Modular Plastic Bar Sections for Sports Safety

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing bars used in urban development, signage, and sports, particularly in horse riding, are heavy, bulky, and made of wood, posing safety and maintenance challenges, with wooden bars prone to splinters, rapid deterioration, and requiring labor-intensive painting for decoration.

Innovation Solution

A modular bar system comprising lightweight, hollow, and easily transportable sections made of plastic or composite materials with continuous outer surfaces for enhanced safety and durability, allowing quick assembly and permanent decoration options.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of manufacture

If bars are made of wood, then they are traditional and easily workable, but they present safety risks due to splinters and rapid deterioration

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveease of workabilityVSAvoidsafety and durability

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent uses plastic material (polyethylene or polypropylene) as a composite alternative to wood, maintaining ease of manufacture through molding while eliminating safety risks associated with splinters and deterioration. The plastic material provides both structural integrity and safety without requiring traditional woodworking processes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #40Composite materials

Solution Approach 2:

The invention changes the material parameter from organic (wood) to synthetic (plastic), fundamentally altering the properties to eliminate deterioration and splintering while maintaining manufacturability through injection molding or extrusion processes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Reliability

If bars are made of plastic, then safety and maintenance are improved, but they become too heavy and expensive

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesafety and maintenanceVSAvoidweight

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSWeight of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The bar is divided into multiple modular sections that can be assembled together. This segmentation reduces the weight of each individual component, making handling and transport easier, while maintaining the overall safety and durability benefits of plastic material throughout the entire structure.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies plastic material selectively to specific sections where safety and durability are most needed, rather than making the entire bar uniformly heavy. The modular design allows for optimized material distribution, reducing overall weight while maintaining reliability at critical locations.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

3Adaptability or versatility

If bars are painted for decoration and advertising, then aesthetic and promotional needs are met, but regular maintenance is required and harmful paints are used

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedecoration and advertisingVSAvoidmaintenance effort and environmental impact

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent incorporates decoration elements, logos, and advertising graphics directly into the plastic material during the manufacturing process through injection molding or extrusion. This preliminary action eliminates the need for subsequent painting and maintenance, as the decorative features are permanently integrated into the bar structure itself.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The invention replaces the mechanical painting process with an integrated molding process, substituting post-manufacturing decoration with in-situ formation of decorative elements during bar production. This eliminates harmful paints and reduces maintenance to simple cleaning.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

4Strength

If bars are made in one piece, then structural integrity is maintained, but they become heavy and bulky for transport

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestructural integrityVSAvoidtransportability

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSWeight of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The bar is segmented into multiple sections that can be transported separately, reducing the weight and bulk of each individual component. The sections are designed with connection mechanisms that maintain structural integrity when assembled, providing both transportability and strength.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The modular sections are designed to nest within each other or stack efficiently during storage and transport, minimizing the space required while maintaining the structural integrity of each section. This nesting capability further reduces the effective weight burden during logistics operations.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

Data Source

PatentEP3078404B1Bar made up of a plurality of sections for laying out public and/or private spaces, particularly in the field of sport

Publication Date: 2019.05.01 ANAIS FRANCE

Figure 1~3
Figure 4

AI summary

The present invention relates to a bar section (1) for the construction of public and/or private spaces, particularly in the field of sports, the section (1) extending along an extension direction (D) and comprising: a main portion (3); a first end portion (5) comprising a first assembly element (7); a second end portion (9) comprising a second assembly element (11), complementary to the first assembly element (7) of the first end portion (5), the first or second end portion (5, 9) being arranged to cooperate with an adjacent section at an assembly zone. The present invention also relates to a bar comprising at least two bar sections.