Helical Water Slide Flume With Enclosed Sections for Auditory Thrill
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional water-based amusement rides lack innovative flume geometries that enhance thrill and excitement for riders, limiting the ability to provide new and exciting experiences.
Innovation Solution
A slide feature with a spiral or helical path flume that includes a partially closed interior space, featuring a connecting wall portion and transitions between open and closed sections, designed to enhance auditory effects and rider experience.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If conventional water slide geometries are used, then the ride structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the thrill and excitement for riders is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies spiral and helical curved geometries to the flume structure, transforming the conventional straight or simple curved slide paths into complex three-dimensional spiral configurations. This curvature principle creates novel rider experiences with varying G-forces and visual perspectives while maintaining manufacturability through standardized curved section modules.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from two-dimensional slide surfaces to three-dimensional spiral and helical flume structures that wrap around central cores. This dimensional transformation allows riders to experience vertical and horizontal movements simultaneously, creating enhanced thrill through multi-axis motion while organizing the flume around compact central structures for space efficiency.
2Ease of operation
If the flume is fully open, then riders have good visibility and access, but auditory effects and thrill are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements varying degrees of enclosure along the flume length, with fully enclosed sections providing auditory amplification and partially open sections maintaining rider access and visibility. This local quality variation allows different portions of the ride to serve different functional purposes - enclosed sections for thrill and sound effects, open sections for safety and visibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The flume is divided into distinct enclosed and open segments, with transition zones connecting them. This segmentation allows the ride to provide both enclosed auditory experiences and open visibility periods, creating a dynamic rider experience that alternates between different sensory environments while maintaining overall rider safety and access.
Data Source
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AI summary
A slide feature for a water ride is disclosed. The slide feature includes an at least partially closed interior space partly defined by a flume open to the interior space. The flume has a spiral or helical path around the interior space with at least one turn such that a first part of the flume extends adjacent to and spaced from a second part of the flume. A connecting wall portion spans the space between the first and second parts of the flume to partially enclose the interior space. An inrun permits ingress into the flume. An outrun permitting egress out of the flume.