Device and method for arranging a housing in a specified position relative to a reference object

• US 8,245,574 B2
• Filed: 11/24/2009
• Issued: 08/21/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Baumer Electric AG (Baumer Holding AG)
• Original Assignee: Baumer Innotec AG
• Inventors: Dossenbach, Daniel, Beerli, Martin, Roehm, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Rogers, David
• Application Number:
  US12/624,588
• Publication Number:
  US 20100132459A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,001 Days
• Field of Search: 734/31
• US Class Current: 73/431
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 11/30 Supports specially adapted for an instrument; Supports specially adapted for a set of instruments

Abstract

A device and method for arranging a housing in a specified position relative to a reference object. For positioning and/or aligning a housing with respect to a reference object, a detachable positioning element is constructed on the housing. The positioning element comprises at least one stop element that is brought into contact with the reference object. The positioning element also comprises a carrier arm that connects the housing and the stop element, wherein the connection of the carrier arm to the housing is designed as a fracture point. After mounting the housing in the desired position, the positioning element is separated from the housing.

Claims

1. A device for arranging a housing (5) in a specified position relative to a reference object, wherein, on the housing (5), a positioning means (21) is constructed that can be detached or removed reversibly from a positioning region and that can be brought into contact with the reference object, wherein the positioning means (21) comprises one or more stop elements for positioning and/or aligning on the reference object, and wherein the positioning means (21) comprises a carrier arm (26) connecting the housing (5) and the one or more stop elements and that the connection of the carrier arm (26) to the housing (5) is designed as a desired fracture point.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the housing (5) is a sensor or actuator housing.

3. The device according to claim 2, wherein the housing (5) is a sensor housing, and wherein one or more sensor elements (11) are arranged in or on the housing (5).

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein the one or more stop elements are sections of the positioning means (21) constructed as spacers (25) or distance plates and that these spacers (25) comprise a first stop face (25b) facing the housing (5) and a second stop face (25a) constructed for contacting the reference object.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein a grip (27) for separating the positioning means (21) from the housing (5) is constructed on the carrier arm (26).

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein the housing (5) is produced as a plastic injection-molded housing and that the positioning means (21) is integrally formed on the injection-molded housing.

7. The device according to claim 1, wherein the positioning means is held so that it is also fixed on the housing (5) in a location away from the positioning region.

8. The device according to claim 7, wherein the positioning means (21) is held so that it can rotate.

9. The device according to claim 7, wherein the positioning means (21) is held so as to be displaceable along the housing (5).

10. A method for arranging a housing (5) in a specified position relative to a reference object by means of a device according to claim 2, characterized by bringing the sensor or actuator housing into the specified position and/or alignment through contact with the one or more stop elements on the reference object.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the housing (5) is fixed to a contact part or machine part and that afterwards the positioning means (21) is separated from the housing (5) or moved away from the positioning region.