초록 ▼

A cross-link for a track that comprises belts spaced apart to accommodate a plurality of wheels of a tracked vehicle on which the track is mounted, the belts having a ground-facing side. In one embodiment, the cross-link comprises an elongate member for mounting to the belts to interconnect the belt

A cross-link for a track that comprises belts spaced apart to accommodate a plurality of wheels of a tracked vehicle on which the track is mounted, the belts having a ground-facing side. In one embodiment, the cross-link comprises an elongate member for mounting to the belts to interconnect the belts, the elongate member having a belt-engaging face contacting the belts on the ground-facing side when the elongate member is mounted to the belts. The elongate member defines a channel including a bottom portion and a pair of sidewalls opposite one another on either side of the bottom portion. The cross-link also comprises a sole mountable in the channel for engaging a ground surface on which the tracked vehicle travels, the sole comprising a pair of sidewall-engaging surfaces for engaging the sidewalls when the sole is mounted in the channel.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A cross-link for a track of a tracked vehicle, the track comprising belts spaced apart to accommodate a plurality of wheels of the tracked vehicle, the belts having a ground-facing side for facing a ground surface on which the tracked vehicle travels, the cross-link comprising: an elongate member

1. A cross-link for a track of a tracked vehicle, the track comprising belts spaced apart to accommodate a plurality of wheels of the tracked vehicle, the belts having a ground-facing side for facing a ground surface on which the tracked vehicle travels, the cross-link comprising: an elongate member for mounting to the belts to interconnect the belts, the elongate member having a belt-engaging face contacting the belts on the ground-facing side when the elongate member is mounted to the belts, the elongate member defining a channel, the channel comprising a bottom portion, a pair of sidewalls extending from the bottom portion, and a top which is open between the sidewalls, the top of the channel being located below the bottom portion of the channel when the cross-link engages the ground surface; anda wheel guide comprising a pair of guide projections spaced apart from one another, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member such that, when the elongate member is mounted to the belts, a connection of the wheel guide and the elongate member is located between the belts, the guide projections projecting away from the belt-engaging face and opposite the ground-facing side, the wheel guide being capable of engaging the wheels of the tracked vehicle as the tracked vehicle travels over the track such that, when the wheel guide engages a given one of the wheels, the given one of the wheels is received between the guide projections. 2. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being welded to the elongate member. 3. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, each of the guide projections comprising a wheel-facing face for facing the given one of the wheels received between the guide projections, the wheel-facing face defining an obtuse angle with the belt-engaging face. 4. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, the elongate member having a first end and a second end, the channel having a substantially constant width between the sidewalls from the first end to the second end. 5. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, each of the sidewalls having a height, measured relative to the belt-engaging face, of at least 30 mm. 6. A cross-link as claimed in claim 5, the height of each of the sidewalls being at least 35 mm. 7. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, each of the sidewalls having a height and a thickness, the height being measured relative to the belt-engaging face, each of the sidewalls having a height-to-thickness ratio of at least 3.0. 8. A cross-link as claimed in claim 7, the height-to-thickness ratio of each of the sidewalls being at least 3.5. 9. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, the sidewalls being stamped sidewalls. 10. A cross-link as claimed in claim 3, each of the guide projections comprising a second face opposite the wheel-facing face, the second face being generally perpendicular to the belt-engaging face. 11. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, the elongate member having a first end and a second end, the bottom portion comprising an inner surface extending from the first end to the second end, the inner surface being generally flat. 12. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, comprising a sole mountable in the channel for engaging the ground surface. 13. A cross-link as claimed in claim 12, the sole comprising: a base portion for mounting in the channel; anda ground-engaging portion for engaging the ground surface, the ground-engaging portion comprising polymeric material that contacts the ground surface when the tracked vehicle moves. 14. A cross-link as claimed in claim 13, the polymeric material being elastomeric material. 