BRANCH CAP, ARTIFICIAL BRANCH, AND MANUFACTURING METHOD FOR ARTIFICIAL BRANCH

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a branch cap, an artificial branch, and a manufacturing method for the artificial branch. The branch cap includes a cap body. The cap body is provided with a receiving hole for receiving a tip end of a branch body, the receiving hole having a base wall and a side wall. The side wall of the receiving hole is formed with at least one convex rib, the at least one convex rib being adapted to press against the branch body. The artificial branch includes the branch body and the above branch cap. The branch cap is sleeved on the tip end of the branch body.

Claims

1. A branch cap, comprising: a cap body provided with a receiving hole for receiving a tip end of a branch body, the receiving hole having a base wall and a side wall, wherein the side wall of the receiving hole is formed with at least one convex rib, the at least one convex rib being adapted to press against the branch body.

2. The branch cap of claim 1, wherein the branch body is provided with at least one mounting recess, and the at least one convex rib is adapted to be in interference fit with the at least one mounting recess.

3. The branch cap of claim 1, wherein the side wall of the receiving hole is formed with at least one connecting recess, and the tip end of the branch body is provided with at least one mounting protrusion, and the at least one connecting recess is adapted to be in interference fit with the at least one mounting protrusion.

4. The branch cap of claim 1, wherein the receiving hole comprises a first hole portion and a second hole portion, an end of the first hole portion forms an opening end of the receiving hole, and another end of the first hole portion is in communication with the second hole portion, and wherein a maximum inner diameter of the first hole portion is greater than a maximum inner diameter of the second hole portion.

5. The branch cap of claim 1, wherein an inner diameter of the receiving hole at an opening end is greater than an outer diameter of the tip end of the branch body.

6. The branch cap of claim 1, wherein each convex rib has an annular structure continuously distributed along a circumferential direction of the receiving hole; or wherein each convex rib comprises a plurality of protruding portions, the plurality of protruding portions being distributed at intervals along the circumferential direction of the receiving hole.

7. The branch cap of claim 1, wherein each convex rib extends along a depth direction of the receiving hole.

8. The branch cap of claim 1, wherein the branch cap is made of elastically deformable plastic or rubber.

9. The branch cap of claim 1, wherein the cap body has a first end and a second end, an opening end of the receiving hole is formed at the first end, and a radial dimension of an outer contour of the cap body decreases from the first end to the second end.

10. An artificial branch, comprising: a branch body; and the branch cap of claim 1; wherein the branch cap is sleeved on a tip end of the branch body.

11. The artificial branch of claim 10, wherein the branch body comprises: a branch rod; and a plurality of leaves, an end of each of the leaves being wound and fixed on the branch rod; wherein the tip end of the branch rod and at least part of the plurality of leaves are received in the receiving hole of the branch cap and pressed by the at least one convex rib.

12. A manufacturing method for an artificial branch, the manufacturing method comprising: forming a branch cap by injection molding, with the branch cap being provided with a receiving hole, and a side wall of the receiving hole being formed with at least one convex rib; aligning a tip end of a branch body with an opening end of the branch cap; and performing press-fitting so that the branch cap is tightly fastened to the tip end of the branch body, with the at least one convex rib pressing against the tip end of the branch body.

13. The manufacturing method of claim 12, wherein the aligning the tip end of the branch body with the opening end of the branch cap comprises: fixing the branch body to an assembly station of an assembly device; vibrating the branch cap through a vibrating screen so that the opening end of the branch cap faces towards a preset direction when the branch cap enters a feed channel of the assembly device; transferring the branch cap to a positioning fixture of the assembly device through the feed channel; and adjusting a position of the positioning fixture so that the opening end of the branch cap is aligned with the tip end of the branch body.

14. The manufacturing method of claim 13, wherein the performing press-fitting comprises: pushing the branch cap on the positioning fixture through a push rod, to push the branch cap onto the tip end of the branch body, wherein the push rod is driven pneumatically or hydraulically.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an artificial branch according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating assembly between a branch cap and a branch body after removal of leaves according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, with the branch cap being shown in a sectional view.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a branch cap according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0027] FIG. 4 is a front view of the branch cap in FIG. 3.

[0028] FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the branch cap in FIG. 3 taken along a line A-A.

[0029] FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the branch cap in FIG. 3 taken along a line B-B.

[0030] FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the branch cap taken along the line B-B according to yet another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0031] FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the branch cap according to still another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0032] FIG. 9 is a sectional view of the branch cap in FIG. 8 taken along a line C-C.

