IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINE BELTING, BANDS OR STRAPS
Year: 1884

page_text: I GEORGE SAUNDERS SAPSWORTH of 56 High Street Shadwell in the County
of Middlesex Manufacturer do hereby declare the nature of my invention for
IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINE BELTING, BANDS OR STRAPS to be as follows:-
The object of the invention is to obtain a cheap durable and effective substitute
for leather and such like belting at present in use.
For this purpose I form my improved belting of a series of pieces or joints of
wood or compositions of wood perforated at each end or metal formed looped in order
to enable pins or rods to be passed through a series of such links or pieces thereby
to joint the alternate ends thereof in a row and then the next row formed in like
manner with other pieces interspacing and so on to the extent required both for
length and breadth of the belt needed...
The ends of the rods or pins passing through the alternate ends of the series of
abutting pieces of wood are secured by means of washers and rivetting or by an
enlargement or head at one end of each and a washer and enlargement produced to
the other end by compression of the rod.
In order when desired to increase the frictional hold of the belts on the surfaces
driving and being driven, I form a series of recesses or grooves in the inner surfaces
of the pieces adapted to receive and retain leather, india-rubber, felt, woven or
other suitable substance therein or these additional substances employed if desired
to increase the bite, or friction between the bands and the driven and driving
surfaces may be applied over the whole or other part of the surfaces of the links,
pieces or jointed parts of the wood forming the belt or band.
If so desired I employ leather links or pieces for the rows of such belts next to
the outside edges or at intervals in lines or series interspacing with the wood or
wood composition links.

page_text: Improvements in Machine Belting, Bands, or Straps. ·
I, GEORGE SAUNDERS SAPSWORTH, of 56 High Street, Shadwell in the County
of Middlesex Manufacturer do. hereby declare the nature of my invention for
IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINE BELTING, BANDS, OR STRAPS, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
The object of the invention is to produce a cheap, strong; durable and efficient
substitute for the ordinary leather belts and such like belting, bands and straps at
present in use..
For this purpose I form my improved belting mainly of a series of links, pieces,
or joints of wood, or compositions of wood jointed together to number requisite to
make up the required length and width of belt or band desired.
These pieces, hereafter herein referred to as the links, are each formed with
perforations at or towards each end to admit of the passage therethrough of rods,
projections or pins, when such links have been arranged in series to form the belt,
which pins or projections serve as connections of the links and as their hinges or
centres of motion when as in passage around a pulley the linked belt is bent to a
curve and the links take their relative positions around its periphery.
The sizes of the links employed will vary with the size of belt or the character
of the work to be performed by it or with other conditions, as also will vary the
arrangement of links of different sizes in series in one and the same belt, such for
instance as in a belt having larger links in longitudinal order in the interior or
body of the belt and narrower links at the outer edges, or vice versa, or in other
Bequence or arrangement.
The accompanying drawings will serve to illustrate my invention more in detail,
and therein Figure 1 shews an edge or side view of a separate link a such as.will
serve with a series of like links to make up a belt such as is shewn in part, by
Figure 8.
Figure 2 shews an underside view. Figure 3 an upperside, view. Figure 4 a
section and Figure 5 an end view. of the same. Figure 6, shews a like underside
view and Figure 7 a section of an outer side link with part of a pin b in position
therein, c being a metallic cap or washer serving as a washer, or eyelet counter;
sunk or let into the substance of the link so as to give a flush or even surface to
the edge of the belt links next the leather strip d, which strip. pinned to the
links at the edges will be of service in taking the wear of forks or parts used in
shifting such belts from and to the driving pulley!
I
Figure 9 sliews by a diagram or sketch in perspective, a portion of such a belt,
supposed to be encircling a part of a pulley, and Figure 15 shews such an arrange-
ment of belt to a sinaller scale as applied to a pulley.
e are pieces of leather, india rubber, felt, woven or other suitable material,
applied in recesses in the sides of the links a next to the surfaces driving and
being driven by them in order thereby to give increased frictional hold between
the parts and to aid in deadening or preventing rattle or noise of the belt and
such pieces of leather or equivalent material may be further secured by pins or such
means as at el

