Foldable table
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional foldable tables lack the ability to easily expand and contract while maintaining a compact storage form, limiting their surface area when in use.
Innovation Solution
A foldable table design featuring pivotable legs and a telescopic support unit with a lock mechanism, allowing the legs to transition between unfolded and folded positions, enabling easy operation and increased surface area when needed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If conventional foldable tables use simple pivotable legs, then the table can be folded to decrease storage space, but the table surface area is limited and the operation is not easy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the support members telescopic rather than fixed, allowing them to extend and retract. This dynamic structure enables the table top to be adjusted in height and angle during folding operations, making the folding process easier and more controlled. The telescopic support members can extend to provide leverage during folding and retract to maintain a compact form when folded.
Solution Approach 2:
The support members are segmented into telescopic sections with lock subunits, allowing the structure to be divided into movable segments. This segmentation enables independent control of each support member's extension and retraction, facilitating easier folding and unfolding operations while maintaining structural integrity.
2Device complexity
If conventional foldable tables use simple pivotable legs, then the structure is simple, but the table surface area is limited when in use
Solution Approach 1:
The telescopic support members provide dynamic adjustment capability that allows the table top to be positioned at different angles and heights. When unfolded, the support members extend to provide additional support surface area and allow the table top to be positioned for maximum usability. This dynamic structure increases the effective table surface area without significantly complicating the overall design.
3Ease of operation
If telescopic support units with lock mechanisms are added, then the ease of operation for folding and unfolding is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The lock subunit is designed to automatically lock and unlock the telescopic support members during folding and unfolding operations. The mechanism uses the movement itself to trigger the locking and unlocking actions, reducing the need for manual intervention and simplifying operation despite the added structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The lock subunit is nested within the telescopic support member structure, with the locking mechanism integrated into the telescopic sections. This nesting minimizes the additional space required and reduces the overall structural complexity by combining multiple functions into a compact integrated design.
Data Source
AI summary
A foldable table includes a top plate, two leg units, and a telescopic support unit. Each leg unit includes two legs connected to and pivotable relative to the top plate. The telescopic support unit includes two support members, a first telescopic subunit, and a lock subunit. The support members are respectively mounted on the leg units. The first telescopic subunit is connected between the support members, and has an inner tube and an outer tube that is sleeved on and is slidable along the inner tube. The lock subunit is operable between a lock state and an unlock state for locking or unlocking sliding movement between the inner and the outer tubes.