Off-highway machines having a dump body operate in a variety of environments. Such machines can include one or more hoist cylinders configured to selectively pivot the dump body about its rear end from a normal position to a range of dumping positions. During the dumping process, the end of the hoist cylinder connected to the frame of the machine can pivot about a bearing to accommodate the different orientation of the dump body. The operational efficiency of the hoist cylinder can be impaired should contaminants —such as mud, for example—infiltrate the bearing. For example, should debris accumulate in the bearing, the operation of the bearing can be impaired such that it experiences increased mechanical loads that lead to early failure or damage the bearing. It is desirable to provide a robust seal that protects the bearing from the outside environment.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0203518 is entitled, “Elastomeric Shaft Seal Formed Without Oven Post Curing,” and is directed to an elastomeric seal (20), such as a shaft seal for automotive vehicle applications. The elastomeric seal (20) includes an elastomeric compound (22) chemically coupled to a metal sealing ring (24) and is formed without an oven post curing step. The elastomeric seal (20) has an elastic modulus of 6.0 MPa to 13.0 MPa and a tensile strength of 11.1 MPa to 14.8 MPa. The elastomeric compound (22) includes 52.0 to 68.0 wt. % fluoroelastomer, 20.0 to 35.0 wt. % calcium silicate, and 5.0 to 15.0 wt. % diatomite. The elastomeric compound (22) is fully cured and chemically coupled to the metal sealing ring (24) during the compression or injection molding step, and thus an oven post curing step is not required.
It will be appreciated that this background description has been created by the inventors to aid the reader, and is not to be taken as an indication that any of the indicated problems were themselves appreciated in the art. While the described principles can, in some respects and embodiments, alleviate the problems inherent in other systems, it will be appreciated that the scope of the protected innovation is defined by the attached claims, and not by the ability of any disclosed feature to solve any specific problem noted herein.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds