Pivoting Socket Ground Power Connector Saver
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Solution Overview
Problem
Ground power connectors on aircraft experience premature disconnection and wear, leading to electrical arcing and excessive heat due to insufficient mating forces, which can damage both the connectors and pose safety risks, and existing disposable connector savers render the entire plug inoperable when worn out.
Innovation Solution
A ground power connector saver with a socket group and internal block design that allows sockets to pivot within cavities, providing consistent resistance and mating forces, and a flexible body that seals and supports the sockets, enabling the connector to maintain engagement with aircraft receptacles and accommodate potential damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If ground power connectors are used with fixed mating forces, then the connector structure is simple, but the mating forces become insufficient due to wear, leading to premature disconnection
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the socket contacts pivotable within their cavities rather than fixed. This allows the mating forces to dynamically adjust and remain consistent despite wear on the connector surfaces. The pivotable sockets automatically compensate for wear by rotating to maintain proper engagement, resolving the contradiction between reliability and structural simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of socket contact orientation by allowing rotation within a cavity. This parameter change enables the connector to maintain consistent mating forces over time despite wear, as the sockets can rotate to optimal engagement positions. This resolves the reliability issue without requiring complex active control mechanisms.
2Duration of action of stationary object
If disposable connector savers are used, then the connector life is extended, but the entire plug becomes inoperable when the saver is worn out
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by separating the socket contacts from the plug body through the cavity design. The socket contacts are contained within individual cavities and can be independently replaced. When wear occurs, only the socket contacts need replacement rather than the entire plug, maintaining productivity while extending the effective service life of the connector system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables discarding and recovering by allowing selective replacement of worn socket contacts while retaining the plug body and other functional components. This recovers valuable parts and reduces waste, extending the overall service life of the connector system while maintaining high availability through partial replacement rather than complete disposal.
3Ease of repair
If standard connector savers are attached through non-standard mating contacts, then the connector saver can be replaced, but the back section of the connector becomes useless for connecting to aircraft
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing the socket contacts to perform multiple functions: they provide electrical connection, mechanical engagement, and self-alignment through pivoting. The same socket contact structure serves all these purposes simultaneously, eliminating the need for separate non-standard mating contacts and maintaining compatibility with standard aircraft receptacles while enabling easy replacement.
Data Source
AI summary
A ground power connector saver for electrically and mechanically connecting a ground power connector to an aircraft fixed connector, the ground power connector saver having: an internal block having a number of cavities, each cavity having an inside dimension and a pivot engagement; a socket group having a number of sockets, each socket having a female tyne section having an outside dimension and a pivot engagement; and a body that houses the internal block and the tyne sections of the sockets and includes a flexible portion that flexibly seals respective ends of the tyne sections of the sockets in the cavities, where male pin contacts of the socket group extend from the body.