TOOTH FORM FOR RIM DRIVEN ROTARY SAW BLADES

摘要

A rim driven rotary saw and a circular saw blade useful in cutting operations is disclosed. The saw blade is rotated by a drive pinion or sprocket which is engage able with cutting projections extending about the perimeter of the saw blade. Because the saw blade is rim driven, it does not require a central arbor and thus has particular application to automated tree cutting and felling. By using a drive pinion having conventional gear teeth thereabout and which mesh with cutting projections about the circular body of the saw blade, a positive drive is achieved. Each projection has the profile of a conventional gear tooth which is modified so that in the direction of saw blade rotation, the leading face portion is cut out from a point proximate the juncture of leading face and leading flank to a cutter located at the intersection of the cut out section and the top land. The leading face cut out effectively results in a setback of the cutter whereby contact by the cutter with the teeth on the pinion are avoided. But for the cut out, a positive and back-lash free engagement between the gear teeth of the pinion and the cutting projections which function as gear teeth on the saw blade is achieved.