Extruded Mobile Enclosure Covers With Local Thickness Reinforcement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional manufacturing processes for mobile computing device enclosure covers are wasteful and time-consuming, requiring multiple steps to achieve complex shapes, often resulting in up to 90% of extruded material being discarded.
Innovation Solution
The method involves extruding panels with fixed cross-sectional profiles that include increased thickness features, removing material at distal ends to accommodate folding, and stamping to form variable thickness enclosure covers, reducing the need for extensive machining and processing steps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If conventional manufacturing processes are used to create complex enclosure cover shapes, then the desired structural complexity and shape variety are achieved, but material waste increases significantly (up to 90% of extruded material discarded) and processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by extruding the panel with a fixed cross-sectional profile that includes increased thickness features at specific locations before any material removal or folding operations. This pre-positioning of material ensures that the exact amount of material needed for structural reinforcement is already in place, eliminating the need to start with a large block of material and remove 90% of it through conventional machining processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by creating variable thickness features only at specific locations where structural reinforcement is needed, rather than using uniform thickness throughout the enclosure cover. The fixed cross-sectional profile includes increased thickness features at predetermined locations, and the stamping process folds the perimeter portions to create localized thickness variations that provide structural reinforcement exactly where required, minimizing overall material usage.
2Shape
If conventional multi-step manufacturing processes are used, then complex shapes are achieved, but production time and processing steps increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple manufacturing operations into a more integrated process. The extrusion process creates the fixed cross-sectional profile with built-in thickness variations, and the subsequent stamping operation simultaneously performs material removal at distal ends and folding of perimeter portions in one operation. This consolidation of steps reduces the total number of processing operations compared to conventional multi-step processes that separately handle shaping, material removal, and forming.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-forming the cross-sectional profile during extrusion to include the thickness variations needed for structural reinforcement. This preliminary shaping eliminates the need for subsequent complex machining operations to create the same geometric features, thereby reducing the total number of manufacturing steps and improving production efficiency.
3Shape
If extensive material removal is performed to achieve complex shapes, then the desired geometric features are obtained, but production costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality by positioning increased thickness features only at specific locations within the fixed cross-sectional profile where structural reinforcement is needed. This localized material placement eliminates the need for extensive material removal to create geometric features, as the material is already positioned correctly during extrusion. The stamping process then only needs to remove material at distal ends and fold perimeter portions, significantly reducing the total volume of material that must be removed and thereby lowering manufacturing costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-forming the cross-sectional profile during extrusion to include the exact thickness variations needed for the final product. This preliminary shaping eliminates the need for costly subsequent machining operations to create the same geometric features, thereby reducing manufacturing costs while maintaining the desired complex geometry.
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
This approach minimizes material waste and processing steps, enabling the creation of structurally reinforced enclosure covers with a consistent look and feel, while reducing production costs and time.
Implementation Method 1
extruding a panel having a fixed cross-sectional profile with a first increased thickness feature
Implementation Method 2
stamping the extruded panel to fold upward at the perimeter of extruded panel
Data Source
AI summary
Enclosure covers for mobile computing devices are often formed from planar sections of sheet metal that form opposing outer-most layers thereof. The enclosure covers generally enclose and protect internal components. Enclosure covers for mobile computing devices are typically made from planar extrusions of aluminum with subsequent computer numerical control (CNC) machining and other processing steps to achieve complex shapes. Machining can be particularly wasteful of material and numerous processing steps are time-consuming and costly. The presently disclosed variable thickness enclosure covers sourced from extruded sheets of variable thickness reduce or eliminate machining and other processing steps typically required to achieve a desired complex shape. This is accomplished by extruding a shape closer to the desired shape of the variable thickness enclosure cover than presently known.