Tailor Welded Panel Beam for Construction Equipment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing construction equipment beams, particularly in telescoping booms, face challenges in achieving a balance between high strength, low weight, and low cost, while also requiring flexibility to adapt to varying strength requirements without significant increases in manufacturing or operational costs.
Innovation Solution
The use of tailor welded panels (TWP) made from steel, where panels are composed of multiple pieces with varying thicknesses and strengths, welded together using high energy-density processes like laser and MIG welding, to create a modular beam design that optimizes weight distribution and buckling resistance, allowing for easy modification of beam sections to meet different capacity needs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If high strength steel is used to make the beam, then the beam has a high strength-to-weight ratio, but the material cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The beam is constructed with panels of different steel grades positioned according to local stress requirements. High strength steel (e.g., Grade 350) is used in high-stress areas like corners and flanges, while lower strength steel (e.g., Grade 250) is used in less critical areas. This localized material differentiation achieves the required strength-to-weight ratio while reducing overall material cost compared to using high strength steel throughout the entire beam structure.
2Strength
If the beam is made thicker in areas where loads are higher, then the load bearing capacity increases, but the weight of the beam increases
Solution Approach 1:
The beam employs variable thickness panels where thicker sections are strategically positioned in high-load areas (corners, flanges) and thinner sections in low-load areas (web regions). This non-uniform thickness distribution optimizes load bearing capacity at each location while minimizing the total weight of the beam, achieving strength enhancement without proportional weight increase.
Solution Approach 2:
The beam is constructed as a composite structure using multiple steel grades and thicknesses in a single integrated beam. Different panel sections combine varying steel grades (e.g., Grade 250, 300, 350) and thicknesses to create a composite beam that achieves superior load bearing capacity-to-weight ratio compared to uniform thickness designs.
3Strength
If multiple pieces of material with different strengths are welded together, then the beam can be optimized for weight and strength distribution, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The beam is segmented into multiple panels of different steel grades and thicknesses that are welded together to form the complete beam structure. Each panel is independently manufactured with specific material properties, then assembled through welding. This segmentation allows optimization of strength and weight distribution while enabling modular manufacturing that reduces overall complexity compared to creating a single custom-formed beam.
Solution Approach 2:
The manufacturing process utilizes variable parameters including different steel grades (250, 300, 350), varying panel thicknesses, and different panel dimensions. By changing these parameters across different panels and welding them together, the beam achieves optimized strength distribution. The standardized welding procedures for these parameter variations maintain manufacturing complexity at acceptable levels while achieving superior performance.
4Strength
If specialized equipment and skilled labor are used for multiple bending operations, then curved sections provide higher strength, but the manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
Curved or formed sections are applied locally only where buckling resistance is critical (such as in compression zones or high-stress regions), rather than forming the entire beam. Straight panels are used in regions where buckling is not a concern. This selective application of formed sections achieves necessary buckling resistance while minimizing the cost of specialized bending operations and skilled labor.
Solution Approach 2:
The beam is divided into segments where some panels are formed with curves or shapes for buckling resistance while others remain flat. This segmentation allows the use of cost-effective straight panel fabrication for non-critical sections while applying expensive formed sections only where structurally necessary, thereby reducing overall manufacturing cost while maintaining required buckling resistance.
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
This approach results in beams that are lighter, stronger, and more cost-effective, enabling increased lifting capacity without increasing the Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) or axle capacity, while allowing for flexible design modifications to suit different applications, thereby reducing manufacturing and operational costs.
Implementation Method 1
welded together using high energy-density processes like laser and MIG welding
Implementation Method 2
welded together using high energy-density processes like laser and MIG welding
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~4
Figure 6~5
AI summary
A beam [44] for use in construction equipment is a modular design made from tailor welded panels. It includes a top panel [50], a bottom panel [60] and two side panels [70, 80] connected together into a body, with two top corners [57, 58] and two bottom corners [76, 86]. At least one of the panels is made from at least two pieces of material [e.g. 54, 53, 52 or 72, 73, 74] such as steel welded together with the weld running the length of the beam. The weld between pieces of steel can either be parallel to the longitudinal axis of the beam, or the pieces can be tapered and thus the weld will be at an angle diverging from a line parallel to the longitudinal axis of the beam. The two pieces of material have a different compressive strength per unit of length in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axis of the beam. In some embodiments the top panel is welded to the two side panels to form the two top corners of the beam; and the bottom panel is welded to the two side panels to form the two bottom corners of the beam. A boom section for use in making a telescoping boom [22] for a crane [10] includes at least a first panel member and a second panel member, at least the second panel member has at least two pieces of steel welded together, with the weld running the length of the boom section. The two pieces of steel have a different strength per unit of length transverse to the axis. The two panel members are welded together along a joint that runs parallel to the longitudinal axis of the section to form the boom section.