Force transmission unit

Abstract

A force transmission unit that has a rope, particularly a wire rope, and a device for introducing a force into the rope, that includes a sleeve enclosing the rope and connected to the rope under deformation. The force transmission unit has a connecting member which is arranged between the sleeve and the rope and formed from a material that has a lower strength than the materials from which the sleeve and the outer strands of the rope are formed and which preferably has a hollow cylindrical shape.

Claims

1. A force transmission unit, comprising: a rope; and a device for introducing a force into the rope, the device comprising a sleeve that surrounds an end region of the rope and is connected to the rope by deformation, and a connecting member arranged between the sleeve and the rope, the connecting member being of a material of lower strength than that of materials out of which the sleeve and outer surface of the rope are made, wherein the sleeve has an increased wall thickness at an end at which the connecting member is inserted into the sleeve, the increased wall thickness being formed by a projection on an outer side of the sleeve, and grips the connecting member.

2. The force transmission unit according to claim 1, wherein the sleeve completely jackets the connecting member.

3. The force transmission unit according to claim 1, wherein, at least at one end, an inside surface of the sleeve surrounding the rope rests against the rope.

4. The force transmission unit according to claim 1, wherein, only in an end section of the force-introducing device, the connecting member has a wall thickness that decreases toward one end of the force-introducing device, and the sleeve has a wall thickness that increases toward the one end to compensate for the decreasing wall thickness of the connecting member.

5. An assembly for producing a force introducing device for a rope, comprising: a sleeve configured to surround an end region of the rope and which is connectable to the rope by deformation; and a connecting member that is placeable on the rope and into the sleeve, the connecting member being of a material of lower strength than that of materials out of which the sleeve and an outside surface of the rope are made, wherein the sleeve has, at an end in which the connecting member is insertable, an increased wall thickness, before deformation, formed by a projection on an outer side of the sleeve.

6. The assembly according to claim 5, wherein the sleeve and/or the connecting member comprises a hollow cylindrical shape, wherein the sleeve comprises a shape such that, after deformation, the sleeve completely jackets and grips an outside of the connecting member.

7. The assembly according to claim 5, wherein the connecting member has a reduced wall thickness at at least one end.

8. The assembly according to claim 5, wherein a bevel is formed on an outside surface and/or an inside surface of the connecting member at one end.

9. The assembly according to claim 5, wherein a collar is formed at the at least one end of the sleeve.

10. The assembly according to claim 5, wherein the sleeve and the connecting member are adapted to each other with respect to shapes so that, after deformation, an inside surface of the sleeve rests against the rope at least at one end.

11. The assembly according to claim 10, wherein the sleeve and the connecting member are adapted to each other with respect to wall thickness, size, and length.

12. A method for producing a force transmission unit, comprising the steps of: providing a rope, and a device for introducing forces into the rope; mounting a sleeve of the force introducing device on an end region of the rope so that the sleeve surrounds the rope; arranging a connecting member of the force introducing device between the sleeve and the rope, which member is made of material of lower strength than that of materials out of which the sleeve and outer strands of the rope are made; and deforming the sleeve to connect the sleeve and connecting member to the rope, wherein the sleeve as an increased wall thickness at an end at which the connecting member is inserted, the increased wall thickness being formed by a projection on an outer side of the sleeve, the sleeve being deformed more at the end with the increased wall thickness than in a remainder of the sleeve so that after deformation the sleeve grips the connecting member.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the sleeve, the connecting member, and the rope are connected to each other so that a wall thickness of the connecting member decreases toward one end of the force-introducing device formed by the connecting member and the sleeve, and a wall thickness of the sleeve increases toward the one end.

14. The method according to claim 12, including mounting the sleeve on the connecting member and the rope so that an inside surface of the sleeve surrounding the rope rests on the rope.

15. The method according to claim 12, including mounting the sleeve on the connecting member and the rope so that the sleeve completely jackets the connecting member.

16. The method according to claim 12, wherein the sleeve and/or the connecting member is pressed, hammered, and/or rolled onto the rope.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

(1) FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a force transmission unit according to the invention;

(2) FIGS. 2a-2c shows various views of a means for producing the force transmission unit according to the invention;

(3) FIGS. 3a-3c shows various views of another means for producing the force transmission unit according to the invention; and

(4) FIGS. 4a-4c shows various views of another means for producing the force transmission unit according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(5) A force transmission unit 10 according to the invention shown in FIG. 1 comprises a wire rope 3 with outside strands of steel; a connecting member 2, made of an aluminum alloy, mounted on the wire rope 3; and a sleeve 1 of mild steel, which surrounds the connecting member 2.

(6) The connecting member 2 comprises a hollow cylindrical form and is seated in the hollow cylindrical sleeve 1, which is closed at one end and thus has a cup-like shape. It is provided at the closed end with an eyelet 12. At the end of the sleeve 1 opposite the closed end, the wall thickness D.sub.1 of the sleeve increases to the same degree as the wall thickness d.sub.1 of the connecting member 2 decreases, so that the inside surface of the sleeve 1 rests at one end against the wire rope and also surrounds the connecting member 2 when viewed in the axial direction, but its outside diameter is essentially uniform.

