Ceiling Tile Clip With Threaded Grid Attachment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ceiling tile retention systems, such as clips or brackets, are difficult to install and remove, often misplaced, and require maneuvering from above the ceiling grid, making it challenging to securely retain ceiling tiles.
Innovation Solution
The design includes ceiling tile clips with a top wall, parallel side walls, and flanges that can be attached to elongated ceiling grid members, allowing for secure retention of ceiling tiles between the clip's flanges and the grid's support portions, with a threaded member for easy attachment and detachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If clips or brackets are used to retain ceiling tiles, then the retention force is improved, but the ease of installation and removal deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The clip incorporates a resilient portion that can be elastically deformed to transition between engaged and disengaged states. When pressure is applied, the resilient portion deforms to release the ceiling tile, and when pressure is released, it returns to its original shape to automatically re-engage the tile, providing dynamic retention without manual intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The clip is designed to automatically engage and disengage ceiling tiles through the application and release of pressure on the resilient portion. The system serves itself by using the mechanical deformation of the resilient portion to control the engagement state, eliminating the need for manual manipulation or complex installation procedures.
2Reliability
If clips or brackets are maneuvered from above the grid, then the retention security is improved, but the ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The clip is designed to be maneuvered from below the ceiling grid rather than from above. The resilient portion extends downward to engage the ceiling tile from underneath, allowing installers to access and manipulate the clip from the accessible space below the ceiling, thereby improving ease of operation while maintaining retention security.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of approaching the ceiling tile from above as with traditional clips, this invention inverts the approach by engaging the tile from below. The resilient portion is positioned to contact and engage the undersurface of the ceiling tile, reversing the conventional direction of installation and operation.
3Force
If the clip structure is made more complex to improve retention, then the retention force is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The clip integrates multiple functions into a single unified structure. The body portion provides structural support and engagement surfaces, while the resilient portion provides both the retention force and the release mechanism. This merging of functions eliminates the need for separate components, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining effective retention.
Solution Approach 2:
The clip utilizes elastic deformation of the resilient portion as the primary mechanism for retention and release. By changing the physical state of the resilient material through elastic deformation rather than requiring mechanical actuation or complex mechanisms, the design achieves effective retention with minimal structural complexity.
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 enables secure retention of ceiling tiles from below the grid, easy installation and removal, and maintains attachment during tile insertion or removal, providing a stable and user-friendly solution for ceiling tile management.
Implementation Method 1
The top wall may include a threaded opening that receives and engages a threaded member.
Data Source
AI summary
A ceiling tile clip includes a top wall, a pair of parallel, spaced side walls that extend downwardly from opposite edges of the top wall and flanges at lower edges of the side walls that extend outwardly. The top wall includes a threaded opening in the center thereof. The ceiling tile clip is configured to be attached to an elongated ceiling grid member by a threaded member that threadedly engages the threaded opening. The elongated ceiling grid member has side surfaces and lower flange portions. When the ceiling tile clip is attached to the elongated ceiling grid member, the top wall of the ceiling tile clip is above the elongated ceiling grid member, the side walls of the ceiling tile clip are alongside the side surfaces of the elongated ceiling grid member and the flanges of the ceiling tile clip are above the flange portions.