Break Away Energy Absorber With Staggered Binder Elements
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing break away energy absorbers in personal fall arrestor systems fail prematurely under higher loads than expected, leading to uncontrolled rupturing and increased risk of injury due to lateral deviation of the break pattern from the desired parting line.
Innovation Solution
A break away energy absorber design featuring two ply webbings with longitudinally extended exterior and interior binder elements, subdivided into staggered tear away sections and control sections, to manage energy absorption uniformly and prevent premature failure, with binder elements arranged to maintain alignment along the parting line.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If tear away binder elements are used to provide clean uniform break away pattern, then the break away function is improved, but the absorber fails prematurely under higher loads due to uncontrolled rupturing and lateral deviation from parting line
Solution Approach 1:
The energy absorber is divided into multiple tear away sections spaced apart along its length, with each section containing binder elements that can rupture independently. This segmentation prevents simultaneous uncontrolled rupturing across the entire absorber, allowing controlled progressive failure that maintains the break pattern along the parting line while accommodating higher loads.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the energy absorber have different local properties - the tear away sections have binder elements arranged for controlled rupture at specific locations, while intermediate control sections have binder elements arranged to maintain alignment. This local differentiation ensures that rupture occurs only where intended, preventing lateral deviation while distributing the load across multiple sections.
2Ease of operation
If binder elements are arranged to connect plys running through tear away sections, then the break away function is enhanced, but the absorber experiences early failure under expected fall loads
Solution Approach 1:
The binder elements are arranged in a periodic pattern, running through tear away sections and control sections in alternating sequence. This periodic arrangement allows the absorber to undergo multiple controlled rupture events at different locations along its length, distributing the energy absorption over time and preventing premature failure while maintaining the break away function.
Solution Approach 2:
The binder elements are pre-positioned and pre-arranged in specific patterns within the tear away and control sections during manufacturing. This preliminary arrangement ensures that under expected fall loads, the binder elements rupture in a controlled sequence along the parting line rather than failing simultaneously or laterally, maintaining both break away function and load bearing capacity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the absorber is designed to accommodate higher loads, then the safety margin is improved, but the break away pattern deviates laterally from the parting line causing rapid failure
Solution Approach 1:
Intermediate control sections act as intermediary elements between tear away sections. These control sections contain binder elements that maintain alignment and serve as mediators that guide the rupture propagation from one tear away section to the next, ensuring that even under higher loads, the break pattern remains aligned with the parting line and does not deviate laterally.
Solution Approach 2:
The energy absorber is designed with dynamic characteristics that allow it to adapt to varying load conditions. The staggered arrangement of tear away and control sections creates a progressive failure mechanism that dynamically adjusts the rupture sequence based on the applied load, maintaining break pattern alignment while accommodating higher than normal loads without lateral deviation.
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
The solution effectively decelerates a falling worker's descent under high loads, maintaining a uniform break pattern and reducing the risk of injury by distributing the load through series of short duration energy pulses, meeting revised ANSI standards for elongation and average arresting force.
Implementation Method 1
The binder elements normally rupture at loads that are a little over seven hundred pounds
Implementation Method 2
The energy absorbers manufactured to meet the ANSI standard are designed to lessen the force of impact at termination
Data Source
AI summary
An energy absorber for use in a personal fall arresting system wherein a pair of webbing are held together by tear away binder elements which are arranged to rupture under controlled conditions to prevent failure of the absorber when experiencing high load conditions.