Expandable Watch Support With Folding Wings for Size Range
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing watch supports for winders are limited in their ability to accommodate a broad range of watch sizes, as they can either be too large for children's watches or too small for adult watches, due to their single-axis expansion and contraction mechanism.
Innovation Solution
A watch support with a pair of movable wings that adjust between extended and folded positions, allowing for expansion and contraction along two axes, and featuring multiple bearing points for a secure grip, along with a removable shoe for adjustable length, enabling the support to fit various watch sizes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a watch support is designed with fixed size for adult watches, then it can securely grip adult watches, but it cannot fit inside child's watch straps
Solution Approach 1:
The watch support is divided into an upper part and a lower part that can move relative to each other. The upper part includes a platform and a pair of wings that can be folded, while the lower part includes a body. This segmentation allows the support to transition between expanded and contracted states, enabling it to accommodate different watch sizes while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The watch support incorporates movable components including the upper part that can move relative to the lower part, and wings that can be folded. This dynamic structure allows the support to adapt its size and shape based on the watch being supported, providing versatility across different watch sizes while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a watch support is designed to expand along a single axis, then the structure remains simple, but it cannot accommodate a broad range of watch sizes
Solution Approach 1:
The watch support expands along two axes by incorporating wings that can be folded outward from the upper part. When the upper part moves relative to the lower part, the wings expand in one direction, and when folded, they expand in another direction. This two-dimensional expansion capability allows the support to accommodate a broader range of watch sizes while maintaining a relatively simple mechanism.
3Reliability
If a watch support bears against only two locations on the watch, then the structure remains simple, but it cannot securely grip watches of various sizes
Solution Approach 1:
The bearing surfaces are segmented across four distinct locations: the platform on the upper part, and three wings on the upper part. Each wing can be positioned to contact the watch at different points, providing multiple bearing surfaces that securely grip the watch while maintaining a relatively simple segmented structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A watch support (1, 30) comprises an upper part (2) operatively connected to a lower part (3) for movement between a contracted orientation and an expanded orientation, and biasing means for biasing the upper and lower parts into the expanded orientation. The upper part (2) comprises a pair of adjustable wings (6, 7) that are moveable relative to the upper part between an extended position and a folded position, wherein each wing (6, 7) is operatively connected to the lower part (3) such that movement of the two parts (2, 3) into a contracted orientation effects movement of the wings (6, 7) into a folded position and movement of the two parts (2, 3) into an expanded orientation effects movement of the wings (6, 7) into an extended position.