Dental Appliance Storage Case with Integrated Tracking Speaker
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Dental appliances such as aligners and retainers are often misplaced, damaged, or lost when not in use, due to lack of proper storage solutions that prevent dirt accumulation and facilitate easy location.
Innovation Solution
A storage case with a compartmentalized design, a movable cover, and integrated location device with a speaker, allowing users to track and locate the case via a mobile app, and featuring a reflective surface for positioning the appliance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a storage case is provided for dental appliances, then the likelihood of misplacement and damage is reduced, but the device complexity increases due to integrated location tracking components
Solution Approach 1:
The storage case integrates multiple functions into a single device: it provides physical protection through the storage compartment and cover, while also incorporating location tracking through the location device with communications device and speaker. This multi-functionality approach allows the case to simultaneously protect the dental appliance and enable location tracking, resolving the contradiction between reliability improvement and device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The location device is integrated within the storage case structure, with the communications device and speaker nested inside the case body. This nesting approach allows the tracking components to be housed within the existing storage case volume, adding location tracking functionality without significantly increasing the external dimensions or overall complexity of the device.
2Ease of operation
If a location device with communications device and speaker is integrated into the storage case, then the ease of locating the case is improved, but the weight of the storage case increases
Solution Approach 1:
The communications device acts as an intermediary between the storage case and the user's mobile device. Instead of requiring complex heavy-duty location systems, the case uses a relatively lightweight communications device to exchange signals with a mobile device that the user already carries. The speaker provides acoustic feedback to help locate the case. This intermediary approach enables easy location tracking while keeping the added weight in the storage case minimal compared to using more robust standalone location systems.
3Ease of operation
If the cover is designed to selectively move between open and closed positions, then the ease of access to the compartment is improved, but the stability of the storage case structure worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The cover is designed as a dynamic component that can selectively move between open and closed positions, allowing easy access to the compartment when needed. This dynamic design resolves the contradiction by providing both ease of access and structural stability: the cover can open for access but closes securely to maintain the integrity and stability of the storage case structure when the compartment is not being accessed.
Data Source
AI summary
A storage case for a dental appliance includes a storage portion, a cover, and a location device. The storage portion includes a compartment that is configured to store a dental appliance of a user. The cover is coupled to the storage portion and configured to selectively move between an open position and closed position. The cover permits access to the compartment when in the open position and restricts access to the compartment when in the closed position. The location device includes a communications device and a speaker. The speaker is configured to generate a sound based on the communications device receiving a signal from a mobile device of the user.