Nut Carrier With Molded Spring Fingers For Body Piercing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current body piercing systems with separate carriers for nuts and posts face challenges such as difficult handling, misalignment, and inconsistent retention, leading to hygiene issues and increased manufacturing costs, particularly due to the need for precise tolerances and welded components.
Innovation Solution
A nut carrier with a vertical engagement feature and molded spring fingers is used to securely couple with the body piercing instrument, eliminating the need for a welded flange and providing consistent performance across manufacturing tolerances, while allowing for easy manipulation and reduced risk of component drop during loading.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If separate carriers for nut and post are used, then hygiene is improved by allowing disposable components, but device complexity increases due to multiple separate carriers needing separate installation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the nut and post into a single integrated carrier assembly. The nut is positioned within the same carrier that holds the post, eliminating the need for separate nut and post carriers. This merging reduces the number of components to be handled and installed while maintaining the hygiene benefit of disposable carriers.
2Manufacturing precision
If precise manufacturing tolerances are used, then alignment and retention consistency are improved, but manufacturing cost increases due to welded flange requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the engagement mechanism from a precision-welded flange connection to a snap-fit engagement using spring fingers. This parameter change allows for larger manufacturing tolerances while maintaining secure retention. The spring fingers provide compliant engagement that accommodates tolerance variations without requiring precise welding or tight tolerances.
Solution Approach 2:
The carrier is designed as a disposable component that can be manufactured inexpensively using molded plastic with integrated spring fingers. This eliminates the need for expensive welded metal flanges and allows for cost-effective manufacturing with standard tolerances, aligning with the disposable nature of the carrier.
3Reliability
If separate nut and post carriers are used, then secure engagement of each component is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to difficult handling of small separate carriers
Solution Approach 1:
By combining the nut and post into a single carrier assembly, the patent makes the carrier large enough to be easily handled with fingers. The integrated design allows the user to grip and manipulate the entire assembly (including both nut and post) as one unit, eliminating the difficulty of handling separate small carriers.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent increases the overall dimensions of the carrier by integrating multiple functions into a single larger component. This dimensional change from small separate carriers to a larger integrated carrier improves ease of handling while maintaining secure engagement through the spring finger mechanism.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 2
Figure 3~8
AI summary
Apparatuses and systems for ornamental piercing of body parts are disclosed. Various embodiments of the invention employ a nut carrier which includes a vertical engagement feature and molded spring fingers to couple to a body piercing instrument. The vertical engagement feature prevents rotation of the nut carrier relative to the body piercing instrument and the molded spring fingers provide a secure engagement over a rounded flange of the body piercing instrument. The nut carrier is implemented as a component in a body piercing system that employs separate carriers for the nut and the post. The novel nut carrier simplifies manufacturing eliminating a welded two part flange previously employed in the body piercing instrument.