Mobile Display Station with Passive Cooling and Awning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing display enclosure designs for digital devices, especially in outdoor environments, often require complex and costly active cooling systems to prevent overheating, and are typically stationary, limiting their mobility and usage locations.
Innovation Solution
A mobile wireless order point and pick-up station that incorporates a digital display device enclosure with passive cooling, integrated pallet jack for mobility, wireless communication, and a retractable awning for shading, allowing for use in various locations and reducing heating issues in outdoor environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If an active cooling system is used to prevent overheating of the display device, then the display device can operate reliably in outdoor environments, but the device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the active cooling system (compressor, refrigerant lines, controls) from the display enclosure and replaces it with passive cooling features including enlarged ventilation openings and strategically placed heat sinks that dissipate heat naturally through convection and radiation, eliminating mechanical cooling components while maintaining thermal management
Solution Approach 2:
The display enclosure is designed to self-regulate temperature through passive means: the housing materials provide thermal mass to absorb heat during the day and release it at night, ventilation openings create natural air convection currents, and heat sinks passively dissipate thermal energy without requiring external power or control systems
2Ease of manufacture
If a stationary display enclosure design is used, then the structure can be simplified and manufactured more easily, but the adaptability and mobility of the display solution are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The display enclosure transitions from a fixed stationary structure to a mobile unit equipped with a trailer hitch assembly and wheel assembly, allowing it to be towed to different locations. The enclosure maintains its structural integrity and manufacturing simplicity while gaining mobility through these added components that enable easy deployment and relocation
Solution Approach 2:
The display enclosure is designed as a multi-functional mobile station that can be deployed in various outdoor locations for different purposes such as menu display, order taking, and promotional content. The standardized enclosure design with universal mounting interfaces allows the same unit to serve multiple functions across different venues without requiring custom manufacturing
3Reliability
If the display device is enclosed to protect it from environmental conditions, then the display device durability improves, but heat dissipation becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The enclosure design incorporates localized thermal management features at critical heat-generating areas: enlarged ventilation openings are positioned directly behind and around the display device, heat sinks are attached to the power supply and other high-heat components, and the housing materials are selected for their thermal properties in specific zones to facilitate heat dissipation while maintaining overall enclosure protection
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus can be employed as a mobile wireless order point and pick-up station. The apparatus can be configured to house a display device and to allow the display device to be used in many different locations for the purpose of receiving and/or picking up orders. To facilitate its mobility, the apparatus can include an integrated pallet jack and be configured with wireless communication capabilities and a portable power source. The apparatus may also include a retractable awning which can serve to provide shading to the display device to facilitate its use and to reduce heating when the apparatus is used in an outdoor environment.