Pivoting Fishing Rod Counterbalance Spring Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fishing rod tip-up devices often experience false positives and false negatives in detecting fish strikes, and they can be cumbersome due to their horizontal spread design, which hinders remote observation and access.
Innovation Solution
A pivoting fishing rod device with a fishing rod frame pivotally coupled to a base arm on a rotational joint, featuring a resilient member for counterbalancing and a brake mechanism that manages load stress by releasing the reel when a predetermined threshold load is exceeded, allowing for hands-free monitoring of fish strikes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If a tip-up device is used for hands-free monitoring, then the angler can operate multiple devices and other tasks, but false positive alerts increase causing repeated checking and resetting
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a counterbalance spring mechanism that applies an upward force to the rod arm, creating a threshold that must be exceeded for the flag to tip. This counterweight principle filters out minor disturbances causing false positives while still detecting genuine fish strikes that generate sufficient downward force on the rod arm.
Solution Approach 2:
The device pre-configures the rod arm and flag mechanism with a specific weight balance and tension settings before deployment. This preliminary anti-action prepares the system to resist spurious triggers while remaining sensitive to actual fish strikes, establishing the detection threshold in advance to prevent false alerts.
2Device complexity
If the alert flag is positioned low to the ground to reduce remote distance observation, then the horizontal spread design is simplified, but access to the fishing rod or fishing rig becomes encumbered and hindered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a horizontal spread design to a vertical configuration where the rod arm pivots upward from a base mounted on the water surface or ice. This dimensional change allows the flag to be positioned high for remote observation while maintaining simple mechanical design and improving access to the fishing rig below.
3Strength
If the rod arm rotates to a third range of angular positions to relieve load stress, then the reel can rotate freely, but the device requires a more complex brake mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The brake mechanism is designed to automatically engage and disengage based on the rod arm's angular position without manual intervention. When the rod arm rotates to the third range indicating excessive load, the brake self-activates to prevent further rotation and potential damage, then self-releases when the load decreases, eliminating the need for manual brake operation.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution reduces false positive alerts and effectively manages load stress during fish strikes, enabling more accurate detection and easier access to the fishing rod, while maintaining a vertical orientation that reduces horizontal sprawl and improves observation clarity.
Implementation Method 1
a first resilient member configured to apply a counterbalance force to the rod arm as the rod arm rotates
Implementation Method 2
The rotational joint may include a bearing to facilitate rotation of the rod arm
Data Source
AI summary
A pivoting fishing rod device including: a fishing rod frame pivotally coupled to a base arm on a rotational joint; the fishing rod frame comprising a rod arm and a support arm; rotation of the fishing rod frame relative to the base arm provided on an axis of rotation defined by the rotational joint, the rod arm coupled to the support arm so that the rotation of the rod arm and the support arm is co-dependent; a first resilient member coupled to a first attachment point mounted on the base arm and a second attachment point mounted on the support arm, the first resilient member configured to produce a tension counterbalance force as a distance between the first attachment point and the second attachment point increases. The first resilient member can apply the counterbalance force to the support arm providing a support vector to counterbalance a first load vector of a first load applied to the rod arm, the first load comprising a fishing line and hook hanging from the rod arm, the first load vector in a direction of the vector of gravity, the counterbalance force biasing the rod arm in a first range of angular position upon applying the first load and the counterbalance force allowing rotational motion of the rod arm in a second range of angular position upon applying a second load, the second load comprising a fish strike on the fishing line and hook.