Adjustable Curbside Voting Cart With Pneumatic Terminal Riser
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Solution Overview
Problem
Elderly election officials and those with physical disabilities face significant challenges in transporting and deploying large, heavy voting equipment to curbside voting locations, and there is a need for a solution that allows safe, efficient, and accessible curbside voting for disabled voters while maintaining social distancing.
Innovation Solution
A curbside voter cart designed with adjustable upright side-rails, wheels, and a pneumatic riser system to securely transport and deploy voting terminals to a car, providing frontal access and concealment, with robust restraints and nestable storage for various terminal types.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If voting equipment is made large and heavy to ensure stability and functionality, then voting terminal reliability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates for elderly officials and those with physical disabilities
Solution Approach 1:
The voting equipment is segmented into modular components that can be independently handled and assembled. The cart itself is divided into a frame structure, platform, and restraint system that can be configured separately, allowing officials to manage smaller components rather than moving entire heavy voting systems manually.
Solution Approach 2:
The cart serves as an intermediary device between storage and the voting location. It provides a mechanical advantage system where the cart's wheels and platform act as a mediator, allowing voting equipment to be transported without direct manual handling of the heavy terminal itself. The cart bears the weight and provides a stable base for deployment.
2Reliability
If voting equipment is designed for stable transport, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cart is designed as a universal platform that can accommodate multiple types of voting equipment through standardized restraint systems and adjustable platforms. The same cart structure serves multiple functions: transport, stable positioning during voting, and easy return to storage, eliminating the need for different specialized carts for different equipment types.
Solution Approach 2:
The cart employs adjustable parameters such as platform height and restraint positioning to adapt to different voting equipment sizes and weights. By changing these parameters rather than redesigning the entire cart structure, the system maintains simplicity while achieving transport stability for various equipment configurations.
3Ease of operation
If curbside voting is implemented for disabled voters, then accessibility is improved, but social distancing requirements create additional operational complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The cart enables the voter to maintain control of the voting process from within their vehicle. The voting equipment is positioned on the cart at the curbside location, allowing the disabled voter to interact with the terminal without leaving their car, thus achieving self-service voting while maintaining physical distance from officials and other voters.
Solution Approach 2:
The cart acts as an intermediary that bridges the gap between the voter's vehicle and the voting equipment. It positions the terminal at an optimal location where the voter can access it from their car while maintaining social distancing, and it serves as a stable platform that officials can manage without direct contact with the voter.
Data Source
AI summary
A curbside voter cart for transporting a voting terminal to a parked motorist, comprising a pair of opposing side-rails defined by contiguous tubing, a horizontal long-axle strut spanning the side-rails, a pair of wheels mounted on an axle supported in the long-axle strut, a forwardly-disposed stabilizer spanning the side-rails beneath the axle strut and projecting forward to a horizontal short-axle strut, and a pair of castors mounted on each side of the short-axle strut. In addition, a terminal support platform is adjustably mounted on the side-rails above the wheels and is repositionable anywhere along an upper extent of said side rails for adjustably positioning the voting terminal relative to a voter seated in a car. A voting terminal is supported on the terminal support platform by a pneumatic riser assembly that allows effortless vertical adjustment of the voting terminal to accommodate a range of vehicle types and heights.