JPH04243674A - Rubber crawler structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve lateral rigidity and prevent the lateral dislocation of core metal by embedding at least two steel cords in symmetrically zigzag shape being bent at engaging pieces extended from the core metal, longitudinally in a band-like rubber elastic body. CONSTITUTION:In a band-like rubber elastic body 1, core metals 2 are arranged laterally in the width direction thereof at the constant pitch as well as expansion bodies 3 surrounding the outside of the core metal 2 are embedded together, and a sprocket engaging hole 4 is provided between the core metals at the width direction center of the band-like rubber elastic body 1 to form a rubber crawler. At least two steel cords 10 are further embedded in symmetrically zigzag shape being bent at engaging pieces 8, 9, longitudinally in the band-like rubber elastic body 1. The behavior of each core metal is regulated by the steel cords 10 embedded in the zigzag state so as to improve the lateral rigidity of the rubber crawler and to prevent the lateral dislocation.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to the structure of a rubber crawler, and mainly relates to a rubber crawler suitable for use in large construction machines and civil engineering machines.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, iron shoe crawlers have been used as running parts in construction machines and civil engineering machines, but in recent years, rubber crawlers have been used as running parts. This rubber crawler has a structure in which a large number of core metals arranged horizontally in the width direction are embedded in rubber and surrounded by steel cord (tensile material), and is made of rubber. Therefore, it reduced the vibrations transmitted to the occupants, and furthermore, it did not damage the road surface even when driving on paved roads, so it became popular.

[0003] Such rubber crawlers may have slightly lower lateral rigidity than iron shoe crawlers, so
The crawler may come off the wheels provided in the machine, so measures are taken to increase the rigidity by increasing the width of the core metal embedded in the rubber. However, increasing the width of the core metal means that the rubber
This increases the weight of the rubber crawler, creating new operational problems such as transporting the rubber crawler, mounting it on machines, and storing it. On the other hand, a rubber crawler runs by being wound between the sprocket and idler of the aircraft, and the wider the core metal is at these winding parts, the more the rubber in the non-buried part of the core metal increases. It was also true that stress was concentrated on the rubber parts, causing fatigue in the rubber parts, leading to cracks and breakage, and reducing durability. Furthermore, rubber claws
A lug for propulsion is provided on the ground surface of the lug, and this lug is generally provided in a straight line in the width direction and facing the core bar.

0004

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] These structures combine to effectively transmit forward and backward propulsive force in conventional rubber crawlers, but in some cases the crawler may slip laterally. However, there was a problem in that the vehicle was prone to skidding, especially when driving in areas where pebbles were scattered, sandy areas, or wetlands.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention solves the technical problems of rubber crawlers in the prior art as described above, and the gist of the invention is as follows. That is, core metals are arranged horizontally in the width direction of a band-shaped rubber elastic body at a constant pitch, and a tensile body surrounding the core metal is buried together, and the core metal is placed in the widthwise center of the band-shaped rubber elastic body. In a rubber crawler having a sprocket engagement hole between metal parts, at least two steel cords are inserted in the longitudinal direction of the band-shaped rubber elastic body using locking pieces extending from the core metal. This is a rubber crawler structure characterized by being bent and buried in a symmetrical zigzag shape, and more specifically, a steel cord is buried symmetrically across the sprocket engagement hole. It has a structure of a rubber crawler buried in a zigzag shape, and when considered from the core metal side, locking pieces are protruded at symmetrical positions of the core metal buried in the rubber elastic body. The present invention provides a structure of a rubber crawler with a bent portion of a rubber cord.

[0006]

[Operation] When traveling on an uneven road surface or making a sharp turn, a deviation occurs between the traveling direction of the machine itself and the traveling direction of the rubber crawler, which causes the rubber crawler to come off the wheels. This is due to the fact that in the rubber crawler, the core metals that mainly transmit the driving force from the sprocket are each independent, and these are connected by a stretchable rubber elastic body, and the rubber crawler's longitudinal direction is Steel is used as a tensile material.
Although the core cord is buried, it does not particularly prevent its elongation in the width direction of the rubber crawler, so its lateral rigidity is relatively small.For example, as the rubber elastic body expands and contracts, the core metal The rubber track may shift laterally or the rubber track may become twisted. This expansion and contraction of the rubber elastic body not only affects the width direction of the rubber crawler, but also causes the rubber crawler to bend in the opposite direction when it rides on pebbles, etc., and the core metal to rotate in the longitudinal direction (overhang). Similar phenomena are also observed. These phenomena are caused by the fact that each of the core metals placed side by side in the rubber elastic body can behave in its own way.

