Interlocking Fitting Connector for Uniform Load Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing connectors with dovetail joints are prone to deformation and failure under high loads, leading to joint loosening and potential failure, and they do not effectively distribute load uniformly.
Innovation Solution
The connector design incorporates shoulders with undercuts and lips extending transversely over the entire width, allowing for uniform load distribution and increased torsional strength, with optional latching mechanisms for secure alignment and adjustable hooking positions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If dovetail joints are used to connect fittings, then the connector can be compact in size, but the joint is prone to deformation and failure under high loads
Solution Approach 1:
The connection interface is segmented into multiple load-bearing elements: a shoulder with undercut and a lip, both extending transversely over the entire width of the fitting. This segmentation distributes the load across multiple contact points (ridges and lips engaging with undercuts) rather than concentrating it in a single dovetail joint, thereby improving reliability under high loads while maintaining compact dimensions.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection mechanism transitions from a traditional point-to-point dovetail joint to a distributed engagement system where lips and ridges engage with undercuts across the entire transverse width of the fitting. This dimensional expansion from narrow joint to wide distributed contact area increases the effective load-bearing surface without significantly increasing the overall connector size, resolving the contradiction between strength and reliability.
2Strength
If dovetail joints are used for connection, then the connector structure is simple, but the load is not distributed uniformly leading to localized stress concentration
Solution Approach 1:
The shoulder and lip features are merged into a unified connection system that works together with the undercut to create distributed load paths. The shoulder provides the undercut while the lip extends the engagement surface, combining multiple geometric features into an integrated load-distribution mechanism that achieves uniform stress distribution without requiring separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection interface exhibits local quality variations through the undercut geometry and lip thickness distribution. The undercut depth and lip thickness can be varied locally to optimize load distribution in different regions, allowing the connector to handle complex stress patterns while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.
3Reliability
If the lip thickness is increased to achieve clearance-free connection, then the connection stability improves, but the handling difficulty increases due to longer hooking paths
Solution Approach 1:
The lip thickness is optimized to provide just enough material for stable engagement with the undercut, rather than making it excessively thick. This partial action approach achieves the minimum required connection stability while keeping the hooking path short, thereby maintaining ease of operation. The lip is thick enough to ensure reliable connection but not so thick as to create handling difficulties.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a connector for two workpieces, comprising two fittings which each have a mounting face for a workpiece and an opposite connecting face, on which they can be hooked into one another in a hooking direction extending in parallel with the connecting face. Each fitting comprises, on its connecting face, a shoulder which extends transversely to the hooking direction over its entire width and comprises an undercut, which leaves a ridge on the shoulder. The end face of each fitting remote from the shoulder and adjacent to the connecting face has a lip adjacent to the connecting face and extending over its entire width transversely to the hooking direction. The lip of each fitting engages in the undercut in the respective other fitting in a first position of the fittings in which they are hooked into one another.