15. A cross-link as claimed in claim 13, the base portion being integral with the ground-engaging portion and comprising polymeric material integral with the polymeric material of the ground-engaging portion. 16. A cross-link as claimed in claim 13, the base portion comprising a pair of sidewall-engaging surfaces for engaging the sidewalls when the sole is mounted in the channel, the sidewall-engaging surfaces being generally parallel to one another. 17. A cross-link as claimed in claim 12, the sole comprising a plurality of fasteners to mount the sole to the elongate member. 18. A cross-link as claimed in claim 17, the sole comprising polymeric material and a frame member within the polymeric material, the frame member supporting the fasteners. 19. A cross-link as claimed in claim 12, the sole comprising: an inner side for facing the elongate member;an outer side opposite the inner side for engaging the ground surface; anda plurality of blind holes for receiving fasteners to mount the sole to the elongate member, the blind holes extending from the inner side without reaching the outer side. 20. A cross-link as claimed in claim 19, the fasteners being integrated with the sole. 21. A cross-link as claimed in claim 12, the sidewalls having terminating edges, the sole overlying the terminating edges when the sole is mounted to the elongate member. 22. A cross-link as claimed in claim 13, the ground-engaging portion being wider than the base portion. 23. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being fastened to the elongate member by a plurality of fasteners extending from the wheel guide to the elongate member. 24. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being integrally formed with the elongate member. 25. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the sidewalls varies in height along the elongate member. 26. A cross-link as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the sidewalls tapers towards a longitudinal end of the elongate member. 27. A cross-link as claimed in claim 26, wherein the longitudinal end of the elongate member is a first longitudinal end of the elongate member and each of the sidewalls tapers towards a second longitudinal end of the elongate member. 28. A cross-link for a track of a tracked vehicle, the track comprising belts spaced apart to accommodate a plurality of wheels of the tracked vehicle, the belts having a ground-facing side for facing a ground surface on which the tracked vehicle travels, the cross-link comprising: an elongate member for mounting to the belts to interconnect the belts, the elongate member having a belt-engaging face contacting the belts on the ground-facing side when the elongate member is mounted to the belts, the elongate member defining a channel, the channel comprising a bottom portion, a pair of sidewalls extending from the bottom portion, and a top which is open between the sidewalls, the top of the channel being located below the bottom portion of the channel when the cross-link engages the ground surface; anda wheel guide comprising a pair of guide projections spaced apart from one another, the wheel guide and the elongate member being connected to one another and constituting a one-piece component that is mountable to the belts as a unit, the guide projections projecting away from the belt-engaging face and opposite the ground-facing side, the wheel guide being capable of engaging the wheels of the tracked vehicle as the tracked vehicle travels over the track such that, when the wheel guide engages a given one of the wheels, the given one of the wheels is received between the guide projections. 29. A cross-link for a track of a tracked vehicle, the track comprising belts spaced apart to accommodate a plurality of wheels of the tracked vehicle, the belts having a ground-facing side for facing a ground surface on which the tracked vehicle travels, the cross-link comprising: an elongate member for mounting to the belts to interconnect the belts, the elongate member having a belt-engaging face contacting the belts on the ground-facing side when the elongate member is mounted to the belts, the elongate member defining a channel, the channel comprising a bottom portion, a pair of sidewalls extending from the bottom portion, and a top which is open between the sidewalls, the top of the channel being located below the bottom portion of the channel when the cross-link engages the ground surface, each of the sidewalls varying in height along the elongate member; anda wheel guide comprising a pair of guide projections spaced apart from one another, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member, the guide projections projecting away from the belt-engaging face and opposite the ground-facing side, the wheel guide being capable of engaging the wheels of the tracked vehicle as the tracked vehicle travels over the track such that, when the wheel guide engages a given one of the wheels, the given one of the wheels is received between the guide projections. 30. A cross-link as claimed in claim 29, wherein each of the sidewalls tapers towards a longitudinal end of the elongate member. 