Modular storage system
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing storage systems are often fixed in configuration and fail to accommodate wire placement effectively, limiting their reconfigurability and flexibility, especially when used with sensors for tracking items.
Innovation Solution
A modular storage system with panels and storage components that allow for flexible configuration, including recessed wire pathways to manage sensor wires, enabling easy reconfiguration and efficient wire routing without interfering with component placement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If existing storage systems use fixed configuration, then structural stability is maintained, but reconfigurability and flexibility are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The storage system is divided into modular components including panels, storage components, and sensor units that can be independently configured and repositioned. This segmentation allows the system to be reconfigured for different storage needs while maintaining structural integrity through standardized connection interfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates movable and adjustable elements such as repositionable storage components and flexible wire routing pathways. These dynamic features enable the storage system to adapt to changing requirements without requiring complete disassembly or reconstruction.
2Loss of information
If sensors are added to track items, then monitoring capability is improved, but wire placement and management become problematic
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces dedicated wire pathways as intermediary structures that facilitate clean wire routing between sensors and power sources. These pathways act as mediators that organize wire placement without interfering with sensor functionality or storage operations, reducing overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The wire management system is integrated into the existing panel and storage component structures rather than being added as separate external elements. This merging of wire pathways with structural components simplifies the overall system while maintaining effective wire placement and sensor tracking capabilities.
3Adaptability or versatility
If modular components are used for flexibility, then reconfigurability is improved, but proper wire placement accommodation is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The modular panels and storage components are designed with multi-functionality, serving both structural/support functions and wire routing functions. The wire pathways are integrated into the modular components themselves, allowing the same elements to provide both mechanical support and electrical conduit functions, thereby simplifying wire placement while maintaining modular flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
A storage system including a panel having a surface, and a storage component or partition configured to be releasably attached to the panel and supported on the surface to at least partially define a cavity. The system also includes a sensor configured to sense at least one of a removal, placement, presence or absence of an item in the cavity. The system further includes a wire configured to be operatively coupled to the sensor. The panel is configured to receive the wire such that the wire extends along a same side of the panel as the storage component or partition and is recessed relative to the surface.