The present invention relates to a setting tool for driving fastening elements into a substrate.
Such setting tools usually have a holder for a fastening element, from which a fastening element held therein is transferred into the substrate along a setting axis. For this, a drive-in element is driven toward the fastening element along the setting axis by a drive.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,830,173 B2 discloses a setting tool with a drive for a drive-in element. The drive has an electrical capacitor and a coil. For driving the drive-in element, the capacitor is discharged via the coil, whereby a Lorentz force acts on the drive-in element, so that the drive-in element is moved toward a nail.
The object of the present invention is to provide a setting tool of the aforementioned type with which high efficiency and/or good setting quality are ensured.
The object is achieved by a setting tool for driving fastening elements into a substrate, comprising a holder, which is provided for holding a fastening element, a drive-in element, which is provided for transferring a fastening element held in the holder into the substrate along a setting axis by a setting energy Ekin of at least 30 J and at most 600 J, a drive, which is provided for driving the drive-in element toward the fastening element along the setting axis, wherein the drive comprises an electrical capacitor, a squirrel-cage rotor arranged on the drive-in element and an excitation coil, which during discharge of the capacitor is flowed through by current and generates a magnetic field that accelerates the drive-in element toward the fastening element, wherein the drive-in element has a piston diameter dK and a piston mass mK, and wherein, for the piston diameter dK,
⅔(a+b Ekinn)≤dK≤4/3(a+b Ekinn)
where a=33 mm, b=6 mmJ−n and n=⅓ and/or, for MK,
⅔(c+d Ekinn)≤mK≤5/3(c+d Ekinn)
where c=20 g, d=30 gJ−n and n=⅓. In the context of the invention, the piston diameter dK should be understood as meaning the greatest extent of the drive-in element perpendicularly to the setting axis. In the case of a circular-cylindrical drive-in element or piston plate, this is the diameter of the cylinder. Preferably, for the piston diameter dK,
⅘(a+b Ekinn)≤dK≤6/5(a+b Ekinn)
Likewise preferably, for the piston mass mK,
⅘(c+d Ekinn)≤mK≤7/5(c+d Ekinn).
This measure has the effect of increasing the efficiency of the drive. The setting tool can in this case preferably be used in a hand-held manner. Alternatively, the setting tool can be used in a stationary or semi-stationary manner.
In the context of the invention, a capacitor should be understood as meaning an electrical component that stores electrical charge and the associated energy in an electrical field. In particular, a capacitor has two electrically conducting electrodes, between which the electrical field builds up when the electrodes are electrically charged differently. In the context of the invention, a fastening element should be understood as meaning for example a nail, a pin, a clamp, a clip, a stud, in particular a threaded bolt, or the like.
An advantageous embodiment is characterized in that a current intensity Acoil of the current flowing through the excitation coil during the discharge of the capacitor has a time profile with a rising edge, a maximum current intensity Amax and a falling edge, wherein the current intensity Acoil rises during a current rise time Δtrise from 0.1 times to 0.8 times the maximum current intensity Amax and during an impact time Δtimpact is more than 0.5 times the maximum current intensity Amax, and wherein the current rise time Δtrise is at least 0.020 ms and at most 0.275 ms and/or the impact time Δtimpact is at least 0.15 ms and at most 2.0 ms. Preferably, the current rise time Δtrise is at least 0.05 ms and at most 0.2 ms and/or the impact time Δtimpact is at least 0.2 ms and at most 1.6 ms.
An advantageous embodiment is characterized in that a maximum current density in the excitation coil during the discharge of the capacitor is at least 800 A/mm2 and at most 3200 A/mm2.
An advantageous embodiment is characterized in that the capacitor and the excitation coil are arranged in an electrical oscillating circuit, and wherein the capacitor has a capacitance Ccap and a capacitor resistance Rcap, the excitation coil has a self-inductance Lcoil and a coil resistance Rcoil and the electrical oscillating circuit has a total resistance Rtotal. A ratio of the capacitor resistance Rcap to the total resistance Rtotal is preferably at most 0.6, particularly preferably at most 0.5. Likewise preferably, a ratio of the self-inductance LA to the coil resistance Rcoil is at least 800 μH/Ω and at most 4800 μH/Ω. Likewise preferably, the capacitor has a capacitor time constant τcap=Ccap Rcap and the excitation coil has a coil time constant τcoil=Lcoil/Rcoil, wherein a ratio of the coil time constant τcoil to the capacitor time constant τcap is at least 10.
