Flange Bracket Mounting for Dipper Arm Stress Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
The fatigue life of dipper arms in material handling machines is reduced due to stress concentration effects and weight distribution issues caused by welding brackets for actuated attachments, leading to increased stress and potential damage even when the attachments are not in use.
Innovation Solution
A method of mounting attachments on material handling machine arms using flanges and a mounting plate with lugs, where the bracket is secured using fasteners through holes in the flanges and mounting plate, distributing stress across the flanges rather than concentrating it at a single weld point, eliminating the need for reinforced arms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If brackets are welded to the dipper arm to mount actuated attachments, then the attachment can be securely mounted, but stress concentration occurs at the weld points reducing fatigue life
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket is divided into multiple segments (mounting plate with multiple lugs) that are distributed across the dipper arm. Instead of a single welded bracket, multiple mounting points are created around the circumference of the dipper arm, spreading the attachment weight and operational loads across multiple locations rather than concentrating stress at one weld point.
Solution Approach 2:
The mounting plate is designed with lugs positioned at specific locations around the dipper arm circumference. This creates locally optimized mounting zones that distribute loads to different areas of the dipper arm, ensuring that no single location bears excessive stress while maintaining secure attachment mounting capability.
2Reliability
If reinforced or heavier dippers are provided to reduce stress concentration effects, then the fatigue life is extended, but the machine weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment mounting system is segmented into multiple discrete lugs distributed around the dipper arm. This segmentation allows the existing dipper arm structure to support the attachment without requiring reinforcement, as the load is divided into manageable portions that the original structure can handle.
Solution Approach 2:
The mounting plate with multiple lugs provides a universal mounting solution that can be applied to standard dipper arms without modification or reinforcement. The design makes the attachment system adaptable to existing structures, eliminating the need for heavier reinforced arms while maintaining reliability.
3Ease of manufacture
If a single weld point is used to mount the bracket, then the manufacturing process is simple, but stress concentrates at that single point
Solution Approach 1:
The single weld point is segmented into multiple weld points corresponding to the multiple lugs on the mounting plate. Each lug can be welded separately to the dipper arm, distributing the welding work across multiple locations while eliminating stress concentration at any single point.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple lugs are merged into a single integrated mounting plate structure. This combining of multiple mounting points into one piece maintains manufacturing simplicity while achieving stress distribution, as the mounting plate can be fabricated as a single component and then attached at multiple locations.
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 solution effectively distributes the weight and stress of the attachment and actuator across the flanges, reducing stress concentration and extending the fatigue life of the arm without increasing the arm's weight, thus maintaining the machine's efficiency and durability.
Implementation Method 1
distributing stress across the flanges rather than concentrating it at a single weld point
Data Source
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AI summary
A method of mounting an attachment (100) on an arm (22) of a material handling machine including the steps of: (a) providing an arm (22) including a first plate (64), a second plate (66) and a pair of side walls (62) welded to each of the first plate (64) and the second plate (66), the arm having a connector (30) for pivotable mounting of the attachment at a first end of the arm and a connector (28) for pivotable mounting to a further component of the material handling machine at a second end of the arm opposite to the first end; wherein the second plate has two opposite edges (66A, 66C) and a first of the pair of side walls is welded inward of one edge and a second of the pair of side walls is welded inward of the other edge to form two flanges (72, 74) , each of the two flanges extending on opposite sides of the second plate and each of the two flanges having at least one hole at each of its ends; (b) providing a bracket (108) including a mounting plate (110) having a pair of lugs (112A, 112B) for supporting an actuator (106) for the attachment; the pair of lugs being positioned in a central portion of the mounting plate; and the mounting plate having at least one hole adjacent to each of its corners; (c) aligning the holes of the mounting plate with the holes on each of the pair of flanges; (d) securing the bracket on the arm by securing the mounting plate to each of the pair of the flanges by passing a fastener through each hole of the mounting plate and the corresponding hole on each of the pair of flanges; (e) mounting the actuator for the attachment on the pair of lugs; (f) mounting the attachment on the connector at the first end of the arm; and (g) connecting the actuator to the attachment.