Configurable Photography Light Fixture Mount
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing light fixtures for photography lack a secure and adaptable mounting system for lighting tubes of varying lengths and sizes, risking damage from crushing and failing to accommodate different form factors.
Innovation Solution
A modular, lightweight mount with clamping jaws that securely hold lighting tubes of different lengths and sizes, featuring a rail with a square end for alignment and a threaded end for linear pressure application, allowing for configuration with multiple tubes and industry-standard mounting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a fixed mounting system is used for lighting tubes, then the structure is simple, but it cannot accommodate lighting tubes of different lengths and sizes
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting system is divided into modular components: a base structure with multiple adjustable arms, each arm being a separate segment that can be independently positioned and angled. This segmentation allows each arm to be customized for different tube lengths and sizes while maintaining overall system simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The mounting arms incorporate adjustable joints and movable clamping mechanisms that allow dynamic reconfiguration. The arms can be angled at various positions and the clamping force can be adjusted, enabling the same structure to adapt to different lighting tube specifications without requiring multiple fixed mounts.
2Reliability
If conventional clamping mechanisms are used, then the structure is simple, but they risk crushing lighting tubes and cannot securely hold various tube diameters
Solution Approach 1:
The clamping jaws are designed with different surface properties: the inner surfaces that contact the lighting tube are made smooth and slightly padded to prevent crushing, while the outer structure maintains sufficient strength. The clamping force is distributed across multiple contact points along the tube surface, ensuring secure holding without concentrated pressure that could cause damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamping mechanism allows adjustment of the clamping force parameter and the jaw opening distance parameter. This enables the system to adapt to different tube diameters by changing the geometric parameters of the clamp, and to apply appropriate force levels that secure the tube without exceeding the crushing threshold.
3Strength
If a heavy-duty mount is used to securely hold lighting tubes, then the holding strength is sufficient, but the weight increases and portability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting structure utilizes composite construction combining lightweight materials (such as aluminum alloys or reinforced polymers) with strategic reinforcement only at critical stress points. This allows the overall structure to remain lightweight for portability while maintaining sufficient holding strength through localized material optimization rather than uniform heavy construction throughout.
Data Source
AI summary
A configurable light fixture for photography is presented. The light fixture includes a rail with a clamp section and threaded section. A fixed jaw is removably coupled to an end of the rail in the clamp section. One or more optional sliding intermediate jaws may be slidably coupled to the rail in the clamp section below the fixed jaw to create more clamping surfaces when desired to hold more than one lighting tube. A sliding end jaw is slidably coupled to the rail in the clamp section below the sliding intermediate jaw. A wing nut is coupled to the threaded section of the rail for applying linear pressure on the sliding end jaw thereby secure a lighting tube on each of the clamping surfaces.