Slidable Ceiling Fixture Hangers with Rotatable Brackets
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional ceiling fixtures require fixed-length bar hangers that must be cut to size, making it difficult and hazardous for workers to attach them to ceiling beams, as they need to balance on a ladder while holding the fixture and hammering nails.
Innovation Solution
The use of slidable bar hangers with adjustable lengths and rotatable press fit mounting brackets allows for easier installation, enabling workers to set the exact length and rotate the fixture into position safely, reducing the need to balance on a ladder.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If fixed-length bar hangers are used, then the mounting brackets can be conventionally fixed, but the difficulty in attaching the ceiling fixture to the ceiling beams increases and the installation process becomes hazardous
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the bar hangers adjustable in length rather than fixed. The bar hangers can be extended or retracted to match the distance between ceiling beams, allowing the fixture to be installed at various locations without requiring custom cutting or multiple pre-fabricated sizes. This dynamic adjustment capability resolves the contradiction by enabling easy operation during installation while maintaining simple manufacturing of standardized components.
2Device complexity
If fixed-length bar hangers are used, then the structural simplicity is maintained, but the time required for installation increases and worker safety is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustable bar hangers enable faster installation by eliminating the need for workers to cut hangers to size or to carefully balance on ladders while positioning fixed-length hangers. The dynamic adjustment mechanism allows quick adaptation to different beam spacings, significantly reducing installation time while maintaining relatively simple device structure through the use of telescoping or sliding mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies parameter changes by allowing the bar hanger length to be variable rather than fixed. This parameter adjustment enables the same standardized hanger component to fit various installation scenarios, improving productivity without requiring a complex array of different hanger sizes. The length parameter can be changed on-demand during installation to match the specific distance between ceiling beams.
3Adaptability or versatility
If fixed-length bar hangers must be cut to size, then the adaptability to different ceiling beam distances is reduced, but the manufacturing process remains simple
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustable bar hangers embody the universality principle by designing a single standardized hanger component that can serve multiple installation scenarios. Instead of manufacturing different fixed-length hangers for different beam spacings, the universal adjustable hanger can be configured to fit any distance between ceiling beams, greatly enhancing adaptability while keeping the manufacturing process simple and standardized.
Data Source
AI summary
An improved lightbulb ceiling fixture having a canister transversely affixed to a location of a canister frame, including two pairs of slidable bar hangers retained on respective opposite sides of the canister frame by retaining mechanisms located on each side of the frame. Each pair of slidable bar hangers includes an inner sliding bar hanger slidably inserted into an outer sliding bar hanger so that the overall length of the bar hanger can be readily adjusted and the length cut to a desired length without removing the hanger bar from the assembly. A bar hanger connecting member enables the exact overall length of the two bar hangers to be fixed at any desired lengthwise distance. Each assembly has a rotatable mounting bracket which supports an attaching, member, the rotatable mounting bracket on each respective assembly being oppositely disposed.