Atomizer Body Segmentation for Injection Molding Cost Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
The high cost and complexity of producing atomizers with suitable performance characteristics, particularly due to tight dimensional tolerances, have made them expensive and difficult to produce in quantity, limiting their widespread use in applications requiring efficient liquid atomization.
Innovation Solution
A fluid atomizer design featuring a body with a fluidicly communicative interior cavity, including an entry passageway, a cylindrical chamber, a tapered portion, and tangentially extending feeder passageways, which are configured to facilitate efficient atomization and are produced using injection molding for cost-effective mass production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional atomizer designs are used to achieve suitable performance characteristics, then atomization performance is improved, but production cost increases and manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The atomizer body is divided into two separately moldable portions (first and second portions) that are joined together. This segmentation allows each portion to be manufactured independently using injection molding, simplifying the manufacturing process and reducing costs while maintaining the complex internal geometry needed for performance atomization
Solution Approach 2:
The first and second atomizer portions are joined together to form a complete atomizer body with integrated internal cavities and passageways. This merging combines the advantages of separate manufacturing (ease of production) with the benefits of integrated design (superior atomization performance)
2Reliability
If tight dimensional tolerances are imposed to achieve suitable performance characteristics, then atomization performance is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase and production cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the atomizer into two portions manufactured separately, each portion can be molded with more relaxed tolerances. The critical dimensional relationships are maintained through the design of the joining interface and the functional geometry of each separate component
Solution Approach 2:
The design changes the geometric parameters of the internal cavities and passageways to optimize atomization performance while maintaining manufacturability. The specific geometry of the swirling chamber, feeder passageways, and exit passageway is optimized to achieve superior atomization without requiring extremely tight tolerances
3Reliability
If complex internal geometry is designed to achieve suitable performance characteristics, then atomization performance is improved, but device complexity increases and manufacturing difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The complex internal geometry is distributed across two separate atomizer portions, each containing specific functional features (swirling chamber in one portion, exit passageway in the other). This segmentation makes the complex geometry manufacturable through injection molding while preserving the performance benefits
Solution Approach 2:
The internal geometry is designed to perform multiple functions automatically: the swirling chamber creates rotational flow for atomization, the feeder passageways distribute fluid evenly, and the exit passageway shapes the spray pattern. This self-service design achieves superior atomization performance through geometry alone, without requiring additional components or complex assembly
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
The atomizer design achieves superior atomizing performance compared to prior art, enabling efficient dispersal of liquid droplets while reducing production costs through simplified manufacturing processes, making it suitable for various applications such as evaporative cooling and surface coating.
Implementation Method 1
The atomizer body also defines a fluid swirling chamber that is fluidly coupled to the fluid entry passageway. The method includes swirling the fluid within the fluid swirling chamber of the fluid atomizer body.
Implementation Method 2
The chamber is defined by a cylindrical portion and a tapered portion. The exit passageway portion extends from the tapered portion of the chamber through the exterior surface of the fluid atomizer body.
Data Source
AI summary
Representative embodiments provide for corresponding fluid atomizer bodies, each generally defining a fluidicly communicative interior cavity. The interior cavity is typically defined by an entry passageway portion, a chamber portion, a plurality of feeder passageways that are tangentially disposed to and fluidly coupled with the chamber portion, and an exit passageway portion fluidly coupled to the chamber portion. In one embodiment, an upper body portion and a lower body portion are bonded together to define a complete fluid atomizer body. Another embodiment provides for producing one or more fluid atomizer bodies by a way of injection molding. A method provides for spraying or sputtering atomized droplets of an electrically non-conductive coolant onto an electrical apparatus using one or more fluid atomizer bodies.