Golf Bunker Filtration Device with Removable Collar
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Solution Overview
Problem
Golf bunker sand becomes contaminated with dirt and debris due to rain, wind, and irrigation, making it difficult and costly to maintain, as existing methods require manual removal and replacement of sand.
Innovation Solution
A golf bunker filtration device with a base, extension collar, and lid system that allows for water to be pumped into the bunker, using drainage slots and pipes to flush out debris, with adjustable collars to ensure the device remains buried during gameplay.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If bunker sand is left exposed to rain, wind, and irrigation water, then the bunker is easy to maintain structurally, but the sand becomes contaminated with dirt and debris reducing quality
Solution Approach 1:
The device segments the bunker bottom into a treatment zone (interior open space) and a playing zone, allowing selective cleaning of contaminated sand while preserving clean sand in other areas. The base divides the bunker floor to create a confined filtration chamber.
Solution Approach 2:
The filtration device acts as an intermediary between the contaminated sand and the drainage system. It introduces a filtration chamber that mediates the cleaning process by allowing water to flush debris through drainage slots and pipes while retaining clean sand.
2Manufacturing precision
If dirty sand is removed and replaced with clean sand, then sand quality is restored, but the process is expensive and time consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The device enables self-service cleaning where water pumped into the bunker automatically flushes debris through the filtration system. The drainage slots and pipes self-regulate the flow to extract contaminants without manual intervention, restoring sand quality in-place.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses hydraulics by pumping water into the bunker to create flow through the sand. The water carries dirt and debris through the drainage slots and pipes, using fluid dynamics to achieve cleaning without mechanical removal of sand.
3Extent of automation
If the base is buried below ground surface without filling interior space, then the filtration function is enabled, but the structure becomes complex with multiple components
Solution Approach 1:
The base serves multiple functions: it creates the filtration chamber, provides structural support, anchors the drainage pipes through archways, and works with the lid to seal the interior space. The drainage slots in the base simultaneously enable water entry and debris exit.
Solution Approach 2:
The extension collar is nested over the base, and the lid is nested over the extension collar, creating a layered structure. This nesting arrangement allows the components to work together while maintaining a compact footprint within the bunker.
4Ease of operation
If the extension collar increases interior open space height above ground surface, then water can be pumped in for cleaning, but the device requires additional securing mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The extension collar is designed to be removable and reconfigurable, allowing the device to adapt between operational mode (collar extended for water pumping) and storage mode (collar removed or lowered). The collar latches provide dynamic securing that can be engaged or disengaged as needed.
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
Efficiently cleans the bunker sand by rinsing out dirt and debris, improving sand quality and reducing maintenance costs by allowing for automated filtration and quick restoration of playable conditions.
Implementation Method 1
pumping water into the golf bunker until the water flows over a top edge of the extension collar and into the interior open space to the drainage pipe so that sand of the golf bunker is cleaned
Data Source
AI summary
A golf bunker cleaning device includes a base having an open top end and an open bottom end defining an interior open space therebetween and the base configured to be buried below a ground surface of a golf bunker without filling in the interior open space. An extension collar is configured to be removably secured over the open top end of the base to increase a height of the interior open space to above the ground surface of the golf bunker, and a lid is configured to be removably secured over either the top end of the base or over the extension collar to enclose the interior open space. The extension collar comprises a plurality of collar latches each extending to a respective free end, and the base comprises a plurality of base locking apertures configured to releasable engage the respective free end of the plurality of collar latches.