Locking Chemical Containment Pan with Drainage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current oil and chemical containment pans are not environmentally friendly, have a high failure rate, lack drainage options, and are inefficient in manufacturing, leading to environmental damage, costly cleanups, and excessive waste.
Innovation Solution
A mobile, square-shaped containment pan with slanted sidewalls and a polyurethane-based construction, featuring a locking mechanism that allows multiple pans to connect securely, an optional drain fitting for fluid removal, and a manufacturing process that reduces production time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If containment pans are made from fabric material, then they are flexible and can be manufactured, but they take excessive time to cut and fold together during manufacturing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from fabric to a pre-formed flexible membrane with integrated flanges, transforming the manufacturing process from cutting and folding to assembly, thereby reducing manufacturing time and improving efficiency
2Object-affected harmful factors
If containment pans are made biodegradable, then they are environmentally friendly, but they break down when exposed to wind and environment causing chemical leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite material system consisting of a flexible membrane with integrated flanges that provides both environmental compatibility and structural integrity, preventing the material from breaking down while maintaining flexibility and containment reliability
3Device complexity
If containment pans have no drains, then they provide simple containment, but they require expensive cleanup methods using absorbent materials that must be incinerated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the drainage function from the containment pan system by integrating drains and outlet ports into the pan structure, allowing chemicals to be removed through pumping rather than requiring expensive absorbent materials and incineration
4Stability of the object's composition
If containment pans are secured to vehicles, then they prevent wind from blowing them away, but they risk puncture holes when run over by vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a flexible membrane construction with integrated reinforcement features that allows the pan to conform to vehicle surfaces and resist puncture forces, maintaining both stability during transport and strength against vehicle contact
Data Source
AI summary
A chemical containment pan for use with a corner and side locking connectors having locking inserts. The pan has four sidewalls and a bottom wall, with each sidewall having a top rail portion with two having top rail extension portion with a downwardly extending outer flange portion which overlap an adjacent pan. Each of the top rail corner portions has a corner aperture sized to removably receive one insert of the corner connector to lock two or four adjacent pans together. Each top rail portion has a midportion aperture sized to removably receive one insert of the side connector to lock two side-by-side pans together.