Device for turning rubber tracks inside-out

Abstract

The device for reversing rubber chains, as created, comprises a steel chassis (3) on which running ways (4) are mounted for moving a tensioning car (6). In parallel to the running ways (4), gear racks (5) are mounted, the drive of the tensioning car (6) being carried out by two hydraulic motors (9) by means of gears (10) meshed with the gear racks (5). At the left end of the steel chassis (3) a support (2) is fixedly mounted, and at its right end and on the tensioning car (6) a second support (2) is mounted. On the supports (2) and on the tensioning car (6) movable forks (1) are mounted, each movable fork (1) being fixed to a second gear (12) mounted on a shaft (18) bearing in bearing bodies (21) and on which second gear (12) is fixed a bracket (14) to which a balance weight (13) is mounted. Each movable fork (1) comprises a fixed arm (15), a movable arm (16) and a locking arm (17), the rotation of the movable forks (1) being carried out by two other hydraulic motors (23) by means of third gears (11) mounted on the shafts of the other hydraulic motors (23) and meshed with the second gears (12) mounted on the shafts (18) of the movable forks (1).

Description

[0001] DEVICE FOR TURNING RUBBER TRACKS INSIDE-OUT

[0002] Field of technique

[0003] This invention relates to a device for reversing rubber chains, which will find application in the field of transport and agricultural technology and in particular in the rebuilding of rubber chains for driving running gears of crawler machines.

[0004] Background

[0005] Rubber chains can be mounted on mini excavators and mini loaders, on tractors and harvesters as well as on heavy transport and construction machinery. The design and material of the rubber chains ensure longer service life, stability and operator comfort when operating the machine. The supplied rubber chains for construction and agricultural machinery are a combination of high wear resistance and minimal vibration.

[0006] When regenerating rubber chains, both their outer tread side and the inner side of the chain with the cams attached to it are restored. This requires the chain to be reversed twice so that it is possible to machine both surfaces.

[0007] In practice so far, the worn rubber chain with the worn cams on it, is mounted on a rewinder which removes the worn grippers and tread - the top surface of the carcass base. The chain must then be reversed so that its inner side, with the worn cams attached to it, becomes the outer side, so that a local repair and camcutting attachment can be used to remove the cams, after which the chain with the remains of the removed cams and the worn part of the carcass can be machined on the scraper to the level required for a quality retread.

[0008] After the inner part of the chain is also scraped, it is mounted on a local repair fixture where additional manual machining of local damaged areas is carried out. On completion of the machining of the inner part, the chain must be reversed back to its original form to allow the machining of the damaged areas on the outer side to be carried out on the local repair device. The rubber chain so treated is then set on a vulcanising press on which the worn layers of the carcass, tread and grippers on the outer side of the chain and the cams on the inner side are restored.

[0009] In order to carry out the processes described, a device is needed to reverse the rubber chain twice, which helps to reduce manual labour to a minimum. No such device is known.

[0010] Technical nature of the invention

[0011] It is an object of the invention to provide a device for reversing rubber chains, which provides mechanization of the process of restoring them, reducing the processing time of worn rubber chains

[0012] The task has been solved by creating a device for reversing rubber chains, which includes a steel chassis on which running ways are mounted for moving a tensioning car. Gear racks are mounted parallel to the running ways. The drive of the tensioning car is provided by two hydraulic motors by means of gears meshed with the gear racks. A support is fixedly mounted at the left end of the steel chassis and a second support is mounted at the right end of the steel chassis and on the tensioning car. Movable forks are mounted on each of the two supports and the tensioning post.

[0013] Each movable fork is secured to a second gear mounted on a shaft bearing in bearing bodies, and on which second gear a bracket is secured to which a balance weight is mounted. Each movable fork is composed of a fixed arm, a movable arm driven by a hydraulic cylinder, and a locking arm. Rotation of the movable forks is accomplished by two other hydraulic motors via third gears mounted on the shafts of the other hydraulic motors and meshed with the second gears mounted on the shafts of the movable forks. The other hydraulic motors are mounted to mounts which are secured to the supports and to the tensioning car. The other hydraulic motors are powered by two other hydraulic pumps mounted on each of the supports and the tensioning car.

[0014] An advantage of the device created is the possibility provided of reversing the rubber chains mechanically, which leads both to a significant reduction in human labour and to a significant reduction in the processing time of worn rubber chains.

[0015] Description of the attached figures

[0016] The present invention is illustrated in the appended figures, where:

[0017] Figure 1 is an axonometric representation of a device for reversing rubber chains according to the invention;

[0018] Figure 2 is a top view of the device of Figure 1;

[0019] Figure 3 represents a side view of the device of Figure 1; and

[0020] Figure 4 is a top view of the removable fork of the invention of Figure 1.

[0021] Examples of embodiments of the invention

[0022] The fabricated rubber chain reversing device shown in the attached Figures 1, 2 and 3 includes a steel chassis 3 attached to the floor of the production workshop by foundation bolts 20. On the steel chassis 3 with bolted joints are mounted running ways 4 for moving a tensioning car 6, at the four ends of which running wheels are mounted. Parallel to the running ways 4 are mounted two gear racks 5. The drive of the tensioning car 6 is carried out by two hydraulic motors 9 by means of gears 10 meshed with the gear racks 5, the power supply of the hydraulic motors 9 being carried out by a hydraulic pump 8 mounted on the tensioning car 6.

