Collapsible Container Linkage for Compact Stacking When Empty
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing shipping containers are expensive to produce and inefficient to manage when empty, often leading to disposal, repurposing, or storage, which is not cost-effective or environmentally friendly.
Innovation Solution
A collapsible container design with components such as a roof, base, collapsible and foldable walls, linkages, locks, and a constant-force device that allows the container to be collapsed, stacked, and erected efficiently, using integrated or modular locks and hinges for easy manipulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If shipping containers are made rigid and durable for repeated use, then their strength and reliability are improved, but their volume and storage space requirements increase when empty
Solution Approach 1:
The container is divided into collapsible wall segments that can be folded inward, allowing the structure to maintain strength when erected but reduce volume when empty. The walls are segmented into panels that can be independently folded along hinge lines.
Solution Approach 2:
The container transitions from a static rigid structure to a dynamic collapsible structure. The walls can change configuration between erected and collapsed states through hinge mechanisms, allowing the volume to adapt while maintaining structural integrity when needed.
2Volume of moving object
If shipping containers are designed to be collapsible for compact storage, then their storage efficiency is improved, but their structural strength and stability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The structural framework is segmented into modular components including corner posts, cross members, and wall panels that can be independently folded. This segmentation allows the structure to collapse compactly while maintaining connection points for structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
Locking mechanisms are pre-positioned along the container walls to engage automatically during the collapsing process, ensuring structural integrity is maintained throughout the transformation and in the collapsed state.
3Device complexity
If manual collapsing mechanisms are used, then device complexity is reduced, but the time and labor required for collapsing and erecting increase
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple collapsing functions are merged into integrated linkage systems that connect the roof, walls, and base. A single action of lowering the roof triggers the coordinated collapse of all walls through combined linkage mechanisms, reducing the number of separate operations required.
Solution Approach 2:
The container is designed to collapse and erect itself through gravity-assisted linkage mechanisms. Once the roof is lowered or raised, the linkage system automatically guides the walls through their collapsing or erecting motion without requiring additional manual intervention.
4Ease of operation
If locks and latches are made accessible for easy operation, then ease of operation is improved, but security and protection of internal components deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanisms are nested within recesses or cavities in the container walls and base. The locks are accessible through openings or removable panels that can be opened from the exterior, allowing operation while keeping the majority of the locking components protected from environmental exposure.
Solution Approach 2:
Protective covers or panels act as intermediaries between the external environment and the locking mechanisms. These covers can be opened to access the locks for operation, then closed to protect the components from weather and debris while maintaining security.
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
Enables cost-effective management of empty shipping containers through efficient collapsing and stacking, reducing waste and storage needs, and allowing for reuse or repurposing with minimal environmental impact.
Implementation Method 1
the roof includes a constant-force device to act on the foldable wall
Implementation Method 2
a linkage connecting the roof to the collapsible wall to collapse the collapsible wall and raise the collapsible wall to an erect position
Implementation Method 3
a hinge connecting the collapsible wall to the base to inwardly collapse the collapsible wall towards the base, and to raise the collapsible wall from the base to an erect position
Data Source
AI summary
A collapsible container including a roof; a base; a collapsible wall between the roof and the base; a linkage connecting the roof to the collapsible wall to collapse the collapsible wall and raise the collapsible wall to an erect position; and a foldable wall, wherein the roof includes a constant-force device to act on the foldable wall.