Keyed Coupling Assembly Preventing Fluid Misconnection
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Solution Overview
Problem
The similarity between male and female coupling members in fluid couplings often leads to misconnection errors during manufacturing or field installation, causing frustration, delays, and potential damage due to incorrect mating.
Innovation Solution
A keyed coupling assembly is introduced, where each coupling member has a keyed component that must be rotationally aligned and axially moved to mate properly, ensuring that only matching keyed components connect, preventing incorrect mating and ensuring proper fluid connection characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If male and female coupling members are made similar for economic and manufacturing reasons, then manufacturing cost and ease of manufacture are improved, but misconnection errors occur during installation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by providing keyed members with different key configurations (different numbers, positions, or orientations of keys) on male and female coupling members. This asymmetric keying system allows the coupling members to be manufactured economically while preventing misconnection, as only the correctly matched keyed members can be rotated to the proper alignment for connection.
2Reliability
If keyed members with different configurations are used to prevent misconnection, then connection accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the coupling system into distinct components: coupling members and separate keyed members. The keyed members can be independently configured with different key patterns, allowing for high connection accuracy without complicating the basic coupling structure. This segmentation enables the keyed members to be simple additive features rather than complex integrated mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
A keyed coupling assembly and kit for use with a coupling having a pair of connectable coupling members. The keyed coupling assembly includes a keyed member associated with each coupling member to permit the coupling members to mate with each other when the keyed members match, yet prevent the unwanted mating of the coupling members with each other when the keyed members do not match. The keyed coupling assembly is capable of ensuring that a fluid connection can only be made between matching keyed components, thereby ensuring that the characteristics of the fluid (e.g., type of fluid, fluid pressure, and/or fluid direction) delivered from one coupling member to the other is proper.