Flexible Grooved Heating Plate for Hair Styling

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional hair straighteners with segmented heating plates can trap hair strands between the segments, leading to damage and poor styling results.

Innovation Solution

A heating plate with a continuous hair-facing surface and grooves that allow flexing, preventing hair trapping and enabling controlled pressure application, formed from materials like Aluminum or Copper, and manufactured using techniques such as extrusion or CNC machining.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the heating plate is segmented to conform to hair, then the heating plate can adapt to hair shape, but hair strands can get trapped between the segments

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveconformability to hairVSAvoidhair trapping

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The heating plate incorporates a flexible membrane structure that allows the plate to bend and conform to the contours of hair while maintaining a continuous surface. This flexibility enables adaptation to hair shape without creating gaps or segments that would trap hair strands, thus resolving the contradiction between conformability and hair trapping.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

2Object-affected harmful factors

If the heating plate is made resilient to reduce compression damage, then pressure on hair is reduced, but the plate may not maintain flat and parallel alignment

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecompression damageVSAvoidflatness and parallelism

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSShape

Solution Approach 1:

The heating plate utilizes material parameter changes through its resilient properties, allowing the plate to deform elastically under pressure to reduce compression damage while maintaining overall geometric integrity. The plate can flex locally to accommodate hair without compromising the flatness and parallelism required for effective hair straightening.

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

The flexible heating plate reduces hair breakage and improves styling outcomes by ensuring consistent contact without trapping hair, while maintaining thermal efficiency and durability.

Implementation Method 1

the heating plate comprising at least one groove which run across the width of the heating plate, each groove extends from the second surface towards the first surface and allows the heating plate to flex

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectElasticity: Elasticity

Implementation Method 2

Heated hair styling appliances are designed to use the action of heat

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectThermal conduction: Conduction (thermal)

Data Source

PatentEP3386340B1A hair styling appliance

Publication Date: 2020.01.01 DYSON TECH LTD

Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4a
Figure 4b

AI summary

The present invention relates to a heating plate for a hair styling appliance, the heating plate having a length (L) a depth (D) and a width (W), the heating plate (10) comprising a first continuous hair facing surface (12) and a second surface (14) opposite the first surface, the heating plate comprising at least one groove (16) which runs across the width of the heating plate, each groove extends from the second surface towards the first surface and allows the heating plate to flex.