[0023] A support 2 is fixedly mounted at the left end of the steel chassis 3, and a second support 2 is mounted at the right end of the steel chassis 3 and on the tensioning car 6. On the supports 2 and on the tensioning car 6 are mounted movable forks 1, by the rotation of which the reversal of the rubber chains is carried out. Each movable fork 1 is bolted to a second gear 12, which is mounted on a shaft 18 which bear in bearing bodies 21. On the second gear 12, by means of a bolted joint, is fixed a bracket 14 to which is mounted a balance weight 13 which compensates for the weight of the rubber chain which is mounted on the device and ensures the normal operation of the movable forks 1 by facilitating the weight of the entire assembly to be concentrated on the axis of the shaft 18, ensuring the smooth drive of the movable forks 1.

[0024] Each movable fork 1 comprises a fixed arm 15, a movable arm 16 and a locking arm 17 preventing the rubber chain from leaving the movable fork 1 as it rotates. The movable arm 16 is driven by a hydrocylinder 22. The rotation of the movable forks 1 is accomplished by two other hydraulic motors 23 by means of third gears 11 mounted on the shafts of the other hydraulic motors 23 and meshed with the second gears 12 mounted on the shafts 18 of the movable forks 1. The other hydraulic motors 23 are mounted to mounts 19 which are bolted to the supports 2 and to the tensioning car 6. The power supply to the other hydraulic motors 23 is provided by two other hydraulic pumps 7 mounted on the supports 2 and on the tensioning car 6.

[0025] The created device for reversing rubber chains works as follows. The tensioning car 6, together with the movable fork 1 mounted thereon, is moved to a position which permits mounting of a corresponding length of the worn rubber chain. The locking arms 17 of the two forks 1 are released and the movable arms 16 driven by the hydraulic cylinders 22 are opened. With the aid of a crane with two hoists, the rubber chain with the worn cams on the inside thereof is clamped in two places and is placed simultaneously in the two movable forks 1. By means of the hydraulic cylinders 22, the movable arms 16 of the movable forks 1 are closed. The locking arms 17 are fixed by a bolted joint, which prevents the rubber chain from coming out of the forks 1 when they are rotated. The tensioning car 6 is moved backwards until the required minimum tension of the rubber chain is provided, creating a gap for the passage of the movable forks 1 between its two branches. The required tension of the rubber chain is thus ensured, followed by rotation of the movable forks 1 , which rotation can be done either successively one after the other or simultaneously on both forks 1. The rubber chain is fully reversed when the movable forks 1 are rotated at 180°.

[0026] After the rubber chain has been reversed, the tensioning car 6 together with the movable fork 1 mounted thereon is moved forward to remove the tension from the rubber chain and to ensure its unobstructed removal from the rubber chain reversing device. The two locking arms 17 are unlocked, the movable arms 16 are moved and the forks 1 are opened. With the aid of a crane with two hoists, the rubber chain is clamped in two places and removed from the rubber chain reversing device.

[0027] This is followed by operations on the local repair device to remove the worn cams, and on the re-scraper to treat the inner surface with the residue from the removed cams and the worn part of the rubber chain carcass, as well as treating local damaged areas. On completion of the above operations, the rubber chain is moved by means of a mounting crane with two hoists to the rubber chain reversing device and the rubber chain is re-mounted thereon to reverse the chain so that it takes up its original position with the treated tread part on the outside and the treated part to which the cams have been attached on the inside.

[0028] With the help of a crane with two hoists, the rubber chain with the already treated inner surface is clamped in two places and placed simultaneously in the two movable forks 1. By means of the hydraulic cylinders 22, the movable arms 16 of the movable forks 1 are closed. The locking arms 17 are bolted together to prevent the rubber chain from escaping from the forks 1 as they rotate. The tensioning car 6 is moved backwards until the required minimum tension of the rubber chain is provided, creating a gap for the forks to pass between the two forks and the branch. Once the required tension of the rubber chain has been secured, rotation of the movable forks 1 follows, which rotation may take place either successively one after the other or simultaneously on both forks 1. The rubber chain is fully reversed when the movable forks 1 are rotated at 180°. After the rubber chain has been reversed, the tensioning car 6 together with the movable fork 1 mounted thereon is moved forward to remove the tension from the rubber chain and to ensure its unobstructed removal from the rubber chain reversing device. The two locking arms 17 are unlocked, the movable arms 16 are moved and the forks 1 are opened. With the aid of a crane with two hoists, the rubber chain is clamped in two places and removed from the rubber chain reversing device. Next, the chain is moved to the local repair unit where local damaged sections of the chain are treated with a straight grinder.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A device for reversing rubber chains, characterized in that it comprises a steel chassis (3) on which running ways (4) are mounted for moving a tensioning car (6), wherein gear racks (5) are mounted parallel to the running ways (4), the driving of the tensioning car (6) being carried out by two hydraulic motors (9) by means of gears (10) meshed with the gear racks (5), whereby a support (2) is fixedly mounted at the left end of the steel chassis (3) and a second support (2) is mounted at the right end of the steel chassis (3) and on the tensioning car (6), whereby movable forks (1) are mounted on each of the two supports (2) and the tensioning car (6), each movable fork (1) being fixed to a second gear (12) mounted on a shaft (18), bearing in bearing bodies (21), and on which second gear (12) is fixed a bracket (14) to which a balance weight (13) is mounted, wherein each movable fork (1) comprises a fixed arm (15), a movable arm (16) driven by a hydraulic cylinder (22), and a locking arm (17), the rotation of the movable forks (1) being accomplished by two other hydraulic motors (23) via third gears (11), mounted on the shafts of the other hydraulic motors (23) and meshed with the second gears (12) mounted on the shafts (18) of the movable forks (1), whereby the other hydraulic motors (23) are mounted to mounts (19), which are mounted on the supports (2) and on the tensioning car (6), the power supply to the other hydraulic motors (23) being provided by two other hydraulic pumps (7) mounted on the supports (2) and on the tensioning car (6).

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