Slip-Resistant Ladder Base with Cut Cell Foam
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Solution Overview
Problem
Ladders often slip on smooth, wet, or slippery surfaces, posing a significant safety risk, especially in construction environments, as existing intermediary support bases may not adequately prevent slippage on such surfaces.
Innovation Solution
A slip-resistant support base featuring a resilient pad with a two-dimensional distribution of downwardly open concave recesses, attached to a rigid plate and a strap for securing to a ladder, which limits movement and provides enhanced traction through a closed cell foam substrate with a density of cut cells between five and fifty per square inch.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a ladder is placed on a smooth or slippery surface, then the ladder can be positioned for use, but the ladder foot tends to slip away from the object it is leaning against
Solution Approach 1:
The support base divides the contact surface into multiple concave recesses distributed in a two-dimensional pattern, creating multiple discrete contact points that collectively prevent slippage while maintaining overall stability
Solution Approach 2:
The bottom surface of the support base features localized concave recesses with specific geometric properties (depth, diameter, spacing) that provide enhanced grip on smooth surfaces, while the top surface maintains a different quality suitable for ladder foot contact
2Reliability
If intermediary support bases are used to improve ladder stability on various surfaces, then stability is improved, but they may still be subject to slippage on particularly smooth, wet, or other slippery surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The concave recesses in the support base transform the harmful slippery surface into a beneficial gripping mechanism by creating vacuum suction and mechanical interlocking through the recess geometry, converting the smooth surface that causes slippage into the very mechanism that prevents it
Solution Approach 2:
The support base is designed with pre-formed concave recesses that are ready to create vacuum suction and mechanical interlocking before the ladder is placed, so that when the ladder foot contacts the base, the anti-slip mechanism is already in place and immediately effective
3Reliability
If the support base uses a dense distribution of cut cells, then traction is enhanced, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent specifies optimal parameters for the concave recesses including density (5-50 cells per square inch), depth (0.0625-0.25 inches), and diameter (0.125-0.5 inches), which balance traction performance with manufacturability by avoiding excessively dense or deep recesses that would be difficult to produce
Solution Approach 2:
The support base combines a rigid plate material with a resilient pad material having specific durometer hardness (40-70 Shore A), creating a composite structure that provides both structural support and compliant gripping surfaces, with the resilient material allowing the concave recesses to deform and seal against the surface
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 support base effectively reduces the likelihood of ladder slippage on various surfaces, including composite and plastic decking, thereby enhancing safety by maintaining the ladder's stability and distributing weight over a broader area, thus preventing accidents.
Implementation Method 1
The resilient substrate is made of a closed cell foam
Implementation Method 2
the lower expanse is characterized by a two-dimensional distribution of open concave cut cells facing downwardly
Data Source
AI summary
A slip-resistant support base and method of making and using such a support base. A slip-resistant support base may include a resilient pad having an exposed lower expanse opposite an upper pad surface, the lower expanse being characterized by a two-dimensional distribution of downwardly open concave recesses having rims forming a lower extremity of the support base. The lower expanse may be made by shearing off a layer of a first major face of a pad of resilient closed cell foam to expose an expanse of cut cells. In some examples, the support base includes a body and the resilient pad as a resilient substrate. The body is preferably configured to support an external object positioned on a body upper surface. The resilient substrate is preferably attached to and extends along at least a portion of a body lower surface. The resilient substrate lower expanse is opposite the body lower surface.