Conveyor Chain Link Asymmetric Corner Design for Material Waste Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional conveyor chain links suffer from significant material losses during manufacturing due to the need for clamping zones and asymmetrical stamped structures, which increase production costs.
Innovation Solution
The corner face portion of the chain link connects at an angle to the side face portion, eliminating the need for clamping zones along the short side and allowing for a sharp-cornered, kinked transition at the outer corners, thereby optimizing material usage and reducing waste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If rounded corner face portions are used to connect side face portions smoothly, then the conveying body has a smooth peripheral edge, but clamping zones are required during punching which causes material loss
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by changing the corner face portion from a rounded shape to a shape with an angled connection (e.g., 45-degree angle) to the side face portion. This asymmetric design eliminates the need for clamping zones during punching while maintaining structural integrity and smooth appearance through selective rounding only at specific locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by selectively rounding only the top section of the peripheral edge (coined top section) while leaving the corner face portions with angled connections to side face portions. This localized rounding maintains the smooth appearance where needed (contact surface) while eliminating material loss at the corners during manufacturing.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional stamped structures with clamping zones are used, then manufacturing is straightforward, but significant material losses occur during production
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by designing the corner face portions to connect at specific angles (e.g., 45 degrees) to the side face portions rather than using symmetric rounded corners. This asymmetric configuration allows the punch tool to overlap the longitudinal side face without requiring clamping zones, eliminating material loss while maintaining ease of manufacture through simple punching operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent inverts the conventional approach by eliminating the clamping zone requirement through the angled corner face design. Instead of designing around the clamping zone constraint, the invention reconfigures the corner geometry so that the punch tool naturally creates the desired shape by overlapping the sheet metal edge, turning a manufacturing constraint into a design feature.
3Loss of substance
If the punch tool overlaps the longitudinal side face to form corner face portions, then material usage is optimized, but the connection between side face and corner face becomes angular rather than smooth
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by selectively applying different surface treatments to different locations. The corner face portions maintain angular connections for material efficiency, while the top section (coined top section) receives selective rounding to provide a smooth appearance and contact surface. This localized quality differentiation resolves the contradiction between angular connections and smooth appearance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies asymmetry by creating an asymmetric profile where the corner face portions have angular connections to the side face portions, but the top section has a rounded profile. This asymmetric design allows the angular connections to optimize material usage while the rounded top section maintains aesthetic and functional smoothness where required.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
The disclosure relates to a chain link (1) for a conveyor chain, comprising a planar elongate sheet metal conveying body (3) having four outer corners (4) and sides that extend between adjacent outer corners, the sides including a pair of opposing long sides (5), and a pair of opposing short sides (6) that extend between the long sides, the sides further including side face portions (7) that extend substantially transversely to a conveying plane (9) of the conveying body, and wherein at each of the outer corners, the conveying body may include a corner face portion (8) that extends transversely to the conveying plane, and that connects angularly to a side face portion of a short side. Alternatively or in addition, one of the sides, in particular a long side, may include a stamped side face portion presenting a stamped structure and at least one of the other sides, in particular a short side, include may a slit side face portion presenting a slit structure. The disclosure also relates to a conveyor chain comprising chain links, a blank (16) for a chain link and method of manufacturing a blank for a chain link.