Clamp Assembly Bolt Retainer Adjustment Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing quick release clamp assemblies are difficult and awkward to adjust, requiring simultaneous adjustment of both nuts to change the bolt's position relative to the clamp arm, making precise and quick adjustments challenging.
Innovation Solution
A clamp assembly with a bolt retainer featuring an internally threaded bore parallel to the clamp arm's movement direction, allowing the bolt's length to be adjusted by rotation, and a jam nut to lock the bolt in place, enabling easy, accurate, and quick adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If both nuts are used to adjust the bolt position, then the bolt can be adjusted relative to the clamp arm, but the adjustment becomes difficult and awkward requiring simultaneous adjustment of both nuts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts one of the two nuts from the adjustment mechanism, leaving only a single nut that can be independently adjusted. This eliminates the complexity of coordinating two nuts and allows for simple, quick adjustment of the bolt position relative to the clamp arm by manipulating only one nut.
2Manufacturing precision
If both nuts must be adjusted simultaneously, then the bolt position can be changed, but the adjustment process becomes time-consuming and imprecise
Solution Approach 1:
By removing one nut from the dual-nut system, the patent enables precise adjustment of the bolt position without the time-consuming coordination required for simultaneous two-nut adjustment. The single nut can be quickly manipulated to achieve the desired bolt position, improving both precision and efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the adjustment function into a single independent nut rather than requiring coordinated action of two nuts. This segmentation allows the operator to focus on adjusting one component at a time, improving precision and reducing the time required for adjustment.
3Adaptability or versatility
If an elongated bore is formed in the clamp arm, then the bolt can be adjusted along the direction of movement, but the adjustment mechanism becomes complex requiring two nuts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent maintains the elongated bore for adjustability but extracts one of the two required nuts, simplifying the assembly to a single nut that can be manipulated independently. This preserves the versatility of adjusting the bolt position along the clamp arm's direction of movement while reducing the complexity of the nut and bolt assembly.
Data Source
AI summary
A clamp assembly having a base and an elongated clamp arm having one end pivotally mounted to the base. An elongated lever is pivotally secured to both the base and the clamp arm and movable between a first and second position which simultaneously pivots the clamp arm along a direction of movement between a hold position and a release position. A bolt retainer is attached to the free end of the clamp arm. The bolt retainer includes an internally threaded bore having an axis which extends substantially parallel to the direction of movement of the clamp arm. A bolt includes a portion threadably engaged in the threaded bore so that the effective length of the bolt is adjustable by rotation of the bolt in the bolt retainer bore.