Single-Shoulder Carrying Device with Counterweight Balance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing shoulder-mounted carrying devices require hand intervention to balance and often interfere with surroundings due to their wide profile, as they extend outwardly from the neck, rather than being designed for single shoulder use without external stabilization.
Innovation Solution
A shoulder-mounted carrying device with elongated front and back members extending perpendicular to the body, featuring a hinge mechanism for collapse and clip attachments for securing packages, allowing for balanced single-shoulder use without hand intervention, and adjustable to accommodate unequal weights.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a yoke device extends outwardly from the neck with opposed ends, then it can carry substantially equal weighted loads on both sides, but it creates a wide profile that causes interference with surroundings to the left and right sides
Solution Approach 1:
The invention reorients the carrying device from a side-to-side configuration (extending laterally from the neck) to a front-to-back configuration (extending along the longitudinal axis of the body). The front end extends forward from the shoulder and the back end extends backward, eliminating the wide lateral profile while maintaining the ability to carry equal-weighted loads at opposite ends.
2Area of stationary object
If a carrying device rests upon a single shoulder with front and back extending portions, then it can reduce interference with surroundings, but it requires hand grip to properly balance the device
Solution Approach 1:
The device incorporates a back end portion that extends backward from the shoulder with a weight or counterbalancing element. This counterweight creates a balanced moment around the shoulder contact point, allowing the front end to extend forward without requiring hand grip for stabilization. The counterbalancing element offsets the weight of the load carried at the front end.
3Stability of the object's composition
If a yoke wraps around the back of the person's neck with elongated portions, then it can provide stable support for carried loads, but it cannot be interchanged between shoulders and requires neck contact
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of wrapping around the back of the neck as in traditional yokes, the invention inverts the support configuration by resting the device forward on the shoulder itself. The front end extends forward from the shoulder and the back end extends backward, with the pivot point at the shoulder rather than the neck. This inversion allows the device to be interchangeably positioned on either shoulder while maintaining stability.
Data Source
AI summary
An article carrying device is provided for balancing upon a single shoulder of a person. The device includes front and back extended end members having a plurality of clips provided along middle and distal portions of the ends members. The clips secure packages to the article carrying device such that when packages of equal weights are attached to both ends of the carrying device, the device balances upon the shoulder of the person and does not require human hand intervention to maintain its position. The article carrying device is interchangeable and can be employed on either shoulder of the person. A hinge mechanism can be provided at an apex of the device for permitting the collapse of said device for transport or storage when not is use.