The invention is represented in a number of exemplary embodiments in the drawings, in which:
The drive-in element 60 is, for its part, driven by a drive, which comprises a squirrel-cage rotor 90 arranged on the piston plate 70, an excitation coil 100, a soft-magnetic frame 105, a switching circuit 200 and a capacitor 300 with an internal resistance of 5 mohms. The squirrel-cage rotor 90 consists of a preferably ring-like, particularly preferably circular ring-like, element with a low electrical resistance, for example made of copper, and is fastened, for example soldered, welded, adhesively bonded, clamped or connected in a form-fitting manner, to the piston plate 70 on the side of the piston plate 70 that faces away from the holder 20. In exemplary embodiments which are not shown, the piston plate itself is formed as a squirrel-cage rotor. The switching circuit 200 is provided for causing rapid electrical discharging of the previously charged capacitor 300 and conducting the thereby flowing discharge current through the excitation coil 100, which is embedded in the frame 105. The frame preferably has a saturation flux density of at least 1.0 T and/or an effective specific electrical conductivity of at most 106 S/m, so that a magnetic field generated by the excitation coil 100 is intensified by the frame 105 and eddy currents in the frame 105 are suppressed.
In a ready-to-set position of the drive-in element 60 (
The setting tool 10 further comprises a housing 110, in which the drive is held, a handle 120 with an operating element 130 formed as a trigger, an electrical energy store 140 formed as a rechargeable battery, a control unit 150, a tripping switch 160, a contact-pressure switch 170, a means for detecting a temperature of the excitation coil 100, formed as a temperature sensor 180 arranged on the frame 105, and electrical connecting lines 141, 161, 171, 181, 201, 301, which connect the control unit 150 to the electrical energy store 140, to the tripping switch 160, to the contact-pressure switch 170, to the temperature sensor 180, to the switching circuit 200 and, respectively, to the capacitor 300. In exemplary embodiments which are not shown, the setting tool 10 is supplied with electrical energy by means of a power cable instead of the electrical energy store 140 or in addition to the electrical energy store 140. The control unit comprises electronic components, preferably interconnected on a printed circuit board to form one or more electrical control circuits, in particular one or more microprocessors.
When the setting tool 10 is pressed against a substrate that is not shown (on the left in
When the operating element 130 is operated, for example by being pulled using the index finger of the hand which is holding the handle 120, with the setting tool 10 in the ready-to-set state, the operating element 130 operates the tripping switch 160, which as a result transmits a tripping signal to the control unit 150 by means of the connecting line 161. This triggers the control unit 150 to initiate a capacitor discharging process, in which electrical energy stored in the capacitor 300 is conducted from the capacitor 300 to the excitation coil 100 by means of the switching circuit 200 by way of the capacitor 300 being discharged.
To this end, the switching circuit 200 schematically illustrated in
For the purpose of initiating the capacitor discharging process, the control unit 150 closes the discharge switch 230 by means of the connecting line 201, as a result of which a discharge current of the capacitor 300 with a high current intensity flows through the excitation coil 100. The rapidly rising discharge current induces an excitation magnetic field, which passes through the squirrel-cage rotor 90 and, for its part, induces in the squirrel-cage rotor 90 a secondary electric current, which circulates in a ring-like manner. This secondary current which builds up in turn generates a secondary magnetic field, which opposes the excitation magnetic field, as a result of which the squirrel-cage rotor 90 is subject to a Lorentz force, which is repelled by the excitation coil 100 and drives the drive-in element 60 toward the holder 20 and also the fastening element 30 held therein. As soon as the piston rod 80 of the drive-in element 60 meets a head, not specifically denoted, of the fastening element 30, the fastening element 30 is driven into the substrate by the drive-in element 60. Excess kinetic energy of the drive-in element 60 is absorbed by a braking element 85 made of a spring-elastic and/or damping material, for example rubber, by way of the drive-in element 60 moving with the piston plate 70 against the brake element 85 and being braked by the latter until it comes to a standstill. The drive-in element 60 is then reset to the ready-to-set position by a resetting device that is not specifically denoted.
