Securely interconnectable modules for use in constructing a pathway for traffic
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pathway modules for pedestrian and vehicular traffic areas, such as transit platforms, lack ease of installation, cost-effectiveness, and adaptability to varying grades and angles, while also requiring improved traction and detectable warning features, especially in inclement weather conditions.
Innovation Solution
The development of modular panels with a tongue-and-groove connection system and a compression molding process, allowing for quick installation, cost-effective production, and adaptability to non-constant grades, featuring a textured surface for traction and detectable warning indicators, and incorporating a heatable component for snow and ice removal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional pathway modules are used, then installation is complex and time-consuming, but the patent achieves quick and easy installation through tongue-and-groove connection system
Solution Approach 1:
The pathway system is divided into discrete modular panels that can be independently manufactured and assembled. Each panel is a self-contained unit with standardized connection features, allowing for rapid assembly without complex on-site fabrication or customization.
Solution Approach 2:
The tongue-and-groove connection system acts as an intermediary mechanism between adjacent panels. The groove in one panel receives the tongue of the adjacent panel, providing a simple yet effective connection that requires minimal tools and expertise to install.
2Reliability
If standard pathway surfaces are used, then manufacturing is simple, but traction is insufficient in inclement weather
Solution Approach 1:
The top surface of each panel features a textured pattern with varying elevations and friction characteristics. This localized surface modification provides enhanced traction where pedestrians and vehicles contact the surface, while the rest of the panel structure remains simple and easy to manufacture using compression molding.
3Reliability
If pathway modules lack warning features, then manufacturing is straightforward, but safety for visually impaired persons is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The top surface incorporates detectable warning indicators with contrasting colors and textures that are visually apparent and detectable by walking canes. These indicators create tactile and visual cues at critical locations such as platform edges, providing safety warnings without requiring complex electronic or mechanical systems.
4Adaptability or versatility
If pathway modules are designed for fixed installations, then structural stability is high, but adaptability to varying grades and angles is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The connection system allows panels to be installed at various angles and grades by adjusting the orientation of the tongue-and-groove interfaces. The modular design enables the pathway to conform to sloped surfaces and non-constant grades while maintaining structural integrity through the interlocking connection between panels.
5Reliability
If pathway modules accumulate snow and ice, then heating energy is consumed, but snow and ice removal is achieved
Solution Approach 1:
Heating elements embedded in or beneath the panels transfer thermal energy to accumulated snow and ice, causing phase transition from solid to liquid. This melting process removes snow and ice from the pathway surface, restoring traction and safety. The system activates heating only when needed, energy-efficiently managing snow and ice removal.
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 modular system provides secure, easily installable, and cost-effective pathways with improved traction and detectable warning features, accommodating varying angles and grades, while efficiently addressing snow and ice issues through heating functionality.
Implementation Method 1
incorporating a heatable component for snow and ice removal
Data Source
AI summary
A module for use in constructing a pathway for traffic comprises a base member that defines a lateral groove disposed at its perimeter edge and extending along a first end, and a tongue structure disposed at its perimeter edge and extending along a second end. The tongue structure is received in the lateral groove and comprises a plurality of tongue portions that includes a first type of tongue portion and a second type of tongue portion disposed in alternating relation along the length of the tongue structure, to thereby define a throughpassage for receiving a securing rod. The first and second tongue portions have no vertical overlap one with the other. To form a pathway for traffic, the modules are placed in perimeter-edge to perimeter-edge relation, with the tongue structure of the modules inserted into the lateral groove of an adjacent module, and are secured together by the securing rod.