Collapsible Squeegee With Telescoping Handle for Compact Vehicle Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional squeegees are bulky and difficult to store in vehicles, with limited reach for cleaning side windows and issues with wet storage, as they lack a compact design and a mechanism to dry the scrubber.
Innovation Solution
A compact collapsible squeegee with a telescoping handle and hinged joint, allowing the wiper support to pivot from a closed to an open position, secured by latches, and featuring a grip with ventilation for drying, enabling easy storage and extended reach for cleaning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If a conventional squeegee uses a long fixed handle to reach the front windshield center, then the reach is adequate, but the squeegee becomes bulky and difficult to store in vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The handle is divided into multiple telescoping sections that can extend and retract. When extended, the handle reaches the front windshield center; when retracted, the sections collapse into a compact form that fits within the hollow grip, solving the storage problem while maintaining adequate reach.
Solution Approach 2:
The handle transitions from a static fixed length to a dynamic adjustable length. The telescoping mechanism allows the handle to change its effective length based on usage requirements, being long during cleaning operations and short during storage periods.
2Device complexity
If a conventional squeegee has a fixed perpendicular blade carrier, then the structure is simple, but it is difficult to find a place within most vehicles to easily store the squeegee
Solution Approach 1:
The blade carrier is transformed from a fixed perpendicular structure to a dynamic hinged structure that can pivot between perpendicular (for use) and parallel (for storage) positions. This allows the squeegee to maintain structural simplicity while achieving compact storage by collapsing the overall profile when the blade carrier is parallel to the handle.
3Ease of operation
If a conventional squeegee stores the sponge scrubber while wet, then storage is convenient, but the wet scrubber adds difficulty to storing the squeegee in a car and may wet the vehicle interior
Solution Approach 1:
The sponge scrubber is extracted from the interior of the hollow grip and stored externally in a dedicated holder attached to the telescoping handle. This prevents the scrubber from wetting the vehicle interior while maintaining easy access and storage convenience. The external positioning allows the scrubber to be removed or dried without affecting the main body storage.
Solution Approach 2:
The hollow grip acts as an intermediary barrier between the wet sponge scrubber and the vehicle interior. By positioning the scrubber externally and using the hollow grip structure with ventilation, the system mediates the conflict between storage convenience and preventing water damage.
4Extent of automation
If the telescoping handle and hinged joint are spring-loaded to automate deployment, then the squeegee deploys automatically to the open position, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spring-loaded mechanism enables the telescoping handle and hinged joint to automatically deploy to the open position without manual intervention. The springs store potential energy that is released to extend the handle sections and pivot the blade carrier into position, making the squeegee self-deploying when taken from storage.
Data Source
AI summary
A compact collapsible squeegee for wiping fluids from smooth surfaces including a telescoping handle having a hinged joint at one end and a wiper support attached to the hinged joint to pivot from a closed position with the wiper support substantially parallel to the telescoping handle to an open position with the wiper support substantially perpendicular to the telescoping handle. Latches may be used to secure both the telescoping handle and the wiper support in the open position such that the squeegee is substantially rigid in use. Both the telescoping handle and the hinged joint may be spring-loaded to automate deployment of the squeegee to the open position. The telescoping handle and wiper support may be stored in the closed position within a hollow grip attached to the telescoping handle and including ventilation for drying.