Elastomeric Cover Boot for Electrical Interconnection Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Interconnection junctions between electrical cables are prone to degradation from environmental factors such as moisture, vibration, and temperature changes, and existing sealing solutions can be difficult to open and install, especially in remote locations.
Innovation Solution
A hollow cover boot and cover formed of elastomeric material with specific sections and tapers are used to create a secure and easily installable seal around the interconnection, allowing for the connectors to reside within the main and interconnection sections, with the cover boot's interconnection section overlapping the boot's interconnection section to form a seal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If rigid clamshell enclosures are used to protect interconnections, then protection from environmental factors is improved, but ease of installation and opening is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs elastomeric boots and covers that are flexible by nature, allowing them to be easily installed over cable interconnections and subsequently opened or removed as needed, while still providing effective environmental protection
Solution Approach 2:
The elastomeric materials undergo thermal expansion and contraction in response to temperature changes, which facilitates easier installation and removal of the protective covers while maintaining reliable sealing during operation
2Ease of operation
If elastomeric seals are used to accommodate uneven contours, then ease of installation is improved, but sealing reliability is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The protective system is divided into multiple elastomeric components (boot, cover, grommets) that can independently conform to different contours and irregularities of the cable interconnection, collectively providing reliable sealing while maintaining ease of installation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite elastomeric structures combining boots, covers, and grommets made from elastomeric materials that provide both the flexibility needed for easy installation over uneven contours and the sealing reliability to protect against environmental factors
3Reliability
If gaskets or gel seals are applied at enclosure ends, then sealing effectiveness is improved, but device complexity is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates sealing functionality directly into the elastomeric boot and cover structures themselves, eliminating the need for separate gaskets or gel seals by combining the protective enclosure and sealing functions into unified elastomeric components
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 a reliable and easy-to-install environmental seal that protects electrical interconnections from moisture and other agents, maintaining connectivity while accommodating uneven contours and facilitating maintenance in remote locations.
Implementation Method 1
repeated expansion and contraction from daily temperature changes
Implementation Method 2
Elastic interconnection seals are also known. Elastic seals can be advantageous by virtue of being more easily installed over the typically uneven contours of an electrical interconnection
Data Source
AI summary
A hollow cover boot formed of an elastomeric material includes, in merging succession, a cable collar, a main section, a transition section, and an interconnection section, wherein the main section has a diameter greater than the cable collar and the interconnection section, and the transition section tapers between the main section and the cable collar.