Segmental Sealing Plug With Elastic Ribs For Tubular Insertion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for sealing spaces between tubular openings and tubes or ducts struggle to sustain high pressures while maintaining ease of manual insertion, often requiring additional tools and experiencing resistance issues during insertion.
Innovation Solution
The system employs segmental longitudinal parts made of elastically deformable material with outer and inner ribs, where inner ribs are adjacent each other to inhibit bending and reduce insertion resistance, and outer ribs are longer to facilitate smooth insertion, allowing for higher pressure sealing without compromising manual insertion ease.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the sealing plug uses rigid structural elements to sustain high pressure, then pressure resistance is improved, but insertion difficulty increases and manual insertion becomes impossible
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing plug utilizes the elastic properties of the longitudinal parts, allowing them to deform during insertion and then recover to provide sealing pressure. The elastically deformable material enables the plug to be inserted easily in its compressed state and then expand to sustain high pressures once installed.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing plug transitions from a static rigid structure to a dynamic elastic structure. The longitudinal parts are designed to be elastically deformable, allowing them to dynamically adjust during insertion and operation, providing both ease of insertion and pressure resistance.
2Reliability
If the inner ribs are made long to provide adequate contact surface, then sealing effectiveness is improved, but bending occurs during insertion increasing resistance
Solution Approach 1:
The outer ribs are designed to be longer than the inner ribs, creating an asymmetric structure. The longer outer ribs provide the necessary contact surface for sealing against the opening wall, while the shorter inner ribs reduce bending and insertion resistance. This asymmetric design optimizes both sealing effectiveness and insertion ease.
3Strength
If the sealing plug is designed to sustain high pressure, then pressure resistance is improved, but additional insertion tools are required reducing manual insertion capability
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing plug utilizes the elastic properties of the longitudinal parts, allowing them to deform during insertion and then recover to provide sealing pressure. The elastically deformable material enables the plug to be inserted easily in its compressed state and then expand to sustain high pressures once installed.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing plug transitions from a static rigid structure to a dynamic elastic structure. The longitudinal parts are designed to be elastically deformable, allowing them to dynamically adjust during insertion and operation, providing both ease of insertion and pressure resistance.
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 system allows for effortless manual insertion of the sealing plug, even in spaces with varying dimensions, while maintaining high pressure resistance and preventing galvanic corrosion by avoiding contact between different metal materials, thus enhancing usability and durability.
Implementation Method 1
the longitudinal parts are each of an elastically deformable material
Data Source
AI summary
A system for sealing a space between an inner wall of a tubular opening and at least one tube or duct at least partly received in the opening such that a longitudinal direction of the opening and a longitudinal direction of the at least one tube or duct are substantially parallel to each other. The system comprises at least two segmental longitudinal parts for forming a sealing plug which can be received in the space. The longitudinal parts are each provided with a number of outer ribs and a number of inner ribs, wherein the inner ribs are adjacent each other in the longitudinal direction.