Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Belt Drive shopping experience:
1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Belt Drive offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Belt Drive at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.
2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about
3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Belt Drive? Wrong! If the Belt Drive is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.
4. Questions - Got a question about Belt Drive then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....
5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Belt Drive? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Belt Drive and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.
6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Belt Drive wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.
7. Feedback - happy with your Belt Drive then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.
8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Belt Drive site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site
9. Contact - got a question about Belt Drive, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.
10. Payment - ready to pay for your Belt Drive, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.
For other belts, see Belt
A
Belt is a looped strip of flexible material, used to mechanically link two or more rotating shafts. They may be used as a source of motion, to efficiently Transmission (mechanics), or to track relative movement.
Belts are looped over pulley . In a two pulley system, the belt can either drive the pulleys in the same direction, or the belt may be crossed, so that the direction of the shafts is opposite.
As a source of motion, a conveyor belt is one application where the belt is adapted to continually carry a load between two points.
Power Transmission
Power transmission is achieved by specially designed belts and pulleys. The demands on a belt drive transmission system are large and this has led to many variations on the theme.
The earliest was the
flat belt, used with
line shafting. It is a simple system of power transmission that was well suited to its time in history. The
Industrial Revolution soon demanded more from the system, as flat belt pulleys need to be carefully aligned to prevent the belt from slipping off. The flat belt also tends to slip on the pulley face when heavy loads are applied. In practice, such belts were often given a half-twist before joining the ends (forming a Möbius strip), so that wear was evenly distributed on both sides of the belt.
Round belts are a circular cross section belt designed to run in a pulley with a circular (or near circular) groove. They are for use in low
torque situations and may be purchased in various lengths or cut to length and joined, either by a staple, gluing or welding (in the case of
polyurethane). The early
Singer Corporations utilized a leather belt, joined either by a metal staple or glued, to great effect.
Vee belts (also known as
v-belt or
wedge rope) are an early solution that solved the slippage and alignment problem. The V-belt was developed in 1917 by
John Gates (rubber) of the Charles Gates, Jr.. The "V" shape of the belt tracks in a mating groove in the pulley (or sheave), with the result that the belt cannot slip off. The belt also tends to wedge into the groove as the load increases — the greater the load, the greater the wedging action — improving torque transmission and making the vee belt an effective solution. They can be supplied at various fixed lengths or as a segmented section, where the segments are linked (spliced) to form a belt of the required length. For high-power requirements, two or more vee belts can be joined side-by-side in an arrangement called a multi-V, running on matching multi-groove sheaves. The strength of these belts is obtained by reinforcements with fibers like steel,
polyester or
aramid (e.g. Twaron).
Timing Belts
Timing belts, (also known as
Toothed,
Notch or
Cog) belts are a
positive transfer belt and can track relative movement. These belts have teeth that fit into a matching toothed pulley. When correctly tensioned, they have no slippage and are often used to transfer direct motion for indexing or timing purposes (hence their name). Camshafts of automobiles and stepper motors often utilize these belts.
Timing belts with a helical offset tooth design are available. The helical offset tooth design forms a chevron pattern and causes the teeth to engage progressively. The chevron pattern design is self-aligning. The chevron pattern design does not make the noise that some timing belts make at idiosyncratic speeds, and is more efficient at transferring power (up to 98%).
Specialty Belts
Belts normally transmit power only on the tension side of the loop. However, designs for
continuously variable transmissions exist that use belts that are a series of solid metal blocks, linked together as in a chain, transmitting power on the compression side of the loop.
See also
For other belts, see Belt
A
Belt is a looped strip of flexible material, used to mechanically link two or more rotating shafts. They may be used as a source of motion, to efficiently Transmission (mechanics), or to track relative movement.
Belts are looped over
pulley . In a two pulley system, the belt can either drive the pulleys in the same direction, or the belt may be crossed, so that the direction of the shafts is opposite.
As a source of motion, a conveyor belt is one application where the belt is adapted to continually carry a load between two points.
Power Transmission
Power transmission is achieved by specially designed belts and pulleys. The demands on a belt drive transmission system are large and this has led to many variations on the theme.
The earliest was the flat belt, used with line shafting. It is a simple system of power transmission that was well suited to its time in history. The Industrial Revolution soon demanded more from the system, as flat belt pulleys need to be carefully aligned to prevent the belt from slipping off. The flat belt also tends to slip on the pulley face when heavy loads are applied. In practice, such belts were often given a half-twist before joining the ends (forming a
Möbius strip), so that wear was evenly distributed on both sides of the belt.
Round belts are a circular cross section belt designed to run in a pulley with a circular (or near circular) groove. They are for use in low torque situations and may be purchased in various lengths or cut to length and joined, either by a staple, gluing or welding (in the case of
polyurethane). The early Singer Corporations utilized a leather belt, joined either by a metal staple or glued, to great effect.
Vee belts (also known as
v-belt or
wedge rope) are an early solution that solved the slippage and alignment problem. The V-belt was developed in 1917 by
John Gates (rubber) of the
Charles Gates, Jr.. The "V" shape of the belt tracks in a mating groove in the pulley (or sheave), with the result that the belt cannot slip off. The belt also tends to wedge into the groove as the load increases — the greater the load, the greater the wedging action — improving
torque transmission and making the vee belt an effective solution. They can be supplied at various fixed lengths or as a segmented section, where the segments are linked (spliced) to form a belt of the required length. For high-power requirements, two or more vee belts can be joined side-by-side in an arrangement called a multi-V, running on matching multi-groove sheaves. The strength of these belts is obtained by reinforcements with fibers like steel, polyester or aramid (e.g.
Twaron).
Timing Belts
Timing belts, (also known as
Toothed,
Notch or
Cog) belts are a
positive transfer belt and can track relative movement. These belts have teeth that fit into a matching toothed pulley. When correctly tensioned, they have no slippage and are often used to transfer direct motion for indexing or timing purposes (hence their name).
Camshafts of automobiles and stepper motors often utilize these belts.
Timing belts with a helical offset tooth design are available. The helical offset tooth design forms a chevron pattern and causes the teeth to engage progressively. The chevron pattern design is self-aligning. The chevron pattern design does not make the noise that some timing belts make at idiosyncratic speeds, and is more efficient at transferring power (up to 98%).
Specialty Belts
Belts normally transmit power only on the tension side of the loop. However, designs for continuously variable transmissions exist that use belts that are a series of solid metal blocks, linked together as in a chain, transmitting power on the compression side of the loop.
See also
