Roll-Up Screen Closure With Guided Tension Bars for Wind Stability
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing movable closures for buildings face issues with billowing and chafing due to wind, complex locking mechanisms, and increased risk of failure and maintenance from multiple moving parts, particularly in electrically driven systems.
Innovation Solution
A movable closure system with a screen affixed to a rolling tube, using tension bars with anchor devices and guide runners, where sliders are captured by funnel assemblies in guide rails to prevent billowing and chafing, and a drive unit for smooth operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If wind bars are used to withstand wind load, then billowing is prevented, but locking catches are required which create gaps causing draughts
Solution Approach 1:
The locking catch mechanism is completely removed from the system. Instead of using wind bars with locking catches, the patent employs tension bars that rely on tension forces and guide rail engagement to prevent billowing, eliminating the source of draughts while maintaining billowing prevention
Solution Approach 2:
The mechanical locking catch system is replaced with a tension-based system. Tension bars use tensile forces combined with guide rail engagement to achieve the same billowing prevention function without requiring locking mechanisms that create gaps
2Ease of operation
If trolley-like components are used to enable smooth operation, then raising and lowering is facilitated, but the number of moving parts increases causing higher failure risk
Solution Approach 1:
The trolley-like components with wheels are completely removed from the system. The patent uses a direct engagement system where the guide rail mechanism itself facilitates smooth operation without separate moving parts, eliminating the reliability issues associated with multiple wheels and trolley components
Solution Approach 2:
The guide rail system performs multiple functions: it guides the tension bars, facilitates smooth movement during raising and lowering, and provides structural support. This eliminates the need for separate trolley components while maintaining operational smoothness
3Object-affected harmful factors
If wind bar caps are used to avoid chafing, then screen wear is reduced, but the caps are prone to damage and require complex locking mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The wind bar caps and their associated locking mechanisms are completely removed. The tension bars engage directly with the guide rails in a manner that prevents screen chafing without requiring separate cap components or locking mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The functions of wind bar caps (chafing prevention) and locking mechanisms (billowing prevention) are merged into the integrated tension bar and guide rail system. The tension bars work in conjunction with the guide rails to simultaneously prevent both screen wear and billowing without separate components
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A movable closure 10 for an opening in a building or like enclosure, the movable closure comprising a screen 12 of supple material affixed at one end to a rolling tube 14, a pair of guide rails 18 affixable, for use, to respective fixed structures relative to a said opening, said rolling tube 14 being affixable at an upper end of the guide rails 18, and drive unit for, in use, rotating said rolling tube 14 to selectively raise or lower said screen 12; wherein: said screen 12 comprises a plurality of sections of said supple material, coupled together at their adjacent upper and/or lower edges by a respective tension bar 22 extending horizontally across said screen, wherein, at each end of each said tension bar 22, there is provided an anchor device 24, each said anchor device 24 comprising a body coupled to said tension bar 22 and a slider 27 coupled to said body, said slider 27 extending beyond the respective side edge of said screen; a generally tubular guide runner 34 and a funnel assembly 38 is provided at the top of each guide rail 18, each funnel assembly 38 defining a path into a respective guide runner 34; and the movable closure 10 is arranged and configured such that as, in use, said rolling tube 14 is rotated to lower the screen 12, the respective sliders 27 of the anchor devices 24 on each end of a tension bar 22 as it is rotated off the rolling tube 14, are picked up and captured by a respective funnel assembly 38 and guided thereby into a respective guide runner 34 such that the body of each said anchor device sits within a respective longitudinal channel of the respective guide runner, and each said slider 27 can move vertically along a respective guide runner 34; the movable closure 10 further comprising a bottom tube 21 affixed along the free end of the screen 12, wherein weights are provided in or on said bottom tube 21.