Integrated Ball Mount Sealing for Adjustable Harsh-Environment Wiring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional adjustable mounts and stands for electrical devices in harsh industrial environments often compromise protection by limiting adjustability and exposing devices to damage from harsh conditions.
Innovation Solution
A mount assembly with a ball mount configuration, including a body and base with an internal passage, a compression fitting, and a sealing insert, which provides adjustable support while forming a leak-resistant seal to protect electrical systems from harsh environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional adjustable mounts are used to support electrical devices, then adjustability is provided, but protection from harsh environments is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the mounting function and sealing function into a single integrated ball mount assembly. The ball mount includes an integrated seal that merges the protective enclosure features with the adjustable mounting features, allowing the device to be both adjustable and protected from harsh environments simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a nested structure where the electrical device is housed within a protective enclosure, which is in turn mounted on the ball mount assembly. The integrated seal is nested within the ball mount structure, creating multiple layers of protection while maintaining adjustability at the outer mounting interface.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If protective enclosures are used to house electrical devices, then protection from harsh conditions is improved, but adjustability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the protective system into distinct functional components: the protective enclosure, the ball mount assembly with integrated seal, and the mounting interface. This segmentation allows the enclosure to provide protection while the ball mount assembly provides adjustability, with the integrated seal connecting these functions without compromising either.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated seal acts as an intermediary element between the protective enclosure and the adjustable ball mount. It mediates between the need for sealed protection and the need for adjustable positioning, allowing both functions to coexist by providing a sealed connection point that interfaces with the adjustable mounting mechanism.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional mounts are used in harsh environments, then installation is simple, but reliability is reduced due to exposure to damaging conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the mounting function and sealing function into a single integrated ball mount assembly, maintaining installation simplicity while adding protection. The integrated design consolidates multiple functions into one component that can be installed as a single unit, preserving ease of installation while providing reliability through integrated environmental protection.
Data Source
AI summary
A ball mount assembly comprising a ball mount including a body having an opening and a base, the ball mount having an internal passage extending through the opening of the body in an axial direction of the ball mount; a compression fitting secured to the ball mount; and a sealing insert disposed in the internal passage of the ball mount, wherein the sealing insert is interposed between the compression fitting and the ball mount in the internal passage, and wherein the internal passage of the ball mount is defined by a first sidewall and a second sidewall.