Blade Assembly Flange with Embossment and Welding Depression
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for attaching blades to rotating shafts in powered agricultural equipment, such as rotary tillers, are inefficient and costly, leading to increased production costs and potential blade loosening or breakage due to high shear loads.
Innovation Solution
A flange design with a central axially oriented shaft hole and embossments that inhibit blade rotation, allowing for single-fastener attachment and reduced manufacturing costs, along with a lip for added strength and a depression for robotic welding, enabling efficient and secure blade retention on the shaft.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional multi-fastener attachment methods are used, then blade retention reliability is improved, but manufacturing cost and assembly complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple attachment functions into a single integrated flange structure with a central shaft hole and peripheral blade holes. The flange merges the functions of shaft mounting, blade positioning, and fastener attachment into one component, eliminating the need for separate attachment mechanisms while maintaining secure blade retention through its geometric design featuring embossments and lips.
2Reliability
If traditional attachment methods are used, then blade security is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flange is designed with segmented functional zones: a central shaft hole for mounting, peripheral blade holes for attachment, embossments for positioning, and lips for reinforcement. This segmentation allows each feature to be optimized independently for its specific function while being manufactured as a single integrated component, reducing overall manufacturing cost through consolidation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs geometric parameter changes in the form of embossments (protrusions) and lips (edge extensions) that modify the flange's physical dimensions and structural properties. These parameter changes enhance blade security through mechanical interlocking and stress distribution without requiring additional materials or complex manufacturing processes.
3Strength
If heavier materials are used for blade attachment, then attachment strength is improved, but assembly weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flange design integrates multiple material properties and structural features within a single component, effectively creating a composite structure. The combination of the flat plate base material with added embossment and lip features creates a composite system that achieves enhanced attachment strength through geometric reinforcement rather than solely relying on increased material mass or heavier alloys.
Data Source
AI summary
A flange for securing a rotary blade to a shaft that includes a solid plate with: an axially oriented shaft hole substantially in the center of the plate; two or more additional blade holes for securing a blade to the flange; an embossment around the shaft hole, providing a profile for stopping blade rotation about the blade hole; and a depression on the back face of the plate opposite the embossment, which provides a welding surface to secure the plate to a shaft passing through the shaft hole. Also are assemblages that include a flange, such as a blade assembly system for attaching two or more blades to a shaft, a bladed shaft, an attachable farm implement including a bladed shaft, and a powered machine, which includes a bladed shaft.