Brake Assembly Cable Feedthrough for Explosion-Resistant Drives

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing drives lack safety features to operate effectively in potentially explosive environments and require complex maintenance procedures.

Innovation Solution

A drive design incorporating a gearbox, electromagnetically actuated brake arrangement, and electric motor with a sealing element and explosion-proof cable feedthrough, allowing manual brake release and enabling safe operation in explosive conditions, while facilitating cost-effective maintenance by non-specialized personnel.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If a conventional cable feedthrough is used in the brake assembly, then cable installation is simple, but the brake assembly cannot withstand explosion pressure and is unsafe for explosive environments

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveexplosion resistanceVSAvoidcable feedthrough structure
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The sealing element is inserted into a stepped bore that is nested within the first housing part. The screw nut is screwed into a threaded bore that is also nested within the first housing part. This nested structure allows the cable feedthrough to maintain explosion resistance while keeping the overall design compact and manageable.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

Solution Approach 2:

The cable feedthrough is divided into distinct functional segments: the stepped bore for sealing element accommodation, the threaded bore for screw nut installation, and the continuous recesses for cable passage. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently for its specific function while contributing to the overall explosion-resistant structure.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Reliability

If the brake assembly is designed for explosion resistance with sealed cable feedthrough, then safety in explosive environments is improved, but maintenance complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveexplosion resistanceVSAvoidmaintenance accessibility
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of repair

Solution Approach 1:

The brake assembly is designed as a extractable unit that can be removed as a complete assembly from the drive. This allows maintenance personnel to extract the entire brake assembly for servicing without disassembling the explosion-resistant housing, thereby maintaining safety while enabling maintenance.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The brake assembly incorporates manual release functionality that can be operated from the outside through the second housing part. This self-service feature allows operators to perform basic maintenance operations without specialized tools or extensive disassembly, reducing maintenance complexity while preserving explosion resistance.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Reliability

If the sealing element is made elastically deformable to ensure tight sealing, then explosion pressure resistance is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesealing effectivenessVSAvoidsealing element installation
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The sealing element is made elastically deformable specifically at the regions where it contacts the cables and pins passing through the continuous recesses. The stepped bore provides localized support structures that guide the sealing element into proper position. This localized elasticity approach ensures effective sealing without requiring the entire sealing element to be precisely manufactured to tight tolerances.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The sealing element's physical parameters are changed by making it elastically deformable rather than rigid. The screw nut is tightened to apply controlled force that deforms the sealing element elastically, causing it to expand and seal tightly against the wall of the stepped bore and the cables/pins. This parameter change from rigid to elastic allows for self-adjusting sealing that compensates for manufacturing variations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

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

Ensures explosion-pressure-resistant operation and reduces maintenance complexity, enhancing safety and operational reliability with features like wear monitoring and easy assembly/disassembly.

Implementation Method 1

The sealing element is made elastically deformable so that the sealing element rests tightly on the wall of the stepped bore on its outer circumference and also tightly on the cables and pins passing through the sealing element

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElastic deformation: Elasticity

Implementation Method 2

an electromagnetically actuated brake arrangement

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElectromagnetic actuation: Electromagnet

Data Source

PatentEP4441873B1Drive having a transmission with a transmission housing, an electromagnetically actuatable brake assembly and an electric motor
Publication Date: 2025.08.06 SEW EURODRIVE GMBH & CO KG
  • EP4441873B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4441873B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4441873B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The invention relates to a drive having a transmission with a transmission housing, an electromagnetically actuatable brake assembly and an electric motor, the brake assembly being arranged between the transmission and the electric motor, wherein a first bearing is received in a first housing part of the brake assembly and a second bearing is received in a second housing part of the brake assembly, wherein a shaft is rotatably mounted by means of the first and the second bearing, and the shaft is connected to a toothing part of the transmission in a rotationally fixed manner, wherein the shaft protrudes through a magnetic body of the brake assembly, and the shaft is connected to a brake lining carrier in a rotationally fixed manner, the brake lining carrier being arranged between the first and the second bearing in the axial direction, wherein a cable lead-through is arranged in the first housing part and has a screw nut and a sealing element, the sealing element being introduced into a stepped bore and the screw nut being screwed into a threaded bore of the first housing part, wherein the threaded bore is aligned coaxially to the stepped bore and the screw nut rests on the sealing element.