Ventilation Duct Corner Bracket With Smooth Anti-Nesting Surfaces

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing corner brackets for ventilation ducts have sharp-edged projections that cause injuries, lead to incorrect positioning, and result in damaged components during assembly, and lack sufficient stability and sealing efficiency.

Innovation Solution

The development of corner brackets with flat and smooth surfaces, offset clamping claws, and solid material construction to prevent injuries and ensure secure, stable connections, featuring longitudinal ribs and clamping claws that grip the duct wall for secure positioning and sealing.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Stability of the object's composition

If sharp-edged projections are used to prevent nesting of stacked angle plates, then nesting prevention is achieved, but injury risk and component damage increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvenesting preventionVSAvoidinjury risk
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces sharp-edged projections with rounded or curved surface features that prevent nesting through geometric interference while eliminating sharp edges. The curved surfaces provide mechanical prevention of nested stacking without creating injury hazards, thus resolving the contradiction between nesting prevention and injury risk reduction.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

2Stability of the object's composition

If sharp-edged projections are used to prevent nesting, then nesting prevention is achieved, but positioning accuracy deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvenesting preventionVSAvoidpositioning accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

Rounded surface features provide smooth contact areas that enable precise positioning during assembly, unlike sharp edges that create point contacts and positioning variability. The curved surfaces guide accurate alignment while maintaining nesting prevention, thus improving positioning accuracy.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

3Stability of the object's composition

If sharp-edged projections are used, then nesting prevention is achieved, but component strength decreases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvenesting preventionVSAvoidcomponent strength
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSStrength

Solution Approach 1:

Rounded features distribute mechanical stresses over larger surface areas compared to sharp edges, reducing stress concentration points. This improves the overall strength and durability of the angle plates while maintaining the nesting prevention function through geometric design.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

4Stability of the object's composition

If bent-up sheet metal edges are used to form projections, then nesting prevention is achieved, but surface smoothness deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvenesting preventionVSAvoidsurface smoothness
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSShape

Solution Approach 1:

The patent employs deliberately designed curved or rounded surface features that provide smooth surfaces by definition. These curved features prevent nesting through their geometric form while inherently providing smooth surfaces, thus resolving the contradiction between nesting prevention and surface smoothness.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

5Ease of manufacture

If projections are punched and bent without post-processing, then manufacturing complexity is reduced, but surface quality deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemanufacturing simplicityVSAvoidsurface quality
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSShape

Solution Approach 1:

The curved surface features can be directly formed during the punching and bending process without requiring additional post-processing operations. The curvature is inherently created through the forming tooling, maintaining manufacturing simplicity while achieving high surface quality and smoothness.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

Data Source

PatentEP1840440B1Corner bracket
Publication Date: 2010.09.01 SCHMIDLIN
  • EP1840440B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2b
  • EP1840440B1 patent drawingFigure 3a~3c
  • EP1840440B1 patent drawingFigure 4~13

AI summary

The bracket has a corner plate (2), and a left axle stub (3) and a right axle stub (4) that are provided with an angle, where an upper side of the corner plate forms a flat and smooth bearing surface for bolt connection. The angle bracket is designed in such a manner that the two axle stubs and the corner plate are arranged in an aligned manner. The two axle stubs carry clamping claws (6, 7) in a region of an inner edge of upper sides of the respective axle stubs, and are connected with the corner plate. Longitudinal rips (5) are pre-formed at the upper sides of the respective axle stubs.