Bowstring Release Wrist Strap Ratcheting Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing adjustable wrist straps for archery bows, such as those using buckles and hook and loop fasteners, are difficult to install and adjust with one hand, often resulting in improper fit leading to potential injury and equipment damage due to inadequate security under high bowstring forces.
Innovation Solution
A bowstring release assembly with a jaw mechanism and an adjustable wrist strap featuring a flexible base member and a cable system that allows for one-handed cinching and adjustment, using a reel assembly with a ratcheting spool to secure the strap around the wrist, ensuring a snug and secure fit.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If hook and loop fasteners are used for adjustable wrist strap, then ease of attachment and infinite adjustment are improved, but reliability under load deteriorates due to hooks not being in full locking engagement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the hook and loop fastener system with a ratcheting mechanism consisting of a ratcheting spool and ratchet pawl. This mechanical substitution provides positive locking engagement that maintains reliability under high bowstring forces while still allowing easy one-handed operation for adjustment and attachment.
Solution Approach 2:
The ratcheting mechanism automatically maintains secure engagement under load without requiring active user intervention. The ratchet pawl self-locks onto the ratcheting spool teeth when tension is applied, providing automatic reliability under the high forces generated by compound bowstrings.
2Reliability
If buckle is used for adjustable wrist strap, then reliability under load is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to difficulty in manipulation with one hand
Solution Approach 1:
The ratcheting spool is designed to rotate freely in the loosening direction and lock in the tightening direction. This dynamic mechanism allows easy one-handed operation for attachment and adjustment while automatically providing secure locking under load, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The ratchet pawl acts as an intermediary element between the user's manual operation and the secure locking function. It translates simple rotational input into reliable mechanical locking, enabling easy one-handed adjustment while maintaining high reliability under bowstring forces.
3Ease of manufacture
If discrete holes are provided on wrist strap for buckle adjustment, then ease of manufacture is improved, but adaptability deteriorates since strap may be too loose or too tight
Solution Approach 1:
The cable length can be adjusted continuously by rotating the ratcheting spool, providing infinite adjustment possibilities rather than discrete hole positions. This dynamic adjustment mechanism maintains ease of manufacture while dramatically improving adaptability to accommodate various wrist sizes and preferences.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the adjustment parameter from discrete hole positions to continuous cable length. By allowing continuous variation of the strap circumference through cable length adjustment, the system achieves superior adaptability while remaining simple to manufacture.
Data Source
AI summary
A bowstring release assembly is adapted for connection to the wrist of a user and includes a jaw mechanism adapted to receive, retain, and release a bowstring, and an adjustable wrist strap connected to the jaw mechanism via an extension member. The adjustable wrist strap includes a flexible base member adapted to fit around the wrist of a user. A first anchor member is connected to one end portion of the wrist strap and a second anchor member connected to another end portion. A cable is fixed with respect to one of the anchor members and is adapted to engage the other of the anchor members to thereby draw the first and second end portions toward each other and cinch the adjustable wrist strap around the wrist of a user.