Gaming table
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional tables used for gaming are often heavy, non-portable, and lack storage for game pieces, making them impractical for various gaming scenarios.
Innovation Solution
A foldable gaming table design featuring a tabletop with hinged halves, paired legs, and a continuous rail system that matches the tabletop's perimeter, allowing for easy setup, storage, and integration of a sliding tray for accessory management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If conventional tables are used for gaming, then they provide a stable surface, but they are heavy and non-portable
Solution Approach 1:
The tabletop is divided into two separate halves that can be detached and folded independently. Each half can be handled separately for easier transport, while together they form a stable gaming surface when assembled on the playing field.
Solution Approach 2:
The table transitions from a static, fixed structure to a dynamic, deployable structure. The tabletop halves can be folded flat for transport and then assembled to create a stable playing surface when needed, adapting to the requirements of mobility and stability.
2Area of stationary object
If conventional tables are used for gaming, then they provide a flat surface, but they lack storage for game pieces
Solution Approach 1:
The tabletop halves serve multiple functions: they provide the primary playing surface area and simultaneously contain integrated storage compartments for game pieces. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate storage containers while maintaining adequate playing space.
Solution Approach 2:
Storage compartments are nested within the structure of the tabletop halves themselves. The game piece storage is integrated into the playing surface structure, allowing storage functionality to be contained within the same object that provides the playing area.
3Weight of moving object
If the tabletop is folded for transport, then portability is improved, but the rail system must maintain continuity
Solution Approach 1:
The rail system is divided into multiple segments that correspond to the tabletop halves. Each rail segment is attached to its respective tabletop half and can be folded with it, while the segmented design allows the rails to reconnect and appear continuous when the table is assembled for play.
Solution Approach 2:
The rail system transitions from a continuous fixed structure to a dynamic segmented structure that can fold with the tabletop. The rails are designed to move relative to each other during folding but maintain their functional continuity when the table is in its playing configuration.
Data Source
AI summary
This disclosure relates generally to a foldable, transportable, table with a rail about a perimeter of the foldable table. The rail may be irreversibly or reversibly affixed to the table. The rail may define a cavity, or channel or groove that extends the length of the rail and configured to accept a tray of some sort. The tray may be utilized as another “table” to allow for dice rolling, card holding, or other game playing purposes. The tray may freely slide along the rail, around the table to allow for the tray to be moved from one position to another and to any of an infinite number of positions. The rail may create a trough or walled portion of the table so that elements of a game cannot freely slide off the edge of the table and are stopped by the “wall” of the rail.