Portable Rescue Tool Drive With Gas Spring for Silent Fast Actuation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing portable rescue equipment with electric motor-powered pumps or electromechanical tools face high noise levels due to the need for high speed and small size, compromising confidentiality and speed requirements, while manually operated pumps are slow and impractical.
Innovation Solution
A portable rescue equipment with a drive unit featuring a rechargeable battery-powered electric motor, a hydraulic circuit with interception valves, and a gas spring mechanism that uses the return stroke to load energy for the initial tool movement, minimizing noise and maximizing speed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If an electric motor-powered pump is used to achieve rapid intervention, then speed and operational autonomy are improved, but noise level increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gas spring is pre-loaded during the return stroke of the tool to store elastic energy. This preliminary action allows the initial forward movement of the tool to be powered by the spring rather than the electric motor, enabling silent operation during the most noise-sensitive phase of the intervention cycle while maintaining rapid response capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system alternates between electric motor-powered operation (during return stroke when noise is less critical) and spring-powered operation (during forward stroke when silence is required). This periodic switching between power sources allows the equipment to meet both speed requirements and noise constraints at different phases of the operational cycle.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If a manually operated hydraulic pump is used, then noise level is reduced, but intervention speed decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The manual hydraulic pump is replaced with a hybrid system combining a gas spring (elastic mechanical energy storage) and an electric motor. The spring provides the mechanical force needed for rapid tool movement during intervention, eliminating the need for slow manual pumping while keeping noise levels low during the critical forward stroke phase.
3Volume of moving object
If a small electric motor is used to maintain portability, then device size is reduced, but noise level increases due to high speed operation
Solution Approach 1:
The gas spring is pre-loaded during the return stroke to store energy that will be used during the forward stroke. This allows the small electric motor to operate at lower speeds during the noise-sensitive forward movement phase, reducing noise while maintaining the portability benefits of a compact motor size.
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 equipment achieves silent and rapid interventions by leveraging the elastic reaction of a spring-loaded mechanism for initial tool movement, maintaining operational autonomy and similarity to traditional equipment.
Implementation Method 1
uses the return stroke to load energy for the initial tool movement, minimizing noise and maximizing speed
Implementation Method 2
a hydraulic circuit with interception valves, and a gas spring mechanism that uses the return stroke to load energy
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
Portable rescue equipment, of a type comprising: - a tool (24) equipped with at least one part that moves with respect to another part of the tool itself to perform a predefined intervention on an object, - an actuator (10) mechanically connected to said moving part of said tool (24) for its movement in both directions, which correspond to an active stroke for carrying out said intervention and a return stroke to bring said moving part of the tool (24) back to its initial condition, - an electric motor (4) associated with said actuator for its operation, - a rechargeable electric battery to power said electric motor (4) , characterized in that it comprises: - elastic means (30) associated with said moving part of said tool (24) and configured to be automatically loaded during said return stroke and to make the same moving part perform a stroke of approach to said object when they are unloaded, and - means for decoupling said moving part of said tool from said actuator during said approach stroke, and for coupling said moving part to said actuator at the end of said approach stroke until the end of said active stroke and during said return stroke.