Molded Plastic Tabletop with Integrated Lip for Lightweight Strength
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional tables with large tabletops made from wood or metal are heavy, expensive, and difficult to move due to their weight, and tables made from lightweight materials often require additional reinforcing members that increase weight and manufacturing costs.
Innovation Solution
A tabletop constructed from molded plastic with an integrally formed lip and inwardly extending portions that enhance strength and structural integrity, allowing for a unitary, one-piece structure that can be blow-molded, reducing weight and complexity while maintaining rigidity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If tabletops are constructed from wood or metal, then strength and structural integrity are improved, but weight increases making the table difficult to move
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from traditional wood or metal to molded plastic, achieving a balance between strength and weight. The molded plastic tabletop maintains sufficient structural integrity while being significantly lighter, solving the contradiction between strength and mobility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses molded plastic as a composite material solution that combines the benefits of light weight with adequate strength through proper material formulation and molding techniques, eliminating the need for heavy reinforcing structures.
2Weight of moving object
If tabletops are constructed from lightweight materials like plastic, then weight is reduced making the table easier to move, but additional reinforcing members are required increasing complexity and cost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the tabletop surface and reinforcing structures into a single integrated molded plastic component. The reinforcing ribs and structural elements are built directly into the tabletop during molding, eliminating the need for separate reinforcing members and fasteners, thus reducing assembly complexity while maintaining light weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The reinforcing structures are pre-formed during the molding process itself, rather than being added afterward. This preliminary action of creating structural integrity during manufacturing eliminates the need for subsequent assembly steps and reduces overall device complexity.
3Strength
If additional reinforcing members and fasteners are added to lightweight tabletops, then strength is improved, but manufacturing cost and assembly time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple functions (tabletop surface, reinforcing ribs, structural supports) into a single molded plastic piece, eliminating the need for separate components and fasteners. This integration significantly simplifies manufacturing and assembly while maintaining the required strength.
Solution Approach 2:
All structural reinforcement is built into the tabletop during the initial molding process, performing the strengthening action beforehand rather than requiring separate assembly steps. This preliminary action reduces manufacturing complexity and assembly time while ensuring structural integrity.
4Reliability
If conventional tabletops are constructed from wood or metal, then durability is improved, but shipping and transportation costs increase due to weight
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter to molded plastic, which provides sufficient durability for tabletop applications while being significantly lighter than wood or metal. This parameter change directly reduces shipping weight and transportation costs while maintaining the required durability for normal use.
Data Source
AI summary
A molded plastic structure may comprise a tabletop with an upper surface and a lower surface. A lip may extend downwardly relative to the lower surface of the tabletop, and the lip may include an outer surface and an inner surface. An inwardly extending portion may extend inwardly from the inner surface of the lip. A frame may be connected to the tabletop and the frame may include a side rail of a frame. The side rail may include a receiving portion that receives the inwardly extending portion. The side rail may also include a portion that supports the lower surface of the tabletop and a portion that supports the lip.