Anisotropic Stiffener for Climbing Skin Lateral Bending
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Solution Overview
Problem
Climbing skins for snow devices often experience snow creep between the skin and the undersurface, leading to peeling away from the device, especially at the forward and rearward ends, which affects their effectiveness in ascending steep slopes.
Innovation Solution
A reinforced climbing skin design featuring an anisotropic stiffener element with elongated elements intersecting the longitudinal axis at an angle, providing greater resistance to lateral bending than longitudinal bending, which is bonded between the attachment and glide surfaces to maintain the intersecting angle and prevent peeling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a climbing skin is made flexible for storage, then it is easier to store and transport, but it cannot resist lateral bending during use causing snow creep and peeling
Solution Approach 1:
The climbing skin incorporates a stiffener element with specific directional properties: high stiffness in the lateral direction (perpendicular to longitudinal axis) to resist snow creep and peeling, while maintaining flexibility in the longitudinal direction for ease of storage. This localized differentiation of mechanical properties resolves the contradiction between storage ease and lateral bending resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The climbing skin combines multiple materials with complementary properties: a flexible base fabric for overall flexibility and storage ease, combined with a stiffener element (such as a corrugated board or rigid strip) that provides lateral bending resistance. This composite structure allows the skin to be both easy to store and reliable in use.
2Reliability
If the climbing skin is made rigid to prevent snow creep, then it resists lateral bending better, but it cannot bend longitudinally for storage
Solution Approach 1:
The stiffener element is designed with anisotropic mechanical properties: high stiffness in the lateral direction (perpendicular to the longitudinal axis) to prevent snow creep and peeling, while maintaining low stiffness in the longitudinal direction to allow bending for storage. This directional differentiation resolves the contradiction between preventing snow creep and enabling longitudinal bending.
Solution Approach 2:
The climbing skin uses a thin, flexible base fabric that can bend longitudinally for storage, combined with a stiffener element that provides lateral support. The thin film structure allows longitudinal flexibility while the embedded stiffener prevents lateral deformation and snow creep during use.
3Strength
If adhesive is applied to the entire surface, then attachment strength is improved, but snow creep between skin and device causes peeling at ends
Solution Approach 1:
The stiffener element is positioned to extend beyond the adhesive application area, particularly at the forward and rearward ends of the climbing skin. This local reinforcement at critical areas prevents peeling caused by snow creep, while adhesive is applied only to the central portion where full-surface attachment is most effective.
Solution Approach 2:
The stiffener element is pre-installed on the climbing skin before attachment to the snow device. This preliminary action ensures that the stiffener is in place to resist lateral bending and prevent peeling at the ends before the climbing skin is subjected to use conditions and snow creep forces.
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 reinforced design enhances durability and prevents snow build-up, allowing the climbing skin to maintain contact with the snow device, improving traction and ease of use on steep slopes by resisting lateral bending while allowing for longitudinal bending for easier storage.
Implementation Method 1
The stiffener element may comprise an anisotropic material. For example, the anisotropic material may comprise elongated elements intersecting the longitudinal axis at an intersecting angle.
Implementation Method 2
a stiffener element disposed between the attachment surface and the glide surface to resist a lateral bending about the longitudinal axis and permit a longitudinal bending about a lateral axis of the skin
Implementation Method 3
The climbing skin may comprise an adhesive engageable with an undersurface of the snow device. Various reusable adhesives are known in the art for this purpose.
Data Source
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AI summary
One aspect is an exemplary climbing skin extending along a longitudinal axis. For example, the skin may comprise: an attachment surface engageable with an undersurface of the snow device; a glide surface that slides across snow when moved in a forward direction along a longitudinal axis of the skin and resists sliding across the snow when moved in a rearward direction along the longitudinal axis; and a stiffener element disposed between the attachment surface and the glide surface to resist a lateral bending about the longitudinal axis and permit a longitudinal bending about a lateral axis of the skin that is generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis.