Sales Rack Movable Lower Panel for Easier Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Sales racks for fruit and vegetables often face issues with goods falling and require difficult cleaning, especially when a closed version is used, as the lower part is inaccessible and hard to clean.
Innovation Solution
A sales rack design featuring a variable-position panel below the storage area, which can be easily accessed and cleaned, using a bolt/nut device for secure and adjustable attachment to the columns, allowing the panel to be moved along slots for simplified cleaning without additional mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If a closed version of the sales rack is used to prevent goods from falling, then the structural stability is improved, but the accessibility and ease of cleaning the lower part deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The panel below the shelf is designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing it to be tilted forward to access the lower area for cleaning. This dynamic element resolves the contradiction by providing structural stability when closed while enabling easy access when opened.
Solution Approach 2:
The front screen is segmented into an upper fixed part and a lower movable panel. This segmentation allows the upper part to provide structural stability and enclosure, while the lower panel can be independently moved to facilitate cleaning of the lower area.
2Strength
If a fixed panel is used below the shelf to enclose the area, then the structural integrity is improved, but the ease of maintenance and cleaning deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The panel is designed with a pivot connection allowing it to be tilted forward for cleaning access, then returned to its original position. This dynamic capability maintains structural integrity while enabling easy maintenance of the lower area.
Solution Approach 2:
The panel can be manually tilted and returned to position without requiring additional mechanisms or tools, allowing for simple self-service maintenance of the lower area.
3Ease of operation
If additional mechanisms are added to make the panel movable for cleaning, then the ease of cleaning is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A simple pivot connection allows the panel to be tilted forward for cleaning access and then returned to its original position. This minimal mechanical complexity achieves the goal of easy cleaning without adding sophisticated mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The panel movement mechanism requires no power source, control systems, or complex actuation - simply manual tilting accomplishes the cleaning access function, minimizing device complexity while maximizing ease of operation.
Data Source
Figure 1a~1f
Figure 2a~2f
Figure 3
AI summary
The sale frame (1) has side portions (2), a rear portion (6) and an increasing support surface (7) for goods container. A diaphragm (10) is provided underneath the support surface. The diaphragm is mounted in a variable position on the side portions. Each side portion is provided with the columns (3) of different height, which are interconnected by a strut (4) that determines the distance between the two columns. The diaphragm is respectively attached to the two opposing columns with the lower height.