Roller Shutter Guide Flange Tool-Free Clipping Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing guide flanges for protective screens, such as rolling shutters, are difficult to adjust and attach to the winding tube, requiring specific tools and having limited adjustment ranges due to the complexity of screwing and circlip installation.
Innovation Solution
A movable flange design featuring a sleeve and locking part that can be easily clipped onto the winding tube, allowing for adjustable positioning without additional tools, using reversible clipping for secure attachment and adjustment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the sleeve is secured to the tube by screwing, then the attachment is secure, but the installation becomes tricky, time-consuming, and requires specific tools
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment mechanism is divided into two independent locking members: a first locking member that secures the locking part to the winding tube, and a second locking member that secures the locking part to the sleeve. This segmentation allows each locking member to be engaged independently through simple clipping motions, eliminating the need for tools while maintaining secure attachment.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the attachment parameter from threaded mechanical engagement (screws) to elastic deformation engagement (clipping). The locking part is designed to be elastically deformable, allowing it to be clipped onto the sleeve and tube without tools, while the engaged configuration provides secure fixation through the elastic recovery force.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the flange position is adjusted using blind grooves of different lengths, then the position can be changed, but the adjustment range is limited by the number of grooves and the installation remains delicate
Solution Approach 1:
The locking part is designed to be movable along the sleeve before final engagement. The installer can freely adjust the position of the locking part (and thus the flange) along the sleeve by sliding it, and only when the desired position is reached does the locking part engage with the sleeve through clipping. This dynamic adjustment process eliminates the need for pre-defined grooves and allows continuous position adjustment.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking part is designed to be engaged in two stages: first, the locking part is clipped to the tube; second, the locking part is clipped to the sleeve. This preliminary engagement with the tube allows the flange to be positioned freely along the tube before the final engagement with the sleeve secures it in place, enabling easy adjustment without limiting grooves.
3Reliability
If a circlip is used to secure the sleeve to the tube, then the attachment is secure, but the installation remains delicate
Solution Approach 1:
The locking part serves multiple functions: it acts as both the securing mechanism for the tube and the securing mechanism for the sleeve. The locking part is self-contained with integrated locking features that engage with both the tube and the sleeve, eliminating the need for a separate circlip component and its delicate installation process.
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 simplifies the attachment and adjustment of the flange to the winding tube, making it practical and intuitive, allowing for secure positioning without requiring tools, and enabling easy repositioning as needed.
Implementation Method 1
the transition from the unlocked configuration to the locked configuration takes place by reversibly clipping the locking part onto the sleeve
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2a~2b
Figure 3a~3b
AI summary
This guide flange (30) for a protective screen, particularly a roller shutter, includes a sleeve (36) extending along a mounting axis (A36) and configured to be fitted onto a winding tube (24) of the screen. For easier assembly, the flange includes a locking piece (34) on the winding tube fitted into the flange, the locking piece comprising at least a first locking member (66), configured to, in an engaged configuration, secure the locking piece against translation along the winding tube, and at least a second locking member (68A, 68B), configured to, in an engaged configuration, secure the locking member and the sleeve (36) against translation along the mounting axis.The locking piece is configured to switch, by reversible clipping onto the sleeve, from an unlocked configuration, in which the first and second locking members are not in the engaged configuration, to a locked configuration, in which each second locking member is in the engaged configuration.