Coating device for diamond-like carbon film layer of annular part

Abstract

The invention discloses a coating device for a diamond-like carbon film layer of an annular part. The coating device comprises a bearing rod, an upper base, a lower base and at least two supporting mechanisms capable of supporting an annular part test piece in a suspended mode. The upper base and the lower base are in threaded connection with the bearing rod; each supporting mechanism is composed of an expansion arm and a supporting arm, one end of the expansion arm is hinged to the upper base, the other end of the expansion arm is hinged to one end of the supporting arm through a sliding connecting bolt, and the other end of the supporting arm abuts against the lower base. The supporting diameter and angle can be flexibly adjusted by adjusting the heights of the upper base and the lower base and the positions of the sliding connecting bolts in the movable holes of the expansion arms, and therefore annular parts of different sizes are tightly supported and supported in a suspended mode from the interior. And the cross-shaped clamping pin at the bottom of the bearing rod is conveniently connected with an external rotating device, so that 360-degree rotation of the part is realized. The problem of coating shielding caused by a traditional fixing mode is effectively solved, all-directional, uniform and efficient coating of the diamond-like carbon film layer on the outer surface of the annular part is achieved, operation is easy and convenient, and the applicability is wide.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of diamond-like carbon (DLC) surface coating technology, specifically to a device for coating ring-shaped parts with a diamond-like carbon film, which can achieve precise, uniform and efficient diamond-like carbon coating on the outer surface of ring-shaped part test pieces. Background Technology

[0002] In daily production and scientific research experiments, especially when coating diamond-like carbon (DLC) films onto ring-shaped parts, traditional fixing methods typically involve binding with wire or directly fastening to the support pillar with screws. While these methods are simple, they reveal many drawbacks in actual coating processes.

[0003] First, the use of wire binding or screw fixing will significantly obstruct the outer surface of the test piece, preventing film deposition in the covered or contacted areas. This not only results in incomplete and uneven coating but also severely interferes with subsequent film quality testing (such as key performance tests like hardness, nanoindentation, and nanoscratch), as these tests typically require a complete and defect-free film. These obstructed points become blind spots in the testing, affecting the accuracy and reliability of the data.

[0004] Secondly, traditional fixing methods are cumbersome and inefficient. Each installation and removal of the test piece requires manual bundling or tightening of screws, making it difficult to achieve quick and accurate positioning. In addition, this type of fixing method makes it difficult for the test piece to achieve stable and uniform rotation during the coating process, which further affects the uniformity of the film layer's circumferential distribution on the outer surface of the part.

[0005] Therefore, in order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, it is urgent to develop a dedicated coating device that can achieve unobstructed, rapid clamping and stable rotation of annular test pieces, thereby ensuring the integrity and uniformity of diamond-like carbon film coating and meeting the needs of high-quality testing and application. Summary of the Invention

[0006] To address the aforementioned drawbacks, the present invention aims to provide a diamond-like carbon coating device for annular parts that enables unobstructed, uniform coating of the outer surface of annular part test pieces, is easy to operate, and has wide applicability. This device solves the problems of coating obstruction, cumbersome operation, and poor applicability caused by the use of wire binding or screw fixing in the prior art when coating annular part test pieces with diamond-like carbon.

[0007] The objective of this invention is achieved through the following technical solution: A diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating apparatus for annular parts includes a bearing rod, an upper base, a lower base, and at least two support mechanisms for suspending and supporting the annular part specimens. The upper and lower bases are threaded onto the bearing rod from top to bottom, and their height on the bearing rod can be adjusted by rotation. Each support mechanism includes an extension arm and a support arm. One end of the extension arm is hinged to the upper base, and the other end points outward from the bearing rod; one end of the support arm is hinged to the extension arm, and the other end abuts against the lower base. By adjusting the relative height of the upper and lower bases, the support arm can be driven to swing, thereby changing the extension diameter of the extension arm to accommodate annular part specimens of different sizes.

[0008] Furthermore, the lower end of the bearing rod is provided with a cross-shaped locking pin, which is used to quickly and stably install the device onto an external rotating device to achieve uniform rotation during the coating process.

[0009] Furthermore, the bearing rod is provided with a shaft thread area with external threads, and the length of the shaft thread area is greater than twice the length of the support arm, so as to ensure that the upper and lower bases have sufficient adjustment stroke to accommodate a wider range of part sizes.

[0010] Furthermore, the upper base and the lower base are respectively connected by a nut and a bearing rod integrally provided on them, which results in a compact structure and a reliable connection.

