Gas Spring Fastener Driver Layout for High Force in Compact Size
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fastener drivers face power, size, and cost constraints, particularly in designs utilizing compressed air or electrical energy.
Innovation Solution
A gas spring-powered fastener driver with a compact piston and inner cylinder configuration, utilizing a storage chamber cylinder for pressurized gas to drive fasteners, featuring a lifter mechanism and a driver blade, which operates on a gas spring principle without an external air source.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If compressed air or electrical energy is used to power fastener drivers, then sufficient driving force can be achieved, but the device size increases and cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The piston is nested within the inner cylinder, and the inner cylinder is nested within the housing. This nested configuration allows the components to be compactly arranged, reducing the overall device volume while maintaining the necessary space for the piston to achieve greater than 3 inches of stroke length and for the pressurized gas to exert force effectively.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses a pressurized gas source in fluid communication with the inner cylinder to power the piston directly, eliminating the need for external air compressors or electrical systems. The high pressure (greater than 180 psi) of the stored pressurized gas provides sufficient driving force to move the piston through its extended stroke and drive fasteners into workpieces, achieving both compact size and adequate force.
2Power
If compressed air systems are used, then fastener driving capability is sufficient, but the device becomes more complex and requires external air sources
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates the external air compressor and associated complex piping systems from conventional pneumatic fastener drivers. Instead, it integrates a compact pressurized gas source directly into the device, which communicates with the inner cylinder to power the piston. This extraction of external components significantly reduces system complexity while maintaining fastener driving capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is designed to be self-contained with the pressurized gas source integrated into the housing. The system serves itself by using the stored pressurized gas to directly power the piston without requiring external air supplies, complex regulators, or electrical power sources. This self-service approach simplifies the overall system architecture.
3Force
If a larger piston is used to increase force output, then driving capability improves, but the stroke length available within a given volume decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the pressure parameter of the gas source to greater than 180 psi, which allows the use of a smaller piston diameter while still achieving sufficient force output. This parameter change enables the piston to have both adequate force capability and an extended stroke length of greater than 3 inches within the compact inner cylinder, as the higher pressure compensates for the reduced piston area.
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 design achieves efficient fastener driving with increased pressure and stroke length, reducing the need for external air pressure sources and minimizing size and cost, while maintaining effective fastening performance.
Implementation Method 1
A pressure of the pressurized gas acting on the piston at the TDC position is greater than 180 psi
Data Source
AI summary
A powered fastener driver including a bumper positioned within an inner cylinder and configured to stop a piston and a driver blade at a BDC position. The bumper has a length that is greater than about 20% of a length of the inner cylinder. The bumper has a first end, a second end opposite the first end, a first portion positioned adjacent the first end, a second portion positioned adjacent the second end, and a neck positioned between the first portion and the second portion. The first portion is narrower than the second portion, and the first portion has an outer diameter of less than 1.7 inches.