Connector Clip Banquet Table Base for Tool-Free Reconfiguration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Banquet tables are limited in versatility and require significant storage and handling due to fixed configurations, making them heavy and costly to transport and assemble, as they often require tools and strong hand strength for assembly and disassembly.
Innovation Solution
A reconfigurable banquet table design featuring a table top with selectively formed openings and retaining clips that allow easy attachment and detachment of base members, enabling various arrangements and compact storage without the need for tools, using a combination of friction fit and bearing forces for secure attachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional fasteners or attachment means are used to secure the base to the table top, then the table structure is strong and stable, but the assembly and disassembly require tools and significant hand strength
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment system is segmented into a retaining clip with bearing surfaces and a corresponding recess in the table top. The bearing member is divided into first and second bearing surfaces that interface with the retaining clip, allowing tool-free attachment while maintaining structural strength through distributed contact areas.
Solution Approach 2:
A bearing member acts as an intermediary component between the retaining clip and the base. This intermediate element distributes the attachment forces across multiple bearing surfaces, enabling easy manual assembly while preserving the strength needed to support the base structure.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple different table designs with various base styles and heights are stocked to meet diverse customer needs, then the supplier can offer greater versatility, but the storage space and inventory expense increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The table top is designed with multiple selectively formable recesses that can accommodate different base styles and heights using the same retaining clip mechanism. This universal attachment system allows a single table top to serve multiple functions and configurations, eliminating the need to stock separate tables for each design variation.
Solution Approach 2:
The recesses in the table top are selectively formable, allowing the structure to dynamically adapt its configuration. This enables the same physical table top to be reconfigured for different base arrangements, providing versatility without requiring multiple static table designs in inventory.
3Volume of moving object
If the table components are designed for easy disassembly and compact storage, then the transport and storage efficiency improve, but the attachment mechanism becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The base members are designed to nest within or alongside each other when detached from the table top, significantly reducing the storage volume. The retaining clip and bearing member interfaces are positioned to allow compact stacking arrangements while maintaining simple attachment geometry.
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment mechanism is segmented into simple, standardized components (retaining clip, bearing member with distinct bearing surfaces) that can be easily assembled and disassembled. This segmentation allows for compact storage of individual parts while keeping each component's structure relatively 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 design allows for easy assembly and disassembly, reduces storage needs, and enables multiple configurations with fewer components, making the tables lighter and easier to transport, while maintaining stability and aesthetic versatility.
Implementation Method 1
using a combination of friction fit and bearing forces for secure attachment
Implementation Method 2
using a combination of friction fit and bearing forces for secure attachment
Data Source
AI summary
A reconfigurable banquet table includes a table top, a plurality of retaining clips, and two or more base members. The table top bottom surface includes a plurality of pairs of openings. A corresponding plurality of retaining clips are secured thereat. Each retaining clip includes a first flange and a second flange extending from a plate. Each base member includes first and second legs connected a set distance apart. The first and second legs of each base member are received in one pair of the table top openings, and releasably secured therein by the corresponding retaining clips, with one side of each of the first and second legs engaged by the second flange of the respective retaining clip, to cause deflection of the second flange to provide suitable retaining forces. Easy removability of the base members permits interchangeability without requiring tools, for greater functional/aesthetic versatility, easier transport, and more compact storage.