Single-Wire Fixing Clip for Reusable Sealing Strip Mounting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fixing clips for sealing strips in household appliances are difficult to mount accurately, prone to damage, and require tedious manual operation, with designs that make them difficult to disassemble and reuse, leading to inefficiencies in sealing performance and increased labor costs.
Innovation Solution
A fixing clip with a closed-loop design formed by bending a single metal wire, featuring a head portion and two bottom portions with round tips, allowing for easy insertion and disassembly without damaging the sealing strip, and enabling simultaneous mounting during the weaving process of the insulation layer.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a coil structure is used in the fixing clip to hook the sealing strip, then the sealing strip can be secured, but the overall thickness increases and may cause untight closing when the mounting surface is uneven
Solution Approach 1:
The fixing clip is divided into distinct functional segments: a head portion for insertion into the mounting hole, a neck portion for structural transition, and a base portion with a clamping arm for securing the sealing strip. This segmentation allows each part to be optimized independently, reducing overall thickness while maintaining sealing reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of using a coil structure that protrudes outward to hook the sealing strip, the invention inverts the approach by having the clamping arm extend laterally from the base portion and bend toward the sealing strip from the side, achieving secure attachment without increasing the overall thickness in the axial direction.
2Reliability
If manual rotation of the clip into the inner cavity of the sealing strip is required, then the clip can be securely fixed, but the operation becomes tedious and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The clip is pre-formed with the head portion, neck portion, and base portion in a specific configuration that enables automatic engagement. The clamping arm is pre-positioned to naturally engage with the sealing strip upon insertion, eliminating the need for manual rotation or additional securing actions during installation.
3Ease of operation
If the clip is made detachable for repositioning, then mounting errors can be corrected, but the clip structure becomes more complex and may damage the sealing strip during removal
Solution Approach 1:
The clamping arm is designed with dynamic characteristics that allow it to be flexed outward from the base portion during removal, enabling detaching and repositioning. The flexibility is engineered so that the arm can be easily manipulated for repositioning while maintaining sufficient clamping force during normal operation, and the rounded tip prevents damage to the sealing strip during both attachment and removal operations.
4Ease of manufacture
If a wave-shaped protrusion is added to the base of the clip for piercing the sealing strip, then the piercing function is improved, but the operation becomes more difficult and may damage the sealing strip
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of making the entire base portion complex with wave-shaped protrusions, the invention applies local quality by adding a simple rounded tip only at the end of the clamping arm where it contacts the sealing strip. This localized feature provides sufficient piercing capability for the sealing strip material without requiring complex base structures, maintaining ease of operation while achieving the necessary piercing function.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are a fixing clip, a sealing strip and a weaving method thereof. The fixing clip is formed by bending a single metal wire, and the fixing clip comprises a head portion, a first bottom portion and a second bottom portion; the first bottom portion and the second bottom portion are respectively connected with two ends of the head portion; the head portion is in a quadrangular diamond shape, and the head portion, the first bottom portion and the second bottom portion all comprise a round tip; and at least one of the round tip of the first bottom portion and the round tip of the second bottom portion are bent towards the round tip of the head portion.