Composite Rainwater Box with Grooved Plastic Layer
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing rainwater collection devices of the water box type face challenges in manufacturing complexity, requiring skilled labor and specific tools, leading to high costs, potential deformation, and storage issues due to large size, as well as aesthetic and leakage problems during assembly.
Innovation Solution
A rainwater collection device with a hollow container made from composite material comprising a metal sheet and a plastic layer, featuring grooves for folding and joining means like tongues and notches, allowing for simple, tool-free assembly and reduced storage footprint, with enhanced sealing and rigidity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If thin sheets are bent and assembled by welding, then the water box can be manufactured with continuous structure, but the manufacturing process requires specific bending and welding tools, skilled labor, and becomes relatively long and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the material parameter from thin metal sheets to composite material (metal sheet + plastic layer), enabling alternative joining methods. The plastic layer acts as a bonding medium that allows adhesive or mechanical joining instead of welding, reducing manufacturing complexity while maintaining structural integrity
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite material comprising a metal sheet and a plastic layer. The metal sheet provides structural strength while the plastic layer facilitates easier joining operations. This composite structure resolves the contradiction by enabling continuous structure through adhesive bonding or mechanical interlocking rather than welding
2Ease of manufacture
If thin sheets are welded together, then the structure can be assembled, but there is high risk of accidental drilling, expansion problems under high heat input, deformation, and degraded visual appearance
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the problematic welding process from the assembly method. By using composite material with a plastic layer, the joining process replaces welding with adhesive bonding or mechanical joining, eliminating heat-related defects while maintaining assembly capability
Solution Approach 2:
The plastic layer acts as an intermediary substance between metal sheets, serving as a bonding medium that enables joining without direct metal-to-metal contact. This intermediary prevents drilling issues and thermal expansion problems while ensuring proper assembly and sealing
3Strength
If water boxes are assembled by welding requiring operator dexterity, then structural integrity can be achieved, but significant part of water boxes are scrapped for leaks or degraded aesthetic appearance
Solution Approach 1:
The composite material structure with plastic layer enables self-aligning and self-sealing properties during assembly. The plastic layer compensates for minor misalignments and provides inherent sealing, reducing dependence on operator skill and minimizing defects from improper assembly
Solution Approach 2:
Changing from welded metal sheets to composite material with plastic layer fundamentally alters the joining mechanism. The new material parameters enable forgiving assembly processes that maintain structural integrity and aesthetic appearance without requiring high operator dexterity, thereby reducing scrap rates
4Productivity
If water boxes are assembled and stored before delivery, then time to respond to customer orders is improved, but the large size of assembled boxes induces high storage cost
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments the water box into flat, prefabricated elements (metal sheet with plastic layer and integrated ribs) that can be stored in a compact, flat state. These segmented elements are assembled on-site or near-site, reducing storage volume while enabling quick assembly to meet customer orders
Solution Approach 2:
The water box transitions from a static assembled state to a dynamic assembly process. The flat prefabricated elements with integrated ribs can be quickly transformed from flat storage configuration to three-dimensional assembled structure, enabling rapid response to orders without requiring long-term storage of large assembled boxes
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The device i.e. water box (2) has a hollow container (3) including an opening at a main face (4) and defining a cavity between a bottom wall (5) and a peripheral side wall (15), where the bottom wall is provided with a discharge port. The side wall includes a plate made of composite material including a metal sheet layer and a polyethylene layer. The plate includes a set of grooves placed in the polyethylene layer along folding lines, and a peripheral groove (17) placed in the polyethylene layer for receiving a peripheral edge of the bottom wall. Independent claims are also included for the following: (1) a kit for manufacturing the water box for collecting rain water (2) a method for manufacturing the water box for collecting rain water.