Bathroom Accessory Mounting Without Plates or Set Screws
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for attaching bathroom accessories to walls are complex, requiring multiple mounting plates, fasteners, templates, and set screws, which increase labor, cost, and tool requirements, making the process cumbersome and difficult for DIY installations.
Innovation Solution
A simplified method using modified brackets that accept a single horizontally oriented screw or expansion anchor at each attachment point, eliminating the need for mounting plates, templates, and set screws, with a cover cap over the fastener, and involving steps like marking, drilling, and tightening with minimal tools.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional mounting plates and set screws are used to attach bathroom accessories, then the attachment is secure and reliable, but the installation process becomes complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the mounting plate from the traditional mounting system, retaining only the essential fastening function through directly mounted brackets that attach to the wall, thereby simplifying the overall mounting assembly while maintaining secure attachment
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the bracket and mounting function into a single integrated bracket assembly that directly mounts to the wall, eliminating the separate mounting plate component and reducing the total number of parts required for installation
2Strength
If multiple mounting plates and fasteners are used for each accessory, then the attachment is robust, but the number of parts and installation steps increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the mounting plate component entirely from the system, reducing the quantity of parts while maintaining attachment robustness through directly wall-mounted brackets that use fewer fasteners
Solution Approach 2:
The bracket design merges the support and mounting functions into a single component that attaches directly to the wall, eliminating the need for separate mounting plates and reducing the total number of fasteners required
3Strength
If set screws are used to secure brackets to mounting plates, then the connection is firm, but the tightening operation becomes awkward and difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the set screw component entirely by removing the mounting plate, thereby eliminating the awkward tightening operation while maintaining firm connection through direct wall mounting of brackets
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of securing the bracket to a mounting plate with set screws, the patent inverts the approach by having the bracket attach directly to the wall structure, making the fastening operation more accessible and easier to perform
4Measurement precision
If templates are used to locate mounting positions, then the positioning is precise, but the installation process requires additional tools and time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the template component from the installation process, eliminating the need for additional positioning tools while maintaining adequate mounting position accuracy through direct measurement and marking methods
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a method of installing bathroom accessories such as towel racks on the walls of a bathroom. The method includes the following primary steps: revising accessories if said accessories lack horizontal wall fastener apertures to provide that they have at least one such aperture, selecting a location to place an accessory and marking it, drilling a fine opening at each mark to determine whether a wall stud is disposed at such opening, drilling a big enough hole to accommodate an expansion anchor collapsed end at each fine opening where no wall stud has been located, locating the accessory at that point, inserting fasteners into each aperture using a screw if a wall stud was found at that opening and using an expansion anchor at the other locations, tightening the fasteners while inserting any central element such as a towel bar, completing tightening, and covering each fastener with a cover cap.