Anti-rolling Socket with Asymmetric Stop Sections
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional sockets are prone to rolling on flat surfaces, leading to reduced work efficiency, potential safety hazards, and difficulty in locating them, especially on inclined or uneven surfaces.
Innovation Solution
An anti-rolling socket design featuring a stopper with a stop section protruding from the outer peripheral surface, which forms three contact points with the flat surface to prevent rolling, and optionally includes a C-clip for enhanced engagement and stability with hand tools.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional cylindrical socket is used, then the socket structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the socket is prone to rolling on flat surfaces leading to reduced work efficiency and safety hazards
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces asymmetric stop sections that protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the socket body. These stop sections create an asymmetric geometry that prevents the socket from rolling in any direction on a flat surface, while maintaining a relatively simple overall socket structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent adds stop sections that extend radially outward from the socket body, utilizing the radial dimension to create contact points with the flat surface. This dimensional addition prevents rolling without significantly complicating the basic cylindrical socket structure.
2Ease of manufacture
If the socket has a simple cylindrical shape, then the manufacturing process is easy, but the socket rolls away easily on flat surfaces creating safety hazards and work efficiency issues
Solution Approach 1:
The asymmetric stop sections are designed to protrude from the outer peripheral surface at specific locations, creating a non-rolling geometry that prevents the socket from rolling away while maintaining manufacturability through standard machining operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The stop sections are localized features on the outer peripheral surface of the socket body, meaning only specific areas of the socket require additional material or machining, rather than redesigning the entire socket structure.
3Productivity
If the socket structure is modified to prevent rolling, then safety and work efficiency improve, but the socket structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The asymmetric stop sections prevent rolling and improve work efficiency by ensuring the socket remains in place, while the design maintains relative simplicity by using localized geometric modifications rather than complex mechanical structures.
Data Source
AI summary
An anti-rolling socket includes a socket body, a groove, a through hole, and a stopper. The socket body has an inner peripheral surface and an outer peripheral surface. The groove is disposed in, and along the circumference of, the inner peripheral surface. The through hole is disposed between the inner peripheral surface and the outer peripheral surface and communicates with the groove. The stopper includes a stop ring and a stop section. The stop ring is fitted in the groove. The stop section is connected to the stop ring. The stop section projects from the through hole and protrudes from the outer peripheral surface. The stop section can abut against a flat surface to prevent the socket body from rolling on the flat surface.