Ink Cup Set with Perpendicular Plug-in Connectors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional paint tray sets lack a design that allows for easy connection and arrangement of paint trays, leading to slippage during use and limited creativity in color combinations, especially for educational and playful purposes.
Innovation Solution
The paint tray set features plug-in connection elements with a joining direction perpendicular to the tray plane, enabling trays to be connected and arranged in various configurations such as rings and bands, allowing for secure stacking and easy assembly of color circles, offering greater variability and a playful element.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If paint trays are arranged individually in the receiving plate, then they are easy to store, but they slip during use and lack stability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the merging principle by connecting individual paint trays into a unified structure through plug-in connection elements. These connection elements join multiple trays laterally to form stable configurations such as rings, bands, or rectangular arrangements, preventing slippage while maintaining the modular nature of the set.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses segmentation by providing paint trays with integrated plug-in connection elements that allow the set to be divided into individual trays for storage or assembled into connected structures for use. This segmentation enables flexibility in both stored and operational states, resolving the contradiction between stability during use and ease of storage.
2Reliability
If paint trays are connected with plug-in elements perpendicular to the tray plane, then they form stable structures and prevent slippage, but the assembly process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dimensionality change by orienting the plug-in connection elements perpendicular to the plane of the trays rather than parallel to it. This vertical orientation allows trays to be stacked or connected in a third dimension, creating stable structures that resist lateral slippage while maintaining simple horizontal alignment during assembly.
3Adaptability or versatility
If paint trays are arranged in fixed positions in the receiving plate, then they are stable, but creativity in color combinations and configurations is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by enabling the paint tray set to transition between different configurations. The plug-in connection elements allow users to dynamically reassemble trays into various patterns such as rings, bands, or rectangular arrangements, adapting the structure to different artistic needs while maintaining organizational simplicity through standardized connectors.
4Adaptability or versatility
If paint trays are designed as individual units, then they are simple to manufacture, but they lack the ability to form connected structures for creative arrangements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing plug-in connection elements that can be integrated into all paint trays in the set using the same manufacturing process. These universal connectors enable any tray to connect with any other tray in multiple configurations, providing multi-functionality without requiring different manufacturing techniques for different tray types.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
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Figure 5~6
AI summary
The color bowl set has multiple color bowls with a receiving cavity (4) for colors in each case. Each color bowl has two plug-in connection elements (6,7). The plug-in connection elements have a joining direction extending at right angles to the plane level of the color bowls. The color bowls connected with each other are arranged in the plane level.