Folding Stepstool with Nested Leg Storage for Compact Portability
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional folding stepstools are bulky even in their folded state, making them difficult to carry, especially for users who need to transport them for use as scaffolding.
Innovation Solution
A folding stepstool design featuring a top board with recessed spaces and pivotable sections that allow legs to be accommodated internally, enabling the tool to be folded into a compact prism shape for easier carrying.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the ladder-like supporting legs are folded to overlap with the lower side of the plate-like top board, then the stepstool is downsized, but it remains bulky and difficult to carry due to its plate-like shape
Solution Approach 1:
The supporting legs are nested within the internal spaces formed by the top board structure. When folded, the legs are received inside the hollow interior of the top board, creating a compact integrated unit rather than a flat plate configuration. This nesting arrangement dramatically reduces the overall volume and transforms the shape from plate-like to column-like, making it portable.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a two-dimensional plate-like folded configuration to a three-dimensional compact column shape by utilizing the vertical dimension. The top board is designed with internal hollow spaces that receive the folded legs, creating a volumetric compact form factor that is suitable for carrying, rather than flattening everything into a single plane.
2Ease of manufacture
If the top board is made plate-like for structural simplicity, then manufacturing is easier, but the folded state becomes bulky and unsuitable for carrying
Solution Approach 1:
The top board is segmented into multiple sections with internal hollow spaces. Rather than a solid plate, the top board comprises divided regions that can accommodate the folded supporting legs within their interiors. This segmentation allows the structure to maintain manufacturing simplicity while creating the necessary internal volume for compact storage.
3Device complexity
If the supporting legs are designed to fold flat against the top board, then the folding mechanism is simple, but the overall shape remains plate-like and bulky
Solution Approach 1:
The supporting legs are nested within the internal spaces of the top board structure. The hollow interior of the top board serves as a receptacle for the folded legs, creating a compact integrated unit. This nesting arrangement transforms the folded configuration from a flat plate shape to a compact column shape, dramatically improving portability while maintaining a simple folding mechanism.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2(a)~2(b)
Figure 3
AI summary
Provided is a folding stepstool which can be folded into a shape which enables the folding stepstool to be carried easily. In a folding stepstool 1, a front leg 20R and a rear leg 30R can be housed in a recess-shaped first space S 1 in the lower surface of a first top board 10F, and a front leg 20L and a rear leg 30L can be housed in a recess-shaped second space S2 in the lower surface of a second top board 10B. Further, when the top plates 10 are closed, the two front legs 20 and the two rear legs 30 can be housed in the internal spaces S in the top plates 10 in a closed state.