Tube Locator Plate for Tight-Tolerance Welding Without Clamps
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Solution Overview
Problem
In metal fabrication, structural tube members require precise positioning and temporary support for welding, which is challenging due to the need for tight tolerances and complex geometries, often compromising structural integrity and requiring skilled labor, especially in DIY and remote assembly scenarios.
Innovation Solution
A non-structural locator device, such as a plate with fasteners and interferences, is used to precisely position and temporarily hold structural tube members in place for welding, allowing for precise alignment and concealment within the assembly, independent of the mating edges and welds, facilitating assembly by novices and reducing the need for clamps and field modifications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If tab and slot connections are used to position tube members, then positioning precision is improved, but structural integrity is compromised due to material removal and sharp corners
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces tab members as intermediary components that connect receiving tubes to mating tubes without requiring modifications to the tubes themselves. The tabs serve as mediators that provide positioning features while preserving the integrity of the structural tube members, eliminating the need to cut slots or remove material from the tubes.
Solution Approach 2:
The positioning function is segmented from the structural tube members and transferred to separate tab components. This segmentation allows the positioning features to be added to non-structural elements (tabs) rather than structural elements (tubes), thereby maintaining tube integrity while achieving precise positioning.
2Stability of the object's composition
If clamps are used to hold tube members in position, then temporary support is provided, but accessibility for welding is impeded and fabrication time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The tab members are designed to be self-retaining through interference fits with the tube interiors. The tabs extend into the receiving tube and engage with its inner surface, creating a self-locking mechanism that holds the mating tube in position without requiring external clamps or additional fastening operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the positioning and holding function from external clamps and integrates it into the tab members themselves. The tabs are taken out as separate components that provide both positioning and temporary support functions, eliminating the need for separate clamping devices that would impede welding accessibility.
3Ease of operation
If physical positioning by operator is used, then assembly is simple, but precision within tight tolerances is not achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The tab members serve as intermediary positioning elements that provide precise location features for the mating tube. The tabs extend into the receiving tube at predetermined positions and orientations, creating mechanical references that guide the mating tube into the correct position, thereby achieving tight tolerances without requiring operator skill or judgment.
Solution Approach 2:
The assembly system is designed to be self-aligning through the interference fit between the tab perimeters and the receiving tube interior. The mating tube is forced onto the tabs, and the tabs automatically position the tube with precise alignment, eliminating the need for operator intervention to achieve tight tolerances.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure is for a metal fabrication locator device that is a plate, or other object as described herein, that is fastened to the tangent face of a receiving tube. A mating tube may then slide over the metal fabrication locator device such that the perimeter of the metal fabricator locator device biases the inside sidewall of the mating tube to precisely align it on the receiving tube. This eliminates the use of additional weld fixtures for positioning of tube members in a metal fabrication assembly. This also allows an end user to construct and weld a product together on their own with precise assembly. Also disclosed herein are methods of manufacture and assembly of a metal fabrication assembly using a metal fabrication locator device.