Casket Hardware Attachment Clevis and Resilient Ear Wedging
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing structures for attaching decorative ornaments to caskets lack efficiency and security, as they do not provide a reliable method for snugly attaching and restraining the ornaments against vertical movement.
Innovation Solution
The proposed hardware includes a clevis with laterally extending tabs and a decorative ear with resilient arms and tabs, which, through a wedging mechanism, securely attach and restrain the ear against the casket shell wall, preventing vertical movement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional fastening structures are used to attach decorative ornaments to casket shells, then the attachment process is simple, but the security and reliability of the attachment is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment structure is divided into multiple functional components: a clevis with lateral tabs for horizontal positioning, resilient arms with tabs for vertical restraint, and a decorative ear with recesses. Each segment performs a specific function, collectively providing secure attachment while maintaining reasonable complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient arms are received within recesses of the decorative ear, creating a nested configuration. The tabs of the resilient arms engage with the clevis tabs through this nested arrangement, allowing the components to work together in a compact, integrated manner that enhances security without excessive complexity.
2Reliability
If simple attachment methods are used for decorative ornaments, then the manufacturing process is efficient, but the ornaments cannot be restrained against vertical movement
Solution Approach 1:
The resilient arms are designed with varying thickness parameters - thinner at the free end for flexibility and engagement, and thicker at the base for structural strength. This gradient in thickness allows the arms to provide vertical restraint through elastic deformation while remaining manufacturable using standard forming processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient arms utilize elastic deformation to dynamically adapt to the engagement process. During assembly, the arms flex to allow the tabs to pass between the clevis tabs and shell wall, then spring back to provide continuous vertical restraint force, ensuring reliable positioning without complex mechanical constraints.
3Reliability
If decorative ears are securely attached to prevent movement, then the aesthetic integrity is maintained, but the attachment structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple attachment functions are merged into a single integrated hardware assembly. The clevis, resilient arms, and decorative ear work together as a unified attachment mechanism that simultaneously provides horizontal positioning, vertical restraint, and aesthetic coverage of the fastener, reducing the need for separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient arms act as intermediary elements between the clevis and the decorative ear. These arms transmit and distribute the attachment forces, mediating the interaction between the rigid clevis and the decorative ear while providing flexibility and restraint, thereby simplifying the overall force transmission path.
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 solution ensures a secure and efficient attachment of decorative ornaments to caskets, providing horizontal snugness and vertical restraint, thereby enhancing the aesthetic and structural integrity of the casket.
Implementation Method 1
a pair of tapered resilient arms each of which is located on a respective side of the recess, each resilient arm having a laterally inwardly projecting tab on a lower free end thereof
Implementation Method 2
further downward movement of the ear relative to the clevis causes a wedging effect of the clevis tabs on the arms to snug the ear generally horizontally rearwardly against the casket shell wall
Data Source
AI summary
Hardware for a casket comprises a clevis having a pair of side walls, a back wall adapted to be attached to the casket shell wall, a pair of tabs each of which extends laterally outwardly from a respective one of the side walls and each of which is spaced forwardly from the rear wall, an arm pivoted at an upper end to the clevis, and a decorative ear having a downwardly facing recess in a lower edge thereof and a pair of tapered resilient arms each of which is located on a respective side of the recess, each resilient arm having a laterally inwardly projecting tab on a lower free end thereof, each resilient arm becoming progressively thicker from the free end toward a base thereof as measured in a direction generally normal to the casket shell wall.