Inflatable transport box
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional transport boxes for dogs are heavy, bulky, and difficult to store, requiring two people to carry and occupying significant space, making them impractical for standard garages and versatile use.
Innovation Solution
A lightweight inflatable transport box made of drop stitch material with a single panel for the side walls, rear wall, and base, featuring a roll-up front and top for easy opening and folding, and a single valve for inflation, allowing for compact storage and versatile applications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If conventional transport boxes are made of wood, metal and/or plastics, then they provide structural strength and stability, but they become heavy and bulky, requiring two persons to carry and occupying significant storage space
Solution Approach 1:
The transport box uses an inflatable structure with air chambers that provide structural strength through internal air pressure. The drop stitch construction creates rigid panels when inflated, replacing heavy solid materials with a pneumatic support system that maintains strength while dramatically reducing weight and storage volume.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs thin flexible drop stitch panels made of fabric layers with stitching threads that create rigid structures when inflated. These thin film structures replace thick solid materials, providing the necessary structural integrity with minimal material thickness and weight.
2Volume of moving object
If conventional transport boxes are made of solid materials, then they maintain their shape and provide protection, but they require a lot of storage space and cannot be collapsed
Solution Approach 1:
The transport box transitions from an inflated stable state to a deflated collapsed state. The drop stitch panels maintain structural stability when inflated through air pressure, but can be easily collapsed and stored when deflated, providing dynamic adaptability between operational and storage configurations.
3Ease of manufacture
If multiple valves are used for inflating different parts of the transport box, then each section can be inflated independently, but the production time increases due to adhesive seams and multiple valves
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple separate inflatable sections into a single integrated air chamber system. Instead of having separate valves for the base, side walls, and top, a single valve inflates the entire structure through interconnected air channels, reducing production complexity and time while eliminating multiple adhesive seams.
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 inflatable transport box provides a lightweight, easy-to-handle solution that can be collapsed into a small size, offering excellent insulation and impact protection, suitable for transporting dogs, children, and other items, while also serving as a pallet or bicycle trailer.
Implementation Method 1
The drop stitch material consists of an outer wall and an inner wall, between which threads are stretched, which, after inflation, keep both spaced apart
Implementation Method 2
By folding the inner drop stitch wall, partial surfaces of the inner wall, arranged on both sides of the fold, come to rest on top of each other, being adhesively-bonded or welded together
Data Source
AI summary
An inflatable transport box including a base, a rear wall, and first and second side walls. The rear wall can be connected to the base along a folding edge and forming a single-piece drop stitch component with the base. The first and second side walls can be connected to opposite sides of the rear wall along folding edges, respectively. The side walls can be drop stitch components. The base, the rear wall and the side walls can be made of drop stitch material including an outer drop stitch wall and an inner drop stitch wall. Partial surfaces of the inner drop stitch wall of the rear wall and the side walls, respectively, can be arranged on both sides of a fold, and can be configured to come to rest on top of each other to form adhesive surfaces that are adhesively bonded together or welded to each other.