Curved Tooth Holder Joint for Dredging Cutter Wear
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tooth systems for cutter heads, particularly in dredging and earth-moving machinery, suffer from inadequate fixation between the holder and tooth portion, leading to wear and potential loss of teeth under high and unpredictable forces.
Innovation Solution
A tooth system with a holder and tooth member featuring complementary curved surfaces that increase the contact area, providing a more secure and robust connection, with a T-shaped cavity in the holder to enhance stability and prevent rotation, and stops for precise mounting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a traditional joint between holder and tooth portion is used, then the structure is simple, but the joint is not firmly fixed leading to wear and potential tooth loss under high forces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies curved surfaces to the joint between holder and tooth portion. The holder has a curved receiving surface while the tooth portion has a complementary curved mounting surface. This curved interface increases the contact area and distributes cutting forces more evenly across the joint, preventing wear and tooth loss while maintaining structural simplicity.
2Reliability
If the contact area between holder and tooth member is small, then the structure is simple, but wear occurs and teeth are lost under high forces
Solution Approach 1:
The curved surfaces on both the holder's receiving portion and the tooth member's mounting portion create an extended contact area. This curved interface geometry naturally increases the surface area in contact, distributing the cutting forces over a larger area and reducing wear while preventing tooth loss.
3Reliability
If curved surfaces with increased contact area are used, then wear is reduced and fixation is improved, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The curved surfaces are designed with practical radii of curvature that can be manufactured using standard machining operations. The curvature provides the necessary increased contact area and force distribution while remaining compatible with conventional manufacturing processes for holder and tooth portion fabrication.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a tooth system for a cutter head, the tooth system comprising; a tooth member comprising a cutting portion and a mounting portion with at least one curved surface, a holder comprising a receiving portion with a curved surface complementary to the at least one curved surface of the tooth member, the receiving portion for receiving the mounting portion of the tooth member, wherein the mounting portion of the tooth member detachably engages the holder such that when engaged, the at least one curved surface of the tooth member and the receiving portion curved surface contact each other at a contact area.