Roller Shutter Profiles with Apertures for Office Noise Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing office furniture with front blinds, such as roller shutters and venetian blinds, amplify noise due to their geometry and material, leading to increased background noise in open-plan offices, which negatively impacts the working atmosphere.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating spaced-apart openings in the profile elements of the front blind, with a width less than one-third of the profile body's width, and using open-pored foamed materials for the second profile body to absorb sound, allowing sound to penetrate and be reflected back into the cabinet, reducing the noise reflected into the room.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional front blinds (roller shutters, venetian blinds) are used, then the cabinet furniture can be closed securely, but the geometry and material amplify noise by reflecting sound back into the room
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies porous sound-absorbing material filling the interior space of the profile elements. This porous material absorbs sound waves that penetrate through the openings in the profile bodies, converting acoustic energy into thermal energy through friction within the porous structure. This directly addresses the noise reflection problem while maintaining the closure function of the front blind.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces openings with specific geometric characteristics (width less than one-third of the profile body width, spaced-apart arrangement) in specific locations within the profile elements. This local modification creates zones that allow sound penetration while maintaining structural integrity and closure function, addressing the contradiction between security and noise reduction.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If openings are introduced in the profile bodies to allow sound penetration, then sound absorption effect is achieved, but the structural integrity and dimensional stability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent specifies that the width of openings in any single profile body shall be less than one-third of the profile body width. This local quality constraint ensures that while openings provide sound absorption pathways, they do not compromise the structural integrity or dimensional stability of the profile elements. The remaining material provides sufficient structural support.
Solution Approach 2:
The front blind is divided into multiple profile elements with openings distributed throughout. The segmentation of the structure allows sound absorption to occur across multiple distributed points rather than requiring large single openings, maintaining overall structural stability while achieving effective sound absorption.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If complex sound-absorbing structures (such as those with fleece insertion) are used, then sound absorption effect is achieved, but manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the sound-absorbing function directly into the profile element structure itself by filling the interior with sound-absorbing material. This integration eliminates the need for separate, complex sound-absorbing components (such as separate fleece insertions), thereby reducing overall device complexity and manufacturing cost while maintaining effective sound absorption.
Solution Approach 2:
The use of porous sound-absorbing material provides an effective sound absorption solution without requiring complex structural modifications. The porous material can be directly inserted into the profile element cavities, providing a simple and cost-effective implementation that avoids the complexity of traditional multi-component sound-absorbing structures.
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 effectively reduces noise levels in offices by absorbing sound within the cabinet furniture, improving the working atmosphere with a sound absorption coefficient of at least 0.4, as measured by EN ISO 354 standards, and allowing for cost-effective production.
Implementation Method 1
using open-pored foamed materials for the second profile body to absorb sound
Implementation Method 2
open-pored foamed materials
Data Source
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AI summary
The cabinet is closed by a roller shutter. This is made up of pairs of interlocking U-profiles (8, 11) which enclose a cavity between them. One or both of the interlocking profiles have a series of apertures (40) in their surface which reduce noise when the shutter is opened or closed.