Segmented Safety Glove Base Layers for Phalange Flexibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Industrial safety gloves often compromise between protection and dexterity, failing to provide adequate flexibility and agility for tasks requiring fine motor skills while safeguarding against industrial impacts and hazards.
Innovation Solution
The design of industrial impact safety gloves features separate protective structures on distinct base layers to protect different phalangeal bones, allowing for enhanced flexibility by subdividing these structures into substructures and incorporating lateral and metacarpal protective elements, ensuring both protection and dexterity through a combination of materials like polyester and spandex.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single continuous protective structure is used to protect all phalangeal bones, then comprehensive protection is achieved, but flexibility and dexterity are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The protective structure is divided into separate protective structures for each phalangeal bone (distal, intermediate, and proximal phalanges), with each structure secured to its own base layer. This segmentation allows each bone to be protected independently while maintaining flexibility at the joints between segments.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a multi-layer base layer structure beneath the protective structures, creating additional dimensional freedom. The separation between base layers provides enhanced flexibility to the distal phalanx while maintaining protection, allowing the glove to accommodate joint movement without compromising structural integrity.
2Strength
If protective structures are made more robust to safeguard against industrial impacts, then protection against impacts and hazards is improved, but dexterity for tasks requiring fine motor skills deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the glove are designed with different protective characteristics. The protective structures are positioned specifically over the phalangeal bones where impact protection is most needed, while the base layers and material composition are optimized locally to provide flexibility in the fingertips and joints where dexterity is required.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite material construction combining protective structures with flexible base layers made from materials like polyester and spandex. This composite approach allows the glove to provide robust impact protection where needed while maintaining the flexibility and elasticity required for dexterous hand movements.
3Ease of manufacture
If a single base layer is used to support all protective structures, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but flexibility at the distal phalanx is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The base layer structure is segmented into multiple separate base layers, with each protective structure secured to its own base layer. This segmentation, particularly between the base layers supporting the distal and intermediate phalanges, provides enhanced flexibility to the distal phalanx while remaining manufacturable through standardized assembly processes.
Data Source
AI summary
A safety glove for protecting the hand of a worker is provided, configured to protect the hand of the worker while still providing flexibility and dexterity to the user. The glove features a first protective structure or structures secured to a first base layer to protect the distal phalange bone of the worker, and a second protective structure or structures secured to a second base layer to protect the intermediate phalange and proximal phalange bones of the worker. The separation between the base layers provides for enhanced flexibility of the distal phalange, and allows for flexibility when performing tasks that require agility and dexterity.