Gas-Strut Highchair Seat Adjustment With Two-Handed Locking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional highchairs have complex foot parts composed of many individual elements and limited adjustability, which complicates their construction and restricts user convenience.
Innovation Solution
A highchair design featuring a single, vertically arranged gas-filled strut for height adjustment and two-handed safety operation, along with pivoting and securing mechanisms for the seat element, a detachable table, and a height-adjustable footrest, ensuring a simple, secure, and adjustable structure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single gas-filled strut is used for height adjustment, then device complexity is reduced, but adjustability and safety must be maintained
Solution Approach 1:
The gas-filled strut is divided into multiple telescopic segments that can extend and retract relative to each other. This segmentation allows the single strut to achieve a wide range of height adjustments while maintaining structural integrity and reducing overall device complexity compared to multiple individual support elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The strut incorporates a dynamic locking mechanism with locking elements that can engage at multiple predetermined positions along the strut's length. This allows the strut to transition between fixed stable positions for support and a released state for adjustment, providing both adjustability and stability within a single dynamic component.
2Reliability
If two-handed safety operation is implemented, then safety is improved, but ease of operation may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The actuating elements are positioned asymmetrically on opposite sides of the strut, requiring coordinated two-handed operation. This asymmetric placement ensures that accidental activation is prevented while maintaining intuitive ergonomics - each hand naturally reaches for its designated side, making the safety feature intuitive rather than cumbersome.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking elements are pre-positioned at specific locations along the strut, and the actuating elements are designed to release these locks in a predetermined sequence. This preliminary arrangement of locking positions ensures that when the user actuates the elements, the strut transitions smoothly through safe adjustment paths, combining safety with operational ease.
3Reliability
If rotary locking mechanism is used for seat pivoting, then security is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The rotary locking mechanism is merged with the existing spindle and support arm structures. The locking elements integrate with the spindle's longitudinal groove, and the actuation cam combines the releasing action with the existing pivoting geometry. This merging reduces overall mechanism complexity while maintaining secure torque-proof locking during seat tilting.
Solution Approach 2:
The actuation cam serves as an intermediary element that translates a simple rotational motion of the actuating element into the complex sequence of locking element release and spindle rotation. This intermediary mechanism simplifies the user's interaction while achieving the secure torque-proof locking function through the coordinated action of multiple components.
4Ease of operation
If detachable snap-in connection is provided, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The snap-in connection features pre-positioned locking surfaces and spring-loaded locking elements that are ready to engage automatically when the table is placed on the support arms. This preliminary arrangement ensures that a simple downward motion is sufficient to secure the connection reliably, combining ease of operation with secure attachment.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring-loaded locking elements automatically engage with the table's corresponding features when the table is positioned correctly. The system serves itself by automatically securing the connection without requiring additional user actions, while the spring force ensures reliable engagement. Detachment is equally simple, requiring only upward pressure to overcome the spring force.
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
The design provides enhanced adjustability, safety, and versatility, allowing for secure height adjustments, tilting, and 360° rotation of the seat, while maintaining a secure and easy-to-use interface, suitable for various user needs.
Implementation Method 1
a single vertically arranged, length-adjustable gas-filled strut that provides support and height adjustment of the seat element
Data Source
AI summary
A highchair with a foot part and a seat element mounted thereon has a length-adjustable gas-filled strut therebetween for support and height adjustment of the seat element. The gas-filled strut may be length adjustable with two-handed safety operation. The seat element is held on two lateral support arms, on each of which an actuating element of the two-handed safety operation is arranged. Each actuating element is connected via a wire or rope pull to a pressure element acting on an actuating projection of the gas-filled strut. The seat element is pivotable and fixable about a horizontal transverse axis forwards and backwards in a tilting position. An inclination catch is provided on at least one support arm and has a rotary locking element acting between a spindle of the seat element and a support arm, which is transferable into a locking or release position by means of an actuation cam.