Composite Rail Traverse System for Inclined Canopy Tours
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current canopy tour systems using single strands of steel cables face limitations such as weight constraints, noise, vibrations, metal fatigue, and limited installation angles, leading to safety concerns and high maintenance costs.
Innovation Solution
The use of advanced tensile strength fibers extruded into smooth plastic rails with optional skeleton braids for increased durability and flexibility, along with a dual track system providing redundancy and adjustable braking configurations, addresses these issues.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If single strands of steel cables are used as the track, then the system structure is simple, but the weight of steel cables limits the length of traverses possible due to excessive horizontal load vectoring on the anchor trees
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional steel cables with composite rail structures that combine multiple materials (such as aluminum alloys, polymers, and reinforcement elements) to achieve high strength-to-weight ratio. This allows longer traverse lengths without proportionally increasing the weight burden on anchor trees, directly resolving the contradiction between traverse length and cable weight.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If laid wire rope is used for traversing, then the system is simple to implement, but traversing on laid wire rope is noisy and passengers experience annoying vibrations as the pulley crosses the lays of the wire
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs smooth, continuous rail surfaces with flexible polymer coatings or thin-film layers that eliminate the segmented lay structure of traditional wire ropes. This smooth surface reduces friction and vibration as the pulley moves along the track, significantly decreasing noise and passenger discomfort while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the surface parameters of the track from rough, segmented wire rope surfaces to smooth, continuous surfaces with optimized friction coefficients. This parameter change reduces vibration and noise generation during pulley traversal while maintaining adequate grip for safe operation.
3Reliability
If single wire rail system is used, then the system structure is simple, but repeated cycling of the wire causes metal fatigue resulting in undetectable weaknesses in the track leading to the possibility of catastrophic failure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates redundant safety features including backup support cables, emergency braking systems, and multiple independent load-bearing paths within the rail structure. These beforehand cushioning measures ensure that even if one component fails due to fatigue or other issues, the system maintains reliability and prevents catastrophic failure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite rail structures with distributed reinforcement elements and multi-material construction that resist metal fatigue better than traditional single-material wire ropes. The composite structure allows for undetected damage in one component without compromising overall system integrity, enhancing reliability.
4Adaptability or versatility
If single wire rail system is used, then the system is simple to install, but due to the nature of the areas in which these systems are installed it is sometimes not possible to install all the platforms so that one traverse system can accommodate the varied angels of attack that might be encountered thereby seriously limiting the safe options available to the designer
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs adjustable and reconfigurable track sections with variable inclination capabilities, allowing the system to adapt to different installation angles and terrain conditions. The dynamic configuration options enable designers to optimize safe trajectories for various platform arrangements and attack angles without being constrained by a fixed single-angle system.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention is related to the field of mechanical engineering and describes an automatically adjustable system of traverse rails with multiple characteristics that extend the useful life of the sustain by a minimum factor of four while providing redundant security backup to the rails allowing human passengers to move from one place to another in and easy and safe manner with a minimum of noise and vibration while providing the owner of the system benefits of lower maintenance cost and less exposure to financial risk. Also the system can be installed in a multitude of natural places without the need to cut or damage the environment. Using the same components this system offers other configuration options to increase the possibilities of installing a system with desirable characteristics over a greater number of inclinations. Combining the various components starting with a smooth rail as in FIG. 1 with the self-equalizing system FIG. 3 for a maximum conservation of energy to maximum breaking rail with the skeleton braid in FIG. 2 with the maximum braking security system of in FIG. 4.