[0033] FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of a manufacturing method for an artificial branch according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

[0034] 100: artificial branch; 1: branch body; 11: branch rod; 12: leaf; 111: mounting recess; 112: mounting protrusion; 2: branch cap; 21: cap body; 211: first end; 212: second end; 213: receiving hole; 2131: first hole portion; 2132: second hole portion; 221: convex rib; 2211: protruding portion; 222: connecting recess; S: interface; X: central axis.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] In order to make the above objectives, features, and advantages of the present disclosure clearer, specific implementations of the present disclosure will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, the present disclosure can be implemented in many other ways different from those described herein, and those skilled in the art can make similar improvements without departing from the connotation of the present disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to specific embodiments disclosed below.

[0036] In the description of the present disclosure, it is to be understood that the orientation or position relationships indicated by the terms central, longitudinal, transverse, length, width, thickness, upper, lower, front, back, left, right, vertical, horizontal, top, bottom, inner, outer, clockwise, counterclockwise, axial, radial, circumferential, and the like are based on the orientation or position relationships shown in the accompanying drawings and are intended to facilitate the description of the present disclosure and simplify the description only, rather than indicating or implying that the apparatus or element referred to must have a particular orientation or be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and therefore are not to be interpreted as limiting the present disclosure.

[0037] In addition, the terms first and second are used for descriptive purposes only, which cannot be construed as indicating or implying a relative importance, or implicitly specifying the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined with first and second may explicitly or implicitly include at least one feature. In the description of the present disclosure, a plurality of means at least two, such as two or three, unless otherwise defined explicitly and specifically.

[0038] In the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified and defined explicitly, the terms mount, connect, join, and fix should be understood in a broad sense., which may be, for example, a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; or a direct connection, an indirect connection via an intermediate medium, an internal connection between two elements, or interaction between two elements. Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand specific meanings of these terms in the present disclosure according to specific situations.

[0039] In the present disclosure, unless otherwise explicitly specified and defined, the expression a first feature being on or under a second feature may be the case that the first feature is in direct contact with the second feature, or the first feature is in indirect contact with the second feature via an intermediate medium. Furthermore, the expression the first feature being over, above and on top of the second feature may be the case that the first feature is directly above or obliquely above the second feature, or only means that the level of the first feature is higher than that of the second feature. The expression the first feature being below, underneath or under the second feature may be the case that the first feature is directly underneath or obliquely underneath the second feature, or only means that the level of the first feature is lower than that of the second feature.

[0040] It is to be noted that when one element is referred to as being fixed to or arranged on another element, it may be directly disposed on the other element or an intermediate element may exist. When one element is considered to be connected to another element, it may be directly connected to the another element or an intermediate element may co-exist. The terms vertical, horizontal, left, right and similar expressions used herein are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent an only implementation.

[0041] The present disclosure provides a branch cap 2 and an artificial branch 100 having the branch cap 2.

[0042] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an artificial branch 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the artificial branch 100 includes a branch body 1 and a branch cap 2. The branch cap 2 is sleeved on a tip end of the branch body 1. Specifically, the tip end of the branch body 1 is in interference fit with the branch cap 2, to prevent falling of the branch body 1 from the branch cap 2. The branch cap 2 will be described in conjunction with the description of the artificial branch 100.

[0043] As shown in FIG. 1, in an embodiment, the branch body 1 includes a branch rod 11 and a plurality of leaves 12, and each of the leaves 12 has an end wound and fixed on the branch rod 11 and another end extending obliquely with respect to the branch rod 11 toward a tip end of the branch rod 11. The branch body 1 is, for example, an artificial pine needle branch, but is not limited thereto. The plurality of leaves 12 are generally evenly distributed around the branch rod 11 and extend in a length direction of the branch rod 11 to the tip end of the branch rod 11. Optionally, referring to FIG. 2, the branch rod 11 is formed by a plurality of metal wires intertwined with each other, and forms a wavy structure on an outer side face of the branch rod 11. The metal wires are, for example, iron wires. Certainly, in some alternative embodiments, the branch rod 11 may be formed by a single elongated rod. The elongated rod is made of, for example, metal, plastic, or the like. The outer side face of the branch rod 11 may be a smooth surface or a non-smooth surface, for example, forming a wavy or zigzag structure, which is not limited in the present disclosure.

[0044] As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 5, in some embodiments, the branch cap 2 includes a cap body 21. The cap body 21 is provided with a receiving hole 213 for receiving the branch body 1, and the receiving hole 213 has a base wall and a side wall. The side wall of the receiving hole 213 is formed with at least one convex rib 221, and the at least one convex rib 221 is adapted to press against the branch body 1. Specifically, when the branch cap 2 is assembled with the branch body 1, the tip end of the branch rod 11 and at least part of the plurality of leaves 12 are received in the receiving hole 213 of the branch cap 2 and are pressed by the at least one convex rib 221. In this way, the branch cap 2 can be tightly fastened to the branch body 1, and at the same time, a possibility of falling of the leaves 12 from the branch rod 11 can be reduced. Certainly, in some alternative embodiments, the tip end of the branch rod 11 may be received in the receiving hole 213 of the branch cap 2.

