Chain Guide Shoe Without Locking Protrusions

Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional chain guide and tensioner arm shoes require additional molding dies in both vertical and widthwise directions, increasing manufacturing costs due to locking protrusions and complex structures.

Innovation Solution

A shoe design without locking protrusions, featuring a uniform cross-sectional shape and linear extension, allowing for simplified structure and reduced material costs through use of only upper/lower dies for molding, and enabling extrusion or injection molding for reduced unit molding time and material thickness.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If locking protrusions are provided on the shoe to attach it to the main body section, then the shoe can be securely attached to the guide main body or tensioner arm main body, but the structure becomes complex and manufacturing cost increases due to requiring additional molding dies

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveattachment reliabilityVSAvoidshoe structure complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts the locking protrusions from the shoe structure, eliminating them completely. Instead, the shoe is designed with a simple structure that relies on the guide main body or tensioner arm main body to provide the locking mechanism, thereby simplifying the shoe while maintaining attachment reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The invention inverts the conventional approach by making the guide main body or tensioner arm main body (rather than the shoe) the component that provides the locking protrusions. This inversion simplifies the shoe structure to the minimum necessary form while maintaining secure attachment through the locking mechanism provided by the main body.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

2Reliability

If locking protrusions are provided on the shoe, then the shoe can be attached to the main body section, but additional molding dies are required in both vertical and widthwise directions, increasing manufacturing cost

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveattachment reliabilityVSAvoidmolding cost

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts the locking protrusions from the shoe structure, eliminating them completely. Instead, the shoe is designed with a simple structure that relies on the guide main body or tensioner arm main body to provide the locking mechanism, thereby simplifying the shoe while maintaining attachment reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The invention inverts the conventional approach by making the guide main body or tensioner arm main body (rather than the shoe) the component that provides the locking protrusions. This inversion simplifies the shoe structure to the minimum necessary form while maintaining secure attachment through the locking mechanism provided by the main body.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

3Reliability

If the shoe has a non-uniform cross-sectional shape to accommodate locking protrusions, then locking can be achieved, but material cost and die cost increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveattachment reliabilityVSAvoidmaterial cost

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts the locking protrusions from the shoe structure, eliminating them completely. Instead, the shoe is designed with a simple structure that relies on the guide main body or tensioner arm main body to provide the locking mechanism, thereby simplifying the shoe while maintaining attachment reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

4Reliability

If the shoe has a complex structure with locking protrusions, then attachment can be achieved, but unit molding time increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveattachment reliabilityVSAvoidmolding speed

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts the locking protrusions from the shoe structure, eliminating them completely. Instead, the shoe is designed with a simple structure that relies on the guide main body or tensioner arm main body to provide the locking mechanism, thereby simplifying the shoe while maintaining attachment reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

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

The solution simplifies the shoe structure, reduces material and die costs, minimizes friction loss, and enhances heat dissipation, while maintaining effective chain guidance and tensioning without the need for costly low-friction or heat-resistant materials.

Implementation Method 1

friction loss when the chain slides can be reduced by virtue of the fact that the shoe can be made thinner

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectFriction: Friction

Implementation Method 2

heat generated when the chain slides is readily released to the guide main body or the tensioner arm main body side, so it is possible to restrict an increase in chain temperature

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectHeat dissipation: Conduction (thermal)

Data Source

PatentUS10570996B2Shoe for chain guide and for chain tensioner arm, and chain guide and chain tensioner arm provided with said shoe

Publication Date: 2020.02.25 BORGWARNER INC

AI summary

To simplify a structure and reduce costs. A shoe for a chain guide or for a chain tensioner arm is constructed. Here, a shoe (3) has a chain sliding surface (30) on which a chain slides. A locking protrusion such as a clip, a tab or a hook for locking the shoe (3) to a tensioner arm main body (2) of a chain tensioner arm (1) is not provided on an end surface of the shoe (3) or on a surface on the rear side of the chain sliding surface (30). Furthermore, the shoe (3) has a uniform cross-sectional shape over the whole length and extends linearly in the longitudinal direction.