Spacer-Locator Assembly for Shear-Resistant Precision Bonding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing spacers fail to provide controlled spacing, location control, and enhanced mechanical strength against shear stress and fatigue in bonding applications, while also maintaining adhesive thickness and preventing rotation between bonded surfaces.
Innovation Solution
A spacer-locator system with locator pins made from the same material as the bonded surfaces, providing controlled adhesive thickness, enhanced shear strength, and anti-rotation features, which are integrated into the bonding process to ensure precise alignment and mechanical advantage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If conventional spacers are used to maintain adhesive thickness, then spacing control is achieved, but mechanical strength against shear stress is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the spacer function (maintaining adhesive thickness) and the locator function (providing mechanical strength and positioning) into a single integrated component. The spacer-locator includes spacer elements for spacing control and locator pins with anti-rotation features for mechanical strength, merging these previously separate functions into one component that simultaneously achieves both spacing precision and enhanced shear strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The spacer-locator is constructed from materials selected to match the thermal expansion coefficients of the bonded substrates, creating a composite system that maintains dimensional stability under thermal conditions. This material selection strategy ensures that the spacer-locator provides consistent mechanical properties and spacing control across varying temperature conditions, thereby maintaining both strength and precision.
2Reliability
If multiple separate components (spacers and locators) are used, then spacing and positioning are achieved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates multiple functions into a single spacer-locator component that combines spacing elements and locating pins with anti-rotation features. This consolidation reduces the number of separate components needed in the bonding process, simplifying the overall device while maintaining reliable positioning accuracy through the integrated locator pins that prevent rotation and ensure precise alignment.
Solution Approach 2:
The spacer-locator serves multiple functions simultaneously: it maintains adhesive thickness through spacer elements, provides positioning accuracy through locator pins, prevents rotation via anti-rotation features, and enhances mechanical strength. This multi-functional design eliminates the need for separate spacers, locators, and anti-rotation devices, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining reliability.
3Manufacturing precision
If additional positioning jigs are used to prevent rotation, then alignment precision is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates anti-rotation features directly into the spacer-locator component, combining the positioning and anti-rotation functions that were previously performed by separate jigs. The locator pins with anti-rotation features provide alignment precision and prevent rotation during bonding, eliminating the need for additional positioning jigs and thereby reducing manufacturing cost while maintaining alignment precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the anti-rotation function from separate positioning jigs and incorporates it directly into the spacer-locator component. By taking out the rotation prevention capability and integrating it with the spacing and locating functions, the design eliminates the need for additional expensive positioning equipment while maintaining the same alignment precision.
Data Source
AI summary
A spacer-locator with integrated locator pins and spacer tabs for use in joining applications. The spacer-locator provides consistent and accurate spacing between mating surfaces and the locator pins provide enhanced location control of the joining components while providing a mechanical advantage to the shear strength at the joint. Also, a spacer-locator for joining at least two objects along mating surfaces, the spacer-locator constraining at least two degrees of freedom for the objects to be joined.