[0045] Referring to FIG. 2, the tip end of the branch body 1 is provided with at least one mounting recess 111, and the at least one convex rib 221 is adapted to be in interference fit with the at least one mounting recess 111. A plurality of convex ribs 221 are provided, and the plurality of convex ribs 221 are distributed at intervals along a depth direction of the receiving hole 213. Correspondingly, a plurality of mounting recesses 111 are provided, and the plurality of mounting recesses 111 fits the plurality of convex ribs 221 so that the branch cap 2 can be tightly fastened to the branch body 1. The side wall of the receiving hole 213 may also be formed with at least one connecting recess 222, the branch body 1 is correspondingly provided with at least one mounting protrusion 112, and the at least one connecting recess 222 is adapted to be in interference fit with the at least one mounting protrusion 112. Specifically, a plurality of connecting recesses 222 and a plurality of mounting protrusions 112 are provided. The plurality of convex ribs 221 and the plurality of connecting recesses 222 are distributed at intervals along the depth direction of the receiving hole 213 on the side wall of the receiving hole 213. The side wall of the receiving hole 213 is formed in a wavy structure or a zigzag structure in the depth direction (i.e., a longitudinal direction) of the receiving hole 213. The wavy structure or zigzag structure matches the wavy structure or zigzag structure formed by the tip end of the branch body 1. In this way, the plurality of convex ribs 221 can block the plurality of mounting protrusions 112 on the tip end of the branch body 1, thereby increasing an external force required to separate the branch cap 2 from the branch body 1, thereby enabling the branch cap 2 to be tightly fastened to the branch body 1 and preventing separation of the branch cap 2 from the branch body 1 during use.

[0046] The branch cap 2 is made of elastically deformable plastic or rubber. In this way, during the mounting of the branch cap 2 to the branch body 1, the cap body 21 and/or the convex rib 221 of the branch cap 2 is/are elastically deformed, so that the branch cap 2 can be easily mounted on the branch body 1. In this embodiment, the branch cap 2 is integrally formed (e.g., injection molded).

[0047] Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 5, the cap body 21 has a first end 211 and a second end 212, and an opening end of the receiving hole 213 is formed at the first end 211. An inner diameter do of the receiving hole 213 at the opening end is greater than an outer diameter D of the tip end of the branch body 1 (i.e., d0>D), so that the tip end of the branch body 1 can be inserted into the receiving hole 213 of the branch cap 2. In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 5 and FIG. 9, the receiving hole 213 includes a first hole portion 2131 and a second hole portion 2132, an end of the first hole portion 2131 forms an opening end of the receiving hole, and another end of the first hole portion 2131 is in communication with the second hole portion 2132. The first hole portion 2131 is substantially in a shape of a trumpet, and the inner diameter do of the receiving hole 213 at the opening end is formed as a maximum inner diameter d1 of the first hole portion 2131 (i.e., d1=d0). Optionally, the maximum inner diameter d1 of the first hole portion 2131 may alternatively be formed at another position adjacent to the opening end of the receiving hole 213 (i.e., d1>d0), which is not limited in the present disclosure. The maximum inner diameter d1 of the first hole portion 2131 is greater than a maximum inner diameter d2 of the second hole portion 2132 (i.e., d1>d2). In this way, the tip end of the branch body 1 can be easily extended into the receiving hole 213, and after the tip end of the branch body 1 is inserted into the receiving hole 213, interference fit can be formed between the tip end of the branch body 1 and the second hole portion 2132.

[0048] Referring to FIG. 5, in an embodiment, a plane where a crest of the convex rib 221 closest to the opening end of the receiving hole 213 is located is taken as an interface S, the first hole portion 2131 is located on a side of the interface S close to the first end 211, and the second hole portion 2132 is located on a side of the interface S close to the second end 212. The interface S is substantially perpendicular to a central axis X of the cap body 21. It may be understood that the interface S is an imaginary plane introduced for the convenience of description, which is not an actual plane in the branch cap 2. Referring to FIG. 2, FIG. 5, and FIG. 9, a radial dimension of an outer contour of the cap body 21 decreases from the first end 211 to the second end 212. That is, the outer diameter of the cap body 21 decreases from the first end 211 to the second end 212, making artificial pine strips more natural and beautiful as a whole. Optionally, in an embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, an outer surface of the branch cap 2 may be formed as a smooth surface. In some other embodiments, as shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 5 and FIG. 9, the outer surface of the branch cap 2 may be formed as a non-smooth surface. For example, the outer contour of the branch cap 2 is shaped like a pine cone, but is not limited thereto.

