Folding Smartphone Adapter for Optical Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing smartphone attachment devices for optical devices like telescopes are bulky, making them inconvenient to transport and use, reducing their availability for image capture opportunities.
Innovation Solution
A compact adapter system with a positioning mechanism that allows for adjustable alignment of a smartphone's camera with an optical device's eyepiece, featuring a joint for folding and unfolding configurations, and latches for secure locking, enabling precise image capture while allowing for compact storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a smartphone attachment device is designed to securely mount a smartphone to an optical device, then the device provides stable image capture capability, but the device becomes bulky and difficult to transport
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment device is divided into separate functional components: a mounting bracket that attaches to the optical device, a smartphone holder that secures the smartphone, and a positioning mechanism with adjustable arms. These segmented components can be folded together into a compact form for transport while maintaining full functionality when deployed
Solution Approach 2:
The positioning mechanism features nested arms and components that fold into each other when not in use. The adjustable positioning arms can be collapsed into the body of the mounting bracket, creating a compact nested structure that reduces transport size while preserving the full range of motion and positioning capability when deployed
2Length of moving object
If the attachment device is made compact for easy transport, then portability is improved, but the precision of aligning the smartphone camera with the optical device eyepiece deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The positioning mechanism incorporates dynamically adjustable arms with multiple degrees of freedom that can be moved and locked into position. The adjustable arms allow precise positioning of the smartphone relative to the optical device eyepiece, maintaining alignment precision despite the compact folded form factor for transport
Solution Approach 2:
The device replaces complex mechanical adjustment systems with a simplified yet effective positioning mechanism featuring movable arms that can be manually adjusted and locked. This mechanical substitution maintains precision while reducing overall device complexity and size
3Measurement precision
If the attachment device includes adjustable positioning mechanisms for precise alignment, then imaging accuracy is improved, but the device complexity and number of components increases
Solution Approach 1:
The positioning mechanism uses multi-functional adjustable arms that serve multiple purposes: positioning the smartphone, maintaining alignment, and providing structural support. These arms incorporate both positioning and support functions, reducing the need for separate components and simplifying the overall device structure while maintaining imaging accuracy
Data Source
AI summary
An adapter may be used to couple an imaging device, such as a smartphone, to an optical device such as a telescope. The adapter may have an optical device mounting feature that mounts the adapter to the optical device, an imaging device mounting feature that mounts the imaging device to the adapter, and a positioning mechanism that adjustably positions the imaging device mounting feature relative to the optical device mounting feature. The adapter may also have a joint, distinct from the positioning mechanism, configured to move the optical device mounting feature between a stowed (e.g., “folded”) configuration, in which the optical device mounting feature is positioned alongside the imaging device support surface, and a deployed (e.g., “unfolded”) configuration, in which a camera of the imaging device is positionable, using positioning mechanism, in alignment with the optical device mounting feature with the imaging device mounted on the imaging device mounting feature.