Emergency Stop Latching Mechanism for Washable Actuator Controls
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Solution Overview
Problem
Emergency stops in electrically driven linear actuator systems for patient lifts and adjustable furniture face challenges in accessibility, unintended activation, reactivation, and durability against cleaning agents.
Innovation Solution
A spring-loaded activation button with a latching mechanism and separate reactivation button, designed to pivot between neutral and emergency positions, ensuring secure engagement and easy manual reactivation, and integrated into a control box with a detachable power supply for enhanced washability and reduced manufacturing costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the emergency stop button is made accessible and easy to activate, then emergency response time is improved, but unintended activation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The emergency stop mechanism is segmented into two distinct operations: activation (pushing the button to engage the latching mechanism) and deactivation (pressing the release button to disengage the latching mechanism). This segmentation ensures that accidental activation is less likely to result in sustained emergency stop engagement, while still providing immediate response capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The latching mechanism is designed to automatically engage and lock the emergency stop position once activated, requiring a deliberate separate action (pressing the release button) to reset. This preliminary latching action prevents unintended reactivation and ensures that the emergency stop state is maintained until deliberately cleared.
2Device complexity
If the emergency stop components are integrated into a single unit, then device complexity is reduced, but washability and durability against cleaning agents deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The emergency stop assembly is divided into separable components including the button housing, circuit breaker, and mounting elements. This segmentation allows each component to be independently removed and washed, enabling thorough cleaning without disassembling the entire system, thus maintaining durability while allowing complete washability.
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
The solution provides a reliable, washable emergency stop that minimizes unintended activation and reactivation, while maintaining simplicity and low production costs, ensuring safe operation of electric linear actuators in critical environments.
Implementation Method 1
a spring for spring-loading the activation button for retaining it in the neutral position
Implementation Method 2
The latching mechanism comprises a protruding part on the arm and a receiving part on the wall piece. The protruding part and the receiving part are unlatched when the activation button is in the neutral position and latched when the activation button is in the emergency position.
Data Source
AI summary
Emergency stop for a linear actuator system, which comprises a housing (13) and an activation button (12) adapted for activating a circuit breaker and where the activation button (12) has a neutral position and an emergency position. The emergency stop further comprises a spring (19) for spring-loading the activation button (12) for retaining the activation button (12) in the neutral position, a latching mechanism adapted for retaining the activation button (12) in the emergency position once it has entered this position, and a release mechanism adapted to unlatch the latching mechanism. The spring-loaded activation button (12) is pivotally connected to the housing (13) and arranged to pivot between the neutral position and the emergency position. The spring-loaded activation button (12) comprises an arm (26,27) having one end attached to the underside (24) of the spring-loaded activation button (12). The housing 13 comprises a wall piece (35,36) adapted for engaging a free end of the arm (26,27). The latching mechanism comprises a protruding part (61,62) on the arm (26,27) and a receiving part (39,40) on the wall piece (35,36), said protruding part (61,62) and said receiving part (39,40) being unlatched when the activation button (12) is in the neutral position and latched when the activation button (12) is in the emergency position. The release mechanism comprises a reactivation button (14,15) movable between a first and second position, said reactivation button (14,15) unlatches the latching mechanism by disengaging the protruding part (61,62) from the receiving part (39,40) when the reactivation button (14,15) is moved from the first position to the second position.