Apparel Protective Element with Hook-and-Loop Plate and Foam
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current athletic apparel combinations of foam components and plates provide enhanced protection but lack flexibility and breathability, and often require separate pads for training and competition, which can be cumbersome.
Innovation Solution
The use of a hook-and-loop fastening system to securely attach a semi-rigid plate element to a cushioning element with compressible pads, allowing for adjustable and separable configurations that prioritize comfort, protection, and versatility during athletic activities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If foam components and plates are combined to provide enhanced protection, then protection effectiveness is improved, but flexibility and breathability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The protective element is divided into separate components: a cushioning element with compressible foam pads and a plate element. These segments can be independently configured and attached using hook-and-loop fasteners, allowing the plate to be positioned optimally for protection while the foam provides cushioning. This segmentation enables both rigid protection and flexible comfort zones to coexist without compromising either function.
2Adaptability or versatility
If separate pads are used for training and competition, then protection levels can be optimized for each activity, but device complexity and ease of operation deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The protective element is designed as a universal system that can function in multiple modes: with the plate attached for competition-level protection, and with the plate removed for training-level comfort. The hook-and-loop fastening system enables quick transformation between these modes, allowing a single base cushioning element to serve both training and competition purposes without requiring completely separate equipment.
3Strength
If a semi-rigid plate is attached to cushioning element, then impact force distribution is improved, but ease of manufacture and device complexity worsen
Solution Approach 1:
Traditional mechanical fastening systems (screws, clips, or permanent bonding) are replaced with a hook-and-loop fastening system. This substitution allows the plate element to be securely attached to the cushioning element while enabling simple attachment and detachment without specialized tools or complex assembly procedures. The fastening system maintains structural integrity for impact protection while dramatically simplifying manufacturing and user assembly.
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
This configuration enhances protection by distributing impact forces effectively while providing breathability, a low overall mass, and launderability, with the ability to customize protection levels and adapt for different athletic activities through separable components.
Implementation Method 1
The plate element has a first part of a hook-and-loop fastening system, and the cushioning element incorporates a second part of the hook-and-loop fastening system. The first part of the hook-and-loop fastening system is joinable to the second part of the hook-and-loop fastening system to secure the plate element to the cushioning element.
Implementation Method 2
The cushioning element includes a plurality of compressible pads located between the first material layer and the second material layer
Implementation Method 3
foam components that impart cushioning or otherwise attenuate impact forces
Data Source
AI summary
Protective components may include a plate element and a cushioning element that are secured together with a hook-and-loop fastening system. The cushioning element may include a pair of material layers and a pad or a plurality of pad components located between the material layers. The plate element may include a polymer material and the pad may include a polymer foam material, with the polymer material of the plate element having greater rigidity and density than the polymer foam material of the pad.