Quick Release Holder with Ball Rollers for Elastomer Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing portable device holders, particularly those for cellular telephones and other electronics with soft elastomer housings, often damage these materials during insertion and removal due to their inability to securely engage and release without causing scratches or other damage.
Innovation Solution
A novel quick release device holder featuring a rigid spine with a receiver pocket, spherical ball rollers, and resiliently flexible latching arms that rotate to securely hold and release devices, protecting the elastomer materials from damage by using rollers to guide the device in and out, thus preventing direct contact with potentially damaging surfaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If traditional quick release holders use rigid clamping surfaces to securely hold portable devices, then the holding strength is improved, but the soft elastomer housing materials of the device are scratched or damaged
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a spherical ball roller as an intermediary element between the holder's clamping mechanism and the device's elastomer housing. The ball roller contacts the device surface at a single point rather than through large rigid surfaces, significantly reducing contact pressure and preventing scratches while maintaining secure holding through the latching arm mechanism
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the contact parameter from large-area rigid surface contact to small-point spherical contact. This parameter change reduces the contact pressure distribution on the elastomer housing, preventing localized stress concentrations that cause scratching while maintaining adequate holding force through the mechanical advantage of the latching arms
2Ease of operation
If the holder uses a simple insertion design for quick device placement, then the ease of operation is improved, but the device cannot be securely retained without damaging the elastomer housing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs resiliently flexible latching arms that can dynamically flex during device insertion and then lock into a retained position. The latching arms move from an initial retracted state during insertion to a flexed locked state during retention, providing both ease of operation and secure holding without damage to the elastomer housing
Solution Approach 2:
The spherical ball roller serves as a mediator that enables quick insertion by rolling along the device edge during placement, then transitions to a locking position where it engages with the latching arm mechanism. This intermediary element facilitates both the quick operation and secure retention phases without compromising the elastomer housing
3Reliability
If the holder uses rigid clamping surfaces to ensure device security, then the reliability of device retention is improved, but the lifespan of the device exterior is reduced due to repeated scratching
Solution Approach 1:
The spherical ball roller acts as a protective intermediary that prevents direct contact between rigid holder components and the device's elastomer housing. By mediating the retention force through a rolling spherical interface, the system maintains reliable device security while eliminating the repeated scratching that would otherwise reduce the device exterior's lifespan
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the interaction parameter from high-pressure rigid surface contact to low-pressure spherical point contact. This parameter transformation maintains the necessary retention reliability while dramatically reducing the mechanical damage accumulation on the elastomer housing, thereby extending the device exterior's service life
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 solution effectively protects the soft elastomer materials from scratches and damage by using rollers to guide the device in and out, ensuring secure engagement and release without causing harm to the device's surface finish, thereby extending the lifespan of the device holder and the device's exterior.
Implementation Method 1
a cage coupled to the head portion of one or more of the latching arms in a position spaced away from an interior surface of the backing plane and rotatably retaining the ball roller operably about a rotational axis oriented substantially transverse to a direction substantially normal to the interior surface of the backing plane
Implementation Method 2
the stem portion of each of the pair of the latching arms further includes a resiliently flexible stem portion
Data Source
AI summary
A quick release device holder for portable electronics devices that protects soft and impressionable housing materials from damage during insertion and removal. The quick release device holder includes a backing plane formed with a substantially rigid spine portion and a receiver pocket adjacent to a first end thereof. One or more latching arms extend from the backing plane spaced away from the receiver pocket, each of the one or more latching arms further including a resiliently flexible stem portion coupled to the backing plane and having a head portion spaced away from the backing plane. The head portion further includes one or more rollers coupled thereto in a position spaced away from an interior surface of the backing plane, and a retention tongue between the one or more rollers and the interior surface of the backing plane and being set back from a circumference of the one or more rollers.