Profiled Metal Fiber with V-Grooves for Stronger Anchoring

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing metal fibers for stabilizing and connecting building materials require high demands on production tools due to their geometric dimensions, making the production process inefficient and tool-intensive.

Innovation Solution

The metal fibers feature V-shaped grooves on their wider outer surfaces with anchoring projections and end zones that form anchoring surfaces, reducing the demands on production tools by improving notching, fulling, and separation processes, and providing additional anchoring options.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If metal fibers have rectangular cross section with specific geometric dimensions for good anchoring properties, then anchoring strength is improved, but demands on production tools increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveanchoring strengthVSAvoidproduction tool demands
Core Design Contradiction:
StrengthVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by creating V-shaped grooves with projections and end zones at specific locations on the fiber surfaces. These localized features provide concentrated anchoring capability at the groove locations rather than requiring the entire fiber to have complex geometry, thus improving anchoring strength while keeping production tooling simpler.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a new dimensional feature by creating V-shaped grooves that extend into the fiber depth, adding a third dimension to the anchoring mechanism. This vertical dimensionality of the grooves provides enhanced anchoring surfaces without requiring increased fiber diameter or length, avoiding complications with production tools.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Strength

If metal fibers have complex geometric features for improved anchoring, then anchoring performance is improved, but fulling process uniformity decreases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveanchoring performanceVSAvoidfulling process uniformity
Core Design Contradiction:
StrengthVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the anchoring function into distinct components: V-shaped grooves with projections for mechanical interlocking and separate end zones for additional anchoring. This segmentation allows each feature to be optimized independently and ensures uniform fulling behavior while maintaining high anchoring performance through the combined effect of multiple discrete anchoring elements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

3Manufacturing precision

If metal fibers have features requiring high precision production tools, then fiber quality is improved, but conversion time increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvefiber qualityVSAvoidconversion time
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent incorporates V-shaped grooves with projections and end zones directly into the fiber drawing process itself, rather than requiring subsequent machining or treatment steps. This preliminary action during fiber formation achieves high manufacturing precision for the anchoring features while minimizing conversion time by eliminating separate production stages.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

4Strength

If metal fibers have features that increase tool wear, then anchoring capability is improved, but tool life decreases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveanchoring capabilityVSAvoidtool life
Core Design Contradiction:
StrengthVSDuration of action of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent designs the V-shaped grooves with projections and end zones as integral features of the fiber itself rather than as separate tooling components. This approach effectively makes the anchoring features 'disposable' with each fiber production cycle, eliminating cumulative tool wear on specialized tooling while maintaining high anchoring capability through the robust geometric design of the grooves.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

Data Source

PatentEP3542010B1Profiled metal fibre
Publication Date: 2023.11.29 HACANOKA GMBH
  • EP3542010B1 patent drawingFigure 1~4
  • EP3542010B1 patent drawingFigure 5~8

AI summary

The profiled metal fibre with a substantially rectangular cross-section, also with bent fibre ends in the form of a clip, is used to stabilise, bond, attach or join materials and construction materials such as concrete, wood, paper and the like. The fibre edges of the fibre outer surfaces extending in the longitudinal direction of the fibre are designed as edge surfaces (2) oriented at an angle to the fibre outer surfaces in the manner of a bevel. The two wider fibre outer surfaces (3.1, 3.2) of the rectangular fibre are provided with V-shaped channels (4) extending in the longitudinal direction, wherein the edge surfaces (2) are provided with projections (6) and the V-shaped channels (4) are provided with end zones (5) that bound their longitudinal extent. The projections form anchoring heads and the end zones form anchor surfaces with respect to the material to be stabilised, bonded or attached.