Tube Connection Nut and Ferrule Assembly with Protrusion Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing nut and ferrule assemblies for tube connections are inefficient due to the challenge of correctly assembling ferrules, which can lead to leaks or damage when not properly oriented, and require separate packaging and handling, causing inefficiency and potential misinstallation.
Innovation Solution
A nut and ferrule assembly design featuring an internal-threaded bore with a groove and protrusions on the ferrule that engage the nut threads, ensuring proper alignment and retention, preventing back-out and facilitating easier assembly by using protrusions that temporarily deflect during installation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If ferrules are packaged separately from nuts, then manufacturing and shipping costs are reduced, but assembly complexity increases and installation efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the ferrule and nut into a single pre-assembled unit where the ferrule is retained within the nut by protrusions engaging with threads. This merging eliminates the need for separate packaging and handling of ferrules and nuts, reduces assembly complexity by ensuring proper orientation during installation, and prevents misinstallation while maintaining manufacturing efficiency through integrated production processes.
2Adaptability or versatility
If ferrules are assembled separately from nuts, then flexibility in assembly process is improved, but installation time increases due to potential rework
Solution Approach 1:
The ferrule is pre-assembled into the nut during manufacturing with protrusions already engaged in grooves or threads, ensuring correct orientation and positioning. This preliminary action eliminates the need for assemblers to manually orient and position the ferrule during installation, preventing mistakes that would require removal and reinstallation, thereby reducing installation time while maintaining assembly flexibility.
3Reliability
If ferrules have sealing surface geometry that must be oriented properly, then sealing reliability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to orientation requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The ferrule includes asymmetric features such as protrusions with specific geometries that must engage with corresponding grooves or threads in the nut at a specific orientation. This asymmetric design ensures that the sealing surface is correctly oriented during assembly, guaranteeing sealing reliability while the protrusion-nut engagement mechanism guides proper orientation, making the assembly process foolproof and easy to perform correctly.
4Reliability
If protrusions are designed to engage threads during assembly, then retention and prevention of back-out is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The protrusions are designed with specific dimensional parameters including diameter slightly larger than the nut thread minor diameter, length, and engagement depth that optimize both retention reliability and manufacturability. The engagement geometry is designed to provide adequate retention force to prevent back-out while allowing for normal manufacturing tolerances, balancing reliability requirements with practical manufacturing capabilities through carefully selected dimensional parameters.
Data Source
AI summary
A nut and ferrule assembly including a nut having an internal-threaded bore along a nut axis and a nut sealing surface, the threads of the internal-threaded bore having a nut thread pitch and a nut thread minor diameter, a ferrule having an annular body forming an axial bore and a ferrule sealing surface, the ferrule sealing surface corresponding to the nut sealing surface, the ferrule further having a protrusion extending outwardly from the body around at least a portion of the body, the outside diameter of the protrusion being greater than the nut thread minor diameter, and the ferrule positioned within the internal-threaded bore.