Floor Drain Spacer with Infinite Height Adjustment
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing floor drains require multiple spacers of different heights to accommodate various floor covering thicknesses, leading to increased construction costs and time-consuming adjustments, with spacers often being non-reusable and obstructive during installation and cleaning.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating infinitely height-adjustable spacers with threaded bore holes and adjusting screws that engage with the frame or channel body flanges, allowing for precise adjustment and removal after installation, eliminating the need for multiple spacer heights and simplifying the construction process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple spacers with different heights are provided to accommodate various floor covering thicknesses, then adaptability to different floor coverings is improved, but device complexity and construction cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer is designed with an adjustable height mechanism featuring a plate element with a threaded bore hole through which an adjusting screw extends. The adjusting screw can be rotated to change the vertical position of the plate element relative to the channel body, enabling the spacer height to be dynamically adjusted to match any floor covering thickness rather than being fixed at manufacturing.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the fixed parameter of spacer height into a variable parameter that can be continuously adjusted. By incorporating the threaded bore hole and adjusting screw mechanism, the spacer's vertical dimension becomes可调 (adjustable), allowing the same spacer design to adapt to different floor covering thicknesses without requiring multiple spacer variants.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple spacers with different heights are provided for different floor covering thicknesses, then adaptability is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustable spacer design serves as a universal component that can accommodate all floor covering thicknesses through height adjustment. Instead of manufacturing multiple specialized spacer types for different thicknesses, a single universal spacer design with an adjusting screw mechanism replaces them all, simplifying the manufacturing process and reducing construction costs.
Solution Approach 2:
By making the spacer height a variable parameter rather than a fixed manufacturing specification, the invention eliminates the need to produce multiple spacer variants. The adjusting screw mechanism allows the same spacer to be configured for any thickness requirement, significantly reducing manufacturing complexity and cost.
3Ease of manufacture
If fixed-height spacers are used to adjust the distance between channel body and frame, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but adjustment precision and time efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer incorporates a dynamic adjustment mechanism where the plate element can be positioned at any height along the adjusting screw's thread. This dynamic capability allows for precise adjustment of the distance between the channel body and frame, far exceeding the fixed precision limits of pre-manufactured spacer heights.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces the mechanical selection of fixed-height spacers with a threaded adjustment mechanism. Instead of choosing from discrete spacer heights, the adjusting screw provides continuous fine-adjustment capability, enabling precise positioning while maintaining manufacturing simplicity through a single spacer design.
4Stability of the object's composition
If spacers remain in the structure after fitting the floor drain, then structural support is provided, but ease of operation deteriorates due to obstruction during installation and cleaning
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer is designed as a removable component that can be extracted from the structure after the floor drain is fitted and the floor covering is installed. The adjusting screw mechanism allows the spacer to be easily removed once its height-adjustment function is no longer needed, eliminating obstruction during subsequent installation and cleaning operations while providing structural support during the critical fitting phase.
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 reduces construction costs, streamlines the adjustment process, enables precise distance control, and allows for spacer reuse, improving installation efficiency and cleanliness by removing the obstruction caused by spacers during floor covering and component fitting.
Implementation Method 1
at least one spacer for adjusting the distance between the channel body and the frame has a plate element which is provided with at least one threaded bore hole through which an adjusting screw extends
Data Source
AI summary
A floor drain (10; 60; 70) comprising a channel body (14; 90) defining a drain channel (24) and having a drain opening (26), a frame (16; 62) defining a receiving opening (32) which can be inserted at least partially into the drain channel (24) and a cover (18) that can be inserted into the receiving opening (32) of the frame (16; 62), in particular in the form of a grate, at least one spacer (20; 64; 72; 87; 96) being provided for adjusting a distance between the channel body (14; 90) and a substrate and/or for adjusting the distance between the channel body (14; 90) and the frame (16; 62), the at least one spacer (20; 64; 72; 87; 96) being formed with infinite height adjustment.