Fall Protection Coupler Webbing Wear Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fall protection systems experience wear and tear on webbing straps due to unrestricted movement of connectors relative to the harness, leading to potential weakening and hazards during use.
Innovation Solution
A coupler with a securement passageway and webbing guidance surface that allows the connector to rotate and articulate, preventing excessive movement and maintaining the integrity of the webbing straps by guiding them over a D-ring, thereby reducing abrasion and wear.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the connector is allowed to move freely relative to the webbing straps, then the user can move freely without restraint, but the webbing straps experience abrasion and wear leading to potential failure
Solution Approach 1:
The coupler acts as an intermediary component between the connector and the webbing straps. It provides a securement passageway that guides the connector shaft, allowing controlled movement while preventing direct contact and abrasion between the connector and webbing straps. This mediator structure resolves the contradiction by enabling freedom of movement through the articulation mechanism while protecting webbing integrity through guided movement paths.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupler incorporates dynamic characteristics by allowing the connector to articulate and rotate within the securement passageway. This controlled dynamic movement enables the user to move freely while the coupler's structure ensures the movement remains within safe parameters, preventing excessive abrasion on the webbing straps. The dynamic design balances freedom of movement with protection of structural integrity.
2Reliability
If the connector shaft is constrained to rotate within a securement passageway, then webbing wear is reduced, but the connector's ability to articulate freely is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The securement passageway is designed with specific geometric characteristics that allow controlled rotation and articulation of the connector shaft. The passageway provides bearing surfaces that guide the shaft's movement, enabling sufficient articulation freedom for user mobility while simultaneously constraining the movement to paths that minimize webbing abrasion. This dynamic constraint resolves the contradiction between durability and operational freedom.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupler changes the parameters of connector movement by defining a securement passageway with specific dimensions and bearing surfaces. This geometric constraint modifies the connector's articulation parameters, allowing rotation and movement within defined limits that protect the webbing while maintaining adequate freedom of movement for the user's operational needs.
3Reliability
If the coupler provides a bearing surface for shaft rotation, then relative movement is controlled reducing wear, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The coupler merges multiple functions into a single integrated structure: it provides the securement passageway, incorporates bearing surfaces for shaft rotation, guides webbing straps, and enables connector articulation. By combining these functions into one component rather than using separate mechanisms, the design achieves abrasion reduction through controlled movement while minimizing the increase in overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupler is designed as a multi-functional component that simultaneously provides structural support, movement guidance, bearing surfaces for rotation, and webbing strap routing. This universal design approach allows the single coupler component to achieve abrasion reduction through controlled articulation without requiring additional separate mechanisms, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity while maintaining reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
A coupler to couple a D-ring from a harness to a fall arrest device connector provides walls to guide and contain the harness webbing whilst allowing it to move freely (reducing webbing wear) and does not necessitate the removal of the coupler, connector, or D-ring as may be required for harness size adjustment. The coupler has a circular passageway which runs through the length allowing a shaft of the connector to couple to the part whilst maintaining 180 degrees of swivel. The coupler also has a groove which runs along the length to fit onto a central bar of the harness D-ring. The design is such that, during a fall, should the device break, the webbing will remain securely coupled to the D-ring of the harness.