US 11,002,338 B2Granted

Drive belt

AssigneeToyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorKeisuke Ninomiya

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Abstract

A drive belt includes a hoop and multiple elements joined together in a loop by the hoop. Each element has an assembly space into which one end portion of the hoop is inserted during assembly. Each element is configured such that a first opening width, which is a distance between a first hook and a second hook, is less than a width of the hoop, and a second opening width, which is a distance between the second hook and a contact site where the one end portion of the hoop housed in the assembly space contacts a first pillar, is greater than the width of the hoop. The first hook and the second hook respectively include a first displacement-restriction surface and a second displacement-restriction surface each configured to restrict relative displacement between the element and the hoop by contacting a corresponding one of edges of the hoop.

Claims7

Dependent claims

A drive belt comprising:

a hoop having a band shape, the hoop including an inner peripheral surface, an outer peripheral surface, and two side surfaces connecting the inner peripheral surface and the outer peripheral surface to each other;
and
multiple elements having a plate-piece shape, the multiple elements being arrayed and joined together in a loop by the hoop,
wherein each of the multiple elements includes
a base portion including a first end portion and a second end portion that are two end portions in an element-width direction of the element, the base portion including a saddle surface provided at a part of an upper end of the base portion, the part of the upper end being located between the first end portion and the second end portion, and the saddle surface being configured to come into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the hoop,
a first pillar extending upward from the upper end of the base portion, the first pillar being provided at the first end portion of the base portion,
a second pillar extending upward from the upper end of the base portion, the second pillar being provided at the second end portion of the base portion,
a first hook extending from the first pillar toward the second pillar, and
a second hook extending from the second pillar toward the first pillar,
wherein each of the multiple elements has an assembly space provided at a position adjacent to a root portion of the first pillar and between the base portion and the first hook, the assembly space being defined such that one of two end portions of the hoop in a hoop-width direction of the hoop is inserted into the assembly space during assembly of the element and the hoop,
wherein a first opening width that is a distance between a distal end of the first hook and a distal end of the second hook is less than a width of the hoop,
wherein a second opening width that is a distance between a contact site and the distal end of the second hook is greater than the width of the hoop, the contact site being a site at which one of the two side surfaces of the hoop comes into contact with the first pillar when one of the two end portions of the hoop is inserted into the assembly space and brought into contact with the first pillar,
wherein a first displacement-restriction surface is provided in a lower surface of the first hook, the lower surface of the first hook facing the saddle surface, and the first displacement-restriction surface being configured to restrict relative displacement between the element and the hoop by coming into contact with one of two upper edges of the outer peripheral surface of the hoop when the element and the hoop disposed on the saddle surface are displaced relative to each other in the element-width direction,
wherein a second displacement-restriction surface is provided in a lower surface of the second hook, the lower surface of the second hook facing the saddle surface, and the second displacement-restriction surface being configured to restrict relative displacement between the element and the hoop by coming into contact with the other one of the two upper edges of the outer peripheral surface of the hoop when the element and the hoop disposed on the saddle surface are displaced relative to each other in the element-width direction,
wherein the first displacement-restriction surface is a first inclined surface configured such that a distance between the first displacement-restriction surface and a predetermined virtual plane that includes the saddle surface and that is flush with the saddle surface is greater than a thickness of the hoop at a position close to a center portion of the saddle surface and is less than the thickness of the hoop at a position apart from the hoop disposed on the saddle surface, in a direction toward the first pillar along the element-width direction;
and
wherein the second displacement-restriction surface is a second inclined surface configured such that a distance between the second displacement-restriction surface and the predetermined virtual plane is greater than the thickness of the hoop at a position close to the center portion of the saddle surface and is less than the thickness of the hoop at a position apart from the hoop disposed on the saddle surface, in a direction toward the second pillar along the element-width direction.

14 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

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Abstract

A drive belt comprising:

a hoop having a band shape, the hoop including an inner peripheral surface, an outer peripheral surface, and two side surfaces connecting the inner peripheral surface and the outer peripheral surface to each other;
and
multiple elements having a plate-piece shape, the multiple elements being arrayed and joined together in a loop by the hoop,
wherein each of the multiple elements includes
a base portion including a first end portion and a second end portion that are two end portions in an element-width direction of the element, the base portion including a saddle surface provided at a part of an upper end of the base portion, the part of the upper end being located between the first end portion and the second end portion, and the saddle surface being configured to come into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the hoop,
a first pillar extending upward from the upper end of the base portion, the first pillar being provided at the first end portion of the base portion,
a second pillar extending upward from the upper end of the base portion, the second pillar being provided at the second end portion of the base portion,
a first hook extending from the first pillar toward the second pillar, and
a second hook extending from the second pillar toward the first pillar,
wherein each of the multiple elements has an assembly space provided at a position adjacent to a root portion of the first pillar and between the base portion and the first hook, the assembly space being defined such that one of two end portions of the hoop in a hoop-width direction of the hoop is inserted into the assembly space during assembly of the element and the hoop,
wherein a first opening width that is a distance between a distal end of the first hook and a distal end of the second hook is less than a width of the hoop,
wherein a second opening width that is a distance between a contact site and the distal end of the second hook is greater than the width of the hoop, the contact site being a site at which one of the two side surfaces of the hoop comes into contact with the first pillar when one of the two end portions of the hoop is inserted into the assembly space and brought into contact with the first pillar,
wherein a first displacement-restriction surface is provided in a lower surface of the first hook, the lower surface of the first hook facing the saddle surface, and the first displacement-restriction surface being configured to restrict relative displacement between the element and the hoop by coming into contact with one of two upper edges of the outer peripheral surface of the hoop when the element and the hoop disposed on the saddle surface are displaced relative to each other in the element-width direction,
wherein a second displacement-restriction surface is provided in a lower surface of the second hook, the lower surface of the second hook facing the saddle surface, and the second displacement-restriction surface being configured to restrict relative displacement between the element and the hoop by coming into contact with the other one of the two upper edges of the outer peripheral surface of the hoop when the element and the hoop disposed on the saddle surface are displaced relative to each other in the element-width direction,
wherein the first displacement-restriction surface is a first inclined surface configured such that a distance between the first displacement-restriction surface and a predetermined virtual plane that includes the saddle surface and that is flush with the saddle surface is greater than a thickness of the hoop at a position close to a center portion of the saddle surface and is less than the thickness of the hoop at a position apart from the hoop disposed on the saddle surface, in a direction toward the first pillar along the element-width direction;
and
wherein the second displacement-restriction surface is a second inclined surface configured such that a distance between the second displacement-restriction surface and the predetermined virtual plane is greater than the thickness of the hoop at a position close to the center portion of the saddle surface and is less than the thickness of the hoop at a position apart from the hoop disposed on the saddle surface, in a direction toward the second pillar along the element-width direction.

14 more elements