Modular Shelf Assembly Using Hook-and-Pin Wood Panel Joints
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing shelves, such as the USM-Haller type, require a load-bearing grid and metal components, making it difficult to use non-resilient wood panels and complicating assembly and expansion without tools.
Innovation Solution
The shelf design incorporates pairs of hooks attached to the lateral sides of shelves that engage with connecting pins inserted into aligned bores, allowing for tool-free assembly and expansion, using fastening plates and support plates to secure the components, enabling easy addition of shelves and doors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a load-bearing grid with metal rods and connecting nodes is used, then structural strength and stability are improved, but device complexity and difficulty of assembly increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex load-bearing grid structure from the shelf design. Instead of using metal rods and connecting nodes, the invention uses simple wooden shelves and side parts that directly support each other through gravity and friction, removing the unnecessary grid framework while maintaining structural integrity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the fundamental parameters of the shelf structure by transitioning from a metal grid system to a wooden panel system. This involves changing the material properties, connection methods, and load-bearing mechanisms from rigid metal joints to flexible wooden friction-based connections, thereby simplifying the overall device complexity
2Ease of manufacture
If metal sheet components with bent edge strips are used, then ease of manufacture is improved, but ease of operation and adaptability decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the shelf into modular components including shelves, side parts, and end parts that can be independently manufactured and then easily assembled or reconfigured. This segmentation allows for simple manufacturing of individual wooden panels while maintaining high adaptability through various connection configurations using hooks and connecting pins
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates universal connection elements such as hooks and connecting pins that can be used in multiple configurations and positions. These standardized components allow the same basic parts to serve multiple functions and adapt to different shelf arrangements, enhancing versatility without complicating manufacturing
3Ease of operation
If resilient metal components are used, then ease of assembly is improved, but manufacturing precision and material simplicity worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service assembly mechanisms where wooden shelves and side parts automatically find their correct positions and secure themselves through gravity and friction-based connections. The hooks and connecting pins are designed to engage automatically without requiring precise alignment or special tools, allowing non-expert users to assemble the shelf easily while maintaining adequate manufacturing precision
Data Source
Figure 1~3d
Figure 2
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The shelf has two end parts (40) provided for side parts (30), and hook pairs attached at lateral narrow sides of shelf boards (20). The hook pairs are engaged between the side parts, which are arranged one upon the other, or between the side parts and the end parts. Connection pins are encompassed and inserted into aligned holes in the end and side parts. The hook pairs encompass the connection pins by the shelf boards, which are adjoined. Hooks of the hook pairs are formed at fastening plates, which are attached at the narrow sides of the shelf boards.