Tactile Spacer Frame Locking for Leak-Resistant IGU Corners
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Solution Overview
Problem
Insulating glass units (IGUs) face issues with atmospheric water vapor infiltration due to discontinuities at frame corners and inefficient manual operations in their fabrication, leading to production delays and increased scrap generation.
Innovation Solution
A spacer frame assembly with a substantially linear channel and a locking member that includes tactile interlocking features, such as apertures and projections, to ensure precise alignment and sealing, along with a method of fabricating the frame using a production line that includes stamping, roll forming, and sealing stations to enhance production efficiency and reduce leakage paths.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual operations are used for frame assembly and sealing, then flexibility and adaptability are maintained, but production efficiency decreases and scrap generation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer frame is divided into multiple tubular members that are assembled together using corner keys, allowing for modular construction and automated assembly while maintaining flexibility in frame configuration
Solution Approach 2:
The corner keys are designed with self-aligning features including tapered surfaces and positioning protrusions that automatically guide the tubular members into correct alignment during assembly, reducing the need for complex positioning mechanisms
2Ease of manufacture
If V-shaped notches are cut in the tube at corner locations to enable bending, then frame fabrication flexibility is improved, but water vapor infiltration paths are created at the corners
Solution Approach 1:
The corner keys are extracted as separate components that connect the tubular members at corners, replacing the traditional notched-and-bent construction. This removes the V-shaped notches that created infiltration paths while maintaining corner formation capability
Solution Approach 2:
The corner keys are inserted into recesses formed in the tubular members, creating a nested structure where the corner key is housed within the corner recess. This nested design provides continuous sealing surfaces that eliminate infiltration paths while enabling corner formation
3Ease of operation
If corner keys are used to connect frame elements, then assembly is simplified, but infiltration paths are formed at the junctures of keys and frame elements
Solution Approach 1:
The corner keys and tubular members are designed with localized sealing features at the interface areas, including tapered surfaces and positioning protrusions that create tight seals specifically at the corner junctions where infiltration would occur, while maintaining simple overall assembly
4Productivity
If sealant is applied to frame sides as the frame moves linearly past an extrusion station, then production efficiency is improved, but reduced sealant at frame corners causes vapor leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The corner keys are pre-assembled into the tubular members before the sealant extrusion process, creating protruding features at the corners that serve as sealant retention structures. This preliminary action ensures that sealant applied during linear movement will be properly distributed and retained at the critical corner areas
Data Source
AI summary
A spacer frame assembly and method of assembly includes a substantially linear channel comprising two lateral walls and a base wall. The channel has first and second ends that when assembled, includes at least three sides and corresponding corners between each of said sides. The first end includes a connecting structure and the second end includes an opposite frame end. The opposite frame end has an opposite channel for receiving a nose portion of said connecting structure The opposite channel includes stiffening flanges extending inwardly from the lateral walls relative to the channel. The connecting structure further includes a first aperture in the base wall comprising a first projection into the channel and the opposite channel comprises a second aperture in the base wall comprising a second projection into the channel. Wherein the first projection. tactilely interweaves with the second projection when the spacer frame is assembled.