A form-fit, form-locking or form-closed connection is a type of mechanical connection between two parts (example: screw and screwdriver), wherein these parts due to their forms interlock and block each other along at least one defined linear or rotational direction. [1] [2] [3] [4]
Form-fit connections are created by the interlocking of the connecting components. For example, the lid cannot slip sideways away from the pot because both interlock at the edge. On the other hand, a round lid can be rotated while sitting on the pot, because there is no form-fit against the rotation. Towards the bottom, the lid has a stop against the pot. This is a "half form-fit" because upwards it can be removed.
A form-fit acts via the geometric contact of two effective surfaces, and the effective forces are transmitted as normal forces to the effective surfaces of a driver part (surface pressure and Hertzian contact stress). Typically, some manufacturing-related tolerance occurs in the connection during form-fit.
In a form-fit connection, one connection partner blocks the movement of the other. Such "blocking" occurs in at least one direction. If a second pair of surfaces is arranged opposite, the opposite direction is also blocked.
Is a type of joint between parts, used to hold them together. takes advantage of their geometry. [5] That is, unlike friction fasteners, which rely on clamping force, form-fitting fasteners use, as stated, the shape of the parts themselves to prevent them from separating. Joints can be fixed, articulated or other types. [6]
Examples: [7]
In solid assemblies, the forces that can act can be diverse. Often, in addition to the relative shapes, there are other effects (friction, elastic forces, adhesives, etc.) that must be taken into account for correct operation. For example, two Lego pieces fit together with a little interference. The plastic is sufficiently elastic and provides a small anchoring force. A balder assembly would not offer any anchoring effort and the stability of assemblies with hundreds of pieces would be very precarious. [8]
Form-fit closures can be observed in everyday objects and tools from primitive times to more advanced applications.
Made up of three pieces: two arms (wood or plastic) and a spring with levers. The spring is press-fitted by inserting the levers into the slots in the arms. The spring is left with some tension. The shape of the arms and the spring, and the initial tension, ensure a stable connection of the assembly. And they allow the operating movements: opening, closing and providing a clamping force.
Lego pieces of all varieties form a universal system that is a typical case of form-fit closure. Despite the variation in design and purposes of individual pieces over the years, each piece remains compatible in some way with existing pieces. Lego bricks from 1958 still fit together with those made today, and Lego sets for toddlers are compatible with those made for teenagers. Six 2×4 stud bricks can be combined in 915,103,765 ways.
Dry stone constructions, whether natural or worked, base their stability on the relative shape of the stones and their arrangement as a whole. Considering gravity and friction, they constitute a traditional solution and an example of form-fit closure. In 2018, UNESCO inscribed this practice on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, under the name Knowledge and techniques of the art of building dry stone walls, affecting the territory of Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland. [11]
Javelin launchers have a tooth or protuberance for the base of the projectile to rest on. The temporary connection between the propellant and the projectile is a form-fitting closure.
In 1987, a continuously variable transmission based on a metal belt (multi-piece) was marketed. The design and manufacture were also by Van Doorne. The operating system was similar to that of the Variomatic . But the new metal belts worked by compression, unlike the rubber ones, which transmitted the force by traction. [13] [14] The multi-piece belt consisted of a multitude of small steel pieces mounted between two flexible hardened steel belts. Each small piece was guided by a strap on each side, forming a form-fit closure. [15]
There are several three-dimensional puzzles based on form-fit closures.
A jigsaw puzzle is a tiling puzzle that requires the assembly of often irregularly shaped interlocking and mosaicked pieces. Typically each piece has a portion of a picture, which is completed by solving the puzzle.
A mortiseand tenon joint connects two pieces of wood or other material. Woodworkers around the world have used it for thousands of years to join pieces of wood, mainly when the adjoining pieces connect at right angles.
A mechanical puzzle is a puzzle presented as a set of mechanically interlinked pieces in which the solution is to manipulate the whole object or parts of it. While puzzles of this type have been in use by humanity as early as the 3rd century BC, one of the most well-known mechanical puzzles of modern day is the Rubik's Cube, invented by the Hungarian architect Ernő Rubik in 1974. The puzzles are typically designed for a single player, where the goal is for the player to discover the principle of the object, rather than accidentally coming up with the right solution through trial and error. With this in mind, they are often used as an intelligence test or in problem solving training.
Metalworking is the process of shaping and reshaping metals in order to create useful objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term, it covers a wide and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on every scale: from huge ships, buildings, and bridges, down to precise engine parts and delicate jewelry.
A can opener or tin opener is a mechanical device used to open metal tin cans. Although preservation of food using tin cans had been practiced since at least 1772 in the Netherlands, the first can openers were not patented until 1855 in England and 1858 in the United States. These early openers were basically variations of a knife, though the 1855 design continues to be produced.
