Chain drive with balls strung along linking cable

摘要

The U-shaped chain (8) drive (5) transmits a rotary movement within a housing (6) around a sprocket (7). The chain (8) is formed of a series of balls (15) loosely strung along a linking cable or wire (17). Each end of the wire has a locking nipple retaining the balls and moved by a pneumatically-operated piston (13,14). The sprocket may be an idler and the chain may transmit compression forces, with the balls being restrained and held onto the sprocket by a U-shaped guide channel. The balls have straight bores (16) through them and the areas (18) immediately surrounding the ends of the bores are flat.