In view of the above, the present invention forms a locking piece on the metal core, and utilizes this locking piece to lock the steel coil.
This steel cord is embedded in the rubber elastic body in a zigzag pattern in the longitudinal direction of the rubber crawler, and the steel cords are used to restrain the core metals embedded in the rubber elastic body, This is an attempt to prevent gold from shifting sideways. That is,
The behavior of each core metal is regulated by the steel cord embedded in a zigzag shape in the rubber elastic body, and the rubber cord is
Lateral slippage is prevented by increasing the lateral rigidity of the wheels.

[0008] Apart from the steel cord used as a tensile body, a technique of embedding a steel cord in a rubber elastic body for the purpose of increasing the lateral rigidity is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 56-22.
There are Publication No. 74, Publication of Utility Model Application No. 2-40684, etc.
In both of these, a steel cord is embedded over the entire width of the rubber crawler. For this reason, the rigidity of winding around the sprocket and idler (bending rigidity) is large, creating new problems.There are also no regulations between the steel cord and the core metal, so lateral displacement of the core metal occurs. There was no fundamental solution to the prevention of this problem. In this respect, the present invention is directed to the formation of steel coat into a rubber elastic body.
By minimizing the number of embedded steel wires, we can reduce the increase in rigidity when wrapping around sprockets, etc., and
Lateral slippage of the core metal is regulated by the code.

[0009]

[Specific Examples] The present invention will be explained in more detail below based on the drawings. FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a first embodiment of a rubber crawler according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a conceptual plan view of the rubber crawler as seen from the inner circumferential side. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a rubber elastic body constituting a rubber crawler.In this rubber elastic body 1, a large number of core metals 2 are arranged horizontally at a constant pitch. Tensile members 3, typically made of steel cords, are buried in rows in the longitudinal direction of the rubber crawler. A sprocket engagement hole 4 is formed at the center between the core metals 2, 2, and the center 5 of the core metal 2 receives driving force from a sprocket (not shown). Note that 6 is a propulsion lug provided on the outer circumferential side of the rubber elastic body 1, and 7 is a propulsion lug provided on the outer peripheral side of the rubber elastic body 1.
These are a pair of protrusions extending from the core metal 2 that protrudes from the inner circumferential surface of the metal core 2. This protrusion 7 serves to prevent wheels from coming off from the wheels provided on the aircraft body, and may also serve as a running surface for the wheels in some cases.

Now, on the core bar 21, there are a pair of protrusions 7.
A pair of locking portions 8 are formed on the outside of the core metal 21 , and a locking portion 9 is formed at the tip of the core metal 22 which is embedded in the rubber elastic body 1 adjacent to the core metal 21 . They are formed into a pair. A still cord 10 is inserted between the locking parts 8 and 9.
is bent at each locking portion to form a zigzag shape, and is embedded in the rubber elastic body 1. This steel cord 10 is preferably disposed symmetrically on the left and right sides of the rubber crawler in the width direction, that is, with the sprocket hole 4 in between.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual cross-sectional view in the width direction of the first embodiment, in which locking pieces 8 and 9 are formed on the inner peripheral surface of the rubber crawler in the core metal 2. Therefore, the movement of the core bar 2 is restricted by the steel cord 10 on its inner peripheral surface side.

FIG. 4 shows a modification of the first embodiment.
4 is a cross-sectional conceptual diagram in the width direction similar to FIG. 3. FIG. In such an example, the locking pieces 8 and 9 are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the rubber crawler, and the steel cord 10 is inserted into the rubber elastic body 1 in such a state as to enclose the tensile body 3. This is an example where it is buried. In other words, the core metal 2 is restricted by the outer peripheral side of the core metal 2. These steel cords 10 are, of course, stretched between the locking pieces of each core metal before vulcanization molding of the rubber elastic body 1, and are vulcanized together with the core metal, tensile body, etc. Therefore, it is embedded in the rubber elastic body. In addition,
In some cases, it is possible to arrange steel cords in a zigzag pattern on both the inner and outer sides of the metal core, although this takes some time and effort in manufacturing. In this case, the locking pieces 8 and 9 may be formed symmetrically on both sides of the core bar, or the locking pieces 8 and 9 may be formed on each face of one core bar. The steel cord with the gold sandwiched therein forms an identical zigzag shape, and the latter results in a symmetrical zigzag shape.

