Patent Application
20190170195
This disclosure relates to new and improved flexible couplings and, more particularly, to an improved flexible coupling which operates in compression mode and features a wrap-around flexible insert which can be removed and replaced without moving hub components with which the flexible insert interacts.
Flexible couplings have long been used for the purpose of transmitting rotation from one shaft to another. Such couplings are normally used in order to accommodate comparatively minor shaft alignment problems such as are occasionally encountered because of manufacturing or assembly errors or equipment tolerances.
The following is a summary of various aspects and advantages realizable according to various aspects of the disclosure. It is provided as an introduction to assist those skilled in the art to more rapidly assimilate the detailed design discussion which ensues and does not and is not intended in any way to limit the scope of the claims which are appended hereto in order to particularly point out the invention.
Accordingly, described hereafter is coupling apparatus comprising first and second hubs, each having a cylindrical segment and a plurality of projecting teeth and a flexible insert wrappable around the first and second hubs and having a plurality of interior projections defining a plurality of receptacles for receiving the hub teeth. A retainer ring is removably attachable about the flexible insert to hold it in an installed position about the first and second hubs.
According to an illustrative embodiment, the number of teeth projecting from the first hub is the same as the number of teeth projecting from the second hub, and the flexible insert has a number of receptacles equal to the total number of hub teeth. According to this embodiment, the teeth of the first hub occupy every other receptacle of the insert, and the teeth of the second hub occupy the remaining receptacles of the insert, such that the teeth of the first hub alternate with those of the second hub around a circumference of the flexible insert, yielding a coupling which operates in compression mode.
According to one embodiment, the insert is split so as to facilitate a wrap-around installation and removal procedure with respect to the cooperating first and second hub components. According to this procedure, the first and second hubs are installed in place on respective opposing shafts and properly aligned prior to installation of the insert. The flexible insert is then wrapped around the teeth of the installed first and second hubs. The retaining ring is then slid over the insert, encapsulating the insert so as to hold it in engagement with the hub teeth. The flexible insert can then be easily replaced by simply sliding back the retaining ring, unwrapping the installed insert, replacing it with a new insert, and re-installing the retaining ring.
The coupling 11 of the illustrative embodiment includes a first hub 13, a flexible insert 15, a second hub 17 and a retainer ring 19. In the illustrative embodiment, the first and second hubs 13, 17 are identically shaped and have a plurality of teeth 21 projecting horizontally therefrom. The flexible insert 15 has a circular outer perimeter and a plurality of vertically depending interior projections 23, which define a plurality of receptacles 25 for receiving respective teeth 21.
In the illustrative embodiment of
As shown in
Conventional fastening devices such as set screws 28 may be used to secure the hubs 13, 17 to respective shafts of cooperating apparatus. In the illustrative embodiment, the hubs 13, 17 may have dimensions d1, d2, d3, d4 and d8 in inches of respectively 2.3700, 0.6000, 0.2646, 0.4300, and 0.2650. Such dimensions will of course vary in other embodiments. In the illustrative embodiment, the teeth 21 are equally spaced around the circumference of each hub 13, 17, separated by an angle of 60 degrees from one another. Each hub 13, 17 is preferably machined as a unitary part from a single piece of metal stock, but of course could be constructed in various other fashions.
The flexible insert 15 is further illustrated in
In one embodiment, the projections 25 depending from the interior surface of the insert 15 are identically shaped and are formed about equally spaced radii extending from the center of the insert 15. In one embodiment, the inner diameter d7 may be 1.6500 inches. The angle B formed by the respective sides, e.g. 35, 37, of each projection 25 is thirty degrees in the illustrative embodiment, but may differ in other embodiments. The receptacles 25 defined by the projections 23 may be rectangular in cross-section d6, which may be 0.2850 inches in the illustrative embodiment, but may differ in other embodiments. In such an embodiment, the overall diameter d5 of the insert 15 is 2.850 inches, but may also differ in other embodiments. Oppositely disposed grooves 39 are formed on the outer surface of the insert 15 to accommodate retainer pins 41 formed on the interior of the retainer ring 19, whose inside diameter d8 (
In operation in the assembled state (
To install the coupling 11, the hubs 13, 17 are fastened to respective shafts on the driving and driven sides employing, for example, the respective set screws 28. Each of the shaft hubs 13, 17 can be installed respectively on the driving and driven sides and then moved into place and aligned. The insert 15 and ring 16 are then installed. The urethane insert 15 is cut in one place, so that it can be wrapped around the installed shaft hubs 13, 17, and the retaining ring 16 can then be slid over the outside diameter of the insert 15. If the insert 15 needs replacement, the ring 16 can be slid off the insert 15, and the insert 15 can thereafter be unwrapped and replaced.
While the present invention has been described above in terms of specific embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Thus, the present invention is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent methods and structures included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
