Box Joint Medical Forceps Manufacturing Method
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for manufacturing medical instruments with box joints are inefficient and difficult, requiring early assembly that prevents proper cleaning and polishing of the pivot areas, leading to increased costs and reduced manufacturing efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus for manufacturing medical instruments with box joints that eliminates the need for early assembly by forming the male and female parts in a way that allows for separate cleaning and polishing before assembly, using complementary mating means to rigidly couple the parts together through a channel, enabling better assembly and finishing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the box joint is assembled early in the manufacturing cycle by spreading the walls of the female portion, then the assembly can be completed, but the pivot area cannot be properly cleaned and polished
Solution Approach 1:
The second half-body is divided into two separate pieces (first piece and second piece) that are joined together. The male box joint portion is formed on the first piece, and the complementary mating means are distributed across both pieces. This segmentation allows the parts to be manufactured, cleaned, and polished separately before final assembly, resolving the contradiction between early assembly and surface finishing quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The male and female box joint portions are prepared in advance with precise dimensions and surface treatments before assembly. The mating means are pre-formed on separate pieces, allowing thorough cleaning and polishing of all surfaces including the pivot areas before the final joining operation, thereby eliminating the need for post-assembly polishing.
2Ease of manufacture
If the conventional method of heating and spreading walls is used, then the box joint can be assembled, but the manufacturing process becomes difficult and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The conventional thermal process (heating with propane torch and manual spreading) is replaced with a mechanical forming process. The male and female box joint portions are formed using machining or forming operations during the blank processing stage, eliminating the need for thermal expansion and manual wall spreading, thereby simplifying the process and improving manufacturing efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The box joint portions are formed in advance during the blank machining stage rather than being assembled later through complex thermal processes. The male portion is formed on one blank and the female portion on another, allowing standard manufacturing techniques to be used instead of specialized heating and spreading operations.
3Ease of manufacture
If the male portion is inserted through the channel after walls are spread, then assembly is achieved, but the pivot area remains inaccessible for finishing
Solution Approach 1:
By dividing the second half-body into two pieces joined by complementary mating means, the design allows all surfaces including the pivot areas to be accessible during the manufacturing and finishing stages. The joint is assembled after finishing rather than before, ensuring high surface quality on all components.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of assembling the box joint first and then attempting to finish the surfaces (which is impossible), the invention inverts the sequence: all components are manufactured and finished to high precision first, then assembled using the complementary mating means. This reversal of the conventional sequence solves the surface finishing problem.
Data Source
Figure 1~3A
Figure 4
Figure 5
AI summary
An embodiment in accordance with the present invention provides a medical forceps having an improved method of manufacture thereof. The method of the present invention includes a method of forming, assembling and manufacturing a medical tool, such as a medical forceps, which has a box joint, the method eliminating the need for initial assembly of the box joint through spreading apart the sidewalls of the female box joint portion. The present invention thereby allows for better cleaning and polishing of the male and female pivot areas around the box joint portion prior to final assembly of the device.