Ball-and-Socket Latch With Rotating Yoke for Quick Release
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current ball-and-socket connections are often permanent, limiting customizability and increasing equipment costs, and those that allow removal often require complex locking mechanisms or restrict ball rotation.
Innovation Solution
A self-locking, quick-releasing, and self-releasing ball-and-socket latch system using a spring-loaded locking yoke that captures the ball upon full insertion and allows rotation within the socket, with manual or gravitational release options.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a permanent ball-and-socket connection is used, then connection reliability is improved, but adaptability and customizability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The locking yoke is designed to be dynamically positionable between locked and unlocked states, allowing the connection to transition from permanent to removable as needed. The yoke rotates about an axis to engage or disengage from the ball, providing both secure permanent connection and flexible adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the engagement parameter of the connection by rotating the locking yoke. When the yoke is in the engaged position, the connection is permanent and reliable; when rotated to the disengaged position, the connection becomes removable, enabling adaptability and customizability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a removable ball-and-socket connection is used, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity increases due to locking mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The locking function is segmented into a separate rotatable yoke component rather than being integrated into the socket or ball. This modular segmentation simplifies the overall design, allowing the locking mechanism to be independently optimized and reducing complexity in the main connection structure.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of using a complex multi-component locking mechanism, the invention inverts the approach by using a simple rotatable yoke that relies on gravity and basic mechanical engagement to provide locking. The release mechanism is simplified to merely rotating the yoke out of engagement, reducing overall device complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a locking mechanism is added to allow ball removal, then removability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to difficult or time-consuming operation
Solution Approach 1:
The locking yoke operates through periodic rotation to transition between locked and unlocked states. This periodic rotational action provides a simple, repeatable, and quick operation cycle, allowing rapid engagement and disengagement of the ball without complex multi-step procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking yoke is designed to be self-locking through gravity and mechanical engagement, eliminating the need for additional locking steps or tools. The user simply needs to rotate the yoke to engage or disengage, and the system automatically maintains the locked position without requiring active intervention, greatly simplifying operation.
4Reliability
If a locking mechanism is added to prevent easy release, then reliability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to restricted ball rotation
Solution Approach 1:
The locking yoke is designed to be dynamically positionable, allowing the ball to rotate freely within the socket when the yoke is in the engaged position. The yoke's rotational design accommodates ball movement while maintaining the locked state, preventing accidental release while preserving rotation freedom.
Solution Approach 2:
The yoke's geometry is asymmetrically designed with specific engagement surfaces that allow ball rotation in certain directions while preventing disengagement. The asymmetric shape enables the ball to rotate within the socket without causing the yoke to disengage, maintaining both reliability and operational freedom.
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
Enables easy capture and release of the ball, maintaining rotation freedom while reducing equipment costs and enhancing customizability through a simple and efficient mechanism.
Implementation Method 1
The yoke may be biased toward the closed position by, for example, a torsion spring at the axis of rotation
Implementation Method 2
gravity can act upon the shaft or any object attached to the shaft such that when the shaft or the object falls, the shaft rotates the locking yoke
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus according to embodiments of the present invention includes a socket having at least three ball support points to constrain a ball, and a yoke rotatably coupled to the socket, the yoke having an axis of rotation that intersects the ball when the ball is positioned in the socket, the yoke rotatable to a closed position in which the yoke captures the ball in the socket, and the yoke rotatable to an open position in which the yoke does not capture the ball in the socket. According to some embodiments, the yoke is biased in the closed position such as, for example, by a spring. The yoke may be rotationally coupled to the socket at one or more locations, and the axis of rotation may intersect the ball when the ball is in the socket either through the center of the ball or at an off-center location.