Side Lock Sleeve Assembly for Thin-Walled Tube Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional tube assemblies with thin wall thicknesses experience wobbling and disengagement issues due to inadequate fixing means, which are not suitable for modern lightweight and rigid tubes used in portable equipment like tripod camera stands.
Innovation Solution
A side lock sleeve assembly featuring a sleeve with a coupling portion and a fastening screw with a decreasing diameter, creating a threaded fitting portion on the tube's outer surface for stable engagement, preventing rotation or sliding, and allowing for versatile applications such as camera tripods and folding devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a traditional fastening screw is inserted through the sleeve and the basic tube for fixing the two together, then the fixing method is simple and easy to manufacture, but disengagement easily occurs due to small area engagement contact between the fastening screw and the basic tube having relatively small wall thickness
Solution Approach 1:
The fastening screw transitions from a simple linear insertion (one-dimensional engagement) to a threaded engagement that creates a fitting portion on the tube surface (adding dimensional complexity). This threaded structure increases the engagement area from a small contact point to a distributed threaded interface, thereby improving reliability while maintaining manufacturing simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The fastening screw's diameter changes along its length, creating a tapered or stepped structure that forms a fitting portion on the tube. This parameter variation allows the screw to create an enlarged engagement area on the tube surface, transforming the engagement from a small contact area to a larger distributed area, thus improving reliability without complicating the manufacturing process.
2Device complexity
If a traditional fastening screw is inserted through the sleeve and the basic tube for fixing the two together, then the fixing structure is simple, but wobbling occurs between the sleeve and the basic tube
Solution Approach 1:
The fastening screw creates a fitting portion on the tube surface through threaded engagement, adding a dimensional feature that prevents wobbling. This fitting portion acts as a mechanical stop or reference surface, eliminating play or movement between the sleeve and tube, thereby improving stability while keeping the overall device structure relatively simple.
Solution Approach 2:
The fastening screw itself generates the fitting portion on the tube surface through its threaded engagement, without requiring additional components or complex assembly steps. The screw's own geometry (varying diameter) enables it to create the stabilizing feature, making the system self-sufficient and avoiding increased device complexity.
3Weight of moving object
If the basic tube is constructed with thinner wall thickness to reduce weight, then the tube assembly becomes lighter, but the conventional fixing means are not suitable and disengagement easily occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The fastening screw's varying diameter creates a fitting portion that distributes engagement forces over a larger area on the thin-walled tube surface. This parameter change in the screw's geometry allows reliable fixation of thin-walled tubes without requiring increased wall thickness, thereby maintaining light weight while improving reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The threaded engagement creates a fitting portion on the tube surface, adding a dimensional feature that increases engagement area. This allows the fastening system to reliably secure thin-walled tubes without compromising structural integrity, enabling weight reduction while maintaining fixation reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
A side lock sleeve assembly includes: a first tube, a sleeve having a first coupling portion defining a first receiving space for sleeving over the first tube, wherein a hole is formed on the first coupling portion at a position between a center of the first receiving space and an outer surface of the sleeve; and a fastening screw having an operation section and an extension section, wherein a diameter of the screw gradually decreases from the operation section toward the extension section such that threadedly extension of the extension section through the hole to retain the extension section between the sleeve and the first tube and such that threadedly insertion of the extension section of the screw through the hole results in a threaded fitting portion on an outer surface of the first tube complementing with the extension section, thereby snugly receiving the extension section of the screw therein.