Profile Fixing Accessory With Segmented Sawtooth Lip
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cladding support systems are either cumbersome and time-consuming to install or suffer from misalignment issues due to production tolerances, leading to vibration and noise, and lack load-bearing functionality when teeth are not perfectly aligned.
Innovation Solution
A profile fixing accessory with a U-shaped design featuring a base plate, a sawtooth or triangular toothed lip, a hook, and a bendable or torsible clamp that locks into elongated profiles with matching toothed edges, allowing for quick and precise installation without tools by bending or twisting the clamp.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If asymmetric teeth are made wide in longitudinal direction to overcome misalignment, then alignment tolerance is improved, but positioning precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The tooth structure is segmented into multiple smaller teeth along the longitudinal direction. This segmentation allows the system to accommodate misalignment through the collective engagement of multiple teeth while maintaining precise positioning through the individual geometry of each tooth. The segmented approach resolves the contradiction by distributing the alignment tolerance requirement across multiple elements rather than relying on a single wide tooth.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs asymmetric tooth profiles where the left and right teeth have different geometries. This asymmetry is deliberately designed to compensate for expected misalignment while maintaining precise positioning. The asymmetric configuration allows one side to accommodate tolerance variations while the other side ensures accurate positioning, thereby resolving the contradiction between alignment tolerance and positioning precision.
2Ease of operation
If friction-based movement is used to position profile fixing accessory, then tool-free installation is improved, but installation time deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The fixing accessory incorporates a dynamic positioning mechanism that allows the base to be easily moved along the profile using friction, then locked in place through a simple clamping action. The system transitions from a static friction-based hold to a dynamically locked position, enabling both tool-free operation and rapid installation. The dynamic element allows quick adjustment followed by secure fixation without tools.
Solution Approach 2:
The friction-based positioning system allows the installer to manually position the accessory along the profile without tools, and the system itself provides the locking mechanism through its inherent friction characteristics combined with a simple clamp. The accessory is self-positioning and self-locking, eliminating the need for additional tools or complex procedures, thereby achieving both ease of operation and rapid installation.
3Ease of operation
If clamp is made bendable or torsible for tool-free locking, then ease of installation is improved, but locking strength deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The clamp is designed with specific material and geometric parameters that allow it to be bendable or torsible during installation for ease of positioning, yet develop sufficient locking strength when engaged. By carefully selecting material properties and cross-sectional geometry, the clamp transitions from a flexible state during installation to a rigid locked state, resolving the contradiction between ease of installation and locking strength through parameter optimization.
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 fast, secure, and vibration-free installation of cladding panels with improved load-bearing capabilities and fire resistance when manufactured in metal, while minimizing material rejection and ensuring proper alignment.
Implementation Method 1
a clamp (12) to fix the profile fixing accessory in place; locking the accessory in the elongated profiles upon bending or torsion of the clamp
Implementation Method 2
a lip (7) having a free edge comprising a sawtooth or triangular toothed section (9); at least one of said facing edges defining teeth (5) configured to cooperate with the toothed sections on the profile fixing accessory for locking the accessory
Implementation Method 3
the base of the profile fixing accessory is inserted and clamped by friction through rotation of the profile fixing accessory in the slot
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5~6
AI summary
A profile fixing accessory for mounting panels or covering elements of a cladding, elevated floor or lowered ceiling to elongated profiles, comprising: - a base plate extending in a first plane at a level L0; - a lip protruding from the base plate, said lip having a free edge comprising a sawtooth or triangular toothed section extending in direction parallel to the base plate at a level L1; - a hook protruding from the base plate and extending at a level L2, the level L1 situated between levels L0 and L2; - a clamp; and - mounting means configured to cooperate with the mounting panels or covering elements of the cladding, elevated floor or lowered ceiling.