Multi-Protrusion Seal Ring for High-Temperature Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing seal rings used in vacuum pipes for semiconductor devices experience a significant deterioration in sealing performance at high ambient temperatures due to thermal expansion, leading to potential overflow and cracking of the seal member.
Innovation Solution
A high-performance seal ring design featuring an annular configuration with an inner ring, an outer ring, and a seal member with specific protrusions and dimensions that allow it to maintain sealing performance even under high temperature conditions by preventing overflow and cracking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional O-ring seal member is used in a seal ring, then the seal ring can be assembled with inner and outer rings, but at high temperatures the seal member expands and overflows from its capacity, causing cracking and deterioration of sealing performance
Solution Approach 1:
The seal member is divided into multiple protrusions (first protrusion, second protrusion, third protrusion, fourth protrusion) that can independently deform and adapt to thermal expansion, preventing overflow and cracking while maintaining sealing performance at high temperatures
Solution Approach 2:
The seal member's cross-sectional shape is changed from a conventional circular O-ring to a complex multi-protrusion shape with specific dimensional relationships, enabling it to accommodate thermal expansion without overflow while maintaining reliable sealing under high temperature conditions
2Volume of moving object
If the seal member volume increases due to thermal expansion, then the seal member may overflow from the capacity formed by inner and outer rings, but this overflow causes cracking and deterioration of sealing performance
Solution Approach 1:
The seal member is segmented into multiple protrusions that can deform independently to accommodate volume increase from thermal expansion, allowing the seal member to expand without overflowing from the capacity formed by inner and outer rings
Solution Approach 2:
The seal member is designed with a dynamic cross-sectional shape featuring multiple protrusions that can deform and adapt their configuration in response to thermal expansion, enabling the seal member to increase in volume without causing overflow or cracking
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
The proposed seal ring effectively maintains its sealing performance at high temperatures by suppressing overflow and preventing cracking of the seal member, ensuring reliable operation in high-temperature environments.
Implementation Method 1
When the seal ring is used at a high ambient temperature, the seal member expands and thereby increases in volume
Data Source
AI summary
A seal ring has an annular configuration as a whole and includes: an inner ring; an outer ring; and a seal member sandwiched from an inner side and an outer side in a radial direction by the inner ring and the outer ring. The seal member has: a central portion; a first protrusion protruding outward in the radial direction from the central portion; a second protrusion protruding inward in the radial direction from the central portion; a third protrusion from the central portion protruding in a direction orthogonal to the radial direction; and a fourth protrusion protruding in a direction opposite to the third protrusion across the central portion as a boundary. The first protrusion is received in a receiving portion formed between a pair of protrusions of the outer ring.