Modular Conduit Grid Assembly Without Welded Connections
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for constructing grids at the end of wastewater conduits, particularly those made of steel, face challenges such as the need for trained manpower, potential material weakening, deformation, oxidation, and unsightly weld connections, making the process expensive and less than ideal.
Innovation Solution
A modular grid design featuring a faceplate with tabs and a sleeve, assembled using attachments like screws or rivets, which allows for secure mounting without welding, enabling easier construction and installation on conduits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If welding methods are used to construct grids, then the grid can be assembled from steel components, but this requires trained manpower and may cause material weakening, deformation, oxidation, and unsightly connections
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the welding process (thermal/mechanical system) with a mechanical fastening system using clips or bands that wrap around the grid perimeter. This substitution eliminates the need for trained welders, prevents material weakening and oxidation from heat exposure, and avoids deformation while maintaining structural integrity. The mechanical fastening system achieves reliable assembly without the harmful effects of welding.
2Ease of manufacture
If welding methods are used to construct grids, then the grid can be assembled from steel components, but this increases cost and requires galvanic coating processes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the complex welding and galvanic coating process sequence with a simpler mechanical fastening system. The clips or bands can be applied directly to the grid perimeter without requiring prior welding, eliminating the need for post-weld galvanic coating to prevent rust. This reduces both cost and manufacturing process complexity while maintaining the grid's structural and aesthetic integrity.
3Reliability
If aluminum is used as material for constructing grids, then rust resistance is improved, but welding becomes particularly difficult and requires great expertise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the welding process with mechanical fastening using clips or bands that wrap around the grid perimeter. This eliminates the difficulty of welding aluminum while preserving the material's rust resistance. The mechanical fastening system can be easily applied to aluminum grids without requiring specialized welding expertise, thus resolving the contradiction between material durability and ease of construction.
4Ease of manufacture
If welding is used to attach the sheath to the grid face, then the grid can be constructed, but this creates unsightly weld connections and may require additional coating processes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces welding with mechanical fastening using clips or bands that attach to the grid perimeter rather than creating visible weld connections on the grid face. This mechanical attachment method preserves the aesthetic appearance of the grid by avoiding unsightly weld marks and eliminates the need for additional coating processes to cover or protect weld areas, while still providing secure attachment of the sheath to the grid.
Data Source
AI summary
A modular grid comprises a faceplate having at least one front opening and at least two tabs on its periphery, a sleeve configured to abut on the faceplate, and at least two attachments, each attachment being configured for insertion into an opening formed in a corresponding one of the at least two tabs and into a corresponding opening formed on the perimeter of the sleeve. The modular grid may be mounted on an extremity of a conduit, whether at its inlet or outlet side, and be shaped for mating with the extremity of the conduit. A perimeter of the faceplate may be circular, square, oval, rectangular, triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, or octagonal.