Self-Loading Shopping Cart With Adjustable Legs for Vehicle Storage
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional shopping carts lack automation features, making it difficult for users to self-load them into vehicles, especially those with flatbeds, and do not provide ergonomic solutions for varying user heights or safe loading of contents, leading to physical strain and potential damage during loading.
Innovation Solution
A shopping cart equipped with motor-driven wheels, actuators for height adjustment and leg extension/retraction, and a control system that enables autonomous self-loading into vehicles, ensuring safe and easy loading of contents onto flatbeds or SUVs without user exertion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional shopping carts are designed with fixed height and basic structure, then manufacturing cost is low and structure is simple, but users experience ergonomic difficulties and physical strain when loading into vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The shopping cart incorporates adjustable height legs and collapsible mechanisms that allow the cart to dynamically adapt its configuration. The legs can be extended or retracted to match different vehicle bed heights, and the cart can be collapsed into a compact form for easier loading, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The cart employs a nested collapsing mechanism where the basket and legs fold into each other to create a compact package. The front and rear legs can be folded inward, and the basket can be collapsed, allowing the entire cart to nest within its own structure for efficient storage in vehicle trunks or beds.
2Ease of operation
If shopping carts are made collapsible for vehicle storage, then ease of storage is improved, but users must exert force and effort to manually place the cart into the vehicle
Solution Approach 1:
The cart is equipped with an automated lifting system that enables it to lift and transfer itself into the vehicle without user assistance. The robotic arm or automated mechanism grasps the cart, lifts it, and places it into the vehicle bed or trunk, eliminating the need for users to manually handle heavy carts.
Solution Approach 2:
The manual mechanical effort required to lift and move the cart is replaced by an automated robotic system. The robotic arm uses motors and control systems to perform the lifting and positioning tasks that would otherwise require significant human physical effort, substituting mechanical automation for human labor.
3Productivity
If shopping carts are designed for manual handling, then device complexity is low, but heavy items and bulk quantities become difficult to load into vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The cart's automated lifting system performs the loading task autonomously. The cart can independently assess its own weight and position, then use its robotic lifting mechanism to transfer itself and its contents into the vehicle, dramatically improving loading efficiency without requiring user assistance for heavy or bulky items.
Solution Approach 2:
The cart prepares for loading by automatically collapsing into a compact configuration and positioning itself optimally before the lifting operation begins. This preliminary preparation ensures that the automated lifting system can efficiently transfer the cart without requiring manual intervention or dealing with awkward configurations during the actual loading process.
4Reliability
If conventional carts lack automation features, then manufacturing cost is low, but users experience physical strain and potential damage during loading operations
Solution Approach 1:
The automated lifting system performs the loading operation without human physical involvement, eliminating the risk of user injury from lifting heavy carts. The system also carefully controls the placement process to prevent damage to cart contents, providing reliable and safe loading operations through automation.
Solution Approach 2:
The automated system incorporates gentle and controlled lifting and placement mechanisms that prevent damage to the cart and its contents. The robotic arm uses force control and positioning accuracy to avoid impact or rough handling, cushioning against potential damage before it can occur during the loading operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A cart includes a chassis configured to carry a basket and a support structure having a carrier coupled to the chassis, a pair of rear legs coupled to the carrier, and a pair of front legs coupled to the carrier, at least one of the pair of front legs and the pair of rear legs having motor driven wheels coupled thereto, at least one carrier actuator configured to move the chassis relative to the carrier, the pair of front legs including actuators which are configured to extend and retract the pair of front legs, and the pair of rear legs including actuators which are configured to extend and retract the pair of rear legs. The cart includes at least one sensor supported on the cart. The cart also includes at least one processing unit configured with software instructions that enable autonomous self-loading of the cart into a vehicle. The processing unit receives signals from the at least one sensor and providing command signals to any of the wheel motors, the at least one carrier actuator, the front leg actuators, and the rear leg actuators.