Simulated Palm Frond Lighting System with Trunk-Mounted Hoops
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Solution Overview
Problem
Decorating palm trees with outdoor lighting is challenging due to the fragility of their fronds, which can be damaged by stringing lights and pose injury risks, and existing solutions are costly and require frequent ladder use, increasing the risk of falls and injuries.
Innovation Solution
A lighting system that simulates lighted fronds using heavy gauge wire branches with a curvature to mimic palm tree fronds, attached to hoops that can be easily wrapped around the tree trunk without direct contact, allowing for safe and efficient installation without frequent ladder use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If lights are stringed through the fronds of a palm tree, then aesthetic appeal is improved, but the fronds are damaged and installers are injured
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates artificial fronds that copy the appearance of real palm fronds but are made from durable materials like wire or plastic. These simulated fronds are attached to the tree trunk and illuminated, providing the aesthetic appeal of lighted fronds without the harmful effects of stringing lights through real fronds.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary structure (artificial fronds made of resilient material) between the lighting system and the real palm tree. This intermediary allows lights to be displayed aesthetically while protecting the real fronds from damage and installers from injury by sharp spines.
2Illumination intensity
If lights are stringed through the fronds, then aesthetic appeal is improved, but the complexity of installation increases due to frequent ladder relocation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the lighting system into modular artificial frond units that can be independently attached to the tree trunk. Each unit can be installed separately and then connected, allowing installers to work from a single ladder position rather than repeatedly relocating to string lights through distributed fronds.
Solution Approach 2:
The artificial fronds are pre-assembled with lights attached during manufacturing, so that installation only requires mounting the complete units to the tree trunk. This preliminary assembly eliminates the need for installers to work high in the tree relocating ladders frequently.
3Illumination intensity
If current lighting solutions are used, then lighting effect is achieved, but cost of production increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameters from expensive real fronds to cost-effective resilient materials like wire or plastic that can be mass-produced. The artificial fronds use standard lighting components that are more economical than specialized frond-stringing systems, reducing production costs while maintaining lighting effects.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for simulating palm fronds strewn with lights. The system may include an arcuate frame having a gap for facilitating mounting the arcuate frame to a trunk of a tree. The opposing ends of the arcuate that define the gap may include attachment points that can be interconnected by an attachment tie for cinching the arcuate frame around the trunk. The system may include simulated branches, each branch with pre-installed lighting, where an end portion of each branch are removably mountable to branch mounts disposed along the arcuate frame.