Segmented Thrust Nut Structure for Stable Screw Engagement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing thrust nuts often experience inconsistent fastening due to variable clearance between nut segments and the bolt, leading to unreliable screw engagement and potential loosening.
Innovation Solution
A thrust nut design featuring a polygonal nut main body with a slanted hole and stepped portions, along with slidable nut segments, pressing projection pieces, a washer, and a bias spring, ensures consistent screw engagement and secure fastening by urging nut segments into position and locking them with a stopper piece.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If nut segments are allowed to slide freely in the axial direction, then the fastening operation becomes easier, but the clearance between nut segments and bolt becomes variable leading to unreliable screw engagement
Solution Approach 1:
The bias spring pre-urges the nut segments toward the small-diameter side before the bolt is inserted, positioning them in advance. The stepped portions are pre-formed on the small-diameter end portion to define specific contact positions. This preliminary positioning ensures that when the bolt is inserted, the nut segments are already in the correct position for reliable engagement, eliminating variable clearance while maintaining ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical state of the nut segments by introducing elastic urging force from the bias spring. This creates a controlled force parameter that maintains consistent contact between the nut segments and the bolt, transforming the variable clearance condition into a controlled, consistent engagement state while preserving the sliding mechanism's ease of operation.
2Reliability
If multiple nut segments are used to ensure continuous screw engagement, then the screwed state becomes more secure, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The nut is divided into multiple nut segments that can slide independently within the nut main body. Each segment has its own screw portion that engages with the bolt, ensuring continuous engagement. The segmentation is managed by the biased urging mechanism and stepped portions, which coordinate the segments' movements, thereby achieving secure engagement without proportionally increasing overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple nut segments are combined within a single nut main body structure, sharing common elements such as the bias spring, stopper piece, and guided movement paths. This merging approach allows multiple segments to work together for continuous engagement while avoiding the complexity of completely separate assembly components.
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 design ensures secure and continuous screw engagement between nut segments and the bolt, facilitating easy assembly and preventing loosening, even under contraction of fastening members.
Implementation Method 1
a bias spring that is attached within the nut main body such as to urge the two or more nut segments towards the small-diameter side at all times
Data Source
AI summary
A nut main body has a slanted hole with a smaller inner end portion having a plurality of stepped portions of differing height. This gives the slanted hole a differing depth relative to a large-diameter end portion of the slanted hole at a plurality of locations about a circumference of the slanted hole. A plurality of nut segments are slidable within the slanted hole and come into contact with at least one of the stepped portions. The nut segments have screw threads at an inner wall surface. A washer is provided at a large-diameter side of the plurality of nut segments. A bias spring is attached within the nut main body so as to urge the plurality of nut segments towards the small-diameter side of the nut main body with the washer therebetween. A stopper piece holds the bias spring within the nut main body.