Adjustable Floor Covering Laying Tool with Integrated Impact Damping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing floor covering installation tools are limited to specific material thicknesses, require additional tools like hammers, generate noise, and can only apply tensile or compressive forces, posing risks of injury and inefficiency.
Innovation Solution
A laying tool comprising a support element, guide element, and bolt element with adjustable positioning, elastomer dampers, and a central recess for the bolt, allowing for versatile material thickness adaptation, noise reduction, and integrated force application without additional tools.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional pull bars or tapping blocks are used, then floor coverings can be joined together, but the tools are only suitable for predetermined material thicknesses requiring different tools for different thicknesses
Solution Approach 1:
The laying tool is designed with an adjustable guide element that can be positioned at different locations along the longitudinal extent of the support element, allowing a single tool to accommodate various floor covering thicknesses. The guide element's adjustable position changes the lever arm length, adapting the tool's mechanical advantage for different material thicknesses without requiring multiple specialized tools.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide element is mounted on guide grooves that allow it to be dynamically repositioned along the support element's length. This dynamic adjustability enables the user to modify the tool's geometry in real-time based on the specific floor covering thickness being installed, transforming a static tool into an adaptable system.
2Productivity
If hammers are used with tapping blocks, then floor coverings can be joined, but additional tools are required and noise is generated
Solution Approach 1:
The bolt element integrates the striking function previously performed by a separate hammer into the laying tool itself. The bolt element can be manually operated to strike the stop, combining the functions of the laying tool and hammer into a single integrated device, eliminating the need for a separate hammer tool.
Solution Approach 2:
The laying tool is designed to be self-sufficient by incorporating the striking mechanism (bolt element) directly into the tool structure. The user operates the bolt element to strike the stop, allowing the tool to perform both the laying and striking functions without requiring external tools or assistance.
3Productivity
If hammers striking wood or iron are used, then floor coverings can be joined, but the process generates significant noise
Solution Approach 1:
A damper made of elastomer material is provided on the bolt element to cushion the impact before striking. This elastomer damper absorbs and reduces the impact noise generated during the striking operation, providing noise reduction as a built-in feature of the tool design.
4Ease of operation
If pull bars or tapping blocks with exposed moving parts are used, then floor coverings can be joined, but the risk of injury to the user increases
Solution Approach 1:
The bolt element is guided within a recess in the support element, nesting the moving and striking parts inside the tool body. This recess structure contains the potentially hazardous moving parts, preventing direct user contact while allowing the bolt element to move and strike freely within the protected space.
5Ease of repair
If stops are permanently fixed to the support element, then the structure is simple, but worn stops require replacement of the entire tool
Solution Approach 1:
The stop is designed as a separate, replaceable component that can be independently removed and replaced on the support element. This segmentation allows the stop to be serviced separately from the main tool body, enabling easy replacement of worn stops without discarding the entire laying tool.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables safe, quiet, and efficient installation of floor coverings with adaptable force application, reducing the need for multiple tools and minimizing injury risk, while being suitable for various material thicknesses.
Implementation Method 1
dampers made of an elastomer are arranged at each free end of the bolt element. It is advantageous that the stops made of an elastomer or rubber dampen the impact of the bolt element on the corresponding stop and thus also reduce noise generation.
Data Source
Figure 1a
Figure 1b
Figure 1c
AI summary
The invention relates to a laying tool (1) for floor coverings, which can be connected to one another in particular by means of a tongue and groove connection, comprising a support element (11), a guide element (12) and a bolt element (13), wherein at least one guide groove (111) for the guide element (12) is provided in the support element (11), which guide groove extends along a longitudinal extent of the support element (11), wherein the guide element (12) is mounted in the at least one guide groove (111) so as to be positionally adjustable along the longitudinal extent of the support element (11), wherein the bolt element (13) is guideable in a recess (112) extending parallel to the at least one guide groove (111), wherein the bolt element (13) is at least indirectly fixed to the guide element (12), wherein a stop (113, 114) for the bolt element is provided on a respective longitudinal free end of the support element (11). (13) is arranged,wherein a projection (1131) is formed on one of the stops (113) for contact with a floor covering, such that when the bolt element (13) strikes at least one of the stops (113, 114), an impulse of the bolt element (13) can be transmitted at least partially to the stop (113) with the projection (1131), and thus indirectly to a floor covering resting against the projection.