Endless track with sealed bearing for the joints

Claim 2

An endless track formed by a plurality of interconnected track links having outer tread supporting surfaces and inner wheel engaging surfaces, each link comprising a pair of sidewalls with bearing eyes in opposite ends, each sidewall overlapping the sidewall of an adjoining link at each end, the ends of said overlapping sidewalls of each two adjoining links being laterally recessed so that the recessed end of each link fits within the recess of the adjoining link, said recessed interfitting ends having aligned openings with pivoted connecting means extending through the opposite sidewalls and through said openings in the links of each pair of adjoining links, elastic sealing means surrounding said pivot means between the eyes of each two adjoining sidewalls with its ends having sealing engagement with said sidewalls, the recessed portions of each two adjoining sidewalls having two pairs of opposed interengaging abutments on opposite sides of the pivoted connecting means to limit angular movement in opposite directions, one pair of abutments being adjacent the wheel engaging surfaces of said sidewalls and comprising the cut away end of the recess of one sidewall and the end of the wheel engaging surface of the adjoining sidewall, and the other pair of abutments being adjacent the tread supporting surfaces of said sidewalls and comprising the cut away end of the recess of one sidewall, and the end of the adjoining sidewall, the first-mentioned pair of abutments limiting relative angular movement of said links beyond the angular movement in passing over a sprocket wheel and the second-mentioned pairs of abutments limiting angular movement along the ground engaGing stretch to provide a rigid ground engaging supporting stretch.

Claim 3

An endless track formed by a plurality of interconnected track links having sidewalls with outer tread supporting surfaces and inner wheel engaging surfaces, the sidewalls of each pair of interconnected links comprising overlapping ends formed with bearing eyes, pivot pin means through said eyes interconnecting said links, elastic sealing means surrounding said pivot pin means and extending between each pair of overlapping, opposed eyes with its ends fixed to the eyes of said interconnecting ends of the pair of links, said elastic means between said links providing relative angular movement of the ends of said links about said pivot pin means by torsional stress within its elastic limits when in use on a vehicle and being susceptible to damage when stressed beyond said elastic limits by excessive relative angular movement of said links, said links being relatively angularly movable in one direction to move about a sprocket wheel and in the opposite direction to form links of a rigid stretch of ground engaging track, each pair of said interconnected links having interengaging abutments to limit relative angular movement in said opposite direction to form said rigid stretch of ground engaging track, each pair of said interconnected links also having a second set of interengaging abutments to limit relative angular movement in said one direction greater than the angular movement to pass about the sprocket wheel when in use, said sidewalls of adjacent links having said interengaging abutments on opposite sides of said eyes with the one set limiting movement to form said stretch of ground engaging track adjacent the tread supporting surface and outwardly of said eyes, and the second set of abutments being inwardly of the eyes, and formed by a shoulder on a cut away wheel engaging surface of one link and the wheel engaging surface of the other link, said second set of interengaging abutments limiting the angular movement in said one direction to such an angle that the total extent of relative angular movement in opposite directions is less than the angular movement within the elastic limits of said elastic sealing means, so that said elastic sealing means cannot be damaged by excessive angular movement of said links when not in use on a vehicle.

Claim 4

An endless track formed by a plurality of interconnected track links having sidewalls with outer tread supporting surfaces and inner wheel engaging surfaces, the sidewalls of each pair of interconnected links comprising overlapping ends formed with bearing eyes, pivot pin means through said eyes interconnecting said links, elastic sealing means surrounding said pivot pin means and extending between each pair of overlapping, opposed eyes with its ends fixed to the eyes of said interconnecting ends of the pair of links, said elastic means between said links providing relative angular movement of the ends of said links about said pivot pin means by torsional stress within its elastic limits when in use on a vehicle and being susceptible to damage when stressed beyond said elastic limits by excessive relative angular movement of said links, said links being relatively angularly movable in one direction to move about a sprocket wheel and in the opposite direction to form links of a rigid stretch of ground engaging track, each pair of said interconnected links having interengaging abutments to limit relative angular movement in said opposite direction to form said rigid stretch of ground engaging track, each pair of said interconnected links also having a second set of interengaging abutments to limit relative angular movement in said one direction greater than the angular movement to pass about the sprocket wheel when in use, said sidewalls of adjacent links having said interengaging abutments on opposite sides of said eyes with the one set limiting movement to form said stretch of ground engaging track adjacent the tread supporting surface and outwardly of said eyes, and the second set of abutments being inwardly of the eyes, and formed by a shoulder on a cut away wheel engaging surface of one link and the wheel engaging surface of the other link, said second set of interengaging abutments limiting the angular movement in said one direction to such an angle that the total extent of relative angular movement in opposite directions is less than the angular movement within the elastic limits of said elastic sealing means, so that said elastic sealing means cannot be damaged by excessive angular movement of said links when not in use on a vehicle.