Compact Chain Drive With Stacked Receiving Sections
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing chain drives for building opening closure elements, particularly in smoke and heat extraction systems, face challenges in compact design due to the need for long power transmission chains, leading to elongated housings that do not fit within limited installation spaces.
Innovation Solution
A chain drive design with a housing that accommodates a power transmission chain in three transverse sections, using a sheet-like, thin-walled structure to separate receiving sections, allowing for compact storage without complex mechanical designs and enabling a narrower housing profile.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of stationary object
If the power transmission chain is stored in two parallel sections with a single 180° deflection, then the housing length is reduced, but the housing height and depth increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a two-dimensional storage arrangement (two parallel sections) to a three-dimensional configuration (three stacked sections). By stacking the receiving sections vertically one above the other instead of placing them side by side, the patent accommodates the power transmission chain in a compact volume that reduces both housing length and overall footprint, while maintaining adequate chain guidance radii through the vertical stacking arrangement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a nested arrangement where the power transmission chain is folded back on itself multiple times within the chain station. The chain is stored in three receiving sections that are stacked vertically, with the chain folding from one section to the next through deflection sections. This nested configuration allows the chain to be compacted into a smaller volume while maintaining its functional length.
2Reliability
If large deflection radii are used in the chain station, then reliable chain guidance is achieved, but the housing dimensions (height and depth) increase
Solution Approach 1:
By stacking the receiving sections vertically in three dimensions rather than arranging them in a single plane, the patent creates sufficient space for large deflection radii within a compact horizontal footprint. The vertical stacking allows the chain to deflect through large radii in the vertical dimension while keeping the housing height and depth constrained through optimized section arrangement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the chain station into three separate receiving sections stacked vertically, with deflection sections positioned between them. This segmentation allows each deflection section to be optimized for reliable chain guidance with appropriate radii, while the overall housing dimensions are controlled by the compact vertical stacking of these segmented sections.
Data Source
AI summary
The drive has a chain station (16) with a set of receiving sections (21, 22), where a set of parts of boundary between the set of receiving sections is separated in a longitudinal direction of a metal housing. The receiving sections face directly to facing sides of a sheet-like wall structure (26). A free-standing edge of the wall structure lies in a region of a deflection section (24). A set of lugs (23) of a power transmission chain (10) is guided on a side opposite to the power transmission chain during transfer and redirection of chain from one of the receiving sections.