Insulated doors with restorable breakaway sections
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Solution Overview
Problem
Horizontally translating doors used in commercial freezer and cold storage applications face challenges in withstanding accidental impacts without sustaining damage, as existing designs lack effective mechanisms for absorbing and recovering from such forces while maintaining thermal insulation and operational efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of spring-loaded tension members and flexible joints in the door panel assemblies allows for restorable breakaway sections, enabling the door panels to dislodge and return to normal operation after an impact, combined with a spring-loaded roller mechanism and automatic control systems for safe and efficient operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If door panels are made thick with insulation to reduce cooling load, then thermal insulation performance is improved, but the door panels become more vulnerable to damage from accidental impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The door panel is divided into multiple sections that can break away from each other upon impact. The panel includes a first section and a second section that can separate, allowing the panel to absorb impact energy through controlled fragmentation rather than requiring the entire panel to withstand the full impact force.
Solution Approach 2:
The door panel uses materials with different mechanical properties in different sections. The breakaway sections are designed with specific structural parameters that allow them to fail at controlled locations, while the main insulated sections maintain their thickness and insulation performance. This enables the panel to change its structural configuration upon impact while preserving thermal insulation.
2Strength
If breakaway sections are designed to dislodge upon impact, then damage absorption is improved, but the door structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The door panel is segmented into distinct sections that can separate upon impact. This segmentation allows each section to be independently designed with appropriate connection mechanisms that enable controlled breakaway behavior without requiring complex overall structural changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection between panel sections is designed to be dynamic rather than static. The sections are connected in a way that allows them to remain together during normal operation but can separate when subjected to impact forces, providing adaptive structural behavior without permanent complexity.
3Reliability
If spring-loaded tension members are used to enable restorable breakaway sections, then operational efficiency after impact is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spring-loaded tension members are designed to automatically restore the door panel sections to their normal configuration after impact without requiring manual intervention. The springs self-generate the restoring force needed to return the breakaway sections to their original positions, enabling the door to resume normal operation autonomously.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring-loaded tension members are pre-loaded to provide restoring force before impact occurs. This beforehand cushioning ensures that when impact separates the panel sections, the springs are already positioned to automatically pull the sections back together, eliminating the need for complex restoration mechanisms.
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
This solution ensures the door panels can absorb and recover from impacts without damage, maintaining thermal insulation and operational efficiency, while automatically returning to normal operation, thus enhancing safety and reducing maintenance costs.
Implementation Method 1
spring-loaded tension members
Implementation Method 2
an insulated core
Data Source
AI summary
A door system includes a panel to translate along a normal path between an open position and a closed position in front of a doorway in a wall. The door system further includes a first track to support the panel from an upper portion of the panel, and a second track to extend along the normal path proximate a lower portion of the panel. The door system also includes a spring to urge the panel toward the second track to maintain the panel in the normal path.