Bicycle Chain Plate Structure with Adjustable Sleeve
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional bicycle chain plate structures face inefficiencies in transmission and shifting due to fixed intervals between chain plates, leading to either loose or tight engagement with guide pulley and transmission sprocket teeth, resulting in poor shifting operation and noise.
Innovation Solution
A chain plate structure featuring a link plate body with axial holes and raised rings, allowing for adjustable spaces through a sleeve mechanism, which creates a first space for thin guide pulley teeth and a second space for thick transmission sprocket teeth, ensuring stable and noise-free shifting by accommodating different tooth thicknesses and preventing chain deviation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the interval between chain plates is fixed, then the chain structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the engagement with guide pulley and transmission sprocket teeth becomes either too loose or too tight, resulting in poor transmission efficiency and shifting operation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a movable sleeve that can slide along the chain plate, transforming the fixed interval structure into a dynamic adjustable one. The sleeve's position can be changed to accommodate different tooth thicknesses of guide pulley and transmission sprocket, enabling the chain to adapt to varying engagement requirements while maintaining manufacturing simplicity
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the interval parameter between chain plates from a fixed value to an adjustable range. By allowing the sleeve to move to different positions, the effective interval can be modified to match different tooth thicknesses, thereby optimizing transmission efficiency without complicating the basic chain structure
2Productivity
If the interval between chain plates is adjusted to accommodate different tooth thicknesses, then transmission efficiency improves, but the chain plate structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The movable sleeve serves multiple functions: it acts as a spacer to define the interval between chain plates, a guide for the chain movement, and an adjustable element to accommodate different tooth thicknesses. This multi-functionality allows the chain plate structure to handle various engagement requirements without requiring completely different designs for each case
Solution Approach 2:
The chain plate is divided into functional segments: the main plate body and the movable sleeve. This segmentation allows the sleeve to be independently positioned and adjusted, providing the necessary flexibility for different tooth thicknesses while keeping the main plate structure simple and easy to manufacture
3Stability of the object's composition
If the chain plate interval is fixed, then the structure is stable, but shifting operation becomes slow and noisy due to improper engagement with teeth
Solution Approach 1:
The movable sleeve introduces dynamic adjustability to the chain plate structure, allowing the interval to be optimized for smooth tooth engagement during shifting. This dynamic feature enables the chain to adapt to the varying requirements of shifting operation, reducing noise and improving speed while maintaining overall structural stability through the constrained movement of the sleeve
Data Source
AI summary
A chain plate structure includes a link plate body and a sleeve. The link plate body has an acting surface being provided with a first approach edge, two combining portions, and a limiting block located adjacent to the first approach edge. The limiting block has an altitude higher than an altitude of the acting surface. The sleeve is mounted on the link plate body and has a through hole whose maximum diameter is greater than a maximum diameter of a raised ring peripherally formed on the corresponding one of the combining portions. Therefore, when two of the link plate bodies are combined together, a first space is formed between the acting surfaces of the two aligned link plate bodies. The limiting block serves to limit the first space, while the sleeve is allowed to move on one of the combining portions so as to provide a second space.