31. A cross-link as claimed in claim 30, wherein the longitudinal end of the elongate member is a first longitudinal end of the elongate member and each of the sidewalls tapers towards a second longitudinal end of the elongate member. 32. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, each of the guide projections comprising a wheel-facing face for facing the given one of the wheels received between the guide projections, the wheel-facing face defining an obtuse angle with the belt-engaging face. 33. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, the elongate member having a first end and a second end, the channel having a substantially constant width between the sidewalls from the first end to the second end. 34. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, each of the sidewalls having a height and a thickness, the height being measured relative to the belt-engaging face, each of the sidewalls having a height-to-thickness ratio of at least 3.0. 35. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being welded to the elongate member. 36. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, comprising a sole mountable in the channel for engaging the ground surface. 37. A cross-link as claimed in claim 36, the sole comprising: a base portion for mounting in the channel; anda ground-engaging portion for engaging the ground surface, the ground-engaging portion comprising polymeric material that contacts the ground surface when the tracked vehicle moves. 38. A cross-link as claimed in claim 37, the base portion being integral with the ground-engaging portion and comprising polymeric material integral with the polymeric material of the ground-engaging portion. 39. A cross-link as claimed in claim 36, the sole comprising a plurality of fasteners to mount the sole to the elongate member. 40. A cross-link as claimed in claim 39, the sole comprising polymeric material and a frame member within the polymeric material, the frame member supporting the fasteners. 41. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being fastened to the elongate member by a plurality of fasteners extending from the wheel guide to the elongate member. 42. A cross-link as claimed in claim 37, the ground-engaging portion being wider than the base portion. 43. A cross-link as claimed in claim 36, the sidewalls having terminating edges, the sole overlying the terminating edges when the sole is mounted to the elongate member. 44. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being integrally formed with the elongate member. 45. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, wherein each of the sidewalls varies in height along the elongate member. 46. A cross-link as claimed in claim 28, wherein each of the sidewalls tapers towards a longitudinal end of the elongate member. 47. A cross-link as claimed in claim 46, wherein the longitudinal end of the elongate member is a first longitudinal end of the elongate member and each of the sidewalls tapers towards a second longitudinal end of the elongate member. 48. A cross-link as claimed in claim 29, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being welded to the elongate member. 49. A cross-link as claimed in claim 29, each of the guide projections comprising a wheel-facing face for facing the given one of the wheels received between the guide projections, the wheel-facing face defining an obtuse angle with the belt-engaging face. 50. A cross-link as claimed in claim 29, the elongate member having a first end and a second end, the channel having a substantially constant width between the sidewalls from the first end to the second end. 51. A cross-link as claimed in claim 29, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being fastened to the elongate member by a plurality of fasteners extending from the wheel guide to the elongate member. 52. A cross-link as claimed in claim 29, comprising a sole mountable in the channel for engaging the ground surface. 53. A cross-link as claimed in claim 52, the sole comprising: a base portion for mounting in the channel; anda ground-engaging portion for engaging the ground surface, the ground-engaging portion comprising polymeric material that contacts the ground surface when the tracked vehicle moves. 54. A cross-link as claimed in claim 53, the base portion being integral with the ground-engaging portion and comprising polymeric material integral with the polymeric material of the ground-engaging portion. 55. A cross-link as claimed in claim 52, the sole comprising a plurality of fasteners to mount the sole to the elongate member. 56. A cross-link as claimed in claim 55, the sole comprising polymeric material and a frame member within the polymeric material, the frame member supporting the fasteners. 57. A cross-link as claimed in claim 53, the ground-engaging portion being wider than the base portion. 58. A cross-link as claimed in claim 29, the wheel guide being connected to the elongate member by being integrally formed with the elongate member. 59. A cross-link as claimed in claim 52, the sidewalls having terminating edges, the sole overlying the terminating edges when the sole is mounted to the elongate member.