Foldable Hand Truck Handle with Platform Groove
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional hand trucks with folding handles face challenges in compact accommodation and easy folding/unfolding due to protruding handles and the need to remove the handle for attachment/detachment, limiting their usability.
Innovation Solution
A hand truck design featuring pivotally attached column support portions and a holding rod with locking mechanisms, allowing the handle to be folded and unfolded without removal, and accommodated within the loading platform surface, with wheels arranged for increased stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If the push handle is made longer to ensure adequate operating length, then the handle can provide sufficient leverage and comfort, but the handle protrudes beyond the loading platform surface when folded, preventing compact accommodation
Solution Approach 1:
The push handle is divided into two main segments: the column support portions that attach to the loading platform, and the holding rod portion that extends outward. This segmentation allows the handle to be folded compactly into the accommodating groove while maintaining sufficient operational length when extended.
Solution Approach 2:
The push handle employs a foldable structure with pivot joints that enable dynamic transformation between extended and folded states. The column support portions can rotate relative to the loading platform, and the holding rod portion can fold back, allowing the handle to adapt its length based on operational needs versus storage requirements.
2Ease of manufacture
If the push handle is designed as an attachment/detachment type to facilitate storage, then the handle can be removed when not in use, but the handle must be completely removed from the loading platform main body, making folding/unfolding operations cumbersome
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the folding mechanism and attachment mechanism into a single integrated system. The pivot attachment at the base of the column support portions allows the handle to fold automatically when the column support portions are collapsed, eliminating the need for separate attachment/detachment operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The foldable push handle structure enables self-accommodation within the loading platform. When the column support portions are collapsed to their shortest length, the holding rod portion automatically folds into the accommodating groove, and the pivot attachment allows the entire assembly to nest within the loading platform body without requiring manual removal.
3Volume of moving object
If the column support portions are made shorter to fit within the loading platform surface, then compact accommodation is achieved, but the handle may lack sufficient structural stability and support
Solution Approach 1:
The column support portions are equipped with locking mechanisms that lock the column support portions in their extended position during use. This preliminary locking action ensures structural stability is maintained when the handle is in the extended operating position, compensating for the shorter length that enables compact storage.
Solution Approach 2:
The push handle utilizes a composite structural design combining the column support portions (providing vertical support) with the holding rod portion (providing horizontal leverage). This composite structure distributes mechanical loads across both components, maintaining overall stability even when the column support portions are shortened for compact accommodation.
4Ease of operation
If the holding rod portion extends far to the left and right for adequate hand grip, then user comfort and control are improved, but the handle cannot be accommodated within the loading platform surface when folded
Solution Approach 1:
The holding rod portion is designed to be foldable relative to the column support portions, allowing it to dynamically change its effective length. When extended, it provides ample grip space for user comfort; when folded, it retracts into the accommodating groove, enabling compact storage within the loading platform footprint.
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
Enables compact storage, easy folding/unfolding, and enhanced stability by fitting the handle within the platform surface, while maintaining stable support during use.
Implementation Method 1
a lower part of each column support portion is pivotally attached to the loading platform portion to support the push handle while allowing folding and unfolding
Implementation Method 2
column support locking means for locking an extended posture of the column support portions
Implementation Method 3
comprises handle unfolding locking means for locking an unfolded posture of the push handle
Data Source
AI summary
A push handle comprises a pair of column support portions provided on left and right sides and extendable/contractible in a vertical direction, a holding rod portion integrally interposed between upper ends of the pair of column support portions and extends toward left and right outer sides of the column support portions, and column support lock locking an extended posture of the column support portion. A entire length of the column support portion when contracted is set to be shorter than one of longitudinal and lateral lengths of the loading platform surface, an entire length of the holding rod portion is set to be shorter than the other of the longitudinal and lateral lengths of the loading platform surface to allow fitting in an accommodating groove portion when the push handle is folded.