Magnetic Buckle Assembly With Beveled Hooks
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Two-piece buckles often require complex mechanisms like springs or hinges for engagement and disengagement, which can be cumbersome and prone to mechanical failures.
Innovation Solution
A two-piece buckle assembly using cooperating magnets and beveled fastening tenons and hooks that engage and disengage without moving parts, allowing for secure locking and easy release through lateral sliding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a spring-loaded latching mechanism is used to lock buckle pieces together, then the buckle can be securely locked and released, but the device complexity increases due to the need for moving parts such as springs and hinges
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the spring-loaded latching mechanism entirely from the buckle assembly. Instead of using a complex mechanical system with moving parts, the invention extracts the essential locking function and implements it through a simple magnetic field that passively holds the buckle pieces together without requiring springs, hinges, or other active components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical spring-loaded latching system with a magnetic field-based retention mechanism. The magnet mounted on the interior surface of one buckle piece creates magnetic attraction to hold the other buckle piece, substituting electromagnetic forces for mechanical springs and latches, thereby eliminating moving parts while maintaining secure locking.
2Reliability
If a spring-loaded latching mechanism is used for engagement and disengagement, then the buckle can be locked and released, but the ease of operation decreases due to the need for raising or lowering a latch or pressing a button
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the latch mechanism entirely, extracting only the essential function of holding the buckle pieces together. By eliminating the need to raise, lower, or press any components, the invention achieves the simplest possible operation: the magnetic field passively retains the pieces during normal use and allows easy separation when the user pulls them apart.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical latch operation with a passive magnetic retention system. Instead of requiring the user to manipulate springs, hinges, or buttons, the magnetic field automatically maintains the locked state during normal use and allows easy disengagement by simply pulling the buckle pieces apart, significantly improving ease of operation.
3Device complexity
If magnets are used to hold buckle portions together without moving parts, then the device complexity is reduced, but the force required to disengage them may increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies magnetic retention only at specific locations where the magnet is mounted on the interior surface of one buckle piece, rather than using a uniform distribution of magnetic material throughout the assembly. This localized application provides sufficient holding force for normal use while allowing easy disengagement when lateral force is applied to overcome the magnetic attraction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a dynamic balance in the magnetic retention system where the magnetic force provides adequate holding strength during normal use but can be easily overcome by applying lateral force in the direction of disengagement. The system transitions from a static locked state to an easy-to-release state through simple user action, optimizing both retention and ease of operation.
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 solution provides a simple, secure, and reliable method for attaching buckle parts without the need for springs or hinges, ensuring easy disengagement with minimal force and maintaining stability under tension.
Implementation Method 1
a magnet connected to the interior surface; and a second buckle portion comprising a base body with an exterior surface, an interior surface, a fastening hook on one longitudinal end and a fastening recess on another longitudinal end, and a magnet connected to the interior surface. The buckle portions are configured such that placing the interior surface of the first buckle portion against the interior surface of the second buckle portion causes the magnets to engage each other
Implementation Method 2
The force needed to move the buckle parts to disengage them must exceed the magnetic force holding the two buckle parts together, as well as the frictional force connecting the tenon to the fastening hook
Data Source
AI summary
A buckle assembly has two buckle portions, each having a base body with a fastening hook and a fastening recess, and a magnet connected to the interior surface. The buckle portions are configured such that placing the interior surface of one buckle portion against the interior surface of the other buckle portion causes the magnets to engage each other and the fastening hook of each buckle portion to enter the fastening recess of the other buckle portion, to lock the two buckle portions together and prevent disengagement under tension in opposing directions parallel to a longitudinal extent of the buckle assembly. There is a fastening tenon connected to the base body and extending into the fastening recess on each of the buckle portions. The fastening hooks engage a respective one of the fastening tenons as the fastening hooks enter the fastening recesses to lock the two buckle portions together.