Angleable Locking Device for Tool-Free Panel Assembly and Disassembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing furniture assembly and disassembly methods require tools and are cumbersome, particularly for products like bookshelves, cupboards, and wardrobes, as they lack efficient mechanisms for unlocking panels without visible gaps or tools.
Innovation Solution
An angleable locking device with a flexible tongue that allows panels to be locked and unlocked by an angling motion, featuring edge grooves and tongue grooves, enabling perpendicular and parallel locking, and facilitating disassembly without tools by increasing the angle between panels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a mechanical locking device is used to join panels perpendicular to each other, then the joint strength and stability are improved, but the disassembly process becomes complex and requires tools
Solution Approach 1:
The locking device transitions from a static locked state to a dynamic unlocking state through angular movement. The tongue is designed to be displaceable within the groove, allowing it to move from a locked position (engaging the perpendicular panel) to an unlocked position when the panel is tilted at an angle, enabling tool-free disassembly while maintaining strong joint stability during normal use
2Manufacturing precision
If a rigid locking mechanism is used to ensure tight joint, then the manufacturing precision is improved, but the adaptability for angular disassembly is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism utilizes changes in angular parameters to transition between locked and unlocked states. During assembly and use, the panels maintain a precise 90-degree angle with the tongue engaged in the groove. For disassembly, the panel is tilted to an angled position (different angular parameter), which automatically displaces the tongue from the groove, providing both precision during use and adaptability for disassembly
Data Source
AI summary
A set of panels including a panel with a first main plane and an adjacent panel with a second main plane, wherein the panel and the adjacent panel are provided with an angleable locking device for locking a first edge of the panel to a second edge of the adjacent panel. The first main plane is essentially perpendicular to the second main plane. The angleable locking device includes an edge groove at the first edge and a tongue groove at the second edge. The edge groove includes a flexible tongue arranged in an insertion groove at a first side of the edge groove. The angleable locking device is configured to be unlocked by an angling motion of the panel relative the adjacent panel, such that an angle between the first and the second main plane increases.