US 8,132,710 B2 · Deconstructable assembly and method

Abstract

An assembly (10) that can be both joined and parted by temperature processing. A parting member (20) captured between two members of the assembly exhibits a state change as a function of temperature such that the two members can be joined with a meltable joining material (18) at a joining temperature, operated at an operating temperature lower than the joining temperature, and then separated at a parting temperature higher or lower than the operating and joining temperatures as a result of a parting force caused by the state change of the parting member. In one embodiment, the parting member has a coefficient of thermal expansion higher than a coefficient of thermal expansion of the assembly members such that differential thermal expansion causes the parting member to expand across the interface (16) between the members to generate the parting force.

Claims9

Dependent claims

An assembly comprising:

a first component comprising a cavity;
a second component joined to the first component at an interface of the first component and the second component;
a meltable joining compound applied to and joining a portion of a surface of the first component and a portion of a surface of the second component;
and
a parting member at least partially disposed within the cavity and extending toward the second component, wherein a coefficient of thermal expansion of the parting member is greater than a coefficient of thermal expansion of the first component such that differential thermal expansion there between causes the parting member to exert a parting force which separates the joined portions of the surfaces of the first and second components at a parting temperature above a melting temperature of the joining compound but does not cause the parting force between the first and second components at an operating temperature below the melting temperature of the joining compound.

2 more elements

An assembly comprising:

a joined portion of a surface of a first member joined by a joining material to a joined portion of a surface of a second member along an interface;
and
a parting member disposed between respective portions of the first and second members, the parting member exhibiting a state change as a function of temperature, such that at a parting temperature that is above a melting temperature of the joining material the parting member will exert a parting force between the first and second members which separates the joined portion of the surface of the first member from the joined portion of the surface of the second member and thereby part the first and second members.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Deconstructable assembly and method

Life of this patent

Deconstructable assembly and method

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims9