Dehumidifier Water Tank Stopper for Safe Body Storage
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Users often forget to discharge water from the water tank after using a dehumidifier, leading to water inflow into the machine body and potential damage.
Innovation Solution
A dehumidifier design featuring a water tank with a mounting opening, a machine body that can be partially accommodated in the tank, and a position limiting structure with a stopper that moves into and out of the opening to prevent the machine body from falling into the water tank.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the machine body is placed directly above the water tank for storage, then the storage capacity is increased and the device occupies less space, but the machine body may accidentally fall into the water tank causing water damage
Solution Approach 1:
A stopper is introduced as an intermediary component between the machine body and the water tank. The stopper can be moved to block the mounting opening, preventing the machine body from falling into the water tank while still allowing the body to be stored above the tank when the stopper is in the retracted position.
Solution Approach 2:
The stopper is designed to be movable between different positions (extended to block the opening, retracted to allow storage). This dynamic component enables the system to switch between two states: preventing water damage and enabling storage, thus resolving the contradiction.
2Reliability
If a position limiting structure with a movable stopper is added to prevent water damage, then the machine body protection is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The stopper is designed to be manually operable by the user, who can move it between extended and retracted positions as needed. This self-service approach avoids the need for complex automated control systems, sensors, or motors, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity while still providing reliable protection.
3Reliability
If the stopper is extended into the mounting opening to block the machine body, then the protection from water damage is improved, but the ease of operation for storing the machine body worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The user directly operates the stopper by moving it between positions, making the system self-serving without requiring additional automation. This manual operation is simple and intuitive, allowing the user to easily switch between protection mode (stopper extended) and storage mode (stopper retracted).
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
This application discloses a dehumidifier including a water tank, a machine body and a position limiting structure. The water tank has a mounting opening facing upward, the machine body has an idle state in which the machine body is at least partially housed in the water tank through the mounting opening. The position limiting structure includes a stopper. The stopper is movable into and out of the mounting opening, and has a first position and a second position. At the first position, the stopper is in the mounting opening and located on a movement path of the machine body moving toward the water tank. At the second position, the stopper is exited out of the mounting opening for the machine body to be accommodated in the water tank.