Deep-Water Feedthrough Bore Sealing for Pressure-Stable Enclosures
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Solution Overview
Problem
Deep-water exploration is hindered by the challenge of protecting electronic components from extreme high pressures, as conventional metal enclosures are heavy, expensive, and difficult to design and manufacture, while existing solutions compromise structural stability and leak-proofing when coupling components internally and externally.
Innovation Solution
The development of enclosures with a feedthrough mechanism that uses non-metal materials, featuring a housing with a non-tapered and tapered bore for feedthrough pins, surrounded by potting material, and an impermeable envelope with a sealing structure, such as heat shrink tubing, to maintain structural stability and prevent leakage at high pressures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If conventional metal enclosures are used to protect electronic components from high pressure, then structural strength is improved, but weight and manufacturing cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs composite material construction for the enclosure, combining multiple materials with complementary properties. The housing integrates rigid structural elements for strength with lighter materials to reduce overall weight, creating a composite structure that achieves both high strength-to-weight ratio and pressure resistance suitable for deep-water applications
Solution Approach 2:
The invention utilizes parameter changes in material selection and structural configuration to optimize the enclosure's mechanical properties. By adjusting wall thickness, material composition, and geometric parameters of the housing, the design achieves adequate structural strength without requiring excessive material that would increase weight
2Strength
If conventional metal enclosures are used to protect electronic components from high pressure, then structural strength is improved, but manufacturing cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The enclosure is divided into modular segments including a housing, envelope, and feedthrough assembly. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured separately using optimized processes and then assembled, reducing overall manufacturing complexity and enabling standardized production of pressure-resistant enclosures
Solution Approach 2:
The composite construction approach enables the use of materials and manufacturing processes that are more easily formed and assembled than traditional metal enclosures, while still achieving the required structural strength through the combined properties of the composite structure
3Adaptability or versatility
If feedthrough pins are used to couple internal and external components, then component connectivity is improved, but structural stability and leak-proofing are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary sealing structure around the feedthrough pins that acts as a mediator between the penetrating pin and the pressure boundary. This sealing intermediary maintains the pressure barrier while allowing the feedthrough pin to pass through and establish electrical or data connectivity between internal and external components
Solution Approach 2:
The envelope surrounding the housing employs flexible sealing structures and thin-film barrier materials that can accommodate the presence of feedthrough pins while maintaining integrity against high external pressure. These flexible sealing elements conform around the pins and maintain the pressure boundary without compromising leak-proofing
4Adaptability or versatility
If feedthrough pins are used to couple internal and external components, then component connectivity is improved, but structural stability is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing structure serves as a stabilizing intermediary that distributes and manages the mechanical stresses introduced by the feedthrough pins. By providing a compliant yet structurally sound interface around each pin, the sealing structure maintains overall enclosure stability while permitting component connectivity
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible sealing structures and thin-film envelope materials provide stress distribution and compliance that maintains structural stability in the presence of feedthrough pins. These materials can deform locally to accommodate pin insertion and pressure differential while maintaining overall structural integrity
Data Source
AI summary
An enclosure structure suitable for high-pressure environments includes a feedthrough for coupling components housed within the enclosure structure to components external to the enclosure structure. The enclosure structure includes a housing comprising one or more cavities for receiving one or more electronic components within an interior of the housing and a bore through the housing. The one or more electronic components comprises a connector element and the bore comprises a non-tapered portion and a tapered portion. The non-tapered portion is proximate to the interior of the housing and the tapered portion is proximate to the exterior of the housing. The bore is configured to receive a feedthrough pin for coupling the connector element to an external component external to the enclosure structure. The enclosure structure also includes a feedthrough pin extending through the bore and a potting material disposed within the tapered portion surrounding the feedthrough pin.