Disposable Pull-Through Applicator for Rifled Gun Barrel Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pull-through devices for cleaning rifled gun barrels struggle to effectively reach and clean the spiraled grooves due to their design limitations, which often result in incomplete cleaning and increased costs for durable, multi-use systems.
Innovation Solution
A disposable pull-through applicator assembly featuring a braided cord with an open mesh structure that surrounds a fibrous applicator body, allowing for enhanced contact with the rifled grooves and improved fluid retention, fabricated from biodegradable materials to reduce manufacturing costs and enable single-use disposable units.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a thick sleeve is used to contact the bore of the gun barrel, then the structural integrity and durability are improved, but the ability of the surface to conform to the internal radial geometry of the barrel (e.g., spiral grooves formed in the barrel for rifling) deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a thin-walled collapsible container made of flexible material that can deform and conform to the internal geometry of the rifled barrel. This thin-walled structure replaces the traditional thick sleeve, allowing the container to adapt to spiral grooves and rifling patterns while maintaining sufficient structural integrity through its collapsible design.
Solution Approach 2:
The container is designed to be collapsible and dynamic in structure, allowing it to change shape and size as it moves through the barrel. This dynamic characteristic enables the container to compress and expand, facilitating better contact with the rifled surfaces while maintaining durability through controlled deformation.
2Ease of manufacture
If a disposable unit is used, then the manufacturing cost is reduced and ease of manufacture is improved, but the durability over multiple uses deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a disposable pull-through applicator designed for single-use. The entire assembly including the collapsible container, fibrous material, and dispensing system is constructed to be inexpensive and easily manufactured, allowing it to be discarded after one use. This eliminates the need for complex durability considerations while maintaining effective cleaning performance during the single operational cycle.
Solution Approach 2:
The applicator is designed as a segmented, modular disposable unit where the collapsible container, fibrous material, and dispensing mechanisms are integrated into a single-use assembly. This segmentation allows for simplified manufacturing processes and reduces the complexity associated with making durable, reusable systems.
3Productivity
If the fibrous applicator body is exposed through open mesh, then the contact with rifled grooves is enhanced and cleaning performance is improved, but the fluid retention capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different structural characteristics to different parts of the applicator. The container wall is designed with localized open mesh or porous sections where contact with rifled grooves is needed, while other portions maintain sufficient density for fluid retention. This local differentiation allows the applicator to simultaneously achieve enhanced cleaning performance and adequate solvent capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The applicator employs composite construction combining materials with different properties - such as hydrophobic outer layers for structural integrity and fluid retention, and hydrophilic or open-mesh sections for enhanced contact and cleaning action. This composite approach allows simultaneous optimization of fluid retention and cleaning effectiveness.
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 solution provides superior cleaning performance by allowing deeper penetration into rifled grooves and efficient fluid delivery, while being cost-effective and environmentally friendly, addressing the limitations of traditional pull-through devices.
Implementation Method 1
The fibrous applicator body can be fabricated from an absorbent material (e.g., cotton), which assists in retention of the liquid being dispensed by the applicator
Implementation Method 2
The body is oversized relative to the bore of the gun barrel to be cleaned, so that the body exerts a radial force against the interior surface of the bore when inserted into the barrel
Data Source
AI summary
A pull-through applicator assembly for maintenance of a gun barrel. The pull-through applicator assembly is a unitary, disposable, and configured for easy manufacturing relative to conventional pull-through assemblies. The economics of the disclosed pull-through applicator assembly is sufficient to permit packaging and sale as a disposable unit, for discarding after a single use. The single-use aspect enables the fibrous body to be configured primarily for compliance to the internal geometry of the gun barrel (e.g., the grooves of the rifling) without need for considering the durability over multiple uses. Accordingly, enhanced contact with the internal geometry of the gun barrel is realized in the convenient form of a pull-through applicator that is disposable. The pull-through applicator may be configured of biodegradable materials to enhance the disposable aspect.