Hook Device With Finger Loop For Bungee Cord Control
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional bungee cords with hooks face safety issues due to loose hooks during tension, difficulty in fitting into tight spaces, and lack of a grasping point or loop, making them cumbersome and limiting in accessibility and versatility.
Innovation Solution
A hook and finger loop configuration is introduced, where the loop is positioned behind and to the side of the hook, allowing for improved user control and safety, and enabling secure attachment to various points, including those that are inaccessible or hard to reach, using a single length of steel wire or alternative materials.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional U or J shaped hook is used on a bungee cord, then the hook can provide basic attachment function, but the hook becomes difficult to control safely and can slip loose under tension causing injury
Solution Approach 1:
A finger loop is introduced as an intermediary element between the user's hand and the hook. The loop allows the user to grasp and control the hook from a safe distance, preventing direct contact with the hook tip while maintaining control during attachment and tensioning operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The hook assembly is segmented into distinct functional zones: the hook tip for engagement, the finger loop for control, and the attachment point for the elastic cord. This segmentation allows each element to perform its specific function optimally while working together as an integrated system.
2Ease of operation
If the hook is made large and easy to hold, then the user can grasp it easily, but the hook becomes too wide to fit into tight tie-down access points
Solution Approach 1:
The finger loop extends the interaction point from the hook tip (one dimension) to a location behind the hook (another dimension). This allows the user's fingers to engage with the loop from behind, providing leverage and control without requiring the hook itself to be large or accessible from the front.
3Ease of operation
If a pull ring is added above the hook to provide a grasping point, then the user can control the hook safely, but the device becomes impossible to use for blind or interior anchor points
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of placing the grasping element (pull ring) in front of the hook where it would interfere with blind access, the finger loop is positioned behind the hook. This inverted arrangement allows the user to reach around and grasp the loop from the rear, enabling use with blind and interior anchor points while maintaining safe control.
4Strength
If the hook is permanently attached to the elastic cord using proprietary techniques, then the assembly is strong and secure, but the user cannot replace the elastic cord when worn
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment mechanism is segmented into a hook assembly with the finger loop and the elastic cord as separate, independently replaceable components. The hook assembly remains permanently attached to the cord through a secure connection, but the cord can be detached and replaced without damaging the hook assembly, enabling maintenance and reuse.
Data Source
AI summary
An elastic cord terminating in a pair of hook devices, each hook device made from a continuous length of wire. The continuous length of wire at one end has a hook bend having a hook tip, and at the other end a cord attachment. The hook bend and the cord attachment are separated by a straight shank length of the continuous wire into which there is bent a closed finger loop. The finger loop is sized to receive therethrough at least the tip of a finger. The finger loop has a hook proximate surface that is separated longitudinally from the hook tip and toward the cord attachment by a selectable clearance distance.