Apparatuses and methods for a removable structural support
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional free-standing drying racks are cumbersome to deploy and secure, require significant storage space, and are top-heavy when wet items are suspended, making them difficult to use on recreational vehicles for camping activities.
Innovation Solution
A removable support structure that attaches to a recreational vehicle's bumper or frame, featuring brackets and support rods with lines that allow items to be spaced apart for airflow, enabling easy deployment, secure attachment, and efficient drying of wet items.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If free-standing drying racks are used, then items can be suspended for drying, but the racks require significant storage space and are difficult to deploy and secure
Solution Approach 1:
The drying rack is divided into separate modular components: brackets that attach to the RV, support rods that connect to the brackets, and clotheslines that attach to the rods. This segmentation allows each component to be independently stored and easily assembled when needed, eliminating the complexity of deploying a single large rigid structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The brackets are designed to universally attach to various RV structures (bumpers, frames, railings) using multiple attachment methods (screws, clamps, magnets). This multi-functionality allows the same bracket design to work across different RV types and locations, simplifying the overall system while improving ease of deployment.
2Reliability
If free-standing drying racks are used, then items can be dried, but the racks are top-heavy and unstable when wet items are suspended
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of a vertical free-standing structure that is top-heavy, the system attaches brackets to the RV structure and extends support rods horizontally outward. This dimensional change shifts the support base from the ground to the RV frame, eliminating the top-heavy problem while maintaining drying functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The RV structure itself serves as an intermediary support element, taking the place of the ground-based legs of traditional drying racks. By transferring the load from the rack structure to the RV frame through the brackets, the system achieves stability without requiring a wide base or heavy construction.
3Productivity
If items are suspended close together on drying racks, then space is utilized efficiently, but airflow is blocked and drying efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The support rods are equipped with multiple attachment points at different locations, allowing clotheslines to be positioned at varying intervals. This enables local adjustment of item spacing based on specific drying needs, with lines spaced closer together where space is limited and farther apart where maximum airflow is needed for efficient drying.
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 provides a compact, easy-to-deploy, and secure drying system for wet items on recreational vehicles, addressing the issues of space, stability, and ease of use, while allowing for effective drying through airflow.
Implementation Method 1
to allow for an airflow around and/or through the items, preferably to dry the items (e.g., by convectively reducing a moisture content therein)
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for supporting items from a conveyance (e.g., an automobile, truck, recreational vehicle, boat, and/or camper) for washing and/or drying suitable items. Such systems include bracket(s) that are rigidly attachable to a portion (e.g., a bumper) of the conveyance. Support rod(s) is/are removably attachable to each bracket and extend away from the portion of the conveyance to which the bracket is rigidly attached. Support line(s) is/are attached between the support rods, such that the items supported from the support line(s) are spaced apart from each other to allow for washing, such as using a stream of water, and/or drying, such as using a forced or naturally occurring flow of air around and/or through each of the items.