Height-Adjustable Fixture with Slot Nuts for Buried Tubular Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing height-adjustable fixtures for buried tubulars are time-consuming, expensive, and pose safety risks due to the need for significant adjustments, which often require excavating and repositioning the entire fixture or buried tubular.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a frame with a plurality of slot nuts and a central opening, allowing for precise adjustment of the fixture's orientation relative to the buried tubular by rotating a jack screw received within a threaded region of the slot nuts, facilitating faster, easier, and safer adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the entire fixture is excavated and repositioned to adjust height, then the fixture can be repositioned accurately, but the adjustment process becomes extremely time-consuming and expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The fixture is divided into multiple height-adjustable legs rather than a single monolithic structure. Each leg can be independently adjusted in height, allowing precise positioning without excavating the entire fixture. This segmentation enables localized adjustments that are faster and less costly while maintaining overall positioning accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The fixture incorporates adjustable height legs with mechanisms that allow dynamic modification of the fixture's geometry. The legs can be extended or retracted to different heights, enabling the fixture to adapt to varying ground conditions and achieve accurate positioning without complete reinstallation.
2Manufacturing precision
If the entire fixture is excavated and repositioned to adjust height, then the fixture can be repositioned accurately, but the complexity and cost of the adjustment process increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
By dividing the fixture into modular height-adjustable legs, the system achieves precise positioning through simple, localized adjustments rather than complex excavation and repositioning operations. Each leg's independent adjustability reduces the overall complexity of the adjustment process.
3Manufacturing precision
If the entire fixture is excavated and repositioned to adjust height, then the fixture can be repositioned accurately, but the risk of injury to personnel increases
Solution Approach 1:
Segmenting the fixture into adjustable legs eliminates the need for dangerous excavation and heavy lifting operations. The adjustment can be performed safely at ground level using simple mechanical mechanisms, significantly reducing the risk of injury to personnel while maintaining positioning accuracy.
4Manufacturing precision
If significant adjustments are made to the fixture height, then the final grade can be achieved, but it becomes necessary to excavate the entire fixture or reposition the buried tubular
Solution Approach 1:
The height-adjustable legs allow significant height corrections to be made by extending or retracting individual legs rather than excavating the entire fixture. This segmented approach enables large adjustments to be achieved quickly and locally, dramatically reducing the time required while maintaining final grade alignment.
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 enables faster, more precise, and safer adjustments of the height-adjustable fixtures, reducing the time and cost associated with conventional methods while minimizing the risk of injury to workers.
Implementation Method 1
rotating a jack screw received within a threaded region of the slot nuts, facilitating faster, easier, and safer adjustments
Data Source
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AI summary
Height-adjustable fixtures for buried tubulars and methods of adjusting the height- adjustable fixtures. The height-adjustable fixtures include a frame and a plurality of slot nuts. The frame has an upper frame surface, a lower frame surface, a flange that defines a plurality of slots, and a central opening that extends between the upper frame surface and the lower frame surface. The central opening is sized to provide access to a buried tubular conduit of the buried tubular. Each slot nut is shaped to be received within a corresponding slot. In some examples, each slot nut defines a lower nut surface, an upper nut surface, and a neck region positioned between the lower nut surface and the upper nut surface. In some examples, when each slot nut is received within the corresponding slot, the lower nut surface is recessed within the corresponding slot.