[0011] Furthermore, there are two support mechanisms, which are symmetrically arranged to provide stable and balanced support.

[0012] Furthermore, the extended arm has an end face on the outer side of the bearing rod for contacting the annular part test piece. This end face has a concave-convex gear-shaped anti-slip structure to increase the friction with the inner wall of the part and prevent the part from slipping or rotating during the coating process.

[0013] Furthermore, the extending arm has an elongated movable hole along its length, and a sliding connecting bolt with a built-in nut is slidably disposed within the movable hole. One end of the support arm is hinged to the extending arm via this sliding connecting bolt and can slide back and forth along the movable hole as the sliding connecting bolt moves, allowing for fine adjustment of the support angle. After adjustment, the support arm can be locked onto the extending arm by tightening the nut of the sliding connecting bolt.

[0014] Furthermore, the surfaces on both sides of the movable hole of the extension arm that allow the sliding bolt to slide are irregularly shaped to provide greater friction during locking and enhance connection stability. The contact surface between the nut of the sliding bolt and the extension arm is also irregularly shaped.

[0015] Furthermore, the length of the support arm is equal to the length of the extension arm, and the equal-length design makes the support structure more stable and symmetrical during adjustment.

[0016] Furthermore, the bearing rod, upper base, lower base, extension arm, and support arm are all made of high-strength aluminum alloy, stainless steel, or tool steel to ensure that the device has sufficient strength, wear resistance, and corrosion resistance to meet the requirements of industrial application environments.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, the diamond-like carbon coating apparatus for annular parts provided by the present invention has the following significant advantages: (1) Unobstructed and uniform coating in all directions: The ring-shaped part test piece is suspended and supported from the inside by an adjustable support mechanism, which completely avoids the obstruction of the outer surface of the part by the traditional iron wire or screw fixing method. Combined with the cross pin at the bottom and the external rotation device, the part can be rotated 360° in space during the coating process, so as to obtain a diamond-like film layer with uniform thickness and no dead angles on the outer surface of the ring-shaped part test piece.

[0018] (2) Strong applicability and high versatility: By adjusting the height of the upper and lower bases and the position of the movable hole of the extension arm, the support angle, support diameter and support height can be flexibly adjusted in multiple dimensions. It can quickly adapt to various ring-shaped parts test pieces with different inner diameters, heights and tapers, which greatly improves the versatility of the device.

[0019] (3) Easy to operate and high clamping efficiency: The device has a simple structure and clear adjustment steps. It can complete the clamping and fixing of parts without complicated tools, getting rid of the tedious process of traditional binding or drilling, and significantly improving production efficiency.

[0020] (4) Stable and reliable support: The anti-slip structure at the end of the extension arm, the concave and convex surfaces of the edge of the extension arm's movable hole, and the symmetrical support mechanism design together ensure that the parts are firmly and stably supported during high-speed rotation coating, effectively preventing loosening and slippage, and ensuring coating quality and operational safety.

[0021] (5) Robust and durable structure: The core components are made of high-strength and high-wear-resistant materials, which enables the device to maintain its accuracy and lifespan even after long-term use and in harsh plating environments, thus reducing maintenance costs. Attached Figure Description

[0022] The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0023] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the coating apparatus described in this invention.

[0024] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the support mechanism described in this invention.

[0025] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the coating device described in this invention during operation.

[0026] The figure shows: 1-bearing rod; 2-upper base; 3-lower base; 4-cross pin; 5-shaft thread area; 6-base fixing bolt; 7-extension arm; 8-extension arm movable hole; 9-support arm; 10-sliding connection bolt; 11-ring-shaped part test piece. Detailed Implementation

[0027] The following specific embodiments illustrate the implementation of the present invention. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the content disclosed in this specification. The described embodiments are merely some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0028] It should be understood that the structures, proportions, sizes, etc., depicted in the accompanying drawings of this specification are merely for illustrative purposes to aid those skilled in the art in understanding and reading the content disclosed herein, and are not intended to limit the conditions under which the invention can be implemented. Therefore, they have no substantial technical significance. Any modifications to the structure, changes in proportions, or adjustments to the size, without affecting the effects and objectives achieved by the invention, should still fall within the scope of the technical content disclosed herein. Furthermore, the terms such as "upper," "lower," "left," "right," and "middle" used in this specification are merely for clarity and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Changes or adjustments to their relative relationships, without substantially altering the technical content, should also be considered within the scope of the invention's implementation.

