I had a couple of cracks at this since Inventor decided to delete my first attempt. These should all be quite easy to manufacture for a chain producer since the pinlink sides are identical, they just need rotating 180 degrees. The part is pretty simple too since it’s just one more bend than the previous example. These first versions are a little too close to each other so I made another with a better gap. It’s also possible to make them on every other pinlink but then you’ll need twice the length and twice the cost for the same contact traction.
This gives a little more room on the outside while the rollers are in contact with the sphere since the curve of the sphere slightly pushes them together. One of my slight concerns with using chains is that they do occasionally need to be oiled and having oil drop onto the rollers and then onto the sphere would be a problem. However they should be fairly well protected from dust by the base cover so this might not be an issue until several years of use in which time the chains might be worn out anyway. Something to consider….
Now to figure out how to animate a proper chain in Inventor… slightly tricky this one…
