Precision linear motion converting and position measuring apparatus

Claim 2

A motion converting device of the type described comprising, in combination: an idler roller and a drive roller; a resilient band having first and second ends; a carriage; a pair of guide rollers rotatably mounted to said carriage for rotation about parallel axes, said guide rollers being disposed so that their peripheries are tangent to parallel planes separated by a distance less than the summation of the diameters of said idler and drive rollers; support means mounted to said carriage for pivotal motion about an axis parallel with the axes of said guide rollers; said idler and drive rollers being rotatably mounted on said support means between said guide rollers, said drive roller being mounted with its axis parallel with the axes of said guide rollers and fixed with respect to the pivotal axis of said support means, said idler roller being mounted so that its axis of rotation is capable of translational motion relative to said drive roller; and said band including an intermediate portion that is convoluted about and between said idler and drive rollers and is engaged at one point by one of said guide rollers and said idler roll and at another point by the other of said guide rollers and said drive roll, said band being under tension between said ends thereof so as to urge said idler roller toward said drive roller and so that relative movement of said carriage and band along a line parallel to said planes and at a right angle to said idler and drive roller axes will cause rotation of said idler and drive rollers in opposite directions.

Claim 3

A motion converting device as defined in claim 1 wherein said idler roller is mounted on said support means for limited omnidirectional motion.

Claim 4

A motion converting device as defined in claim 1 including means for mounting said carriage for reciprocal linear motion relative to said band.

Claim 5

A motion converting device as defined in claim 1 further including means for mounting said carriage and band for relative reciprocal linear movement, and drive means mounted to said support means and coupled with said drive roller for rotating said drive roller so as to produce relative movement of said carriage and said band.

Claim 6

A motion converting device as defined in claim 3 further including drive means coupled with said carriage for moving said carriage linearly relative to said other portions of said band and means for restraining said other portions of said band against lengthwise motion.

Claim 7

A motion converting device as defined in claim 3 further including rotary driven means mounted on said carriage and coupled with said drive roller for rotation thereby through an angle related to the linear distance traveled by said carriage relative to said band.

Claim 8

A motion converting device as defined in claim 6 wherein said rotary driven means include a rotary shaft coupled with said drive roller for rotation coaxially therewith and a non-rotary component mounting said shaft for rotation and in turn mounted on said support means for limited radial motion relative to the axis of said shaft.

Claim 9

A motion converting device according to claim 1 wherein said support means comprises first and second spaced members to which said idler and drive rollers are mounted, and further wherein said idler roller is mounted to said space members by first and second roller bearings mounted in the opposite ends of said idler roller and engaging adjacent surfaces of said first and second spaced members respectively.

Claim 10

A motion converting device according to claim 1 wherein said carriage comprises a pair of spaced side plates and means holding said side plates in fixed parallel relation to each other, said guide rollers being rotatably mounted to said side plates, and further wherein said support means is disposed between said side plates on pivot means attached to said side plates.

Claim 11

A motion converting device according to claim 9 wherein said support means comprises a pair of spaced parallel arms and pivot means connecting said arms to said side plates, said arms extending between said guide rollers.

Claim 12

A motion converting device according to claim 10 wherein said pivot means define a pivot axis for said support means that is located between said parallel planes and is displaced laterally of said guide, idler and drive rolls.

Claim 13

A motion converting device comprising in combination: a carriage; a pair of spaced guide rollers rotatably mountEd to said carriage so that their axes of rotation are parallel to each other; support means pivotally mounted to said carriage, said support means having a pivot axis that is parallel to the axes of rotation of said spaced guide rollers; a first roller and a second roller; said first roller being rotatably mounted to said support means so that its axis of rotation is fixed with respect to said support means and is parallel to and spaced from said pivot axis and the axes of rotation of said guide rolls; bearing means rotatably mounting said second roller to said support means so that the axis of rotation of said second roller is parallel to said pivot axis and the axes of rotation of said guide rollers and said first rollers, said bearing means being adapted to permit translational movement of said second roller relative to said first roller; said guide rollers being disposed so that their peripheries are tangent to parallel planes which are separated by a distance less than the summation of the diameters of said first and second rollers, with one of said guide rollers being immediately adjacent to said first roll and the other guide roller being immediately adjacent to said second roll; and a resilient band having first and second ends and including an intermediate portion that is convoluted about and between said first and second rollers and is engaged at one point by said first roller and one of said guide rollers and at another point by said second roller and the other of said guide rollers, said ends of said band extending away from said carriage and being under tension so that relative movement of said carriage and band will provide rotational movement of said first and second rollers and a relative movement of said band and said first and second rollers.

Claim 14

A motion converting device comprising in combination: a carriage; a pair of spaced guide rollers rotatably mountEd to said carriage so that their axes of rotation are parallel to each other; support means pivotally mounted to said carriage, said support means having a pivot axis that is parallel to the axes of rotation of said spaced guide rollers; a first roller and a second roller; said first roller being rotatably mounted to said support means so that its axis of rotation is fixed with respect to said support means and is parallel to and spaced from said pivot axis and the axes of rotation of said guide rolls; bearing means rotatably mounting said second roller to said support means so that the axis of rotation of said second roller is parallel to said pivot axis and the axes of rotation of said guide rollers and said first rollers, said bearing means being adapted to permit translational movement of said second roller relative to said first roller; said guide rollers being disposed so that their peripheries are tangent to parallel planes which are separated by a distance less than the summation of the diameters of said first and second rollers, with one of said guide rollers being immediately adjacent to said first roll and the other guide roller being immediately adjacent to said second roll; and a resilient band having first and second ends and including an intermediate portion that is convoluted about and between said first and second rollers and is engaged at one point by said first roller and one of said guide rollers and at another point by said second roller and the other of said guide rollers, said ends of said band extending away from said carriage and being under tension so that relative movement of said carriage and band will provide rotational movement of said first and second rollers and a relative movement of said band and said first and second rollers.

Claim 15

A device according to claim 12 further including holding means for anchoring said band ends and holding said band under tension, and means for providing relative straight-line movement of said holding means and said carriage.

Claim 16

A device according to claim 12 wherein the said ends of said band are anchored at spaced points, and commencing at one of said spaced points said band passes between one guide roll and said first roll, then around said first and second rolls to between said second roll and the other guide roll, and finally out from between said second rolls and said other guide roller to the other of said spaced points.