Hot-air fabric welder with pivoting segmented roller for curved seams
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional hot-air fabric welders are limited in their ability to create seamless, waterproof seams on products with curved surfaces like tents, raincoats, and ski suits, as they can only handle straight seams, leading to creases and reduced marketability due to the inability to switch between flat and tapered rollers for different seam shapes.
Innovation Solution
A hot-air fabric welder with a lower roller unit divided into flat and tapered portions, allowing for selective use of these rollers to accommodate both straight and arc-shaped seams through a pivoting support mechanism, enabling continuous welding of various seam types without creases or overlaps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a conventional hot-air fabric welder with flat rollers is used, then straight seam welding is achieved, but curved seam welding is not possible and creases occur in the welding portion
Solution Approach 1:
The lower roller is divided into multiple segments with different surface profiles (flat segments and curved segments). Each segment can be independently selected and positioned against the upper roller to match the specific geometry of the seam being welded, enabling both straight and curved seam welding without creases
Solution Approach 2:
The lower roller is designed to be rotatable, allowing dynamic selection of different roller segments (flat or curved) depending on the seam shape requirements. This rotational capability enables the machine to adapt between welding straight seams and curved seams by simply rotating the lower roller to the appropriate position
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple tape welders with different support rollers are provided for different tape widths, then complete waterproofing treatment is possible, but device complexity and cost increase enormously
Solution Approach 1:
The hot-air fabric welder is designed with a universal lower roller that can accommodate both narrow and wide synthetic resin tapes through its segmented structure. The same welder can handle different tape widths by selecting appropriate roller segments, eliminating the need for multiple specialized welders and reducing overall device complexity
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables the production of waterproof products with excellent watertight seals and improved productivity by allowing for seamless, curved welds on complex shapes, reducing rejection rates and production costs by using a single machine for diverse seam types.
Implementation Method 1
hot-air fabric welder for waterproofing tape which completely waterproofs a seam portion by heat-welding a synthetic resin tape
Implementation Method 2
heat-welding a synthetic resin tape on the seam portion
Data Source
AI summary
A hot-air fabric welder for waterproofing tape is invented for selectively welding straight portions and arc portions. The hot-air fabric welder for waterproof tape is comprised of: a lower roller unit including a flat roller portion and a tapered roller portion mounted to the upper end of a support. The lower roller unit is divided into a flat roller body and a tapered roller body for selectively positioning into contact with the upper roller, so that the surface of the lower roller unit contacts the upper roller. A driving means is provided for rotating the lower roller unit. A pivoting means is provided for rotating the support on which the lower roller unit is mounted for selective use of the flat roller portion or the tapered roller portion. A hot-air generating unit is linked to the lower roller unit, driving unit and pivoting unit, and an upper roller is arranged above the lower roller unit.