Perforated Sheet Hole Forming for Hygienic Flow Surfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Perforated sheets used in industrial applications, especially in the food and pharmaceutical industries, face hygiene issues due to accumulation of bacteria and organic/inorganic substances at the inner edges and corners of holes, leading to encrustations and flow restrictions.
Innovation Solution
A method of manufacturing perforated sheets by introducing spaced boreholes that pass through the sheet thickness, followed by a continuous cut between them, and bending open the adjacent sheet section to form holes, which enhances flow and prevents substance accumulation by creating a defined surface and optimal hole shape.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional punching methods are used to create holes in sheets, then manufacturing is simple and fast, but bacteria and substances accumulate at inner edges and corners causing hygiene problems
Solution Approach 1:
The hole formation process is segmented into multiple steps: first creating boreholes, then making continuous cuts between them, and finally bending the sheet to form the final hole shape. This segmentation allows each step to optimize for its specific function, preventing substance accumulation while maintaining manufacturability
Solution Approach 2:
Boreholes are created in advance before the final hole formation. This preliminary action defines the inner edges and corners of the future hole, ensuring that when the hole is eventually formed by bending, the critical inner surfaces are already properly shaped to prevent accumulation of bacteria and substances
2Manufacturing precision
If thin sheets with small hole widths are used, then the perforated sheet is fine-detailed, but encrustations and bacterial accumulations occur at inner edges and corners
Solution Approach 1:
The boreholes are created as preliminary structures that define the inner geometry of the final hole. By forming these boreholes before the final hole creation, the inner edges and corners are pre-shaped to optimal hygiene geometry, preventing accumulation even in fine-detailed thin sheets with small hole widths
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a 2D punched hole to a 3D formed hole by bending the sheet material. This dimensional change allows the inner surfaces to be shaped in three dimensions, creating optimal flow paths and preventing accumulation at inner edges and corners while maintaining the required hole width and sheet thickness ratios
3Productivity
If straight hole flanks are used in conventional punching, then manufacturing is simple, but flow is restricted and substance accumulation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The bending process creates curved hole flanks instead of straight edges. This curvature optimizes fluid flow through the holes by eliminating sharp corners and edges where substances would accumulate, while the entire process remains integrated into a single sheet forming operation
Solution Approach 2:
The invention merges multiple operations (borehole creation, cutting, and bending) into an integrated hole formation process. This combination achieves the complex curved geometry needed for optimal flow while maintaining manufacturing efficiency through process integration
Data Source
AI summary
A method of manufacturing a perforated sheet which has at least one hole. The method includes introducing at least two spaced boreholes into a sheet, the at least two spaced boreholes being formed so that they each pass through a thickness of the sheet, introducing a continuous cut between the at least two spaced boreholes in the sheet, and bending open a section of the sheet which is adjacent to the continuous cut so as to form a hole.