Cutting System for Complex Metallic Plate Geometries
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current cutting technologies are inadequate for producing precision parts with complex shapes and large dimensions in metallic or composite materials, as they often require extensive reworking and result in significant material waste, especially when dealing with materials of high hardness like aluminum, titanium, and carbon fiber composites.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a cutting system with a chain and guide that gradually penetrates a block of material, allowing for complex geometries and trajectories with multiple changes in direction, enabling the production of large dimension parts with reduced material loss by nesting multiple blanks within a single block.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If conventional sawing devices are used for cutting blocks of metallic or composite material, then straight trajectories can be achieved, but complex trajectories with numerous changes of direction cannot be formed
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting device employs a dynamic guide structure that can change its configuration during the cutting process. The guide includes movable elements that allow the cutting chain to follow complex trajectories with numerous changes of direction, transforming a static cutting system into a dynamic one capable of adapting to varying path requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide structure is divided into multiple segments or links that can independently move and adjust. This segmentation allows each portion of the guide to navigate around obstacles and follow complex paths within the block, enabling the cutting trajectory to change direction numerous times while maintaining control over the cutting chain.
2Quantity of substance
If blade or chain saw devices are used for cutting, then soft and fibrous materials can be cut, but metallic or composite materials of high hardness cannot be effectively cut
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting device utilizes changeable cutting elements with varying parameters. The guide can adjust the orientation, speed, and positioning of the cutting chain to optimize performance for different material hardness levels. This parameter adjustment allows the same device to effectively cut both soft fibrous materials and hard metallic or composite materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces conventional blade sawing mechanics with a chain-based cutting system guided through a complex guide structure. This substitution enables the transmission of cutting forces along flexible trajectories, allowing effective cutting of hard materials while maintaining the ability to handle soft materials through adjustable guide configurations.
3Manufacturing precision
If cutting devices are used for machining complex shapes, then precision can be improved, but machining time increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting device maintains continuous cutting action throughout the process by using a guided chain that can navigate complex trajectories without interruption. The guide structure ensures the cutting elements remain engaged with the material continuously, eliminating idle movement and maintaining precision while reducing total machining time through uninterrupted cutting.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide structure is pre-configured with the complete complex trajectory before cutting begins. This preliminary setup allows the cutting chain to follow the predetermined precise path from the start, eliminating the need for intermediate adjustments or repositioning, thereby maintaining manufacturing precision while significantly reducing machining time.
4Loss of substance
If conventional cutting methods are used for large dimension parts, then material waste increases, but nesting multiple blanks is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting device is specifically designed to nest multiple blanks within a single block of material. The guide structure can accommodate and cut multiple complementary shapes in a nested arrangement, allowing efficient utilization of the block's volume and minimizing material waste while managing the complexity through integrated guide design.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention utilizes three-dimensional nesting arrangements of blanks within the block, moving beyond simple two-dimensional layout. By arranging complementary shapes in nested configurations across multiple dimensions, the device maximizes material utilization and reduces waste while the guide structure manages the increased complexity through spatial optimization.
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4A~5
Figure 6~7
AI summary
The present invention relates to a set (1) of plates (2, 3; 12, 13; 21, 22; 41) or parts obtained by cutting a block (4, 4'', 4''', 35) of metal or composite material extending around a plane (5) comprising a first plate (2, 12, 21, 41) or part having an upper face (7, 33) and a second plate (3, 13, 22) or part having a lower face (8). The upper face (7, 33) of the first plate (2, 12, 21, 41) or part has a surface (7, 330) having at least two lines of inflection or changing slope with respect to said plane (5), and the lower face (8) of the second plate (3, 13, 22) or part has a surface (8) with a shape complementary to the upper face (7, 33) of the opposite first plate (2, 12, 21, 41) at a more or less constant height, corresponding to the height of the cutting line (34) in the block (4,35).