Aircraft Cable Tray Piston Retention for Narrower Harness Channels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Aircraft cable trays in the prior art are costly due to the use of numerous inserts that require additional space and material, leading to increased weight and assembly time, and often result in wider cable guide channels than necessary.
Innovation Solution
The aircraft cable tray features a profile section with lateral lips and a cable retention device comprising a base with elastic tabs and a piston, allowing direct retention of electrical wiring harnesses without internal interference, enabling reduced material usage and faster assembly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If inserts with toothed posts are used to hold harnesses in place, then the harnesses are securely retained, but the cable guide channels must be wider than necessary and material usage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the retention function from internal inserts and relocates it to an external cable retention device mounted on the lateral lip. This removes the need for space-consuming internal elements within the cable guide channel, allowing the channel to be dimensioned precisely to the harness size without additional clearance for inserts.
Solution Approach 2:
The retention mechanism is moved from the internal dimension (within the cable guide channel) to the external dimension (on the lateral lip facing outward). This dimensional shift allows the cable guide channel to be minimized while the retention function is provided by the externally mounted device with its bearing surfaces.
2Reliability
If numerous inserts are provided in each cable guide channel, then harness retention is improved, but assembly time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges multiple retention functions into a single cable retention device. Instead of installing numerous separate inserts throughout the cable guide channel, one external device with multiple bearing surfaces provides comprehensive retention, significantly reducing the number of assembly operations required.
Solution Approach 2:
The cable retention device serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides retention through upper and lower bearing surfaces, offers flexible positioning along the lateral lip, and enables rapid installation through the lateral orifice. This multi-functionality replaces the need for multiple specialized inserts.
3Reliability
If cable guide channels are dimensioned wider to accommodate inserts, then harness retention is ensured, but weight and material cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
By extracting the retention elements from the internal structure of the cable guide channel, the channel can be designed with minimal dimensions exactly matching the harness size. This eliminates the need for additional width that would otherwise be required to accommodate inserts and their clearance spaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the dimensional parameters of the cable guide channel by removing the requirement for insert accommodation. The channel width can now be optimized to the precise minimum needed for the harness, reducing material usage and weight while maintaining retention through the external device's bearing surfaces.
4Reliability
If internal inserts are used for retention, then harnesses are held in place, but the cable tray cannot be dimensioned for best fit
Solution Approach 1:
Removing the retention function from the internal cable guide channel structure allows the channel to be dimensioned purely based on the harness size requirements. The external cable retention device handles all retention needs, enabling the cable tray to achieve optimal dimensional fit without compromise.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design reduces material and weight while improving assembly efficiency and reliability, allowing for precise dimensioning of the cable guide channels and minimizing errors during fitting.
Implementation Method 1
a base equipped with a leg inserted into the fixing through-orifice and comprising stop surfaces positioned against the lower bearing surface and against the upper bearing surface
Data Source
AI summary
Aircraft cable tray including: a profile section delimiting at least one cable guiding channel; a lateral lip having: a fixing through-orifice; an upper bearing surface which surrounds the fixing through-orifice; a lower bearing surface which surrounds the fixing through-orifice; a cable retention device (4) having: a base (7) equipped with a leg (8) inserted into the fixing through-orifice and including stop surfaces (18,20) positioned against the lower bearing surface and against the upper bearing surface; a piston (12) having a rod (10) immobilized relative to the base (7), this rod (10) being equipped at one of its ends with a foot (11) positioned in the cable guide channel.