[0029] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, the terms "connected" or "linked" should be interpreted broadly. For example, it can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances. It should be noted that the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus.

[0030] Example: like Figures 1 to 3As shown, this embodiment provides a diamond-like carbon coating device for annular parts, which mainly includes a bearing rod 1, an upper base 2, a lower base 3, and several support mechanisms.

[0031] like Figure 1 As shown, the bearing rod 1 is a vertically arranged rod that serves as the core support structure of the coating device. The bearing rod 1 is preferably made of high-strength stainless steel, with most of its surface being smooth, and a long-distance threaded area 5 with external threads machined in the middle. A cross-shaped locking pin 4 (a cross-shaped structure formed by two short rods vertically fixed to both sides of the bottom of the bearing rod 1) is fixedly connected to the bottom end of the bearing rod 1. This cross-shaped locking pin 4 can be used to quickly and stably insert and fix the coating device onto an externally driven rotating device (such as a motor-driven chuck).

[0032] The upper base 2 is generally ring-shaped and is threaded to the upper middle part of the shaft thread area 5 of the bearing rod 1 by a nut integrally set on its top. By turning the nut on the upper base 2, the upper base 2 can be rotated and move up and down on the bearing rod 1.

[0033] The lower base 3 is also ring-shaped as a whole, and is connected to the lower middle part of the shaft thread area 5 on the bearing rod 1 by a nut integrally set at its bottom. By turning the nut on the lower base 3, the lower base 3 can be rotated and move up and down on the bearing rod 1.

[0034] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, this embodiment is provided with two sets of left-right symmetrical support mechanisms, which are used to internally tighten and suspend the annular part test piece 11.

[0035] Each support mechanism includes an extension arm 7 and a support arm 9. In this embodiment, the extension arm 7 and the support arm 9 are of equal length and are both made of high-strength tool steel to ensure support rigidity.

[0036] One end of the extension arm 7 is hinged to the upper base 2 via a base fixing bolt 6, allowing the extension arm 7 to swing within a certain angle around the hinge point. The other end of the extension arm 7 points to the outside of the bearing rod 1, and its end is machined with a convex-concave gear-shaped anti-slip structure for direct contact and support of the inner wall of the annular part test piece 11. In the middle of the extension arm 7, a long strip-shaped extension arm movable hole 8 is formed along its length. The edge surface of the extension arm movable hole 8 (especially the two sides that contact the nut of the sliding connection bolt 10) is machined to be concave-convex to increase friction.

[0037] One end of the support arm 9 is hinged to the extension arm 7 via a sliding connecting bolt 10. This sliding connecting bolt 10 is a conventional bolt shape, with its thread passing through the extension arm's movable hole 8 and fitted with a nut. When the nut is loosened, the sliding connecting bolt 10 allows the hinged end of the support arm 9 to slide freely along the length of the extension arm's movable hole 8; when the nut is tightened, the sliding connecting bolt 10 is firmly locked in the predetermined position on the extension arm 7. The other end of the support arm 9 is a free end, its bottom surface contacting (aggregating) the upper surface of the lower base 3. This contact surface can also be machined with anti-slip textures to enhance stability. Working principle and operating procedures:

[0038] Combination Figure 3 The operating procedure of the device of the present invention in actual use is as follows: S1. Initial installation and height pre-adjustment: Using the cross-shaped locking pin 4 at the bottom of the bearing rod 1, the entire coating device is securely installed onto an external rotating device (the rotating device is an existing device, which includes a support base and a top plate located above the support base. The support base and the top plate are connected by several rods. Inside the support base, there is a main gear and several auxiliary gears located around the main gear and meshing with it. The axle of the main gear extends below the support base and can rotate axially under the drive of the drive motor. The axles of each auxiliary gear extend below the support base and are coaxially fixed to a rotating table with a locking slot. There are corresponding mounting holes on the top plate. The upper end of the bearing rod 1 is rotatably installed in the mounting hole, and the cross-shaped locking pin 4 at the lower end is locked in the rotating table and can rotate with the rotating table). Based on the approximate height of the annular part test piece 11 to be coated, the lower base 3 is rotated to adjust it to a suitable position on the bearing rod 1 and initially locked. This step sets the initial tilt angle of the support arm 9.

