Electrical Installation Fixing Mechanism for Fast Axial Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fixing mechanisms for electrical installations, such as power outlets, require multiple turns of screws or threaded elements to adjust the distance between components, making the installation process time-consuming and cumbersome.
Innovation Solution
A fixing mechanism comprising a base part and a complementing part with a first engagement structure and a rotatable second element, allowing for adjustable axial movement and secure coupling through engagement structures, reducing the need for extensive user-operated adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If threaded fixing elements (screws) are used to attach an insert or aesthetical cover to a base element, then the fixing mechanism provides secure fixing along the entire length of the threading, but it requires several turns for adjusting the desired distance, making the installation process time-consuming and cumbersome
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by implementing a rotating element with variable axial movement capability. The rotating element can be turned to adjust the axial position of the insert or aesthetical cover relative to the base element, allowing quick positioning without multiple threading turns. The engagement structures (first and second engagement structures) dynamically engage and disengage during rotation, enabling both secure fixing and adjustable positioning in a single rotational motion rather than multiple linear threading turns.
2Reliability
If threaded fixing elements are used to attach an insert or aesthetical cover to a base element, then the fixing mechanism provides secure fixing, but it requires several turns for adjusting the desired distance, making the operation cumbersome
Solution Approach 1:
The rotating element provides dynamic adjustment capability where the user can rotate the element to achieve the desired axial distance between the insert/aesthetical cover and base element. This rotational adjustment is more intuitive and easier to operate than linear screw threading, improving ease of operation while maintaining secure fixing through the engagement structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from linear adjustment (screw threading along the axial direction) to rotational adjustment (rotating the element around the axial axis). This dimensional change from one-dimensional linear motion to two-dimensional rotational motion makes the adjustment process more intuitive and easier to perform, reducing the effort and complexity involved in achieving the desired positioning.
Data Source
Figure 1~2b
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Figure 5~7
AI summary
An apparatus of an electrical installation has a base part and a complementing part connected by a fixing mechanism, which comprises a first element not operable by a user and a second element operable by a user. The first element comprises a receiving section for at least partially receiving the second element. The receiving section comprises a first engagement structure. The first element is an integral part of the base part or is configured for connecting or coupling with a corresponding structure thereof by shape and/or force. A second engagement structure, engageable by a tool, is arranged at a first end of the second element, which is rotatable around a first axis passing through the first and a second end of the second element, opposite thereto. The second element comprises a third engagement structure arranged distal from the first end of the second element and configured for interacting with the first engagement structure. The second element is configured for connecting or coupling with a corresponding structure of the complementing part by shape and/or force. The first engagement structure is configured to engage with the third engagement structure for blocking a movement of the first element relative to the second element along the first axis, in one of at least two axial positions of the first and the second element relative to each other, when the second element is in one of two or more first rotational positions, and to enable such relative movement in a second rotational position of the second element.