Drainage Channel Multi-Support Stability Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional drainage channels face challenges in achieving stability and long-term strength, particularly between the drainage body and the cover, requiring excessive material to ensure load-bearing capacity.
Innovation Solution
A drainage channel design featuring two higher channel supports on its upper edges and two lower supports offset from the central longitudinal plane, with correspondingly shaped cover pads that engage under load, allowing for direct load transfer and accommodating manufacturing tolerances, while using a plastic cast design to reduce material usage and enhance stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a single pair of supports is used between the drainage body and the cover, then the structure is simple, but the load-bearing capacity is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The support system is segmented into multiple pairs of supports (higher channel supports with lower channel supports, and corresponding cover supports) distributed along the drainage channel. This segmentation allows the load to be distributed across multiple contact points, significantly increasing the overall load-bearing capacity while maintaining reasonable structural complexity through modular repetition of the support pairs.
2Reliability
If manufacturing tolerances are tight, then the fit between supports and cover supports is precise, but the cost increases and assembly difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The design incorporates built-in tolerance compensation mechanisms in the support structures. The support geometry and arrangement are designed to accommodate manufacturing variations, allowing the system to achieve reliable fit and function even with standard manufacturing tolerances. This approach eliminates the need for expensive tight-tolerance manufacturing while maintaining assembly reliability.
3Strength
If the drainage channel structure is made thicker to increase strength, then the load-bearing capacity improves, but the weight and material usage increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of increasing strength by adding material thickness in the vertical dimension, the invention distributes loads across multiple support pairs arranged along the longitudinal and transverse dimensions. This dimensional redistribution allows the structure to achieve equivalent or superior load-bearing capacity with thinner walls and less material, reducing both weight and material consumption.
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
This design enhances load-bearing capacity without excessive material, compensates for manufacturing tolerances, and enables a slimmer, more stable structure with reduced material usage, simplifying transportation and installation.
Implementation Method 1
the pair of higher channel supports to the corresponding cover supports exhibits a (small) gap in the unloaded state, which closes under load due to the existing elasticity
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4~7
AI summary
Drainage channels are known which comprise a drainage body (10) which can be built into a base and a cover (20) which can be mounted on the drainage body (10). To increase stability, the drainage body (10) comprises, on each of the two upper edges (11, 11'), two higher channel supports (12, 12') and two lower channel supports (13, 13') offset inwards in terms of the distance thereof to a central longitudinal plane, outer cover supports (22, 22') formed correspondingly to the cover (20) and inner cover supports (23, 23') which are formed in such a manner that all channel supports (12-13') engage with all cover supports (22-23') under loading, wherein the higher channel supports have a gap to the corresponding outer cover supports in the unloaded state, wherein this gap is closed under loading because of the elasticity present.