Concealable Panel Insert With Bevel-Gear Fastening Access
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for connecting flat elements in furniture, such as panels, result in undesirable projecting parts, complicating packaging and transportation, and are often complex and difficult to assemble, while also being unsuitable for safe user installation and adjustment.
Innovation Solution
A concealable insert comprising half-shells with a threaded shaft and bevel gears, allowing precise insertion within panels without visible parts, enabling stable joining and easy adjustment through a visible operating face, facilitating safe transportation and user-friendly assembly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If mechanical screw-type elements are used to connect flat elements, then stable fastening is achieved, but the elements remain outside the panels causing packaging difficulties and injury risks
Solution Approach 1:
The insert is nested inside a panel during assembly, with only the operating face visible. The threaded shaft and bevel gears are contained within the panel thickness, eliminating protruding parts while maintaining fastening function. This resolves the contradiction by hiding the fastening mechanism inside the panel rather than having it extend outward.
Solution Approach 2:
The harmful protruding parts are extracted from the visible exterior by relocating them inside the panel. The insert body, threaded shaft, and gearing are all contained within the panel thickness, removing the source of packaging difficulties and injury risks while preserving the fastening capability through the concealed mechanism.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If inserts are inserted inside panels to eliminate projecting parts, then packaging is simplified, but the structure becomes complex and difficult to assemble
Solution Approach 1:
The insert is segmented into distinct functional components: two half-shells forming the housing, a threaded shaft for fastening, and bevel gears for operation. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured separately using standard processes and then assembled, reducing overall complexity despite the concealed design.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of having a complex mechanism that simplifies assembly, the invention inverts the approach by using a simple, straightforward insertion process. The insert is designed to be pushed into the panel in one direction, with the complexity contained within the concealed mechanism rather than in the assembly process.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If inserts are concealed inside panels, then no projecting parts remain, but access to operating means becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The insert applies local quality by having different visibility characteristics for different parts: the operating face is visible and accessible on the panel exterior for easy operation, while the functional components (threaded shaft, bevel gears, half-shells) are concealed inside the panel to eliminate unattractive projections. This selective visibility resolves the contradiction between aesthetics and operability.
4Ease of manufacture
If the insert structure is simplified for easy production, then manufacturing cost decreases, but assembly precision and stability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The insert employs self-service through self-centering features and guiding geometries built into the half-shells and shaft. These features automatically align the components during insertion, ensuring precise positioning without requiring complex external alignment tools or procedures. This maintains manufacturing precision while keeping the production process simple.
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 solution provides stable and concealed connections between panels, eliminating unattractive projections, simplifying assembly and transportation, and ensuring user safety with no special packaging needs, resulting in significant logistical advantages.
Implementation Method 1
a first bevel gear (40) with rear teeth (41) and a through-hole (42) with a polygonal cross-section corresponding to the cross-section of the rear part (32) of the threaded shaft (30); a second bevel gear (50) with teeth (51) designed to mesh with the teeth of the first bevel gear (40)
Implementation Method 2
a shaft (30) extending longitudinally and comprising a front part (31) in the form of a thread (31a) and a rear part (32) with a polygonal cross-section
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~6
Figure 7a~7b
AI summary
Insert for connecting together flat elements such as panels and the like, comprising: - a first half-shell 10 and a second half-shell 20, extending lengthwise in a longitudinal direction X-X, with a preferably substantially semi-circular cross- section, and configured for mutual coupling in a transverse direction Y-Y perpendicular to the longitudinal direction so as to form a closed housing shell; - a shaft 30 extending parallel to the longitudinal direction X-X and comprising a front part 31 in the form of a thread 31a and a rear part 32 with a polygonal cross-section; - a first bevel gear 40 with rear teeth 41 and a through-hole 42 with a polygonal cross-section corresponding to the cross-section of the rear part 32 of the threaded shaft 30; - a second bevel gear 50 with teeth 51 designed to mesh with the rear teeth 41 of the first bevel gear 40 and provided with an operating face 52 configured for insertion of an operating tool.