Fluid Cylinder Piston Segmented Sealing Radial Motion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fluid cylinders with pistons require complex designs and high manufacturing costs to maintain a tight seal along a significant portion of the cylinder, limiting the length of the cylinder where fluid compression can occur effectively.
Innovation Solution
A fluid cylinder design featuring a cylinder tube with a perpendicular tube axis, a piston with a parallel cross section, and a driving member that moves the piston in axial and radial directions to remove and re-establish fluid-tight sealing, allowing fluid to enter and be compressed efficiently while maintaining sealing integrity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a piston is moved axially to compress fluid, then fluid compression is achieved, but the piston must also move radially which causes loss of tightness unless complex sealing systems are implemented
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing member is divided into multiple independent sealing elements arranged along the piston circumference. Each sealing element can independently maintain contact with the cylinder wall, allowing the piston to move radially during compression while preserving tightness. This segmentation eliminates the need for complex interconnected sealing systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing members are designed to be flexible and adaptable, automatically adjusting their position and contact pressure in response to piston movement. During radial displacement, the sealing elements dynamically maintain engagement with the cylinder wall through elastic deformation or gravitational force, ensuring continuous tightness without rigid constraints.
2Reliability
If complex sealing systems are implemented to maintain tightness during radial piston movement, then sealing integrity is improved, but manufacturing costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing members are designed as simple, replaceable components made from inexpensive elastic materials. Rather than investing in complex, expensive sealing systems, the invention uses multiple low-cost sealing elements that can be easily manufactured and replaced when worn, significantly reducing manufacturing costs while maintaining reliable sealing.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing system relies on changing physical parameters such as elastic deformation and contact pressure rather than complex mechanical structures. By utilizing the elastic properties of simple sealing materials and their ability to deform and recover, the system achieves reliable sealing with minimal manufacturing complexity.
3Productivity
If the piston cross section is moved axially, then fluid compression effect is achieved, but the length of the cylinder along which piston can have fluid compressing effect is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The piston performs periodic cycles of radial displacement followed by axial compression. During each cycle, the piston moves radially to create pressure differential, then returns to compress fluid axially over an extended portion of the cylinder. This periodic motion enables effective compression over a longer cylinder length by repeatedly utilizing different sections of the cylinder during successive cycles.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2a~2b
Figure 2c~2d
AI summary
Discloses is a fluid cylinder (100) comprising a cylinder tube (10) having a first tube end (El) and a second tube end (E2) with respect to a tube axis (a) of the cylinder tube (10), wherein the tube axis (a) refers to the axis of the cylinder tube (10) and the extension of the axis (a); an opening (20) arranged at the first tube end (El) for allowing fluid to enter into the cylinder tube (10); a piston (30); a sealing member (40) arranged on the piston (30) and adapted to provide a fluid-tight sealing between the piston (30) and an inner wall (50) of the cylinder tube (10); and a driving member (60) adapted to drive the piston (30) to perform a piston motion in the cylinder tube (10) along the tube axis (a); wherein the cylinder tube (10), the opening (20), the piston (30), the sealing member (40), the inner wall (50) and the driving member (60) are adapted, when the piston (30) is driven to move in a first axial direction (Al), to remove at least a part of the fluid-tight sealing for allowing fluid to enter into the cylinder tube (10) through the opening (20), wherein the first axial direction (Al) is an axial direction from the second tube end (El) towards the first tube end along the tube axis (a).