Inflatable Rod Base Structure for Portable Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing bases for holding sunshades or small flagpoles are either too heavy and bulky for easy transport or, when made mobile, remain unwieldy and difficult to transport due to their size and the time-consuming process of fixing them into the ground.
Innovation Solution
An expandable base system featuring an inflatable central chamber and connecting chambers that form a sleeve for holding a rod, allowing for compact storage and easy transportation, with the option to fill with weights like water or sand for stability, and designed to prevent tilting through circumferential arrangement of the connecting chambers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If bases are made heavy and bulky, then stability is improved, but transportability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The base employs inflatable chambers that can dynamically change volume between expanded and collapsed states. When inflated, the chambers provide large volume for stability; when deflated, they reduce volume and weight for easy transport. This dynamic transformation allows the base to adapt its physical properties based on operational requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical state of the base material from compressed to expanded form. By altering the volume parameter of the chambers through inflation and deflation, the base transitions between a compact transport state and a stable operational state, effectively resolving the contradiction between stability and portability.
2Weight of moving object
If bases are made mobile with fold-out feet, then transportability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to time-consuming ground fixing
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the complex ground-fixing mechanism from the base design. Instead of requiring fold-out feet or spikes that need manual installation, the base uses a simplified inflatable chamber system that provides stability through inflation alone, eliminating the time-consuming ground fixing step while maintaining portability.
3Weight of moving object
If bases are made mobile, then transportability is improved, but device complexity increases due to unwieldy structure
Solution Approach 1:
The base utilizes flexible inflatable chambers instead of rigid structural components. These thin-walled chambers can be easily folded and compressed for transport, yet provide sufficient structural integrity when inflated. This approach reduces device complexity by replacing complex rigid mechanisms with simple flexible structures.
4Stability of the object's composition
If chambers are made air-impermeable, then volume retention is improved, but ease of manufacture deteriorates due to requiring valves and air-tight sealing
Solution Approach 1:
The base employs air-permeable chambers that automatically adjust their volume through air exchange with the environment. The material itself provides the volume retention function without requiring additional valves or complex sealing mechanisms, significantly simplifying manufacturing while maintaining functional performance.
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 expandable base system provides a lightweight, compact, and stable solution for holding rods, facilitating easy transportation and use on various ground surfaces while ensuring secure holding and stability through weight distribution and structural design.
Implementation Method 1
the expandable chambers are filled or partially filled with an expandable filler, like a foam, wherein the filler is compressed in the non-expanded state, and expanded in the expanded state
Implementation Method 2
the central chamber and/or the at least one connecting chamber may be expanded through inflation. In the presence of more than one connecting chamber, one, multiple, or all connecting chambers may thus be configured to be inflatable
Data Source
AI summary
A base includes an expandable central chamber which, in the expanded state, forms a sleeve with an end open to the top for receiving a rod, a base element and at least one expandable connecting chamber connecting the central chamber to the base element.