Hinged Bend Restrictor for Flexible Conduit Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing bend restrictors for elongated members, such as hoses, are either cumbersome for inspection and fail to predict ice buildup due to closed structures, or restrict movement too rigidly due to fixed geometries, limiting adaptability to varying operational situations and sudden movements.
Innovation Solution
A bend restrictor with an open-faced contact area and hinged sections that allow angular displacement, providing a varying degree of freedom in both longitudinal and transverse directions, facilitating inspection and adapting to different bending scenarios while preventing the elongated member from reaching a radius less than the allowable bending radius.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a closed structure bend restrictor is used, then the bending radius is controlled, but inspection of the flexible conduit becomes cumbersome
Solution Approach 1:
The bend restrictor is divided into multiple vertebrae segments connected by ball and socket joints. This segmentation allows the structure to remain closed for bending control while enabling access to individual sections for inspection and maintenance of the flexible conduit.
Solution Approach 2:
The ball and socket joints provide dynamic angular adjustment capability, allowing the vertebrae to rotate relative to each other. This dynamic feature enables the bend restrictor to adapt to different bending angles while maintaining the closed protective structure.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a fixed geometry bend restrictor is used, then the bending restriction is permanent, but adaptability to varying operational situations is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The angularly adjustable ball and socket joints transform the fixed geometry into a dynamic structure. Each joint can be independently adjusted to different angles, allowing the bend restrictor to adapt to various operational requirements while maintaining stable bending restriction when configured.
Solution Approach 2:
The bending radius and angle parameters can be changed by adjusting the angular position of the ball and socket joints. This allows the same structure to provide different bending restrictions depending on the operational situation.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the connection between vertebras restricts movement equally in all circumferential directions, then structural stability is maintained, but the bend restrictor cannot accommodate sudden movements during push, pull and retrieval operations
Solution Approach 1:
The ball and socket joint configuration provides rotational freedom in multiple directions, allowing the structure to accommodate sudden movements during operations while maintaining overall structural stability through the interconnected vertebrae.
Data Source
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AI summary
Bend restrictor (1) for preventing an elongated member (10) from reaching a bending radius less than the allowable bending radius of the elongated member (10), wherein a connecting arrangement (12, 30) is positioned at an end portion of the bend restrictor (1) and is provided to engage the elongated member (10) in a fixed manner and the bend restrictor (1) has an essentially open faced contact area (20) comprising a longitudinal extent (l) providing support for the elongated member (10) in its longitudinal direction (L) and a transverse extent (t) providing support for the elongated member (10) in its transverse direction (J), the bend restrictor has retainer means (11) arranged for the bend restrictor to follow the longitudinal bending of the elongated member (10), wherein the bend restrictor (1) comprises plural bend restrictor sections (2) wherein two and two bend restrictor sections (2) are connected in a hinged joint arranged for allowing angular displacement to occur within a preset range as a response to the longitudinal bending of the elongated member (10), wherein a transverse extent (t) of the contact area (20) increases along the longitudinal extent (l) away from the connecting arrangement (12, 30) thereby providing an expanding shaped contact area (20).