Rotating Chew Toy Locking Pin Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pet chews face difficulties in cleaning out remaining edible treats and maintaining hygiene due to features designed to retain treats, which make it hard to periodically remove bits and clean the chews.
Innovation Solution
A pet chew design featuring two elongated halves that are rotatable relative to each other with a locking pin mechanism, allowing for secure treat retention and easy cleaning by locking the halves in place when not in use, exposing the interior volume for cleaning and treat insertion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the chew is designed with features to retain treats (such as cavities, openings, or hollow bodies), then treat retention is improved, but cleaning difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The chew is divided into two separable halves that can be detached from each other. This segmentation allows the interior surfaces to be fully accessed for cleaning while maintaining effective treat retention when the halves are assembled together. The detachable design resolves the contradiction by providing both secure treat holding capability and easy cleaning access.
Solution Approach 2:
The chew incorporates a rotatable mechanism where one half can rotate relative to the other, combined with a locking feature that transitions between locked and unlocked states. This dynamic design allows the chew to maintain treat retention during use (locked state) while enabling easy disassembly for cleaning (unlocked state), thus resolving the contradiction between retention and cleaning ease.
2Reliability
If the chew uses a locking mechanism to prevent rotation during use, then treat retention security is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism is designed to be automatically engaged when the chew is assembled and locked, and can be easily disengaged by the user when cleaning is needed. The mechanism serves itself by maintaining the locked state during normal use without requiring active control, thus providing reliable rotation prevention with minimal complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking feature is extracted as a separate, simple component that can be independently engaged or disengaged from the rotational connection between halves. This extraction allows the locking function to be implemented with minimal added complexity while effectively preventing rotation during use.
Data Source
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AI summary
An animal chew may include a first elongated half and a second elongated half rotatably secured to the first elongated half, wherein the first and second elongated halves are rotatable around an axis of rotation. The animal chew may also include a locking pin retained between the first elongated half and the second elongated half, wherein the locking pin slides up and down the axis of rotation into a locked position and an unlocked position. The animal chew may further include a chamber having an opening and an interior volume, wherein the chamber is formed in at least one of the first elongated half and the second elongated half. When the locking pin is in the locked position, rotation of the first elongated half relative to the second elongated half is impeded.