FIG. 5 is a conceptual plan view of a second embodiment of the rubber crawler according to the present invention, viewed from the inner circumferential side. In this example, locking pieces 8 and 9 are both formed symmetrically from the core bar 2 toward the inner circumferential side of the rubber crawler. Therefore, a total of four steel cords 10 are used, and zigzag-shaped steel cords are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the sprocket engagement hole 4.
A code 10 will be installed. Although not shown, it goes without saying that the locking pieces 8 and 9 can be formed on the outer peripheral surface of the rubber crawler and the steel cord can be disposed on the outer peripheral surface. It is also possible to form the locking pieces on both sides of the metal core, and to arrange symmetrical zigzag-shaped steel cords on the inner and outer circumferential sides, respectively.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual plan view showing a third embodiment of the rubber crawler of the present invention, viewed from the inner circumferential side. In this example, the steel cord 10 is disposed so as to pass through the outer circumferential side of the core bar 2 between the sprocket engagement holes 4, 4. That is, in the rubber crawler, locking pieces 9 are symmetrically provided near both ends of the core metal 2 on the outer peripheral side, and the steel cord 10 is held by the left and right locking pieces 9 between the adjacent core metals 2. are arranged diagonally. In this case, the steel cord 10 must not intersect with the sprocket engaging hole 4 and must be completely buried in the rubber elastic body 1. Therefore, when the locking piece 9 approaches the center of the core metal 2, the steel
The locking piece 9 should be formed near the tip of the core metal 2 since the metal cord 10 will be exposed to the sprocket engaging hole 4. In this example, as can be seen from the figure, every other core bar 2 is regulated by the steel cord 10. It goes without saying that the formation of the locking pieces and the arrangement of the steel cords as described above can be freely combined to manufacture a rubber crawler.

[0015]

[Effects] The rubber crawler of the present invention has a completely new structure as described above, and the core metals embedded in the rubber elastic body are regulated by steel cords. It has a great effect on preventing the core metal from shifting laterally, and the number of steel cords used here is small, and because it is buried diagonally in the rubber elastic body, the rigidity of wrapping around sprockets etc. is not so high. Its industrial effects are significant.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a first embodiment of a rubber crawler according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual plan view of the rubber crawler shown in FIG. 1, viewed from the inner peripheral side.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of the rubber crawler shown in FIG. 1 in the width direction.

FIG. 4 shows a modification of the first embodiment, FIG.
It is a cross-sectional conceptual diagram in the width direction similar to the above.

FIG. 5 is a conceptual plan view of a second embodiment of the rubber crawler of the present invention, viewed from the inner circumferential side.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual plan view showing a third embodiment of the rubber crawler of the present invention, viewed from the inner circumferential side.

[Explanation of symbols]

1. Rubber elastic body 2, 21, 22... Core metal 3. Tensile body 4. Sprocket engagement hole 5. Center of core metal 6. Propulsion lug 7.Protrusion 8, 9...Locking part 10.Steel cord

Claims (3)

[Claims] [Claim 1] Core metals are arranged horizontally in the width direction of a band-shaped rubber elastic body at a constant pitch, and a tensile body surrounding the core metal is buried together, and the core metal is placed in the widthwise center of the band-shaped rubber elastic body. In the rubber crawler having a sprocket engagement hole between the core metals, at least two steel cords are secured in the band-shaped rubber elastic body in the longitudinal direction thereof and extend from the core metal. A rubber crawler structure characterized by being bent in pieces and buried in a symmetrical zigzag shape. 2. The structure of a rubber crawler according to claim 1, wherein the steel cord is buried in a zigzag shape symmetrically to the left and right across the sprocket engagement hole. 3. The rubber crawler according to claim 1, wherein locking pieces are provided at symmetrical positions of the core metal embedded in the rubber elastic body to form bent portions of the steel cord. structure.