Cap Frame Alignment via Elastic Retaining Member
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing cap frame design for embroidery machines often results in misalignment of the cap's center line with the frame, making the process of aligning a cap with the cap frame cumbersome and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A cap frame design featuring a body member with a curved wall and a retaining member that includes a clamping portion made of elastic material, along with engagement and guide portions, allows for easier alignment by conforming to the shape of the curved wall and securely attaching to the body member, enabling simpler cap alignment and secure holding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the retaining member is fixed to the body member using a screw at one end portion, then the retaining member can be securely attached to the body member, but the alignment of the cap center line with the cap frame becomes difficult and cumbersome
Solution Approach 1:
The retaining member is divided into multiple engagement portions (first engagement portion at one end, second engagement portion at the other end) that can independently engage with corresponding portions on the body member. This segmentation allows the retaining member to be attached securely while enabling easier alignment, as the multiple engagement points provide guidance and stability during the alignment process.
Solution Approach 2:
The engagement portions are designed to facilitate preliminary alignment before final attachment. The first and second engagement portions can initially engage with the body member to establish proper alignment of the cap center line with the cap frame, and only after this preliminary alignment is achieved are the retaining member and body member fully secured together.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the retaining member is made of flexible material and deformed into an arc shape, then the retaining member can conform to the cap shape and hold it securely, but the attachment process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The retaining member is designed with flexibility to dynamically adapt its shape. It can be deformed into an arc shape to conform to the cap's crown during attachment, and the engagement portions are designed to accommodate this dynamic shaping process. The flexible material allows the retaining member to be molded or bent into the required arc shape while maintaining structural integrity for secure attachment.
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
This design simplifies the alignment process and securely holds the cap, reducing the likelihood of misalignment and enhancing the overall efficiency of cap framing for embroidery machines.
Implementation Method 1
The clamping portion may be made of elastic material. The clamping portion may be configured to, in a state where the retaining member is attached to the body member, be elastically deformed in conformance with the curved wall and press, toward the curved wall, the cap sandwiched between the curved wall and the clamping portion.
Data Source
AI summary
A cap frame includes a body member including an arc-shaped curved wall extending in a particular direction, a retaining member including a clamping portion made of elastic material and first and second engagement portions disposed at end portions of the clamping portion in the particular direction, and an attaching portion. In a state where the retaining member is attached to the body member, the retaining member holds a cap between the retaining member itself and the body member. The clamping portion is elastically deformed in conformance with the curved wall and presses the cap toward the curved wall. The body member includes third and fourth engagement portions engageable with the first and second engagement portions, respectively, and first and second guide portions that define movable directions of the first and second engagement portions as first and second guide directions, respectively, and their opposite directions.