The idea behind Flexible Gear design is to be able to engage and disengage (without grinding gears or destroying equipment) two gears using only Flexible Gears. Even though these gears would be used for light or medium duty operations, the benefits are not only saving money and time but also the noise will be reduced, safety would increase and there will be less maintenance for equipment.
Flexible Gear has three main components:
· Steel (Aluminum) Core, which is Hub with Bore thru the length for the shaft.
· Mid Layer, this would be high density foam or soft durometer rubber.
· Outer Layer, which is very similar to Timing Belt construction, but would have standard geometry of the Gear tooth and it will be turned inside-out. Teeth will be also coated with Teflon to reduce friction.
Flexible Gear would be assembled in Molding machine injecting Mid Layer after Core and Outer Layer is placed in the mold cavity. The Core can be made by casting or it could be machined.
Outer Layer would be made by the same process as Timing Belt.