NASA Rail Clamp 3d model
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GrabCAD
NASA Rail Clamp

NASA Rail Clamp

by GrabCAD
Last crawled date: 1 year, 10 months ago
Three parts are printed, The front plate, the bracket (twice) and the slotted section. 4 items in total.
The bracket is placed against the rail and twisted into position.
The second bracket is placed against the opposite side of the rail and interlocked with the first bracket.
The slotted section slides into position and locks the assembly together.
The brackets use the principle of "friction locking" to prevent the assembly moving on the central axis of the rail.
Refer to the image of the Drawer. "Sticky bureau drawers are too short and too wide. They lock up if pushed off center."
The more force is applied to the assembly the tighter the brackets grip the rail.
(See also the image of the Utility pole climber for an example of friction locking in everyday use)

Updated Jan 28th;
1. Axis of T slot rotated for printing.
2. Size / volume reduction.
3. Rail Catch simplified for printing.
4. Rail catch profile modified to aid friction grip.

Updated Feb 2nd;
1. Reinforcing of the track added by replacing the track bolt washer
with an ABS plate to distribute the load evenly onto the track face.
The washer has specific lugs which engage with the hole on the track. These lugs have been reproduced at the rear of the plate.
2 The plate also reinforces the brackets and clicks into place to hold the assembly as one unit for storage.
3 All parts can be printed without support and used straight from the printer.
4, Human interface radii and fillets as per specification.

Updated 5th Feb;
Renders added showing the print axis and printer envelope.
2 print runs required to complete 1 CHAMP clamp.

Updated 11th Feb;
1; Incorporated the use of the stud fixing to compress the front plate (washer) onto the rail.
2; Added pre tensioning for the brackets inside the front plate.

Updated 16th Feb:
final adjustments made to plate locking lugs and renders updated.

Final models loaded as "Clamp 60"
stl,stp and native AutoCAD DWG files.

Enjoyed this challenge, good luck to everyone taking part.

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