Disassemblable Suction Box With Sealed Parts for Strength and Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing suction boxes for grippers are not optimized for mechanical strength and are difficult to clean, leading to fouling and potential degradation of gripping performance, while also being heavy and costly.
Innovation Solution
A dismountable suction box design with a first and second portion that can adopt an assembled configuration for gripping and a disassembled configuration for cleaning, featuring a recess and a seal, and optionally a bumper, to enhance rigidity and reduce weight through composite materials and machining.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the suction box is made as a single integrated structure, then the mechanical strength is improved, but the ease of cleaning deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The suction box is divided into multiple separable portions (first portion, second portion, and optionally third portion) that can be detached from each other. This segmentation allows each portion to be independently cleaned while maintaining the overall structural integrity when assembled, resolving the contradiction between mechanical strength and ease of cleaning.
2Ease of operation
If the suction box is made dismountable for cleaning, then the ease of cleaning is improved, but the mechanical strength deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple portions of the suction box are combined through sealing elements and connection mechanisms to form a unified structure during operation. The sealing elements ensure airtight connections between portions, while the mechanical design of the connection interfaces maintains structural strength equivalent to or approaching that of an integrated structure, thus resolving the contradiction between dismountability and mechanical strength.
3Strength
If traditional materials like aluminum or stainless steel are used, then the mechanical strength is improved, but the weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The suction box portions are manufactured using composite materials such as carbon fiber reinforced polymers or other high-strength-to-weight ratio materials. These composite materials provide mechanical strength comparable to traditional metals while significantly reducing the weight, thus resolving the contradiction between strength and weight.
4Strength
If the suction box is made from thick materials to increase strength, then the mechanical strength is improved, but the weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The suction box portions are designed with varying thickness and reinforcement only where structurally necessary, rather than uniformly thick construction. Critical areas such as connection interfaces and high-stress regions are locally reinforced, while other areas use thinner material, optimizing the strength-to-weight ratio and resolving the contradiction between strength and weight.
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
The design allows for easy cleaning, maintains mechanical strength, reduces weight, and enhances gripping efficiency while minimizing waste and assembly complexity.
Implementation Method 1
a suction box configured to selectively adopt an assembled configuration in which a mechanical connection is established between the first and second portions so as to delimit respectively a first wall of the suction box and a second wall of the suction box opposite to the first wall, each of the first and second walls partially defining, in the assembled configuration, a suction cavity of the suction box
Data Source
AI summary
The suction box for a gripper includes first and second parts, one of the parts being intended to be coupled to at least one contact member of the gripper, the contact member being intended to come into contact with at least one object to be seized by the gripper, and the other of the parts being intended to be in fluidic communication with a vacuum generator, the suction box being configured to selectively adopt an assembled configuration in which a mechanical connection is established between the parts or a disassembled configuration in which the mechanical connection is cancelled. In the assembled configuration and in the disassembled configuration, the first part delimits an indentation. In the assembled configuration, the indentation participates in delimiting the suction cavity of the suction box. The suction box includes a seal which, in the assembled configuration, is interposed between the first and second parts.