Fractional Amp Fuse Bridge Element Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
The assembly of small fractional amp fuses with thin wire elements is challenging due to their delicacy, making automated manufacturing difficult, and existing methods struggle to produce reliable and cost-effective fuses with amperage ratings below 1 A, as the wire elements are prone to breaking and require skilled human assembly.
Innovation Solution
A fuse design featuring a nonconductive body with a fusible element wound around a nonconductive bridge element, allowing for automated assembly and increased wire diameter without breaking, enabling the production of fuses with amperage ratings as low as 0.1 A using bulk manufacturing techniques.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If thin wire fuse elements are used to achieve low amperage ratings (below 1 A), then the fuse can provide protection for small fractional amp circuits, but the wire elements become too delicate for automated assembly and are prone to breaking
Solution Approach 1:
A bridge element is introduced as an intermediary component between the fuse terminals and the thin wire fuse element. The bridge element provides a larger diameter support structure that can be easily handled by automated equipment, while the thin wire fuse element is wound around it to maintain the low amperage rating. This mediator allows automated assembly of fuses with delicate fuse elements that would otherwise be too fragile for automated handling.
Solution Approach 2:
The fuse element is transformed from a straight wire into a wound configuration around the bridge element. This dimensional change from linear to coiled structure increases the effective length and resistance of the fuse element without increasing its diameter, enabling low amperage ratings while maintaining a handleable form factor for automated assembly.
2Reliability
If thin wire fuse elements are used to achieve amperage ratings below 1 A, then the fuse can protect small fractional amp circuits, but the manufacturing cost increases due to skilled hand assembly requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The bridge element serves as a mediator that enables automated manufacturing. By providing a larger diameter support structure, it allows standard automated equipment to handle and assemble the fuse without requiring skilled hand assembly, thereby reducing manufacturing costs while still enabling the use of thin wire fuse elements for low amperage ratings.
Solution Approach 2:
The fuse is divided into distinct components: the bridge element and the fuse element wound around it. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured and assembled using automated processes, improving ease of manufacture and reducing costs compared to assembling a single integrated thin wire structure.
3Extent of automation
If wire diameter is increased to facilitate automated assembly, then automated manufacturing becomes feasible, but the amperage rating increases above the desired fractional amp range
Solution Approach 1:
The fuse element is wound in a coiled configuration around the bridge element. This transforms the linear dimension (diameter) into a multi-turn structure where the effective resistance is determined by the total length of the wire through multiple windings, not by the wire diameter alone. This allows using a wire diameter large enough for automated handling while maintaining fractional amp ratings through increased winding turns.
Solution Approach 2:
The number of turns of the fuse element around the bridge element can be adjusted to precisely control the amperage rating. By varying the winding count, the resistance can be tuned to achieve specific fractional amp ratings while maintaining a consistent wire diameter that is suitable for automated assembly.
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 design facilitates the reliable and cost-effective automated manufacturing of small fractional amp fuses, overcoming the limitations of traditional methods by allowing larger diameter wire usage, which is less prone to breakage and enables mass production of fuses with ratings previously difficult to achieve.
Implementation Method 1
When the fuse terminals are connected to line and load side circuitry, and when electrical current flowing through the fusible element or fuse elements exceeds a predetermined limit, the fusible elements melt and open the current path between the fuse terminals
Data Source
AI summary
Fuse element and bridge assemblies include a length of fuse wire being wrapped around first and second end edges of a nonconductive bridge to define a winding around the nonconductive bridge element extending for at least one complete turn having a first linear segment and a second linear segment each extending entirely between the first end edge and the second end edge of the nonconductive bridge element. The winding of the fuse wire allows for construction of small fractional amp fuses with larger fuse element wires that are less prone to breakage in automated manufacturing processes.