[0049] Referring to FIG. 6, in some embodiments, the branch cap 2 includes a plurality of convex ribs 221 distributed at intervals, and each convex rib 221 has an annular structure continuously distributed along a circumferential direction of the receiving hole 213. In other words, each convex rib 221 is arranged transversely. In yet another embodiment, referring to FIG. 7, each convex rib 221 includes a plurality of protruding portions 2211, and the plurality of protruding portions 2211 are distributed at intervals along the circumferential direction of the receiving hole 213. In still another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, the branch cap 2 includes a plurality of convex ribs 221 distributed at intervals, and each convex rib 221 extends along a longitudinal direction (i.e., the depth direction of the receiving hole 213). In other words, each convex rib 221 is arranged longitudinally. Certainly, in other embodiments, the plurality of protruding portions 2211 may alternatively be distributed in the receiving hole 213 in other manners, as long as each convex rib 221 can press against the tip end of the branch body 1, which is not limited in the present disclosure.

[0050] According to the branch cap 2 and the artificial branch 100 having the branch cap 2 provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the branch body 1 is pressed by the at least one convex rib 221 in the branch cap 2, so that the branch cap 2 can be tightly fastened to the tip end of the branch body 1 to prevent detachment of the branch cap 2 from the branch body 1 during use of the artificial branch 100. This prevents stringing of the user by the artificial branch 100 during the use, improves usage experience of the user, and also makes the artificial branch 100 more beautiful and natural.

[0051] The present disclosure further provides a manufacturing method for an artificial branch 100. The manufacturing method may be used to manufacture the artificial branch 100 in the above embodiments.

[0052] Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 10, the manufacturing method for the artificial branch 100 includes the following steps.

[0053] In S1, a branch cap 2 is formed by injection molding, with the branch cap 2 being provided with a receiving hole 213, and the side wall of the receiving hole 213 being formed with at least one convex rib 221.

[0054] In step S1, the branch cap 2 is made of an elastic material such as rubber (or soft rubber) or plastic (or hard rubber). The receiving hole 213 of the branch cap 2 is a blind hole. That is, an end of the receiving hole 213 is formed as an opening end. In an embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, the branch cap 2 includes a plurality of convex ribs 221 distributed at intervals, and each convex rib 221 has an annular structure distributed along a circumferential direction of the receiving hole 213. Specifically, the side wall of the receiving hole 213 has a wavy structure or a zigzag structure along a longitudinal direction R1. In another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, the branch cap 2 includes a plurality of convex ribs 221 distributed at intervals, and each convex rib 221 extends along the longitudinal direction R1 (i.e., the depth direction of the receiving hole 213).

[0055] In S2, a tip end of a branch body 1 is aligned with an opening end of the branch cap 2, which specifically includes the following steps.

[0056] In S21, the branch body 1 is fixed to an assembly station of an assembly device. The tip end of the branch body 1 faces a positioning fixture of the assembly device.

[0057] In S22, the branch cap 2 is vibrated through a vibrating screen so that the opening end of the branch cap 2 faces towards a preset direction when the branch cap 2 enters a feed channel of the assembly device.

[0058] In S23, the branch cap 2 is transferred to the positioning fixture of the assembly device through the feed channel. A plurality of feed channels may be provided, different branch caps 2 are transferred to different assembly positions on the positioning fixture through different feed channels, which can speed up assembly of the branch cap 2 and the branch body 1.

[0059] In S24, a position of the positioning fixture is adjusted so that the opening end of the branch cap 2 is aligned with the tip end of the branch body 1.

[0060] In S3, press-fitting is performed so that the branch cap 2 is tightly fastened to the tip end of the branch body 1, with the at least one convex rib 221 pressing against the tip end of the branch body 1. Step S3 of performing press-fitting specifically includes the following step.

[0061] In S31, the branch cap 2 on the positioning fixture is pushed through a push rod, to push the branch cap 2 onto the tip end of the branch body 1. The push rod is driven pneumatically or hydraulically.

[0062] According to the manufacturing method for an artificial branch 100 provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the branch cap 2 provided with at least one convex rib 221 can be tightly fastened to the branch body 1, which prevents detachment of the branch cap 2 from the branch body 1 during use, improves usage experience of the artificial branch 100, and also makes the artificial branch 100 more beautiful and natural. At the same time, with the manufacturing method, the branch cap 2 can be quickly mounted on the branch body 1, thereby improving a degree of automation and speeding up assembly between the branch cap 2 and the branch body 1.

[0063] The technical features in the above embodiments may be randomly combined. For concise description, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, all the combinations of the technical features are to be considered as falling within the scope described in this specification provided that they do not conflict with each other.

[0064] The above embodiments only describe several implementations of the present disclosure, and their description is specific and detailed, but cannot therefore be understood as a limitation on the patent scope of the present disclosure. It should be noted that those of ordinary skill in the art may further make variations and improvements without departing from the conception of the present disclosure, and these all fall within the protection scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the patent protection scope of the present disclosure should be subject to the appended claims.