Chain Guide Elastic Hook Engagement for Ribbed Base
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing chain guides with side wall ribs on the base member limit the engagement locations for hooks, making it difficult to achieve both good attachability and tightness of the guide shoe, especially when forming the engagement recess and protrusion is challenging.
Innovation Solution
A chain guide design with a base member featuring side wall ribs on both edges, including upstream and downstream engagement portions, and a guide shoe with hooks that can be elastically deformed to engage from the outer side, allowing for easy attachment and secure fitting without interference.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If side wall ribs are formed on the base member to enhance strength, then the strength of the base member is improved, but the location available for hook engagement is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The downstream hook engages with the downstream engagement portion from a direction other than the guide longitudinal direction (i.e., from the lateral side), utilizing the space in the guide width direction rather than competing for space along the guide longitudinal direction. This dimensional shift allows both side wall ribs and engagement portions to coexist without interfering with each other.
2Ease of operation
If the shoe-backside protrusion is attached to the engagement recess along the guide longitudinal direction, then the attachment is simple, but it is difficult to achieve both good attachability and tightness
Solution Approach 1:
The downstream hook engages with the downstream engagement portion from a direction other than the guide longitudinal direction (i.e., from the lateral side), allowing the engagement recess to be formed deeper and more securely without interfering with the side wall ribs. This enables both good attachability and tight fitting simultaneously.
3Ease of operation
If the downstream hook is engaged from the outer side by elastic deformation, then the attachment process is simplified and interference is avoided, but the structural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The guide shoe utilizes elastic deformation to change its shape temporarily during the attachment process, allowing the downstream hook to be formed and engaged from the lateral side. The guide shoe's material properties enable this reversible deformation, simplifying attachment while the elastic mechanism itself adds minimal structural complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design enables simple and secure attachment of the guide shoe to the base member, ensuring good attachability and tightness while maintaining the strength of the base member, even with side wall ribs, by allowing the hooks to engage from the outer side and being guided smoothly onto the base member.
Implementation Method 1
The downstream hook is formed so as to be hooked to the downstream engagement portion from an outer side of the guide width direction by twisting and elastically deforming the guide shoe
Data Source
AI summary
A chain guide is provided, which can readily achieve, with a simple structure, both favorable attachability and tightness of a guide shoe relative to a base member, even though the base member has side wall ribs on both left and right side edges. A base member of a chain guide includes an upstream engagement portion and downstream engagement-portions, while a guide shoe includes an upstream hook and downstream hooks. Downstream engagement portions include restricting portions. The downstream hooks are hooked to the downstream engagement portions from an outer side in a guide width direction by twisting and elastically deforming the guide shoe in a state where the upstream hook is engaged with the upstream engagement portion.