Balanced Support Head With Pneumatic Spring Torque Matching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing support heads for video/photographic equipment struggle to maintain balance during oscillation, especially with heavy equipment, as the balancing torque produced by torsion springs or air springs does not effectively counteract the falling torque across a wide range of angles and weights, leading to instability and the need for multiple heads for different equipment weights.
Innovation Solution
A balanced support head with a pneumatic spring system that includes a fluid cartridge and an adjustable mechanism to ensure the balancing torque equals the falling torque for any angle of oscillation, allowing for precise adjustment to balance equipment of varying weights and dimensions within a compact, protected design.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a torsion spring is used to provide balancing torque, then the balancing mechanism is simple in structure, but the balancing torque is proportional to the angle of oscillation rather than the sine of the angle, making it ineffective for wide oscillation ranges
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a pneumatic spring (air spring) as the balancing mechanism. The air spring utilizes compressed air to generate a force that is substantially proportional to the sine of the angle of oscillation, matching the falling torque characteristics. This pneumatic approach provides effective balancing across wide oscillation ranges while maintaining a compact structure that can be integrated within the head assembly.
2Adaptability or versatility
If an air spring is used as the balancing device, then the balancing torque can be adjusted, but the device becomes bulky and is positioned outside the head in an unprotected position
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the air spring balancing device within the head assembly by positioning the air spring between the base and platform, with the cylinder joined to the base and the piston joined to the platform. This nested arrangement allows the balancing mechanism to be contained within the existing head structure, providing both protection and compactness while maintaining adjustability through the piston-cylinder configuration.
3Reliability
If compression springs are used to provide counter torque equal to falling torque, then balancing is achieved for any angle of oscillation, but the device is effective only for equipment within a predetermined weight range
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables adaptation to different equipment weights by adjusting parameters of the air spring system. The adjustable mechanism can modify the air spring's characteristics (such as pre-load or effective area) to match different weight scenarios. This parameter adjustment capability allows the same head design to effectively balance equipment across a wide weight range while maintaining accurate balancing for each specific configuration.
4Force
If heavy equipment is mounted on the support head, then the equipment can support substantial weight, but the oscillation movement becomes difficult and laborious to control with risk of equipment falling
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a balancing device that generates a counter-torque to offset the falling torque produced by heavy equipment. The air spring produces a force proportional to the sine of the oscillation angle, creating a counterbalancing moment that neutralizes the gravitational effect. This allows heavy equipment to be supported while maintaining easy, controlled oscillation movement without the risk of equipment falling, as the balancing torque dynamically compensates for weight-induced instability.
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
The solution provides stable equilibrium for a wide range of equipment weights and angles, ensuring balance without increasing the head's dimensions, and allows for easy adaptation to different equipment by adjusting the distance between the spring and the axis of oscillation, maintaining balance across various conditions.
Implementation Method 1
a pneumatic spring, of the type having a cylinder and piston
Implementation Method 2
the moment of the force of gravity of the equipment/platform system relative to the axis of oscillation
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5~7
AI summary
A balanced support head (1) for video/photographic equipment (2a), comprising a base (3), a platform (2) to which the equipment can be detachably fixed and which can turn relative to the base about a horizontal axis of oscillation (X), as well as a balancing device (10) capable of offsetting the oscillation of the platform caused by the weight of the equipment and the platform. The balancing device comprises a spring (12) fastened to the base and extending towards the platform along a substantially vertical axis (Z) of said base, and also an abutment element (16) fastened to the platform and abutting one end (15a) of the spring at a predetermined distance (R) from the axis of oscillation, so that, when the platform is oscillated relative to the base from a vertical, balanced position, the abutment element is displaced relative to the vertical axis along the end of the spring, such that the force exerted thereby on the abutment element generates a balancing torque with a sign opposite that generated by the weight of the equipment and of the platform.