Robot Cavity Quick Closure for Pressure-Tight Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Industrial robots, particularly coating and painting robots, face challenges in maintaining pressure-tight cavities for explosion protection and contamination prevention, as existing solutions are prone to leakage, require complex assembly processes, and fail to meet stringent safety and maintenance standards.
Innovation Solution
A quick-release closure device with a rotatable locking element and closure bushing, allowing for a secure and pressure-tight closure of robot cavities up to 200 mbar, featuring a rotary-closing movement and haptic feedback for easy operation, durable seals, and simplified maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional screw-based covers are used to seal robot cavities, then pressure-tight closure is achieved, but assembly and disassembly time increases and maintenance complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The closure device is divided into separate functional components: a cover element for sealing and a fastening device with closure elements for securing. This segmentation allows the sealing function to be maintained while the fastening mechanism enables quick attachment and detachment without requiring multiple screws or complex assembly procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The fastening device incorporates rotatable closure elements that can be quickly positioned between locked and unlocked states. This dynamic mechanism replaces static screw fastening with a rotational locking system that provides pressure-tight closure during operation but allows rapid disassembly when maintenance is needed, resolving the time loss contradiction.
2Reliability
If multiple screws are used to secure cover elements, then pressure-tight closure is maintained, but device complexity and assembly difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple fastening functions are merged into a single integrated fastening device. Instead of using multiple independent screws distributed across the cover, the invention combines all fastening actions into one closure device with multiple closure elements that work together through a unified rotational mechanism, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining sealing reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The closure device serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides mechanical fastening, ensures pressure-tight closure, and enables quick release for maintenance. This multi-functionality replaces the need for separate screw fasteners, sealing elements, and release mechanisms, thereby reducing device complexity while achieving the same reliability goals.
3Reliability
If hermetic sealing is implemented for explosion protection, then safety standards are met, but seal degradation from solvents and paint residue increases maintenance difficulty
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing function is extracted as a separate, replaceable component within the closure system. The cover element with its seal can be independently removed from the robot cavity by operating the fastening device, allowing the seal to be replaced without disassembling the entire closure mechanism or damaging surrounding components. This extraction makes seal maintenance easier while preserving the hermetic sealing required for explosion protection.
Solution Approach 2:
The seal is designed as a consumable component that can be discarded when degraded by solvents or paint residue, and recovered/replaced by simply removing the cover element. This approach acknowledges that seals will deteriorate over time in harsh environments and provides an easy replacement mechanism, improving ease of repair while maintaining the reliability of explosion protection through regular seal replacement.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a closure device, preferably a quick closure device, for attaching to a robot (100) and/or for closing a cavity (101) of the robot (100) in a positive pressure-tight manner up to at least 175, 200, or 225 mbar. The closure device comprises an uninstallable cover element (1) for covering a cavity (101) of the robot (100) and a securing device (2, 3) for securing the cover element (1) to the robot (100), said securing device (2, 3) comprising a rotatable closure element (2). The securing device (2, 3) is characterized in particular in that the securing device has a rotational closing movement between 45° and 215° and thus can be brought into a closure position by a rotational closing movement between 45° and 215°.