Adjustable In-Wall Frame for Sliding Doors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing in-wall frames for sliding doors require specific sizes for applications with varying dimensions, leading to increased costs and complex installation procedures, as they often necessitate the use of standard elements or auxiliary components, which can compromise structural integrity if not properly managed.
Innovation Solution
An adjustable in-wall frame design featuring telescopic profiles and modular components, such as secondary profiles that can extend or shorten to match specific opening sizes, allowing for quick adaptation without the need for additional elements, ensuring structural reliability and cost-effectiveness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If standard-sized posts and crossmembers are used, then manufacturing and inventory management are simplified, but adaptability to different application sizes is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The frame elements (posts and crossmembers) are designed with telescopic capabilities, allowing them to dynamically adjust their length between minimum and maximum positions. This enables the same standard manufactured elements to adapt to various application sizes without requiring custom-cut components for each installation scenario.
Solution Approach 2:
The telescopic structure employs nested profiles where one profile is inserted within another, similar to nested dolls. This allows the frame elements to extend or retract while maintaining a compact form when not in use, and enables standard elements to serve multiple size requirements through internal extension mechanisms.
2Adaptability or versatility
If elements are cut to size during installation, then adaptability to specific dimensions is improved, but installation time and structural reliability are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of statically cutting elements to fit specific dimensions, the invention employs dynamically adjustable telescopic elements that can be extended or retracted to match required dimensions. This eliminates time-consuming measurement and cutting operations during installation while maintaining precise dimensional adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The telescopic adjustment mechanism is pre-integrated into the frame elements during manufacturing, so that the adaptability function is already prepared and built-in. During installation, workers simply need to adjust the pre-fabricated telescopic elements to the required length, rather than performing complex cutting operations on-site.
3Adaptability or versatility
If elements are cut during installation, then fit to specific dimensions is improved, but structural integrity may be compromised due to generated torques and flexural moments
Solution Approach 1:
The telescopic mechanism provides a controlled, factory-engineered method for length adjustment that maintains structural integrity through designed connection points and locking mechanisms. This avoids the uncontrolled stress concentrations and potential weaknesses introduced by field cutting operations, ensuring reliable structural performance across different configurations.
4Adaptability or versatility
If auxiliary elements are added to extend standard elements, then adaptability to larger sizes is improved, but device complexity and additional costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The telescopic elements provide an integrated extension capability within the original frame structure, eliminating the need for separate auxiliary extension components. The extension function is built into the design of the posts and crossmembers themselves, maintaining structural coherence and avoiding the complexity of assembling multiple separate elements.
Data Source
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AI summary
An in-wall frame (10) for sliding doors, of the type comprising a framework enclosed in a casing (50), the in-wall frame (10) comprising: - two opposite end posts, respectively a first one (11) and a second one (12), - a main crossmember (13), which extends between the upper ends of the two end posts (11, 12), - two mutually opposite intermediate posts (14a, 14b), in a position that is substantially central between the two end posts (11, 12), - one or more pairs of secondary crossmembers (15a, 15b), each comprised between one of the end posts (12) and one of the intermediate posts (14a, 14b). The in-wall frame (10) comprises the main crossmember (13), the end posts (11, 12), the intermediate posts (14a, 14b) and the secondary crossmembers (15a, 15b), which have a length that can be modified.