Foldable Trolley Frame With Multi-Directional Folding and Load Stability
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Foldable trolleys face a challenge in balancing the need for a compact, storage-friendly design with the requirement for robustness and carrying capacity in their unfolded state, as well as ensuring safety and comfort when carrying persons or cargo.
Innovation Solution
A foldable trolley design featuring telescopic rod assemblies, hinged connectors, and a chassis assembly that allows for folding in multiple directions, maintaining stationary bottom connectors for enhanced bearing capacity and structural firmness, along with additional features like auxiliary cross-bar support and handle grip assemblies to improve lateral resistance and mobility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the trolley is designed to be highly foldable and retractable in various directions, then the folded volume is minimized for convenient storage and transport, but the structural complexity and difficulty of ensuring robustness in the unfolded state increase
Solution Approach 1:
The trolley frame is divided into multiple independent folding assemblies (front end folding assembly, rear end folding assembly, left side folding assembly, right side folding assembly), each capable of folding independently in specific directions. This segmentation allows the complex folding function to be distributed across multiple simple modular units, reducing overall structural complexity while achieving compact folded volume.
Solution Approach 2:
The telescopic rod assemblies utilize a nested structure where the interior rod is axially slidable within the hollow exterior rod. This nesting allows the strut length to be reduced significantly when folded, minimizing the folded volume of the entire trolley while maintaining full extension capability when unfolded.
2Volume of moving object
If the bottom connectors are made movable axially to enable folding, then the foldability and compactness are improved, but the bearing capacity and firmness of the trolley frame deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The bottom connectors are designed with differential mobility: they are axially movable relative to the strut assemblies to enable folding motion, but constrained to remain axially stationary relative to the ground when the trolley is in use. This local quality differentiation allows the connectors to provide both folding capability and bearing capacity support.
Solution Approach 2:
The bottom connectors exhibit dynamic behavior, transitioning between movable and stationary states based on the trolley's operational phase. During folding, the bottom connectors move axially relative to the strut assemblies to enable compact configuration. During use, they become stationary to provide stable support for the load.
3Volume of moving object
If the telescopic rod assembly allows axial sliding for compactness, then the folded volume is reduced, but the structural stability and bearing capacity during use may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The telescopic rod assembly transitions between dynamic (slidable) and static (fixed) states. When folding, the interior rod slides axially within the exterior rod to reduce volume. When the trolley is in use, the telescopic rod assembly is locked in place, providing structural stability and bearing capacity for the load.
Data Source
AI summary
The present application discloses a foldable trolley having a trolley frame, the trolley frame comprising: a front left strut assembly, a front right strut assembly, a rear left strut assembly, and a rear right strut assembly, each of which strut assemblies is provided with a top connector and a bottom connector movable axially relative to each other; a front end folding assembly configured to be coupled respectively to the top connectors and the bottom connectors of the front left strut assembly and the front right strut assembly and to be foldable in a widthwise direction of the trolley frame; a rear end folding assembly; a left side folding assembly; a right side folding assembly; and a chassis assembly configured to be foldable both in the widthwise and lengthwise directions of the trolley frame.