Eaves Ventilation Element With Bendable Spacers

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing eaves ventilation elements face challenges in providing secure support over gutter brackets while maintaining ventilation and protection from dirt and small animals, often resulting in sloping or bending due to irregular eaves constructions and complex production processes.

Innovation Solution

The eaves ventilation element features a base profile with protruding fingers and movable, bendable spacers connected by a thin connecting element, allowing for easy separation over gutter brackets by cutting or bending, which maintains support functionality and adaptability to irregular eaves constructions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If spacers are made detachable to allow separation over gutter brackets, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability of support function deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of spacer separationVSAvoidsupport function reliability
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The spacer is designed as a one-piece element with a flexible section that allows dynamic movement and bending. This enables the spacer to adapt its shape when encountering gutter brackets, maintaining contact and support function while allowing easy separation by bending the flexible section.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The spacer is divided into functionally distinct sections: a rigid support section for maintaining distance and a flexible section for adaptation and separation. This segmentation allows the spacer to provide reliable support during normal operation while enabling easy removal when needed by bending at the flexible section.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Ease of operation

If spacers are made detachable by cutting through a thin flexible joint, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity worsens

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of spacer removalVSAvoidstructure complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The spacer is integrated as a one-piece element with the eaves ventilation element, eliminating the need for separate detachable components. The flexible section is incorporated directly into the spacer structure, simplifying the overall device while maintaining ease of removal through bending.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

3Ease of operation

If predetermined breaking points are provided for spacer separation, then ease of operation is improved, but manufacturing precision worsens

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of spacer detachmentVSAvoidbreaking point precision
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of creating predetermined breaking points with specific geometric features requiring high manufacturing precision, the solution uses a flexible section with controlled material properties. The separation is achieved by bending the flexible section, which relies on material flexibility rather than precise geometric breaking points, thereby reducing manufacturing precision requirements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

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 ensures secure support and maintains ventilation while allowing easy adaptation to irregular eaves structures, ensuring the eaves ventilation element remains effective and stable even when encountering gutter brackets, preserving the support function and distribution of forces under roofing panels and snow loads.

Implementation Method 1

Each spacer (10) consists of two webs (1) which protrude vertically downward from the underside (31) of the basic profile (30) and are deformable, preferably bendable. Bendable in this context is intended to mean that each of the webs (1) can be moved against the underside (31) of the base profile (30) around an imaginary axis in the area of the connection with the base profile (30).

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElastic deformation: Elasticity

Data Source

PatentEP1860252B1Soffit vent with foldable spacers
Publication Date: 2010.07.14 IVT
  • EP1860252B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP1860252B1 patent drawingFigure 2

AI summary

The eaves ventilation element, with spaced apart spacers (10) fastened to the underside (31) of a base profile (30), and each with at least two downwards projecting bridges (1), has each of the bridges movable towards the underside of the base profile. Each of the bridges is movable towards the underside around an imaginary axis in a transition (5). The bridges are deformable, are arranged parallel to each other, and project vertically downwards from the underside of the base profile.