Modular Door Tool for Coke Oven Machines
Solution Overview
Problem
Coke oven service machines face time-limited high availability requirements due to the coking process, leading to increased downtimes and maintenance costs, as traditional practices of duplicating machine sets are resource-intensive and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a modular design for coke oven service machines, where the door tool is a detachable module usable across coke transfer and squeezing machines, with quick couplings and positioning/locking devices, allowing for easy interchangeability and reduced spare parts requirements, including hydraulic, electrical, and pneumatic connections via quick-release fasteners.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If machine sets are kept in duplicate to ensure high availability, then reliability is improved, but device complexity and investment costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The door tool is designed as a universal module that can be used on both coke transfer machines and coke squeezing machines. The quick coupling system enables the same door tool to be rapidly exchanged between different machine types, allowing one set of door tools to serve multiple functions and machine sets, thereby reducing the need for duplicate specialized components while maintaining high availability
Solution Approach 2:
The door tool is segmented into a modular design with separable components including the door tool itself, quick coupling mechanisms, and interchangeable parts. This segmentation allows individual components to be replaced or maintained independently, reducing downtime and enabling a single set of modular components to support multiple machines rather than requiring complete duplicate machine sets
2Ease of repair
If entire machine sets are duplicated for replacement, then ease of repair is improved, but space requirements and provision costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The door tool is extracted as a separate, independently replaceable module from the machine set. This extracted module can be quickly removed and replaced using quick coupling mechanisms, eliminating the need to store and maintain complete duplicate machine sets. Only the essential door tool modules need to be kept as spares, significantly reducing space requirements while maintaining rapid repair capability
Solution Approach 2:
The extracted door tool module is designed to be universally compatible with both coke transfer and squeezing machines through standardized quick coupling interfaces. This universality means that a single set of door tool modules can serve multiple machine types, reducing the total number of spare parts needed and the space required for storage compared to maintaining separate duplicate machine sets
3Device complexity
If traditional non-modular designs are used, then device complexity is reduced, but loss of time during maintenance and repair increases
Solution Approach 1:
The door tool is segmented into modular components with standardized quick coupling interfaces that enable rapid attachment and detachment. This segmentation allows the door tool to be quickly exchanged between machines without complex disassembly procedures, significantly reducing maintenance time. The modular structure introduces some design complexity but eliminates time-consuming manual assembly operations
Solution Approach 2:
The quick coupling mechanisms are pre-configured with positioning devices and locking mechanisms that automatically align and secure the door tool module to the machine. This preliminary preparation of coupling interfaces enables rapid replacement without requiring time-consuming alignment or adjustment procedures during maintenance operations, reducing downtime despite the added modular complexity
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to coke oven operating machines, which in each case comprise a coke discharging machine, a coke transfer machine, a wet quenching car, a quenching locomotive and a filling carriage. The coke discharging machine and the coke transfer machine each have a door lifter, a frame cleaner and a door cleaner. The door lifter, the frame cleaner and the door cleaner are designed as separable modules so that they can be used for both machines.