Elastic Bracelet Helical Leaf Spring Design
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Elastic bracelets made with metallic elements, such as steel, face issues like breakage, difficulty in manufacturing with valuable metals like gold, aesthetic challenges, and skin pinching due to the use of steel, which affects durability and appearance.
Innovation Solution
A bracelet design featuring helical elements connected by an elastic leaf spring element, allowing for flexibility without using steel, enabling production in softer metals like gold and maintaining aesthetics across different sizes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If elastic steel elements are used in the bracelet, then the bracelet achieves elasticity and adaptability to varying diameters, but the bracelet structure becomes less reliable due to risk of breakage and coming off
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the elastic steel elements from the bracelet structure entirely, extracting the problematic component that caused reliability issues while maintaining the adaptability function through alternative means (the flexible metal construction itself provides the elasticity needed)
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the material parameter from steel to flexible metal (such as gold or silver), altering the physical properties to achieve both elasticity and reliability simultaneously. The flexible metal provides the needed adaptability without the brittleness and failure risks of steel elastic elements
2Adaptability or versatility
If elastic steel elements are used in the bracelet, then the bracelet achieves elasticity, but the manufacturing complexity increases due to difficulty in manufacturing with valuable metals like gold
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from steel to valuable flexible metals (gold, silver), making the entire bracelet manufacturable in precious metals. This eliminates the complexity of combining dissimilar metals and allows standard jewelry manufacturing techniques to be used throughout
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite flexible metal structure that integrates both structural and elastic functions in a single material system, eliminating the need to combine steel elastic elements with precious metal links, thus simplifying manufacturing with valuable metals
3Adaptability or versatility
If elastic steel elements are used together with rigid elements in valuable metal, then the bracelet achieves elasticity, but the valuable metal elements wear out rapidly due to hardness difference
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a homogeneous bracelet structure where all elements are made from the same flexible precious metal material, eliminating the hardness mismatch between steel and gold/silver. This uniform material composition prevents differential wear and maintains the strength and luster of valuable metals over time
Solution Approach 2:
The patent develops a composite flexible metal structure that replaces the steel-precious metal composite with a monomaterial construction, eliminating the wear problem caused by combining metals of vastly different hardness values
4Adaptability or versatility
If elastic steel elements are used in the bracelet, then the bracelet achieves elasticity, but the aesthetic appearance deteriorates due to the influence of elastic function on element shaping
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the steel elastic elements that constrained the aesthetic design, allowing the bracelet links and connectors to be shaped purely for aesthetic purposes without needing to accommodate steel component geometries
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the material to flexible precious metals that can be shaped and finished to high aesthetic standards, allowing the elastic components to be crafted with the same attention to beauty and design as the visible bracelet elements
5Adaptability or versatility
If elastic steel elements are used in the bracelet, then the bracelet achieves elasticity, but galvanic corrosion occurs between noble metal and steel in humid environment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the steel elastic elements that caused galvanic corrosion, eliminating the dissimilar metal contact that creates electrochemical cells in humid environments
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a homogeneous precious metal construction that eliminates galvanic corrosion by removing the electrochemical potential difference between dissimilar metals, preventing the harmful galvanic action that occurs between steel and noble metals
6Device complexity
If traditional bracelet design is used, then the construction is simple, but the bracelet lacks adaptability and requires manual adjustments or specialized tools for sizing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material property to flexible precious metal, which inherently provides elasticity and adaptability without requiring complex adjustment mechanisms, specialized tools, or manual intervention for sizing
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 enhances durability, simplifies construction, allows for production in valuable metals, and maintains aesthetic appeal by concealing the elastic element, preventing skin pinching and ensuring adaptability to varying diameters.
Implementation Method 1
an elastic element designed to join said first helical element and said second helical element, said elastic element being inserted crosswise in said first turns and in said second turns
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The present invention concerns an elastic bracelet (10; 110; 210; 410; 510) for objects (O) such as wristwatches (O) and/or jewellery items and/or costume jewellery items and similar objects. The bracelet (10; 110; 210; 410; 510) comprises at least one elastic section (20), wherein the elastic section (20) comprises a first helical element (30), a second helical element (40) and an elastic element (50; 250; 450) designed to join the first helical element (30) and the second helical element (40).