Repositionable Hanging Bar for Compact Locker Storage and Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional storage lockers are too narrow and shallow to accommodate a large volume of clothing efficiently, making it difficult to store multiple items while allowing access to other stored items and ensuring the locker door can be closed.
Innovation Solution
An ergonomic locker system with a repositionable cross-member or bar that can be slid between tracks, allowing for adjustable hanging and storage of clothes, thereby optimizing space and reducing ergonomic strain during access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If conventional lockers are made narrow and shallow to maintain compact size, then the locker footprint is reduced, but the storage capacity and accessibility of clothing items deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The support bar is made movable along diagonal tracks, allowing it to transition between a retracted position (maximizing storage space) and an extended position (improving accessibility). This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction by enabling the same locker to provide both compact storage and easy access at different times.
Solution Approach 2:
The support bar moves along diagonal tracks that utilize the vertical and depth dimensions of the locker, rather than only horizontal movement. This diagonal path allows the bar to clear stored items more effectively and reposition clothes out of the way, maximizing the usable storage volume within the fixed locker footprint.
2Ease of operation
If clothes are stored in a fixed position within the locker, then organization is simplified, but accessibility to other stored items and door closure becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The support bar transitions from a static to a dynamic component, moving along diagonal tracks to reposition clothes when needed. This allows users to access stored items and close the door easily, while maintaining organizational structure when the bar is in its normal position.
Solution Approach 2:
The support bar can be completely removed from the locker, extracting the function of holding clothes temporarily. This allows unobstructed access to all stored items and ensures the door can close properly, then the bar can be reinserted to resume its organizational function.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a repositionable support bar is added to improve storage flexibility, then storage capacity and accessibility are enhanced, but the locker structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The diagonal tracks serve multiple functions: they guide the support bar movement, provide structural reinforcement, and define the repositioning path. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate components, minimizing the increase in overall structural complexity while maximizing storage flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention embodies an ergonomic locker system comprising a repositionable cross-member or bar for supporting a plurality of triangular clothes hangers suspended between two oppositely disposed tracks. The hanging bar is slideable along the tracks and may be adjusted from a lower, forward position to a higher, back position in order to enhance storage space and improve functionality.