Self-Locking Hinged Cover with Interlocking Hooks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing storage/transport containers with hinged covers face issues of deformation and collapse under heavy loads, leading to a risk of injury and ineffective load distribution when stacked, as interlocking elements can detach and slide over each other.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of additional hooking and locking elements, such as L-shaped bolt stems with opposing bolt heads, which engage and interlock when the container is loaded, preventing separation of the cover edges and ensuring a secure closure even under heavy loads.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional interlocking elements (groove-ridge connection or block interlocking) are used to join cover panels, then the cover can be closed and interlocked, but under heavy load the interlocking elements deform, slide over each other, and detach, causing cover collapse
Solution Approach 1:
The interlocking mechanism is divided into multiple independent hooking elements distributed along the closure line, with each hook consisting of a hook portion and a bolt portion. This segmentation allows localized engagement points that prevent overall cover collapse while maintaining flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The hooking elements are designed to be movable relative to each other, with the bolt portion able to shift position. Under load, the hooks dynamically adjust by allowing the bolt portions to move and engage with corresponding recesses, transforming static interlocking into a dynamic self-adjusting mechanism that maintains connection stability.
2Ease of operation
If the cover is designed to close softly without modification, then ease of operation is improved, but the interlocking connection detaches under load
Solution Approach 1:
The hooking elements are pre-positioned along the closure line with hook portions and bolt portions oriented to engage automatically during the closing motion. The recesses are pre-formed in the cover panel to receive the bolt portions, ensuring that as the cover closes, the interlocking occurs naturally without requiring additional manual intervention or force.
Solution Approach 2:
The hooking elements automatically engage and lock the cover panels together through their own geometric configuration during closure. The bolt portions shift and engage with the recesses autonomously as the cover closes, and under load, the hooks self-adjust to maintain connection, eliminating the need for external locking mechanisms or manual securing.
Data Source
AI summary
A storage/transport container has a plurality of walls defining an upwardly open vessel having an upper rim and a generally flat cover panel hinged on one of the walls and having an inner edge. The rim has opposite to one of the walls structure forming another inner edge. The cover panel is pivotal into a closed position with the inner edges juxtaposed, retaining formations projecting generally perpendicularly from the inner edge of the cover panel and oppositely from the other inner edge that fit together in the closed position. Hooks are formed on the edges and positioned so as to be opened directly at each other in the closed position. The hooks normally are spaced apart but, on deformation of the cover panel, hook together and preventing separation of the edges.