SUMMARY
UCLA researchers in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering have developed a passively anchoring screw that won’t loosen once it is twisted in place, but can be unscrewed using a screw driver.
BACKGROUND
While threaded fastener designs allow for easy on/off or replacement, there is always the risk that a screw may come loose during use due to vibrations or various motions. In some cases, such as biomedical implants, spacecraft, and high speed vehicles, loosening of a screw may even cause catastrophic failure. New screw designs that maintain the advantage of screw type fasteners while removing the risk of loosening are needed for high catastrophic risk applications.
INNOVATION
UCLA’s new screw design is capable of passively anchoring itself inside of a standard threaded hole. The screw can be twisted in place using a mating screw driver. Once twisted in place, the screw will not come out of its hole in the presence of vibrations or other cyclic or random loading scenarios. To remove the screw, the same mating screw driver is twisted in the opposite direction to remove the screw, making it free to remove and reuse.
POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS
- Dental and medical implants
- Aircraft structures
- Spacecraft and satellites
- High-speed vehicles
ADVANTAGES
- Self-anchoring
- Will not come loose during usage
- Reusable
- Simple design
- Compatible with additive manufacturing (3D printing)
- Bio-compatible
- Tunable stiffness
STATUS OF DEVELOPMENT
First description of complete invention (oral or written) has been accomplished