Angled Winding Sleeve Joints for Fatigue-Resistant Articulated Chains
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Solution Overview
Problem
Articulated chains in internal combustion engines face high wear and reduced fatigue limit due to the arrangement of winding sleeves in inner link plates, leading to premature failure and reduced operational safety and lifetime.
Innovation Solution
The sleeve joints of the winding sleeves are positioned at an angle of 120° to 140° relative to the link plate's longitudinal axis, with the sleeve joints facing each other on the same longitudinal side of the inner link plates, and the sleeves are made of low alloy steel with precise cutting and shaping to enhance durability and fatigue resistance, and lubrication openings are provided to reduce wear.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If simple winding sleeves are employed as joint sleeves to replace expensive extruded joint sleeves, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but the fatigue limit of the inner chain links is clearly reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The sleeve joint is positioned at a specific angular location (120° to 140°) on the winding sleeve rather than being uniformly distributed, creating a localized optimization that improves fatigue limit while maintaining the cost-effective winding sleeve design
Solution Approach 2:
The angular position parameter of the sleeve joint is changed from conventional positions to specifically 120° to 140°, which optimizes the stress distribution and improves the fatigue limit of the winding sleeve without changing the manufacturing method
2Device complexity
If the sleeve joint is located in the angular range of the chain joint wear zone, then the structure is simplified, but increased abrasion and wear of the chain joint occur
Solution Approach 1:
The sleeve joint is positioned in a specific angular region (120° to 140°) that is optimized to minimize wear, creating a localized solution that addresses the wear problem without complicating the overall structure
Solution Approach 2:
The sleeve joint position is predetermined during the winding sleeve manufacturing process to be at 120° to 140°, which preliminarily positions it to avoid the high-wear zone before the chain is assembled and put into service
Data Source
AI summary
An articulated chain with alternating inner chain links and outer chain links which are each connected to each other by means of a chain joint, wherein each outer chain link comprises at least two outer link plates and two chain studs connecting them to each other, each inner chain link comprises at least two inner link plates and two joint sleeves connecting them to each other, and for forming a chain joint, one chain stud each of the outer chain link extends through a joint sleeve of the inner chain link. The joint sleeves of the inner chain links are embodied as winding sleeves and firmly connected to the inner link plates, wherein the sleeve joints of the two winding sleeves are positioned on the same side of a link plate's longitudinal axis and face each other, and the sleeve joints are arranged at a distance to the link plate's longitudinal axis and at a distance to an upper apex or to a lower inflection point of the winding sleeve.