page_text: The pins b according to the arrangement-Figures 1 to 9-pass through alternate
ends of the links arranged side by side in rows to the width desired and the next
row is formed by passing the next pin b through the alternate ends of the pieces of
previous row and through alternate pieces of the next row of links and so on until
the belt is complete when the first and last rows are interspaced and a pin secures
the whole into an endless uniform pliant band ready for use.
The pins b may be arranged to pass for only a certain distance across from each
side of the belt to, or towards, the centre of the belt; or from, each side to a line.
drawn longitudinally of the belt centrally or from each side to lines dividing the
belt into three or other series of links, such central part or middle parts being
similarly provided with hinge pins in series. By this arrangement of the pins
and with the aid of; suitable connections of the adjoining rows of links in the
longitudinal divisions of links by continuing the leather or other suitable under
surface or otherwise connecting the adjoining rows, where the pins are severed.or
their continuity broken, I am enabled to use my belts in situations where other-
wise difficulty would attend their being applied such as when driving a pulley with
a curved periphery from a pulley of flat surface, or from a curved surfaced pully to
another curved pulley or similarly where a surface irregularity in the driving or
driven surface requires the normally plane faced belt to adapt itself thereto by
hingeing itself in lateral series one strip or series of links on another such as well.
as longitudinally links hingeing on links The adjoining links of the adjoining
series of links so connected for lateral hingeing should be arranged to abut or lie
uniformly side by side and not in alternate series for convenience of hingeing and
to avoid tearing strain on the joints of leather or such like connection.
Figures 10 to 14 shew such an arrangement or modification as that just referred
to, in which a series of hinge pins b connected longitudinally by the central part 61
from each side of which central part 6' these piñs b project and enter each series
into a series of wood links a thus dividing the belt longitudinally into three or
other number of series of links according to width of belt desired. The strips of
leather or other suitable under surface material e by being continuous from side to
side of the belt from link to link a serves to retain these links a and the hinge
pins b in proper relation. The leather strip d may in this modification generally
be dispensed with without disadvantage and generally, its employment will be
dependent on circumstances.
One or more continuous series of metal links arranged longitudinally along
the edges of the band, or centrally or in other relations to the wooden links which
mainly form the band will in some cases be found useful in affording additional
strength.
"
The modes of securing the ends of the pins or rods b when of the character
shewn in Figures 1 to 9 are various and this end may be attained by the use of
washers and rivetting; by an enlargement or head at the ends of those pins; by a
head at one end and washer and enlargement at the other end, such a com-
pression or expansion of that end such as ordinary wood screws or clenched nails
or by other well known devices..
In place of forming the links of wood, they may be formed of a composition of
wood; or instead of using a lining of leather or equivalent grip-aiding or sound
deadening character, the wood may be used without it; or, this material may be
applied in more or less continuous strips or sheets on the pulley sides of the belts
and so as to come between such and the links; or, in place of the continuous strip
of leather applied as at d a strip of other material may be used; or, links of
leather; or, of metal, or both, may be applied at the outer edges, or otherwise
arranged in the series.
The greater relative weights of these improved belts over ordinary leather belts
will be found to afford greater friction or grip, the avoidance of overlapping and
lacing conduces to economy, the non-expansion and non-contraction characteristic
of my improved belts will afford great convenience in use with many, other
advantages.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the 'nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. The construction of machine belting, bands or straps, of links, pieces, or joints
of wood or compositions of wood jointed' together, substantially as and for the
purposes herein set forth.
2. The combinations or arrangements, of parts forming machine belting, bands, or
straps, chiefly composed of links, pieces, or joints of wood or compositions of wood,
jointed or connected together, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.
Dated this 7th day of July 1885.
W BROOKES & SON,
55 & 56, Chancery Lane, London,
Agents for the said George Saunders Sapsworth.