[0039] S2. Fine adjustment of support diameter: Loosen the nut on the sliding connecting bolt 10 so that it can slide within the movable hole 8 of the extension arm. Based on the inner diameter of the annular part test piece 11, simultaneously move the two sliding connecting bolts 10 to precisely adjust the expansion diameter between the anti-slip structures at the ends of the two extension arms 7, making it slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the part. After adjustment, tighten the nut on the sliding connecting bolt 10, using the concave and convex surfaces of the edge of the movable hole 8 of the extension arm to firmly lock it in place.

[0040] S3. Clamping parts: The annular part test piece 11 is slipped off the top of the device, so that its inner wall rests on the anti-slip structure at the ends of the two extension arms 7.

[0041] S4. Final locking and suspension support: Rotate the upper base 2 downwards. Since the extension arm 7 is hinged to the upper base 2 and the bottom end of the support arm 9 rests against the lower base 3, the downward movement of the upper base 2 will force the two extension arms 7 to open outwards synchronously through the four-bar linkage (composed of the upper base 2, extension arm 7, support arm 9, and lower base 3) until the anti-slip structure at their ends tightly supports the inner wall of the annular part specimen 11. Continue to tighten the upper base 2, and the annular part specimen 11 can be reliably suspended and supported by the support mechanism, with its entire outer surface completely exposed without any obstruction.

[0042] S5. Apply evenly: The external rotating device is activated, and the entire coating apparatus, along with the annular part sample 11 on it, begins to rotate at a uniform speed. At this point, the diamond-like carbon (DLC) film coating process can be performed on the annular part sample 11. Because the part rotates 360° without obstruction, the film layer is deposited uniformly and completely on its entire outer surface. Other aspects of this invention not detailed herein are conventional techniques known to those skilled in the art.

[0043] It should be noted that the terms “comprising,” “including,” or any other variations are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

[0044] The scope of protection of this invention is not limited to the technical solutions disclosed in the specific embodiments. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of this invention shall fall within the scope of protection of this invention.

Claims

1. A device for diamond like carbon film coating of annular parts, characterized by: The bearing rod (1), the upper base (2), the lower base (3) and at least two support mechanisms capable of suspending and supporting the ring-shaped test piece (11) are included; the upper base (2) and the lower base (3) are threadedly connected on the bearing rod (1) from top to bottom; each support mechanism includes an extension arm (7) and a support arm (9); one end of the extension arm (7) is hingedly connected to the upper base (2), and the other end points to the outside of the bearing rod (1); one end of the support arm (9) is hingedly connected to the extension arm (7), and the other end abuts against the lower base (3).

2. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film layer on ring shaped parts as claimed in claim 1 wherein: The lower end of the bearing rod (1) is provided with a cross pin (4).

3. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film on ring shaped parts as claimed in claim 1 wherein: The bearing rod (1) is provided with an outer threaded shaft threaded area (5), and the length of the shaft threaded area (5) is greater than twice the length of the support arm (9).

4. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film on ring shaped parts as claimed in claim 1 wherein: The upper base (2) and the lower base (3) are threadedly connected with the bearing rod (1) through the nuts integrally arranged thereon.

5. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film on ring shaped parts as claimed in claim 1 wherein: The number of support mechanisms is two, and they are symmetrically arranged left and right.

6. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film on ring shaped parts as claimed in claim 1 wherein: One end of the extension arm (7) pointing to the outside of the bearing rod (1) is provided with an end face for contacting the ring-shaped test piece (11), which is a concave-convex gear-shaped anti-slip structure.

7. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film on ring shaped parts as claimed in claim 1 wherein: A long strip-shaped extension arm movable hole (8) is arranged on the extension arm (7) along the length direction, and a sliding connection bolt (10) with a nut is slidably arranged in the extension arm movable hole (8); one end of the support arm (9) is hingedly connected to the extension arm (7) through the sliding connection bolt (10) and can slide back and forth along the extension arm movable hole (8) with the sliding connection bolt (10), and the support arm (9) can be locked on the extension arm (7) by tightening the sliding connection bolt (10).

8. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film on ring shaped parts as claimed in claim 7 wherein: The surfaces of the extension arm (7) on both sides of the extension arm movable hole (8) for sliding the sliding connection bolt (10) are concave-convex surfaces.

9. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film on ring shaped parts as claimed in claim 1 wherein: The length of the support arm (9) is equal to the length of the extension arm (7).

10. The apparatus for coating of diamond like carbon film on annular parts as claimed in claim 1 wherein: The materials of the bearing rod (1), the upper base (2), the lower base (3) and the support mechanism are high-strength aluminum alloy, stainless steel or tool steel.

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