Flexible Weather Shield for Motorcycles Using Segmented Frames
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing weather protection devices for bicycles and multi-wheelers either offer insufficient protection against weather conditions or compromise the driving characteristics and handling of the vehicle due to their rigid structures, which are sensitive to wind and difficult to maneuver.
Innovation Solution
A flexible weather protection device with an endlessly circulating frame made of carbon fiber or fiberglass, featuring a transparent plan element and U-shaped frame elements that can be easily attached to the vehicle, providing reliable protection without hindering steering or stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a rigid frame structure with multiple connecting elements is used to provide stability and protection, then weather protection reliability is improved, but device complexity and handling difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The frame is divided into a first frame element forming an endless loop and a second U-shaped frame element with free ends. This segmentation allows the structure to provide sufficient stability while reducing the number of connecting elements needed, thereby lowering device complexity and improving handling.
Solution Approach 2:
The frame elements are designed with flexible materials that allow the structure to adapt to steering movements dynamically. The endless first frame element and U-shaped second frame element can flex during steering, reducing the force required by the driver while maintaining weather protection reliability.
2Reliability
If a rigid frame structure is used to ensure stability, then weather protection reliability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to increased steering force requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The frame elements are designed with flexible materials that allow the structure to adapt to steering movements dynamically. The endless first frame element and U-shaped second frame element can flex during steering, reducing the force required by the driver while maintaining weather protection reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The material properties of the frame elements are optimized to provide the right balance between rigidity for stability and flexibility for ease of steering. By changing the material parameters, the structure achieves both reliability and ease of operation.
3Reliability
If a rigid frame structure is used to provide stability, then weather protection reliability is improved, but the device becomes sensitive to wind pressure and may lose functionality
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible frame elements can dynamically respond to wind pressure by flexing and deforming, allowing the structure to evade wind forces rather than rigidly resisting them. This reduces the risk of structural failure while maintaining weather protection reliability in calmer conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The flexibility of the frame elements converts the harmful effect of wind pressure into a beneficial adaptive response. Instead of rigidly opposing wind forces that could cause failure, the structure flexes to accommodate wind loads, turning potential damage into a survival mechanism.
4Reliability
If a self-supporting structure with multiple connecting elements is used, then weather protection reliability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to difficulty in assembly and disassembly
Solution Approach 1:
The frame is segmented into a first endless frame element and a second U-shaped frame element, reducing the number of connecting elements needed. This simplifies assembly and disassembly operations while maintaining the structural reliability needed for weather protection.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of providing complete rigid support throughout the entire structure, the patent uses a partial frame configuration with an endless element and a U-shaped element. This partial support is sufficient for weather protection while dramatically improving ease of operation during assembly and disassembly.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a weather protection device (1) for removably attaching to a two- or multi-wheeled vehicle, consisting of at least one flexible and at least partly translucent plan element (2), at least one frame element, between which the plan element (2) is arranged, and at least one fixing element for removably attaching the weather protection device to the two- or multi-wheeled vehicle. The device is characterized in that an outer, continuously circumferential frame element (7), which is designed as a first frame (3) and which consists of a flexible material, receives the plan element (2) and surrounds the plan element once in a circumferential manner, and at least one second additional frame (4) tightens a sub-area of the plan element (2), said additional frame (4) having a U-shape and being fixed to the frame element (7) at at least two points such that the free ends of the additional frame (4) can be received by fixing elements for attaching to the two- or multi-wheeled vehicle.