts during high-speed running. Thus, there was a limit to the improvement in high-speed running performance.
The reinforcing woven cloth
3
a
provided in the outside of the track belt main body
3
functions to protect the core body
9
from external damage and hold the horizontal rigid member. Because of the improvement in snowmobile performance in recent years, however, the reinforcing woven cloth
3
a
does not appropriately perform the function of holding (protecting) the horizontal rigid member and, during high-speed running, failures such as fracture in the outer reinforcing woven cloth
3
a
or breaking of the horizontal rigid member
12
have occurred. In order to deal with these problems, strength of the reinforcing woven cloth
3
a
may be increased by increasing its thickness. But such an increase in strength may cause increases in the weight of the track belt main body
31
and rolling resistance. Thus, for the conventional structure, there was a limit to the improvement in snowmobile high-speed running performance.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a track belt for a snowmobile, which can improve snowmobile high-speed running performance by preventing such failures as peeling or fracture in overlapping end joined parts of reinforcing woven cloths disposed respectively in the outside and inside of a core body.
Another object of the invention is to provide a track belt for a snowmobile, which can improve snowmobile high-speed running performance by eliminating a problem of non-uniform rigidity on the circumference of a track belt main body caused by overlapping end joined parts of reinforcing woven cloths disposed respectively in the outside and inside of a core body and preventing the occurrences of vibration in the track belt main body and peeling or fracture in the joined parts during high-speed running.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a track belt for a snowmobile, which can improve snowmobile high-speed running performance by increasing a horizontal rigid member holding function without causing any substantial increases in the weight of a track belt main body and rolling resistance.
(1) According to an aspect of the prevent invention, a snowmobile track belt comprises a track belt main body, a core body arranged along a longitudinal direction of the track belt main body, reinforcing woven cloths disposed respectively in the outside and inside of the core body, cover layers for covering these reinforcing woven cloths and a plurality of horizontal rigid members placed at specified intervals in the longitudinal direction of the track belt main body and buried in a cross direction of the track belt main body. In this case, overlapping end joined parts of the reinforcing woven cloths are arranged respectively in the outside and inside of the horizontal rigid members.
Since the overlapping end joined parts are arranged respectively in the outside and inside of the horizontal rigid members, repeated bending does not occur in the horizontal rigid members during track belt operation, which in turn prevents bending fatigue in the overlapping end joined parts. Therefore, snowmobile high-speed running performance can be improved without producing any peeling or fracture in the overlapping end joined parts.
(2) According to another aspect of the present invention, a snowmobile track belt comprises a track belt main body, a core body arranged along a longitudinal direction of the track belt main body, reinforcing woven cloths disposed respectively in the outside and inside of the core body, cover layers for covering these reinforcing woven cloths and a plurality of horizontal rigid members placed at specified intervals in the longitudinal direction of the track belt main body and buried in a cross direction of the track belt main body. In this case, each of the reinforcing woven cloths is made by spirally winding a belt-like woven cloth having a specified width on a circumference of the track belt main body at a specified angle to the longitudinal direction of the track belt main body.
Since each of the reinforcing woven cloths is made by spirally winding the belt-like woven cloth on the circumference of the track belt main body, there are only open ends in two places, i.e., where the winding of the belt-like woven cloth starts and ends, and hence no overlapping end joints parts exist in the reinforcing woven cloth. Thus, it is possible to solve a problem of non-uniform rigidity on the circumference of the track belt main body caused by overlapping end joined parts in the reinforcing woven cloths, which occurred in the conventional case.

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