A fastener or fastening is a hardware device that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together. In general, fasteners are used to create non-permanent joints; that is, joints that can be removed or dismantled without damaging the joining components. Steel fasteners are usually made of stainless steel, carbon steel, or alloy steel.
A closure is a device used to close or seal a container such as a bottle, jug, jar, tube, or can. A closure may be a cap, cover, lid, plug, liner, or the like. The part of the container to which the closure is applied is called the finish.
A treenail, also trenail, trennel, or trunnel, is a wooden peg, pin, or dowel used to fasten pieces of wood together, especially in timber frames, covered bridges, wooden shipbuilding and boat building. It is driven into a hole bored through two pieces of structural wood.
Fire making, fire lighting or fire craft is the process of artificially starting a fire. It requires completing the fire triangle, usually by heating tinder above its autoignition temperature.
A construction set is a standardized piece assortment allowing for the construction of various different models. Construction sets are most often marketed as toys. Popular construction toy brands include Lincoln Logs and LEGO.
A Lego minifigure, often simply referred to as a Lego figure or a minifig, is a small plastic articulated figurine made of special Lego bricks produced by Danish building toy manufacturer The Lego Group. They were first produced in 1978 and have been a success, with over 4 billion produced worldwide as of 2020. Minifigures are usually found within Lego sets, although they are also sold separately as collectables in blind bags, or can be custom-built in Lego stores and on lego.com. While some are named as specific characters, either licensed from already existing franchises or of Lego's own creation, many are unnamed and are designed simply to fit within a certain theme. They are highly customizable, and parts from different figures can be mixed and matched, resulting in many combinations.
A belt buckle is a buckle, a clasp for fastening two ends, such as of straps or a belt, in which a device attached to one of the ends is fitted or coupled to the other. The word enters Middle English via Old French and the Latin buccula or "cheek-strap," as for a helmet. Belt buckles and other fixtures are used on a variety of belts, including cingula, baltea, baldrics and later waist-belts.
A violin consists of a body or corpus, a neck, a finger board, a bridge, a soundpost, four strings, and various fittings. The fittings are the tuning pegs, tailpiece and tailgut, endpin, possibly one or more fine tuners on the tailpiece, and in the modern style of playing, usually a chinrest, either attached with the cup directly over the tailpiece or to the left of it. There are many variations of chinrests: center-mount types such as Flesch or Guarneri, clamped to the body on both sides of the tailpiece, and side-mount types clamped to the lower bout to the left of the tailpiece.
The M-1956 load-carrying equipment (LCE), also known as the individual load-carrying equipment (ILCE), was developed by the U.S. Army and first issued in the early 1960s. The M-1956 LCE was designed to replace the M-1945 Combat Pack, the M-1923 cartridge belt, the M-1936 pistol belt and the M-1937 BAR magazine belt. The M-1956 LCE was designed to be quickly configured, using no tools, to accommodate various mission and ammunition loads. The M-1956 LCE remained in service through the 1980s and set the standard for future United States military load-carrying equipment.
Tente is a line of construction toys created in 1972 by EXIN-LINES BROS S.A., a plastics and toy company based in Barcelona, Spain which ceased operation in 1993. The toys consist of multi-colored interlocking plastic bricks in multiple scales and an accompanying array of wheels, minifigures, and various accessories.
Dougong is a structural element of interlocking wooden brackets, important in traditional Chinese architecture for both its structural capacities and cultural implications.
Friction stir processing (FSP) is a method of changing the properties of a metal through intense, localized plastic deformation. This deformation is produced by forcibly inserting a non-consumable tool into the workpiece, and revolving the tool in a stirring motion as it is pushed laterally through the workpiece. The precursor of this technique, friction stir welding, is used to join multiple pieces of metal without creating the heat affected zone typical of fusion welding.
Test tube racks are laboratory equipment used to hold upright multiple test tubes at the same time. They are most commonly used when various different solutions are needed to work with simultaneously, for safety reasons, for safe storage of test tubes, and to ease the transport of multiple tubes. Test tube racks also ease the organization of test tubes and provide support for the test tubes being worked with.
Building blocks are modular construction parts, usually made of plastic, which can be assembled in a form-fit manner. The basic components are usually cuboid-shaped, cylindrically studded at the top in a grid pattern, hollow-bodied at the bottom and smooth at the sides. The structured upper surface interacts by friction and positive locking with the correspondingly negative lower surface of other clamping components, so that complex designs can be assembled. The design allows the parts to be connected with compressive force and the blocks to be clamped with plastic pins.
The joining technology is used in any type of mechanical joint which is the arrangement formed by two or more elements: typically, two physical parts and a joining element. The mechanical joining systems make possible to form a set of several pieces using the individual parts and the corresponding joining elements. There are fixed sets and removable sets.