The capacitor 300, in particular its center of gravity, is arranged behind the drive-in element 60 on the setting axis A, whereas the holder 20 is arranged in front of the drive-in element 60. Therefore, with respect to the setting axis A, the capacitor 300 is arranged in an axially offset manner in relation to the drive-in element 60 and in a radially overlapping manner with the drive-in element 60. As a result, on the one hand a small length of the discharge lines 210, 220 can be realized, as a result of which their resistances can be reduced, and therefore an efficiency of the drive can be increased. On the other hand, a small distance between a center of gravity of the setting tool 10 and the setting axis A can be realized. As a result, tilting moments in the event of recoil of the setting tool 10 during a driving-in process are small. In an exemplary embodiment which is not shown, the capacitor is arranged around the drive-in element.
The electrodes 310, 320 are arranged on opposite sides of a carrier film 330 which is wound around a winding axis, for example by metallization of the carrier film 330, in particular by being vapor-deposited, wherein the winding axis coincides with the setting axis A. In exemplary embodiments which are not shown, the carrier film with the electrodes is wound around the winding axis such that a passage along the winding axis remains. In particular, in this case the capacitor is for example arranged around the setting axis. The carrier film 330 has at a charging voltage of the capacitor 300 of 1500 V a film thickness of between 2.5 μm and 4.8 μm and at a charging voltage of the capacitor 300 of 3000 V a film thickness of for example 9.6 μm. In exemplary embodiments which are not shown, the carrier film is for its part made up of two or more individual films which are arranged as layers one on top of the other. The electrodes 310, 320 have a sheet resistance of 50 ohms/□.
A surface of the capacitor 300 has the form of a cylinder, in particular a circular cylinder, the cylinder axis of which coincides with the setting axis A. A height of this cylinder in the direction of the winding axis is substantially the same size as its diameter, measured perpendicularly to the winding axis. On account of a small ratio of height to diameter of the cylinder, a low internal resistance for a relatively high capacitance of the capacitor 300 and, not least, a compact construction of the setting tool 10 are achieved. A low internal resistance of the capacitor 300 is also achieved by a large line cross section of the electrodes 310, 320, in particular by a high layer thickness of the electrodes 310, 320, wherein the effects of the layer thickness on a self-healing effect and/or on a service life of the capacitor 300 should be taken into consideration.
The capacitor 300 is mounted on the rest of the setting tool 10 in a manner damped by means of a damping element 350. The damping element 350 damps movements of the capacitor 300 relative to the rest of the setting tool 10 along the setting axis A. The damping element 350 is arranged on the end side 360 of the capacitor 300 and completely covers the end side 360. As a result, the individual windings of the carrier foil 330 are subject to uniform loading by recoil of the setting tool 10. In this case, the electrical contacts 370, 380 protrude from the end surface 360 and pass through the damping element 350. For this purpose, the damping element 350 in each case has a clearance through which the electrical contacts 370, 380 protrude. The connecting lines 301 respectively have a strain-relief and/or expansion loop, not illustrated in any detail, for compensating for relative movements between the capacitor 300 and the rest of the setting tool 10. In exemplary embodiments which are not shown, a further damping element is arranged on the capacitor, for example on the end side of the capacitor that faces away from the holder. The capacitor is then preferably clamped between two damping elements, that is to say the damping elements bear against the capacitor with prestress. In further exemplary embodiments which are not shown, the connecting lines have a rigidity which continuously decreases as the distance from the capacitor increases.
with the induction constant
a number nW OF turns of the excitation coil 600 and an average coil radius rSp=½(Ri+Ra). Since the excitation coil 600 is in a magnetically saturated area during operation of the setting tool, the permeability number μr of the excitation coil 600 is to be set as μr=1, so that the self-inductance can be calculated from the number of turns and the dimensions of the excitation coil 600.
