Adjustable Valve Transport Platform for Stable Forklift Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for transporting and supporting industrial tools, such as valves, are inadequate as they lack stability, size flexibility, and compatibility with forklifts, leading to unsafe and inefficient handling and storage.
Innovation Solution
A support and transportation platform with a base plate and adjustable holding attachments, including L-shaped beams and square tubes, that securely holds industrial tools of varying sizes, allowing forklift access and crane lifting, while preventing tools from falling during transport.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional methods are used to transport industrial valves, then the valves can be moved from one location to another, but the valves lack stability and may fall during transport
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure is divided into modular components including a base plate, multiple holding attachments with L-shaped beams, and adjustable square tubes. Each component performs a specific function and can be independently positioned or adjusted to secure the valve, providing stability without requiring a monolithic complex structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The holding attachments are pre-configured with slots and beam structures that are designed to engage with the valve body before transport begins. The square tubes can be preliminarily adjusted to the required length to match the valve dimensions, ensuring the valve is secured in advance rather than during motion.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a fixed-size platform is used to support industrial valves, then the structure is simple, but it cannot accommodate valves of different sizes
Solution Approach 1:
The support platform incorporates dynamic adjustability through variable-length square tubes that can be extended or retracted, and holding attachments that can be repositioned along the base plate. This allows the platform to adapt its dimensions and configuration to match different valve sizes while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The platform enables changes in key geometric parameters including the distance between holding attachments (controlled by square tube length) and the position of attachments on the base plate. These parameter adjustments allow the same platform to securely support valves of varying dimensions without requiring multiple fixed-size platforms.
3Ease of operation
If direct contact handling of valve bodies is used, then the valves can be moved, but the risk of damage and contamination increases
Solution Approach 1:
The platform introduces intermediary elements including the base plate, holding attachments with L-shaped beams, and square tubes that act as mediators between the handling equipment and the valve body. These intermediaries provide secure contact points for lifting and transporting valves without requiring direct contact with critical valve surfaces, thereby reducing damage and contamination risks.
Solution Approach 2:
The design replaces direct manual or mechanical contact with the valve body with a standardized mechanical interface system consisting of slots, beams, and attachment points. This substitution allows for controlled, distributed contact forces through the holding attachments rather than concentrated contact, reducing stress on the valve body.
4Ease of operation
If no forklift access features are provided, then the platform structure is simpler, but forklift handling becomes difficult or unsafe
Solution Approach 1:
The base plate is designed to serve multiple functions: it provides the foundation for mounting holding attachments, acts as a structural support element, and incorporates features (such as slots and attachment points) that enable both crane lifting and forklift handling. This multi-functionality allows a single platform design to accommodate different material handling equipment without requiring separate specialized structures.
Data Source
AI summary
A support and transportation platform for industrial valves includes a base plate and multiple holding attachments. The base plate has a surface area that is greater than a surface area of an industrial tool to be supported and transported by the assembly. The base plate has a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface. Each holding attachment includes a first beam and a second beam attached to each other to form an L-shape. Each first beam can be removably attached to the first surface of the base plate. Each second beam can extend perpendicularly away from the first surface. Each first beam defines a respective slot through which a respective holding attachment can be removably attached to the base plate. Each second beam defines a respective slot through which the industrial tool is to be removably attached to the multiple holding attachments.