Expandable Tubular Wall Structure for Pressure-Resistant Compression
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current inflatable cylinders face challenges in achieving both a small size and optimum resistance to pressure due to the variable thickness of their peripheral walls, which leads to manufacturing difficulties and reduced resistance to pressure when fully inflated.
Innovation Solution
An expandable tubular element with a peripheral wall formed by a plurality of panels connected by rectilinear links, where the panels are more rigid than the links, allowing adjacent panels to rotate and defining nodes with greater thickness than the links, thereby reinforcing the structure and improving pressure resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the peripheral wall has variable thickness to improve compressibility, then the size of the inflatable cylinder is reduced, but the resistance to pressure decreases at the thinnest areas
Solution Approach 1:
The peripheral wall is segmented into discrete panels connected by links, forming a lattice structure. This segmentation allows the wall to compress efficiently while maintaining structural integrity through the distributed network of panels and nodes, resolving the contradiction between size reduction and pressure resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The thickness of the peripheral wall varies locally - thicker at nodes and panels where strength is needed, and thinner at links where compressibility is prioritized. This local quality variation optimizes both pressure resistance and compressibility simultaneously, addressing the technical contradiction.
2Ease of operation
If the peripheral wall has variable thickness to achieve maximum compressibility, then the compressed size is minimized, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The peripheral wall is constructed from discrete panels and links that can be manufactured separately using standard processes, then assembled into the lattice structure. This segmentation simplifies manufacturing compared to creating a monolithic variable-thickness structure, while maintaining maximum compressibility through the articulated panel-link design.
Solution Approach 2:
The peripheral wall incorporates movable joints at the links, transforming a static structure into a dynamic one that can compress and expand. This dynamic design achieves maximum compressibility while the modular nature of the components keeps manufacturing relatively simple.
3Ease of manufacture
If the peripheral wall has uniform thickness to simplify manufacturing, then manufacturing is easier, but the resistance to pressure is reduced and local deformation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the wall into panels and links with uniform material properties, the structure achieves both manufacturing simplicity and pressure resistance. The segmentation allows the uniform material to be arranged in a configuration that distributes stress effectively, preventing local deformation while keeping manufacturing straightforward.
Solution Approach 2:
The peripheral wall uses a composite structure of panels and links that work together to provide both strength and manufacturability. This composite lattice design allows uniform material to be used throughout, simplifying manufacturing, while the geometric arrangement provides the necessary pressure resistance.
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 proposed design enhances the pressure resistance of the inflatable cylinder while maintaining maximum compressibility and minimizing size in the compressed state, addressing the limitations of current designs.
Implementation Method 1
two panels adjacent to a link can rotate about the pivot axis represented by this link
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to an expandable tubular element for a fluid-inflatable cylinder, comprising a peripheral wall that is fluid-tight and formed by a plurality of panels connected in pairs by substantially rectilinear links each representing a pivot axis, the panels being more rigid than the links, so that two panels adjacent to a link can rotate about the pivot axis represented by this link, each end of a link being connected to at least two ends of other links so as to define a node, each node having a thickness greater than the minimum thickness of the adjacent links. The invention also relates to a method for producing such an expandable tubular element, as well as a fluid-inflatable cylinder comprising such an expandable tubular element.