Ergonomic Floor Tool Handle With Offset Reservoir and Trigger Valve
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional floor maintenance tools lack ergonomic design, leading to increased user effort, reduced efficiency, and repetitive tasks due to inadequate handling and fluid management systems.
Innovation Solution
A floor tool with an ergonomically designed handle featuring a serpentine shape, offset fluid reservoir, and a trigger-actuated valve system that allows for efficient fluid dispensing, reducing user effort and improving task efficiency by optimizing handle geometry and fluid management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional floor maintenance tools are designed with traditional handle and reservoir configurations, then structural simplicity is maintained, but user ergonomics and task efficiency deteriorate due to repetitive tasks and poor handling
Solution Approach 1:
The handle is designed with an asymmetric serpentine configuration featuring multiple offset portions at different distances from the longitudinal axis. This asymmetric geometry allows the user to grip the handle at multiple positions with different hand orientations, improving ergonomics and reducing repetitive strain while maintaining structural integrity
Solution Approach 2:
The handle is segmented into multiple distinct portions (first, second, third, and fourth portions) with varying offsets from the longitudinal axis. This segmentation enables different grip positions for different tasks, allowing the user to optimize handling based on specific operational requirements while keeping the overall structure unified
2Ease of operation
If the fluid reservoir is positioned with its center of mass offset from the longitudinal axis, then fluid dispensing control is improved, but balance and handling stability worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The fluid reservoir is intentionally positioned with its center of mass offset from the longitudinal axis of the handle. This asymmetric positioning creates a natural pivot point that facilitates controlled fluid dispensing operations, allowing the user to easily manipulate the reservoir for precise application while the serpentine handle geometry compensates for balance concerns
3Measurement precision
If a trigger-actuated valve system is implemented for fluid dispensing, then fluid control precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The trigger-actuated valve system is designed to be integrated into the handle structure, allowing the user to control fluid dispensing through a simple triggering motion. The system automatically manages valve opening and closing based on trigger actuation, eliminating the need for separate control mechanisms and reducing operational complexity despite the precision control capability
Solution Approach 2:
The valve actuation system is merged with the handle structure, combining the trigger mechanism, valve control, and fluid reservoir positioning into a unified assembly. This integration allows precise fluid dispensing control to be achieved without adding separate complex control systems, as the valve operation is directly coupled with the handle's ergonomic design
Data Source
AI summary
A floor tool is provided, and includes a handle with first and second opposite ends through which a longitudinal axis of the handle extends, and a mop head coupled to the second end of the handle. In some embodiments, a fluid container is coupled to and carried by the handle at a location between the first and second ends of the handle. The fluid container can have a center of mass offset from the longitudinal axis. In some embodiments, a portion of the handle is located between the fluid container and the first end of the handle, and is offset from the longitudinal axis more than center of mass of the fluid reservoir. The floor tool can also have a valve coupled to the handle and having a gap into which a length of conduit extending from the fluid container can be laterally inserted. A valve-actuating trigger can be coupled to the handle for rotation, such that the trigger pivot point is closer to the second end of the handle than the terminal end of the trigger squeezed by a user.