Patent ID: 6921447

Claim:
A method for manufacturing a cured, toothed belt on a machine, the machine having a first cylinder, a second cylinder, first and second grippers, and a mold for forming teeth into an unmolded belt comprising an elastomer and reinforcing elements, the molding having a leading edge and a plurality of tooth cavities defined therein, the tooth cavities and mold length defining a tooth pitch, the method comprising the steps of: positioning the unmolded belt on the machine; molding a plurality of teeth into a first belt section, the belt section having a leading edge and a trailing edge; advancing a portion of the first belt section out of the mold; repeatedly molding belt sections until the leading edge of the first belt section travels around the first and second cylinders such that the leading edge lies in an axis parallel to the mold; attaching the first gripper to a first location on the belt; attaching the second gripper to a second location on the belt; measuring the distance between the grippers; determining the error in the remaining unmolded portion of the belt; increasing or decreasing the center-to-center distance between the first and second cylinders; and, distributing the error about the remaining unmolded portion of the belt.