Detachable Handle Assemblies for Lead-Acid Battery Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Lead-acid batteries pose handling challenges due to their weight and the risk of damage from drops, which complicates installation in confined spaces without increasing the battery's footprint or interfering with terminals or covers, and existing handle solutions either obstruct access or require additional clearance.
Innovation Solution
A detachable handle assembly with a pair of handle assemblies that attach to the battery's end walls via slots and protrusions, allowing for easy installation and removal without altering the battery's footprint, and can be used with standard-sized batteries, even when terminals are end-mounted.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a handle assembly is attached to the exterior of the battery casing, then handling safety is improved, but the footprint of the battery increases making it incompatible with standard racks
Solution Approach 1:
The handle assembly is nested within the battery casing structure itself. The handle attaches to lips that extend from the end walls, utilizing the existing battery geometry rather than adding external protrusions. This allows the handle to be integrated into the battery's form factor, maintaining compatibility with standard rack footprints while providing safe handling capability.
2Area of stationary object
If the footprint of the battery is reduced to accommodate a handle assembly, then the battery fits in standard racks, but the battery cells become smaller and have less power
Solution Approach 1:
The handle assembly is designed to be detachable rather than permanent. The handle can be attached when needed for moving the battery and removed when not needed, allowing the battery to maintain its full power capacity without permanent structural modifications that would reduce cell size.
3Ease of operation
If end wall mounted terminals are used, then access to connections is easier, but the space available for connecting a handle assembly is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The handle attachment structure uses localized lips that extend from specific portions of the end walls, concentrating the attachment function in discrete areas rather than requiring large portions of the end wall surface. This allows terminal connections to occupy the central areas while handles attach at the periphery.
Data Source
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AI summary
A battery with a pair of handle assemblies that includes a battery casing having a pair of lips extending outwardly from the end walls near the opening in the battery casing. Each lip has a recessed portion with a slot defined by the end wall and a slot side wall. The battery casing also has a pair of protrusions on each of the end walls located below the slot. Each of the handle assemblies has a handle and an attachment structure that includes a substantially flat, rectangular base and a side wall. The back of the side wall has a cavity and a channel extending from an open end at the top edge to a closed end proximate the cavity. The handle includes a strap connected to the side wall on a first end and a loop on the second end. The handles are adapted to pass through the slots on the end walls of the battery casing, the channels are adapted to slidably contact the protrusions on the end walls, the cavities are adapted to detachably engage the protrusions and the bases are adapted to contact the slot side walls.