Horn Module Mounting: Kinematic Mount

Abstract

This research will focus on the kinematic mount that is supporting the horn and horn module in the target hall, LBNF-20, at Fermilab. It will see if the current, ball-in-cup design will be the most optimal for the application as the horn module mount, and the main concerns that were considered were the ball diameter, cup angle, materials, and coating. There were many ways that information was gathered and analyzed such as: hand calculations, a spreadsheet calculator, and various graphs. The results will show if there is an exact cup angle, ball diameter, material, or coating that is the strongest candidate out of all the other options for all of these variables. It was determined that two dissimilar materials should be chosen for the materials, so the materials are 7Al-4Mo Ti and 4340 steel. Alongside those materials, the coating was determined to be tungsten disulfide. The cup angle and ball diameter can have a range of angles and diameters that will work. The ball diameter should be 7.5”, but it can be as small as 6”. Also, the cup angle can be 45° ± 5°. In the future, a Finite Element Analysis on the cup will provide additional confirmation that the assumptions made in the hand-calculations are correct, and there will be a prototype built to determine if the design can take loads under real conditions.