Belt Drives

Belt drives are used to transmit power in a variety of applications. They are made of flexible materials such as leather, woven cotton, natural or synthetic rubber, balata, woven textiles, or polyurethane. Belt drives are one of the cleanest primary drive systems because they do not require lubrication. They are often used as an alternative to a chain or shaft drive and serve to transfer power to the rear wheel. Typically, a belt drive is attached between a sprocket attached to the transmission output and a sprocket attached to the rear wheel.

A belt drive transmits rotary motion from one shaft to another. A primary belt drive is better for suited for greater distances with smaller forces. Belt drives are installed with substantial tension to create friction that allows the belts to grip the pulleys. This enables the pulleys to turn and prevents the belts from slipping. Both flat belt drives and V-belt drives run on grooved pulleys. A V-belt drive provides better torque transfer than a flat belt drive. A clutch belt drive works with a belt drive pulley to serve as both the clutch and the gear system. Round belt pulleys are used in drives and mechanical systems with O-ring belts, round belts, cables, ropes, and wires. A belt drive pulley is used for transferring power when using belts as gearing.

There are many applications for belt drives. Some products are used in conveyors, compressors, or machine tools. Others are used in heavy industrial equipment. A primary belt drive and a belt drive blower can be used with ventilation fans, commercial fans, and other belt-driven air moving applications. Clutch belt drives can be used in smaller engines such as snowmobiles and lawn tractors. Belt drive suppliers and distributors are located across the United States and around the world.

• Tension in timing-belt drives
  A urethane timing belt moves samples into position in this CAD simulation of an automated blood sampling machine. Timing-belt drives transmit torque and motion from a driving to a driven pulley or...
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• Techical Article: Timing Belt Drives
  Timing belts and pulleys offer a positive drive through the engagement of molded teeth in the belt with accurately spaced grooves on the pulley. The action of belt teeth entering and leaving the...
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• White Paper Download: Belt Drives
  Timing belts are parts of synchronous drives which represent an important category of drives. Characteristically, these drives employ the positive engagement of two sets of meshing teeth. Hence, they...
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Part Numbers for Belt Drives