Temporary Collet Fastener for Low-Force Clamping and Removal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing temporary fasteners often require high insertion force, cause work piece deformation, and are difficult to remove due to inadequate design features, leading to inefficiencies in holding and releasing components.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a collet body with a converging progressive radial profile, a translatable central body, and anti-rotation mechanisms, allowing for reduced insertion force, minimized deformation, and enhanced removability by utilizing memory or malleable materials and geometric features like slots and protrusions to facilitate radial displacement and secure alignment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If conventional temporary fasteners are used, then work pieces can be held together, but high insertion force is required and work piece deformation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The collet body is designed with a converging progressive radial profile that changes the geometric parameters along its length, creating a gradual taper that reduces insertion force while maintaining gripping effectiveness. This parameter change allows the fastener to be inserted with lower force and minimizes deformation of the work pieces.
Solution Approach 2:
The collet body is segmented into multiple fingers created by secondary slots, allowing each finger to independently deform and converge during insertion. This segmentation enables the gripping surfaces to progressively engage the work pieces with reduced force and minimized deformation.
2Ease of operation
If conventional fastener designs are used, then work pieces can be held together, but the fasteners are difficult to remove
Solution Approach 1:
The fastener employs a translatable central body that can actively displace the collet body fingers radially outward, dynamically changing the gripping force. This dynamic mechanism allows easy translation of the central body to release the collet's grip on the work pieces, significantly improving removability and reducing the time required for fastener removal.
Solution Approach 2:
The translatable central body acts as an intermediary mechanism between the operator and the collet body. By translating this central body, the collet fingers are passively displaced outward, providing a mechanical advantage that makes removal easy without requiring direct force application to the collet itself.
3Reliability
If the collet body extends past the distal work piece, then proper clamping is achieved, but high insertion force and collet wear result
Solution Approach 1:
The converging progressive radial profile changes the radius measurements along the collet body axis, creating an optimized geometry that allows the distal end to extend past the work piece for proper clamping while minimizing the insertion force required to achieve this extension.
Solution Approach 2:
The collet body's geometric profile is pre-configured with a converging progressive radial profile that automatically guides the insertion process, preliminarily preparing the gripping surfaces to engage the work pieces in the correct sequence and manner, reducing the force needed to achieve proper clamping extension.
4Ease of manufacture
If the collet body has a constant radial profile, then manufacturing is simpler, but insertion force is high and work piece deformation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of a constant radial profile, the collet body employs a converging progressive radial profile where the radius measurements change along the axis. This parameter change creates a gradual taper that reduces insertion force and minimizes work piece deformation, while still being manufacturable using standard machining processes.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the collet body have different radial profiles tailored to their specific functions. The converging progressive profile in the gripping section reduces insertion force and deformation, while other sections maintain simpler geometries for manufacturing and assembly, applying local quality optimization throughout the structure.
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 configuration minimizes insertion force, reduces work piece deformation, and improves removability, making the fasteners more efficient and effective in holding and releasing components with minimal wear.
Implementation Method 1
utilizing memory or malleable materials and geometric features like slots and protrusions to facilitate radial displacement
Implementation Method 2
utilizing memory or malleable materials and geometric features like slots and protrusions to facilitate radial displacement
Implementation Method 3
collet bodies with a converging progressive radial profile for the first wall portion, e.g., the fingers. This profile minimizes the insertion force necessary
Implementation Method 4
the translatable central body functions to actively and/or passively displace and/or converge or restore radially displaceable portions of the collet body
Implementation Method 5
anti-rotation mechanisms, allowing for reduced insertion force, minimized deformation, and enhanced removability by utilizing memory or malleable materials and geometric features like slots and protrusions
Data Source
AI summary
A fastener is provided that includes a housing body including a bore extending along a longitudinal axis from a proximal end of the housing body, a housing body anti-rotation part, and a reduced diameter opening at a distal end of the housing body, a collet body partially translating within the housing body bore, having a collet body anti-rotation part positioned at least partially within the housing body, and a plurality of clamping fingers axially extending from a wall portion of the collet body, and a removable bushing positioned at least partially in the housing body bore. Rotation of the collet body is substantially prevented by an interaction between the housing body anti-rotation part and the collet body anti-rotation part during fastener clamping and unclamping and the removable bushing and the reduced diameter opening in the bore prevent escapement of the collet body anti-rotation part from the housing body.