Patents Examined by L. Staab
  • Patent number: 4437356
    Abstract: A gear, chiefly for use in timepieces, acoustic devices and like precision apparatus, is made of an elastic material and comprises teeth alternately arranged in two rows, that is, a front and rear row and axially positioned away from one another. Each of the teeth has a leg extending from the main body of the gear and a meshing portion integral with the outer end of the leg and engageable with another gear with which it is adapted to mesh. The legs of each two adjacent teeth in each of the front and rear rows are spaced apart from each other circumferentially of the gear by a specified distance to render the teeth elastically deformable for cushioning and thereby eliminate noise when the gear meshes with another gear. Even when the gear has a small module, the legs of the teeth in each of the front and rear rows can be spaced apart by a large distance, so that the gear can be formed easily, for example, by injection molding.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 1981
    Date of Patent: March 20, 1984
    Inventor: Mikiharu Imazaike