Scissor Pallet Lifter With Compact Height-Adjustable Platform
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current pallet risers are bulky and require large lifters to load pallets, making them unsuitable for retail environments, and they cannot controllably lift or lower pallets to an optimal height for displaying bulk goods effectively.
Innovation Solution
A compact pallet lifter with a manually or mechanically adjustable top support surface, featuring a lifting frame and movement mechanism that allows for controlled height adjustment, enabling easy loading and unloading with a hand-pulled pallet mover, and optionally includes a height sensor and display frame.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If a coiled spring pallet lifter is used to raise pallets, then the pallet can be lifted to a high position (20-40 inches), but the device becomes bulky and requires a truck or hydraulic pallet lifter to load the pallet onto it
Solution Approach 1:
The pallet lifter employs a scissor mechanism with movable arms that dynamically adjust the platform height. The arms pivot and extend/contract to raise or lower the platform, transforming a static structure into a dynamic height-adjustable system. This allows the platform to reach elevated positions without requiring a bulky fixed structure, resolving the contradiction between lifting height and device size.
Solution Approach 2:
The scissor arms are designed to nest within each other when the platform is in the lowered position, minimizing the overall footprint and device size. When elevated, the arms extend outward to provide the necessary lifting height. This nesting capability allows the device to achieve high lifting capability while maintaining a compact form factor when not in use, eliminating the need for large trucks or hydraulic lifters for loading.
2Shape
If a display frame is placed around the pallet to hide the unsightly pallet, then the pallet appearance is improved, but consumers must reach down and lift bags over the edge when the top bag level is below the frame edge
Solution Approach 1:
The display platform height is dynamically adjustable via the scissor mechanism, allowing the platform to be raised or lowered based on the bag level. When bags are removed and the level drops, the platform can be elevated to maintain the top bags at or above the display frame edge. This dynamic adjustment ensures both aesthetic appearance and easy product accessibility throughout the display period.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the height parameter of the display platform to adapt to varying bag levels. By adjusting the platform height parameter, the system maintains optimal product accessibility while preserving the display frame's aesthetic function, eliminating the contradiction between appearance and ease of operation.
3Ease of operation
If hand pulled pallet movers are used in retail environments, then large trucks are not needed, but the pallet can only be lifted a few inches off the floor which is insufficient for loading onto standard pallet lifters
Solution Approach 1:
The scissor mechanism provides dynamic height adjustment capability, allowing the platform to be elevated to various heights including the 20-40 inch range needed for standard pallet lifters. The manual pumping mechanism enables this elevated position to be achieved without requiring large trucks or hydraulic equipment, making it suitable for retail environments while providing sufficient lifting height.
Solution Approach 2:
The manual pump mechanism allows a single operator to elevate the platform to the required height without external assistance from large trucks or complex hydraulic systems. The device serves itself by using the operator's manual input to generate the necessary lifting force, achieving both retail environment suitability and adequate lifting height.
Data Source
AI summary
A pallet lifter for raising and lowering a pallet. The pallet lifter includes a pallet platform, a lifting frame that supports the pallet platform, and a movement mechanism that controllably causes the pallet platform to raise and lower. The pallet platform includes a top surface designed to support a pallet, two side walls and a back wall. The lifting frame includes two sets of legs. One end of one or both of the two legs of each set of legs is moveable along a longitudinal axis of the pallet platform as the pallet platform is raised and lowered. The movement mechanism includes a motor and a threaded rod. The electric motor is designed to cause the threaded rod to rotate in a clockwise and counterclockwise direction to cause said pallet platform to raise and lower.