Bracket (0.03611 lb)

Last crawled date: 1 year, 10 months ago

The weight of my initial bracket entry is further reduced with this design revision.

Bracket Details…
1. Mass = 0.03611 (lb) …was 0.04773 (lb)
2. Max. von Mises Stress = 4,451 (psi)
3. Model Volume = 0.74598 (cubic in)
4. Support Volume Estimate = 0.65 to 0.75 (cubic in)
5. Contact patch with minimum edge distance meet/exceed requirements specified for Datum A and B surface areas.
6. Bracket design employs custom, ultra-low profile shoulder screw (similar to McMaster-Carr P/N 90318A403) and attachment method to enable fixed hinge constraints at mounting holes without requiring torque or tension preload to screws.
7. Bracket and all mounting bolts/screws are inside the design envelope specified and easily accessible.

FEA Constraints…
1. Fixed Hinge at the cylinder IDs of bracket mounting holes for attachment to the Centaur Interstage Adapter
2. Displacement = 0 in the radial direction On Cylindrical Faces of bracket in contact with Datum A
3. Displacement = 0 On Flat Faces, in the direction normal to the face of hole boss (split surface area under screw head; diameter = 0.375 in.)

External Load…
1. 600 lb Force applied uniformly on surface area of bracket at Datum B

Result Comments…
1. It appears the two lower mounting bosses are able to carry the full load. The upper mounting bosses are only there for adherence to the contact patch requirement at Datum A for each mounting hole.

2. If no other unspecified design form, fit, and/or function conflicts exist, a MODIFIED BRACKET design with the upper mounting holes eliminated would reduce the bracket weight further. More importantly, the weight of the upper mounting screws and corresponding support structure for said screws are also eliminated. Needless to say, these additional weight reductions can be significant relative to the bracket’s weight.

Modified Bracket Details…
Mass = 0.03314 (lb)
Max. von Mises Stress = 4,486 (psi)
Model Volume = 0.68446 (cubic in)
Support Volume Estimate = 0.42 to 0.50 (cubic in)