Rotatable Tourniquet Buckle for One-Handed Emergency Release
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tourniquets designed for one-handed application face challenges in speedy deployment to trapped limbs, difficulty in cinching, and delayed release, particularly in high-stress environments where precise dexterity and concentration are limited, leading to potential fatal delays in blood loss control.
Innovation Solution
A tourniquet buckle design that allows for rapid one-handed application and release, featuring a self-cinching, rotatable buckle with a buckle connector that enables up to 45 degrees of transverse rotation and minimizes unintended detachment, facilitating targeted tightening and quick release.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the strap is manually unthreaded from the buckle and rethreaded for deployment to trapped limbs, then the tourniquet can be deployed to difficult-to-reach areas, but the process requires acute concentration and precise dexterity which are often unavailable in crisis situations and delays application
Solution Approach 1:
The buckle assembly is divided into separate components: a buckle body with a slot and a movable tab. This segmentation allows the strap to be engaged by simply pulling it through the slot without complex threading, while still enabling deployment to trapped limbs by manipulating the individual buckle components.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of requiring the strap to be manually threaded through the buckle in a complex path, the design inverts the process: the strap is pulled through a simple slot and the buckle components are manipulated to secure it. This reverses the traditional threading approach and dramatically simplifies the operation for one-handed use.
2Reliability
If conventional buckle designs are used to prevent inadvertent release, then the buckle remains secure, but friction between components prevents rapid release when needed and causes wear with repeated use
Solution Approach 1:
The buckle tab is designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing it to dynamically shift position. When release is needed, the tab can be easily moved to disengage the strap without friction. This dynamic design maintains security during normal use while enabling rapid release when necessary.
Solution Approach 2:
The design extracts the friction-causing elements from the buckle mechanism. Instead of relying on friction between multiple contacting surfaces to prevent release, the system uses a simple geometric interlock that can be quickly disengaged by moving the tab, eliminating the friction that slows release and causes wear.
3Reliability
If tourniquets are designed to occlude blood flow in emergency situations, then effective hemorrhage control is achieved, but conventional designs delay one-handed release of the buckle
Solution Approach 1:
The buckle design allows the user to easily release the tourniquet by simply moving the tab, which self-disengages the strap without requiring complex manipulation. This self-service mechanism enables one-handed operation for both application and release, making the entire process accessible to victims who must apply their own tourniquets.
4Stability of the object's composition
If the buckle components are restricted in rotation when engaged, then the buckle structure remains stable, but tightening from precise angles is restricted which is needed for difficult-to-occlude areas
Solution Approach 1:
The buckle components are designed with controlled mobility rather than complete restriction. The tab can move to adjust the tightening angle, and the buckle body can rotate slightly within the connector, providing the flexibility needed for various limb positions while maintaining sufficient structural stability to secure the tourniquet effectively.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates generally to first aid articles and more specifically tourniquets suitable for one handed application. One embodiment of the invention is directed to a tourniquet having a base defining first and second ends. A constricting band is attached to and extends from the first end of the base. A windlass handle is engaged with the constricting band. The constricting band is threaded through a self cinching stepped buckle. A buckle connector includes a hook member that engages the stepped buckle and is partly held in place through urging against a loop of the constriction band.