(7) The sleeve 1 and the connecting member 2, as will be explained below, have been pressed onto the wire rope 3 and thus deformed. Between the sleeve 1 and the connecting member 2, a positive connection is produced by means of the gripping effect produced at the end 4 of the sleeve 1 and by the interlocking (not shown in FIG. 1) between the inside surface 8 of the sleeve 1 and the outside surface 5 of the connecting member 2. There is also a positive connection between the wire rope 3 and the connecting member 2, because the connecting member 2 has been pressed into the irregularities in the surface of the wire rope.

(8) The material of the connecting member 2 is softer than that of the outside strands of the wire rope 3. For this reason, when the sleeve 1 and the connecting member 2 are pressed onto the wire rope 3, the wire rope 3 is not subjected to as much mechanical load as that which occurs in the case of the known force transmission units, in which the steel sleeve is pressed directly onto the rope. This helps to prevent damage such as the notching of the individual wires and thus the possible breakage of the wire rope 3. The service life of the force transmission unit 10 is therefore longer than that of the known force transmission units.

(9) For the production of the force transmission unit 10, the connecting member 2, various views of which are shown in greater detail in FIGS. 2a-2c, is first pushed onto the wire rope 3. For this purpose, the connecting member 2 comprises an inside diameter such that it can be pushed onto the wire rope 3 loosely with a small amount of play. As is especially clear from FIG. 2b, the connecting member 2 has a bevel 13 at one end, where the wall thickness d.sub.0 of the connecting member 2 decreases toward the end. The connecting member 2 is now pressed onto the wire rope 3, so that the material of the connecting member 2 is pressed into the irregularities formed in the wire rope surface by the outside strands of the wire rope 3, and a positive connection is formed. After that, the wire rope 3 is cut off at the end of the connecting member 2 opposite the end provided with the bevel 13.

(10) Then the sleeve 1 is pushed onto the connecting member 2.

(11) The inside diameter of the sleeve 1 is selected so that the sleeve 1 can be pushed loosely onto the connecting member 2, which has been pressed onto the wire rope 3.

(12) The sleeve 1 is provided with a thread 9 (not shown in detail) on its inside surface 8 and comprises at one end an outward-projecting, collar-like area of increased wall thickness 11, which is formed by a circumferential projection provided on the outside surface of the sleeve. At the other end, the sleeve 1 is closed off in a cup-like manner and provided with an eyelet 12, by means of which the force transmission unit 10 can be connected to an object.

(13) To produce the force transmission device 10 according to the invention, a pressing tool is placed on the sleeve 1, and the sleeve is pressed in such a way that it comprises a uniform outside diameter, aside from any irregularity remaining in the area of increased wall thickness 11. In particular, the area of increased wall thickness of the sleeve 1 is deformed to a greater degree than the remaining area of the sleeve 1. The remaining free area of the connecting member 2 formed by the bevel 1 is filled by the material of the sleeve, which flows into it. As a result, the structure shown in FIG. 1 is obtained. The wall thicknesses of the sleeve 1 and of the connecting member 2 are reduced from their wall thicknesses D.sub.0 and d.sub.0 to D.sub.1 and d.sub.1, respectively.

(14) When the sleeve 1 is pressed, the thread structure 9 on the inside surface 8 of the sleeve is pressed into the outside surface 5 of the connecting member 2, and the material of the sleeve 1 and of the connecting member 2 become interlocked.

(15) Alternatively, the force transmission device 10 can be produced by the use of the sleeve 1a shown in FIG. 4a, which, in contrast to the sleeve according to FIG. 3a, is open at both ends.

(16) In another exemplary embodiment, not shown here, a sleeve is open at both ends and is provided at both ends with the above-described collar-like areas of increased wall thickness. A force transmission device obtainable by means of this sleeve and a connecting member adapted appropriately to it can be used in particular to connect the ends of two ropes together. For this purpose, the ends of the ropes are inserted into the connecting member, and then the connecting member and the sleeve, possibly simultaneously, are attached to the ends of the ropes. It is obvious that the connecting member provided for this purpose can be equipped with a bevel at each end, as described above.

(17) In another exemplary embodiment, the force transmission device 10 can also be produced by pressing the sleeve 1, 1a and the connecting member 2 simultaneously onto the wire rope 3. The positive connection between the wire rope 3, the connecting member 2, and the sleeve 1, 1a will then be achieved in a single processing step. Simultaneously, the inside surface 6 of the connecting member 2 is pressed against the outside strands of the wire rope 3 and the inside surface 8 of the sleeve 1 is pressed into the outside of the connecting member 2. In this way, a positive connection is achieved both between the sleeve 1 and the connecting member 2 and between the connecting member 2 and the wire rope 3.