Plastic Plinth Structure With Internal Dividers for Lower Weight
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing plastic plinths are expensive to produce and have rough edges that can cause damage during transportation and use, while concrete plinths are heavy and cumbersome.
Innovation Solution
A plastic plinth design featuring a platform with a continuous side wall, divider portions, and elongate support members that reduce material usage while providing structural rigidity and nesting capabilities, constructed from high-density polyethylene with a planar bottom surface and outwardly extending flange for stability and ease of handling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If concrete plinths are used to support units outdoors, then structural strength and stability are improved, but weight increases making them heavy and awkward to carry
Solution Approach 1:
The plinth is divided into a platform portion and a dependent wall portion that can be molded separately or as an integral structure with internal webbing. This segmentation allows the plastic plinth to achieve concrete-like strength through strategic material placement while minimizing overall weight by removing unnecessary material from non-load-bearing areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The plinth utilizes composite structural design combining rigid plastic material with internal reinforcement webbing patterns. This composite approach creates a structure that mimics the strength-to-weight ratio of concrete while maintaining the advantages of plastic material such as corrosion resistance and ease of molding.
2Weight of moving object
If plastic plinths are used to reduce weight, then ease of handling is improved, but production cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mold design is segmented into sections that can produce multiple plinth configurations from a single mold setup. The mold includes a base section and a lid section that can be adjusted to create different plinth sizes and wall heights, reducing the need for multiple specialized molds and lowering production costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The plinth design incorporates universal features such as standardized flange dimensions, consistent webbing patterns, and adaptable wall heights that allow a single mold design to produce multiple plinth variants. This multi-functionality increases production efficiency and reduces tooling costs.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional plastic plinths are molded without structural optimization, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but material usage increases leading to higher costs
Solution Approach 1:
The plinth structure is segmented into load-bearing webbing elements and non-load-bearing void spaces. This segmentation allows the mold to inject plastic material only where structurally necessary, significantly reducing material usage while maintaining manufacturing simplicity through a single-shot molding process.
Solution Approach 2:
The plinth exhibits local quality variations with thicker material concentrations at critical stress points (corners, flange connections, webbing intersections) and thinner or void sections in non-critical areas. This localized material distribution optimizes structural efficiency and reduces overall material consumption.
4Shape
If plastic plinths have smooth surfaces, then aesthetic appearance is improved, but structural rigidity may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The plinth surface is segmented into external smooth surfaces for aesthetic appeal and internal ribbed/webbed structures for structural reinforcement. The smooth outer shell maintains appearance quality while the internal segmented framework provides the necessary rigidity and strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The plinth utilizes a thin-walled external shell structure that provides smooth aesthetic surfaces while relying on internal webbing and rib structures for structural support. This shell structure minimizes material usage on the surface while maintaining overall structural integrity through the internal framework.
Data Source
AI summary
A plinth constructed of plastics material including a platform; a continuous side wall depending from said platform and adapted to rest on the ground, said side wall including one or more peripheral portions and one or more divider portions, each of said one or more divider portions dividing the platform into at least two load bearing sections and each divider portion including two spaced apart divider wall portions joined by a bottom wall adapted to rest on the ground so as to support the adjacent load bearing sections of said platform, said platform, said divider wall portions and said bottom wall providing a continuous top face.