Modular Plumbing Box Interconnection via Anti-Rotation Connectors
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional plumbing boxes are limited in modularity, cumbersome to install, prone to flexing and misalignment during and after installation, and lack the ability to easily accommodate different types of connections.
Innovation Solution
A modular plumbing box system with interconnectable boxes featuring complementary connectors and anti-rotation features that allow for customizable arrangement and orientation, easy installation, and resistance to flexing and misalignment, using connectors with projection members and receivers to secure boxes to studs and maintain alignment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional singular plumbing boxes are used to house both supply and drain connections, then installation is simpler, but modularity and adaptability to different appliance configurations are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The plumbing system is divided into separate supply boxes and drain boxes that can be independently selected and installed. Each box type is designed for specific connection requirements, allowing flexible configuration based on appliance needs while maintaining relatively simple individual installation procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector design incorporates universal features that allow the same basic connector structure to work with both supply boxes and drain boxes. The complementary male and female connector configurations enable interchangeable attachment patterns across different box types, providing adaptability without requiring entirely different installation procedures for each box type.
2Adaptability or versatility
If separated supply and drain boxes are used, then adaptability to different appliance configurations is improved, but the boxes become prone to flexing and misalignment during installation
Solution Approach 1:
The connector design uses asymmetric male and female connector configurations where the male connector has protruding features that correspond to recesses in the female connector. This asymmetric geometry provides inherent alignment guidance during installation, ensuring that boxes connect in the correct orientation and remain stable without excessive flexing, while still allowing the separated box design to accommodate different appliance configurations.
3Ease of operation
If modular interconnectable boxes are used, then ease of installation and customization are improved, but connection reliability may be compromised without proper anti-rotation features
Solution Approach 1:
The anti-rotation feature is implemented through asymmetric geometry where the male connector includes protrusions that fit into corresponding recesses in the female connector at specific angles. This asymmetric design allows the connectors to be easily attached in the correct orientation while preventing rotation that would compromise the connection, thereby maintaining both installation ease and connection reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The anti-rotation projection and receiver design allows the connectors to self-align and self-lock during installation. The asymmetric geometry automatically guides the connectors into the correct rotational position as they are brought together, eliminating the need for additional alignment tools or procedures while ensuring reliable rotation-resistant connection.
Data Source
AI summary
A system of modular boxes as shown and described can be interconnected directly to one another via connectors that are integrally molded with the sidewalls of the boxes. The connectors of the boxes may include fastener receiving apertures for receiving a stud-mounting fastener therethrough. The connectors are thin and flexible, such that insertion and forcible tightening of a fastener through the aperture will cause a compressive force to be exerted between the interconnected boxes to maintain their spatial relationship and to maintain their interconnection. A further feature of the modular boxes of the system are anti-rotation members and receivers that are integrally molded to the side walls of the boxes. The anti-rotation members and receivers interact with one another at the point of connection between the boxes to prevent the boxes from flexing, rotating, or otherwise moving with respect to one another post-installation.