Pipe Coupling Lock Clamp for Anti-Loosening Under External Force
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lock devices for pipe and valve couplings, such as those described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-105580, face issues with weak resistance to looseness, unstable attachment, and increased leakage risk due to weak resistance to external forces and positional mismatches, which compromise their effectiveness in preventing looseness and ensuring safety in semiconductor manufacturing environments.
Innovation Solution
A lock device for pipe and valve couplings featuring separate clamp members attached to both the screwed and screwing members, with a screw member for fastening, which applies additional force to secure the coupling parts, preventing rotation and looseness, and allowing easy installation without removing the coupling from the pipe path, enhancing usability and stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a lock clamp with integrally formed parallel arm and groove part is used, then the device complexity is reduced, but the resistance to looseness force becomes weak and attachment stability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The clamp member is divided into two separate parts: a parallel arm that engages with the wrench flat and a groove part that engages with the edge part of the coupling main body. These segmented parts are positioned at different locations to independently resist different components of the looseness force, thereby improving attachment stability while maintaining reasonable device complexity.
2Device complexity
If the parallel arm and groove part are arranged in axis-line direction, then the device complexity is reduced, but the resistance to rotational looseness becomes weak
Solution Approach 1:
The groove part is positioned radially outward from the axis-line direction, creating a multi-dimensional engagement structure. This radial positioning allows the groove part to effectively resist rotational forces and moments that would otherwise cause loosening, while the parallel arm maintains engagement along the axis direction, together providing comprehensive resistance to looseness.
3Ease of operation
If the clamp member is attached from outer circumferential side toward axis-line direction, then the ease of operation is improved, but the resistance to looseness force becomes weak
Solution Approach 1:
The clamp member is segmented into a parallel arm for engagement with the wrench flat and a groove part for engagement with the edge part of the coupling main body. This segmentation allows the clamp to be attached from the outer circumferential side while the groove part extends radially outward to effectively resist external forces that may cause loosening, thereby maintaining both ease of operation and reliability.
4Strength
If the groove part is positioned radially outward, then the resistance to rotational looseness is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The parallel arm and groove part are merged into a single integrally formed clamp member. This merging allows the structure to resist rotational forces through the radially positioned groove part while maintaining simplicity through integral formation, avoiding the complexity of multiple separate components. The unified structure efficiently combines both functional requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
A lock device for a coupling part of a piping or valve of a raw-material container or the like, capable of preventing looseness and erroneous operation of a coupling, and having favorable stability because the device is fixed as a force is applied to a direction of additionally fastening the coupling. The lock device is provided for achieving prevention of looseness of a coupling part (4) formed of a screwed member (20) and a screwing member (21) side, and includes a clamp member (42) for additional fastening attached to the screwed member side, a clamp member (41) for positioning and fixing attached to the screwing member side, and a screw member (43) for fastening the clamp members. The clamp members are fastened with the screw member (43), thereby being fixed to the coupling part while a force is applied to a direction of additionally fastening the screwing member side.