Segmented Bath Surround with Living Hinges for Compact Shipping
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Solution Overview
Problem
One-piece bathing vessel surrounds are difficult to handle, expensive to ship, and prone to damage due to their non-nestable, odd shapes, while segmented designs require careful corner mating and caulking to prevent leakage.
Innovation Solution
A segmented sheet wall constructed from layered materials, including polyurethane, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), and acrylic, with a thinner, corrugated portion that stretches for shipping and handling and compresses for installation, using living hinges created by extrusion rollers to facilitate easier assembly and sealing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If one-piece construction is used for bath surrounds, then structural integrity is improved, but handling difficulty and shipping cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The bath surround is divided into multiple segments that can be separately handled and assembled. Each segment maintains structural integrity through living hinges that provide flexible connections, allowing the segments to be easily transported and installed while preserving overall strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The segmented bath surround components are designed to nest within each other during shipping and storage. The collapsible segments can be compacted into a smaller volume, making them easier and more cost-effective to ship while maintaining their structural integrity when assembled.
2Strength
If one-piece construction is used for bath surrounds, then structural integrity is improved, but shipping cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The segmented bath surround components are designed to nest within each other during shipping and storage. The collapsible segments can be compacted into a smaller volume, making them easier and more cost-effective to ship while maintaining their structural integrity when assembled.
Solution Approach 2:
The bath surround segments incorporate living hinges that allow the structure to dynamically change between an expanded operational state and a collapsed shipping state. This dynamic capability enables the same structure to occupy different volumes depending on whether it is being transported or used.
3Ease of operation
If segmented construction is used for bath surrounds, then handling ease is improved, but leakage risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The living hinges create continuous material connections between segments, merging the separate components into a unified structure that prevents water leakage at the joints. The corrugated design of the hinges ensures proper alignment and sealing when segments are assembled.
Solution Approach 2:
The living hinges are designed to self-align and self-seal when the segments are assembled. The corrugated structure automatically positions the segments correctly and creates watertight seals without requiring additional sealing materials or complex alignment procedures.
4Quantity of substance
If segmented construction is used for bath surrounds, then shipping cost is reduced, but assembly complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The living hinges are designed to self-align and self-seal when the segments are assembled. The corrugated structure automatically positions the segments correctly and creates watertight seals without requiring additional sealing materials or complex alignment procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The living hinges are pre-formed during the extrusion process, eliminating the need for post-assembly folding or complex joining operations. The segments arrive at the installation site ready to be assembled by simply connecting the pre-formed hinge sections.
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 enables easier handling and shipping of bathing vessel components, reduces damage risk, and minimizes caulking requirements by allowing the components to be compactly stored and quickly assembled, while meeting ANSI strength requirements.
Implementation Method 1
A vacuum forming process is used to form a bathing vessel from a sheet wall
Implementation Method 2
Other steps include segmenting the sheet wall into a first wall and a second wall by thinning a first portion of the sheet wall between the first wall and the second wall
Data Source
AI summary
A bathing vessel is made of a segmented sheet wall of layered materials that includes a first layer of polyurethane material, a second layer of polyurethane material attached to the first layer, a third layer of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) material attached to the second layer, and a fourth layer of acrylic material attached to the third layer. The segmented sheet wall has a width a length and a first thickness. The segmented sheet wall has an integral first portion having a second thickness that is that is thinner than the first thickness. The first portion defines a first wall and a second wall in the segmented sheet wall and the first portion is corrugated.