Inline Water Quality Probe Housing for Easy Maintenance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing inline water quality monitoring devices for bathing units require periodic maintenance, including cleaning and calibration, which can be cumbersome and increase the risk of probe damage. Additionally, these devices often lack suitable mechanisms for easy calibration and storage, leading to potential inaccuracies and reduced probe lifespan.
Innovation Solution
An inline water quality monitoring device with a housing that includes an upper and lower portion, allowing the probe to remain in situ while the lower portion is disengaged to form a container for calibration or storage fluids. This design enables easy maintenance operations such as calibration, storage, and cleaning without physically removing the probe.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of repair
If the probe is physically removed from the housing for maintenance, then cleaning and calibration can be performed, but the risk of probe damage increases and the process becomes cumbersome
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is divided into an upper portion and a lower portion that can be selectively disengaged from each other. The lower portion can be removed to access the probe for maintenance while the upper portion remains in place, allowing repair operations without removing the entire housing assembly and reducing the risk of damage during handling.
Solution Approach 2:
The lower portion of the housing is extracted as a separate serviceable component that can be removed to access the probe. This extraction allows maintenance operations to be performed on the probe while the rest of the housing remains in place, facilitating easy cleaning and calibration without physically removing the probe itself.
2Reliability
If the probe remains permanently installed in the housing, then it is protected from damage, but calibration and storage functions cannot be performed
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is designed with dynamic configurability where the lower portion can be engaged or disengaged from the upper portion. When engaged, the probe is protected within the sealed housing; when disengaged, the probe is accessible for calibration and storage operations. This dynamic design allows the system to adapt between protection mode and maintenance mode.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing structure serves multiple functions: it protects the probe during operation, provides a mounting structure for the probe, and enables access to the probe for calibration and storage when the lower portion is disengaged. The container formed by the lower portion can hold calibration fluids or storage fluids, making the housing multi-functional without requiring separate components.
3Measurement precision
If manual water quality measurement is performed using water testing kits, then chemical composition can be monitored, but the process is time-consuming and susceptible to human error
Solution Approach 1:
Manual water quality measurement using chemical testing kits is replaced with an automated electronic probe that continuously monitors water quality parameters. The probe provides automatic, real-time measurements without requiring manual intervention, eliminating human error and reducing measurement time while maintaining or improving measurement precision through electronic sensing.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring system performs self-measurement through the continuously operating probe that automatically detects water quality parameters without requiring user action. The system serves itself by providing ongoing monitoring data without manual testing, saving time and eliminating the variability introduced by manual operations.
4Reliability
If third party services are used for water quality maintenance, then professional expertise is available, but costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables users to perform their own water quality maintenance operations through the accessible probe design. Users can independently calibrate and clean the probe without requiring third party services, reducing maintenance costs while maintaining the ability to perform quality control through the automated monitoring system.
Solution Approach 2:
The disengaged lower portion acts as an intermediary mechanism that provides access to the probe for user-performed maintenance. This intermediary design allows users to independently perform calibration and cleaning operations that would otherwise require professional services, reducing costs while maintaining maintenance quality through proper access mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
A water quality monitoring device is provided for use with a bathing unit system. The monitoring device includes a housing configured to be fluidly coupled with a circulation system of the bathing unit system and comprising an upper portion and a lower portion which forms a chamber, wherein the housing is to allow water from the receptacle to flow through the chamber. The lower portion is releasably engaged with the upper portion and forms a container for holding fluid when disengaged from the upper portion. The monitoring device further includes a probe coupled to the upper portion of the housing and extending into the chamber, wherein the probe is configured to measure water quality measurements of the water flowing though the chamber and wherein, when the lower portion is disengaged from the upper portion, the probe is exposed and remains in situ relative to the upper portion.