Hinge-pin for coupling the ends of a conveyor belt or the like

A hinge-pin for coupling two rows of fasteners fitted on a conveyor belt or the like at the ends to be joined together, said hinge-pin being constituted by a series of metallic elements mounted one after another around a flexible axial core, wherein:

• each element aforesaid assumes the shape of a semi-cylindrical rod adapted to carry at each end two lugs forming projections with respect to the diametral plane which delimits the corresponding element, a cavity formed next to said lugs being intended to serve as a housing for the projecting lugs of an identical element placed on the element considered,
• said elements are placed on each side of the flexible core in two inverted rows and in staggered relation from one row to the other so that each element of a predetermined row is placed partly opposite to one-half of one element of the other rows and partly opposite to one-half of another element which is adjacent to said other row,
• the projecting lugs of each end of each element are engaged within the corresponding cavities of the opposite elements of the other row, with the result that the different elements placed in succession are interengaged in the transverse direction with a possibility of limited relative displacement of said elements in the other directions, thus permitting the requisite flexibility of the coupling hinge-pin.