Portable Stand with Collapsible Box Design for Reusable Safety Display
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing portable stands for displaying safety information and storing safety equipment are often makeshift, not reusable, and lack the ability to be easily transported and stacked, making them inefficient for multiple locations and varying environments.
Innovation Solution
A portable stand with a collapsible design featuring a box-like container, adjustable legs, and hinged panels that can be stacked, providing both display surfaces and storage compartments, allowing for easy transportation and setup in different configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If display stands are made from available on-site materials such as timber offcuts or plywood panels, then the stands can be quickly assembled, but they cannot be reused and must be thrown away when the building project is complete
Solution Approach 1:
The display stand is divided into separate modular components including a base unit, display panels, and support structures that can be assembled and disassembled. This segmentation allows the stand to be quickly assembled from pre-fabricated parts while maintaining reusability across multiple projects, resolving the contradiction between quick assembly and reusability.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention enables recovery and reuse of display stand components after project completion. The modular design with standardized connection points allows parts to be disassembled, transported, and reassembled for subsequent projects, transforming the temporary disposable solution into a reusable asset that can be recovered and deployed repeatedly.
2Ease of operation
If display stands are designed for portability, then they can be transported to different locations, but they lack stable support when deployed
Solution Approach 1:
The display stand incorporates adjustable and collapsible support legs that can be dynamically configured. The legs feature telescopic sections and adjustable angles, allowing the stand to be compact for transport and then expanded to a stable, upright configuration when deployed. This dynamic adaptability resolves the contradiction between portability and stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The support legs and display panels are designed to nest within each other when collapsed, reducing the overall footprint for transport. When deployed, these nested components extend outward to provide a stable, wide-based structure. The nesting mechanism enables the transition from a compact portable form to a stable operational form, resolving the portability-stability contradiction.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple display stands are transported separately, then each stand can be individually configured, but transportation space and time are wasted
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple display stands are merged into a single integrated unit through standardized modular components that can be connected together. The base units feature interlocking mechanisms allowing multiple displays to be coupled in various configurations (side-by-side, stacked, or angled). This merging enables efficient bulk transportation while preserving the ability to individually configure or separate the displays at the destination, resolving the contradiction between individual configurability and transportation efficiency.
4Reliability
If display stands are made robust for outdoor use, then they can withstand environmental conditions, but they become heavier and harder to transport
Solution Approach 1:
The display stand incorporates composite material construction, combining lightweight aluminum or aluminum alloy extrusions for the frame with durable, weather-resistant panel materials. The composite structure provides the environmental durability needed for outdoor use while maintaining relatively low weight for portability, resolving the contradiction between robustness and transportability.
Solution Approach 2:
Different parts of the display stand are constructed with locally optimized materials and properties. The frame uses lightweight but strong materials for transportability, while connection points, joints, and panel attachments use enhanced materials and designs for durability and weather resistance. This localized quality enhancement provides environmental durability only where needed, without unnecessarily increasing the overall weight for transport.
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 2
Figure 4~4a
AI summary
A portable stand (10) comprises a back wall (12), a base element (14), and two opposed end plates (16) between which the back wall and the base element extend, so as to define an open-top box-like container. It also comprises legs (35) that can be folded up next to the base element (14); support arms (40) with a pivotal connection (42) so each support arm (40) can be moved between a closed position adjacent to the back wall (12), and a second position projecting upward from the back wall (12). In addition it comprises a front panel (20) hinged to the base element (14) so the front panel (20) can be swung between a position forming a front wall of the box-like container, and a position extending below the base element (14); and a top panel (22) hinged to the back wall (12) so it can be swung between a position forming a lid to the box-like container, and a position extending above the back wall (12). Swinging the front panel (20) and the top panel (22) in this way opens the box, and displays the exposed surfaces of the front panel (20) and of the top panel (22). There may be multiple display chambers (66) within the box-like container which are thereby displayed. The portable stand enables the display of information on the exposed surfaces, and the display of items within the display chambers (66), for example for the purpose of safety.