A means formed as a temperature sensor 660 for detecting a temperature of the excitation coil 600 is arranged on an axial end face of the excitation coil 600 with respect to the setting axis A2 and is connected in a thermally conducting manner to the excitation coil 600, for example by means of a thermal paste. In exemplary embodiments which are not shown, the temperature sensor is arranged on an inner circumference or outer circumference of the excitation coil.
In the present exemplary embodiment, the current rise time Δtrise is approximately 0.05 ms and the impact time Δtimpact is approximately 0.4 ms. If the current rise time Δtrise and the impact time Δtimpact are chosen too small, the maximum current intensity Amax must be increased to ensure the same setting energy. However, this causes an increase in a thermal load on the excitation coil and thus a reduction in the efficiency of the drive. If the current rise time Δtrise and the impact time Δtimpact are chosen too large, the drive-in element moves so far away from the excitation coil already in the rising edge 410 that the repulsive force acting on the squirrel-cage rotor is reduced, which likewise lowers the efficiency of the drive.
With a cross-sectional area of the excitation coil of for example 3 mm2, a maximum current density in the excitation coil during the discharge of the capacitor is approximately 2000 A/mm2. If the maximum current density in the excitation coil is selected too low, the setting energy that can be achieved with an otherwise unchanged setting tool is reduced. To compensate for this, for example, the capacitor or the excitation coil must be enlarged, which would however increase the weight of the setting tool. If the maximum current density in the excitation coil is selected too high, a thermal load on the excitation coil increases, with the result that the efficiency of the drive is reduced.
The capacitor and the excitation coil are arranged in an electrical oscillating circuit with a total resistance Rtotal. The capacitor has a capacitance Ccap and a capacitor resistance Rcap. The excitation coil has a self-inductance Lott and a coil resistance Rcoil. A ratio of the capacitor resistance Rcap to the total resistance Rtotal is 0.14. If the ratio of the capacitor resistance Rcap to the total resistance Rtotal is selected too large, a relatively large amount of heat loss occurs in the capacitor, as a result of which the efficiency of the drive is reduced.
A coil time constant τcoil of the excitation coil results from a ratio of the self-inductance Lcoil to the coil resistance Rcoil and is for example 1000 μH/Ω or 1 ms. If the coil time constant τcoil selected too small, a current flow in the excitation coil increases too quickly, which reduces the efficiency of the drive. If the coil time constant τcoil is selected too large, the current flow through the excitation coil is distributed over a relatively great period of time. This results in a reduced maximum current intensity Amax, which reduces the efficiency of the drive.
In addition, the capacitor has a capacitor time constant τcap=Ccap Rcap and the excitation coil has a coil time constant τcoil=Lcoil/Rcoil, wherein a ratio of the coil time constant τcoil to the capacitor time constant τcap is approximately 150. If the ratio of the time constants is selected too small, a relatively large amount of heat loss occurs in the capacitor, which reduces the efficiency of the drive.
m
K=(c+d Ekinn)
where c=20 g, d=30 gJ−n and n=⅓. In the present example (Ekin=125 J), the piston mass mK=170 g.
⅔(c+d Ekinn)≤mK≤5/3(c+d Ekinn)
according to the invention, the total efficiency ηtotal of the drive decreases significantly.
By analogy with
d
K=(a+b Ekinn)
where a=33 mm, b=6 mmJ−n and n=⅓. In the present example (Ekin=125 J), the piston diameter dK=63 mm.
⅔(a+b Ekinn)≤dK≤4/3(a+b Ekinn)
according to the invention, the total efficiency ηtotal of the drive decreases significantly.
The invention has been described using a series of exemplary embodiments that are illustrated in the drawings and exemplary embodiments that are not illustrated. The individual features of the various exemplary embodiments are applicable individually or in any desired combination with one another, provided that they are not contradictory. It should be noted that the setting tool according to the invention can also be used for other applications.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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18176202.2 | Jun 2018 | EP | regional |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/EP2019/063954 | 5/29/2019 | WO | 00 |