Floor Panel Joint Retraction for Dimensional Precision
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional free access floor panels suffer from dimensional precision issues due to joint protrusions, which lead to reduced workability and increased risk of cracks during the forming process.
Innovation Solution
A floor panel design featuring a joint portion arranged in the height midstream of the side surface, retreated inwardly from the end sides, with upper and lower members forming concave spaces that wrap each other, reducing tension forces and preventing protrusion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If the bottom plate is formed by deep drawing process with smaller thickness, then material usage is reduced and cost is lowered, but tension force causes cracks or breaking in the side plate portion
Solution Approach 1:
The floor panel is divided into top plate and bottom plate components, with the bottom plate further segmented into plate portion and side plate portion. This segmentation allows the side plate portion to be specifically designed with increased thickness at critical locations to resist cracking while keeping overall material usage reduced.
Solution Approach 2:
The side plate portion is given different thickness characteristics compared to the plate portion. Specifically, the side plate portion has increased thickness at locations susceptible to cracking during deep drawing, while the plate portion maintains thinner dimensions. This local quality differentiation resolves the contradiction between reduced material usage and crack resistance.
2Strength
If the joint portion protrudes outward to connect top plate and bottom plate, then structural connection is achieved, but dimensional precision of the floor panel is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The joint portion is extracted from the external surface by forming it to retreat inwardly from the outer peripheral surfaces of both top plate and bottom plate. This extraction eliminates the protrusion that would compromise dimensional precision, while the joint portion maintains sufficient connection strength through its retreated configuration within the panel structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The joint portion is pre-designed to retreat inwardly rather than protrude outward, preventing the dimensional precision issue before it occurs. This preliminary anti-action against protrusion ensures that the floor panel maintains high dimensional precision while still achieving the necessary structural connection between top and bottom plates.
3Ease of manufacture
If the joint portion is arranged at the outer edge to simplify connection, then manufacturing complexity is reduced, but workability is deteriorated due to protrusion
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of placing the joint portion at the outer edge as conventionally done, the invention inverts this arrangement by positioning the joint portion to retreat inwardly from the outer peripheral surfaces. This inverted positioning eliminates protrusions that hinder workability during installation and maintenance, while the connection simplicity is maintained through the straightforward retreated configuration.
Data Source
AI summary
In a floor panel provided with upper and lower members which have concave spaces and side surfaces having heights and are formed as a box shape, and structured such that the upper and lower members are combined up and down so as to communicate the respective concave spaces so as to form an internal space in an inner portion, the floor panel has a joint portion in which height leading end portions of the side surfaces of the upper and lower members are folded so as to enwrap each other so as to be connected, and the joint portion is arranged in a height midstream portion of the side surface of the floor panel, and is arranged at a position which is retreated to an inner side of the floor panel in relation to the side surface in both height end sides of the floor panel.