Articulating Retractable Banner Assembly for Flat Extension
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing retractable banner assemblies suffer from mechanical distortions and unevenness due to off-center applied pull forces, leading to functional limitations and aesthetic issues, particularly when the direction of the pull force is not perpendicular to the axis of rotation, which impairs the ability to smoothly extend, retract, and effectively impart communications.
Innovation Solution
A retractable banner assembly with a housing assembly that articulates relative to a support structure, allowing equalization of the applied pull force across a cross-section of the banner, enabling it to remain flat on extension and retraction, and incorporating ranges of pitch and yaw movements to accommodate variable pull forces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the banner is extended using a fixed housing assembly, then the structure is simple, but the banner exhibits mechanical distortions and unevenness due to off-center pull forces
Solution Approach 1:
The housing assembly is made dynamic by allowing it to articulate about a pivot axis and rotate about a vertical axis, enabling the spool to automatically adjust its orientation in response to off-center pull forces. This dynamic adjustment equalizes the pull force distribution across the banner width, preventing mechanical distortions and maintaining banner flatness during extension and retraction.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the orientation parameter of the spool relative to the housing by allowing the housing to articulate and rotate. This parameter change enables the spool to realign with the direction of pull forces, transforming the fixed geometric relationship into an adaptive one that maintains banner flatness under varying force conditions.
2Manufacturing precision
If the housing assembly is fixed, then the device is stable, but the banner cannot remain flat when subjected to variable pull force directions
Solution Approach 1:
The housing assembly transitions from a fixed static structure to a dynamic articulated structure that can pivot and rotate. This dynamic capability allows the housing to adapt its configuration in response to varying pull force directions, maintaining banner flatness while preserving overall system stability through controlled movement rather than rigid fixation.
Solution Approach 2:
The pivot axis and vertical rotation axis act as intermediaries between the fixed support structure and the spool-banner system. These intermediary elements allow the housing to mediate the forces applied to the banner, absorbing and redistributing off-center loads to maintain banner flatness while the housing remains connected to the stable support structure.
3Manufacturing precision
If the spool axis is fixed perpendicular to the banner, then the structure is simple, but off-center pull forces cause mechanical distortions
Solution Approach 1:
The spool axis orientation is changed from fixed to dynamic by allowing the housing to articulate and rotate. This enables the spool to automatically reorient itself perpendicular to the direction of pull forces, equalizing the force distribution across the banner and preventing mechanical distortions without requiring complex active control mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the applied pull force itself to drive the articulation and rotation of the housing assembly. The off-center forces that would normally cause distortion instead become the driving force that reorients the spool to a favorable position, allowing the system to self-correct and maintain banner flatness without external intervention or complex control systems.
Data Source
AI summary
A retractable banner assembly having a housing assembly and a mounting rod coupled directly or indirectly thereto, wherein the housing assembly articulates relative to a support structure responsive to an applied pull force on a rollable banner coupled directly or indirectly to the mounting rod, thereby promoting the banner to remain substantially flat on extension and retraction and when in a deployed state.