Cable Tie Head With Dual Apertures for Reduced-Waste Strap Feeding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cable tie systems require separate molding of securement features into the strap and often necessitate cutting to length, which leads to waste and increased costs, and welding operations are limited by tool size and material requirements.
Innovation Solution
A cable tie head with two side-by-side apertures and pre-installed fasteners allows a continuous strap to be fed through and secured without additional molding or welding, using fasteners to lock the strap ends to the head, enabling precise length usage and reducing waste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a pawl or barb fixing mechanism is used in the cable tie head, then the strap can be prevented from moving backward through the head, but the strap must be cut to length prior to installation and requires secondary processing
Solution Approach 1:
The fixing mechanism is divided into separate components: a barb element integrated in the head and a pawl element that can be temporarily displaced. This segmentation allows the strap to be fed through without permanent locking, eliminating the need for pre-cutting while maintaining secure positioning during installation.
Solution Approach 2:
The pawl element is designed to be temporarily displacable during installation, transitioning from a locked state to an unlocked state. This dynamic behavior allows the fixing mechanism to adapt during installation, permitting continuous strap feeding without requiring pre-cutting or secondary processing.
2Productivity
If the pawl or barb is temporarily defeated to feed continuous strap, then continuous installation is enabled, but additional strap length must be discarded
Solution Approach 1:
The barb element is pre-positioned in the head to guide the strap through the aperture. This preliminary arrangement enables continuous strap feeding without requiring temporary defeat of the fixing mechanism, eliminating the need to discard additional strap length while maintaining installation efficiency.
3Manufacturing precision
If welding is used to secure the strap, then precise length usage is achieved, but specific geometry and material properties are required increasing costs
Solution Approach 1:
The welding process is replaced with a purely mechanical fastening system using barbs and pawls integrated in the head. This mechanical system achieves precise strap length usage without requiring specific material properties or complex tooling, eliminating the need for welding operations while maintaining manufacturing precision.
Data Source
AI summary
A fastening device includes: a head having: a first strap aperture; a second strap aperture; a first fastener receiving area; and a second fastener receiving area. The first strap aperture intersects the first fastener receiving area. The second strap aperture intersects the second fastener receiving area. In an embodiment, the first strap aperture and the second strap aperture each have a same shape, and the first fastener receiving area and the second fastener receiving area each have a same shape.